Farewell To Arms Symbols

Matt Nagler Independent Book Essay
11/9/14 A Farewell to Arms The novel A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway, is the story of Lieutenant Frederic Henry during his duties in World War 1.Frederic is a young American who serves as an ambulance driver for the italian army. Even though Frederic is a man of the army he detaches himself from the ideas of faith, honor, and patriotism. He falls in love with a beautiful women named Catherine Barkley. Catherine Barkley is grieving the loss of her fiance when she first meets Frederic Henry. After playing various games of seduction Frederic begins to pronounce his love for her, only to be thrown back into combat. Catherine and Frederic

Throughout the story many symbols are used by Ernest Hemingway. One symbol that is used is rain. While Catherine and Henry sit in bed listening to the rain, Catherine gives meaning to the weather. She says the rain brings her fear and says that it has a habit to ruin things for lovers. Her fear proves to become true at the end of the story even though the weather has no actual power to affect people. At the end of the story Catherine goes into labor with Frederic’s son. Their son however is born stillborn. Shortly after the birth of the stillborn baby Catherine dies of a hemorrhage. While trying to say his final goodbye to Catherine, Frederic says, “It was like saying good-by to a statue. After a while I went out and left the hospital and walked back to the hotel in the rain.” (P.355)The rain at the end of the story confirms Catherines original fears. With these thoughts somewhere in his mind Frederic is unable to say a true goodbye. He compares it to speaking to a statue. The way Hemingway connects these two events from completely different parts of the book makes the reader think deeply about both of these events. Furthermore the symbolism of rain contributes to a central meaning in the book great love, like everything else on the planet can’t last. The symbolism contributes to the meaning by showing how the rain doesn’t last, just like the love doesn’t last when Catherine passes away. The use of symbolism in A

Throughout the whole story one can see the love that Catherine and Frederic have for each other. The person who reads this novel roots for Frederic and Catherine to workout the whole story. At the end the reader thinks it will finally work between them. Catherine will give birth to a baby and they will get married and live happily ever after. However, just as quickly as this idea seems possible it is ripped away from the reader. Catherine gives birth to a stillborn boy instead of a healthy baby. To make matters even worse she dies shortly after from a hemorrhage. This ending leaves the reader feeling empty. The reader feels this way because they can truly feel the sorrow that Catherine and Frederic feel themselves at the end of the story. When speaking their last words to each other Catherine and Frederic say, “‘Don't worry, darling,’ Catherine said. ‘I'm not a bit afraid. It's just a dirty trick.’ ‘You dear, brave sweet.’[Frederic]” (P.354). Catherine is saying that love is all just a dirty trick and the events in the story would make it seem that way to Catherine. First in events before we meet Catherine her fiance dies. Then she falls in love with Frederic just to have him separated from her by the war. Soon after her son is lost at birth. Lastly she loses her love Frederic to her own death. In turn Frederic loses the woman he loves and his son within the same night. The