John Stubbs'
essay is an examination of the defense which he believes Henry and Catherine
use to
protect
themselves from the discovery of their insignificance and
"powerlessness...in a world
indifferent to
their well being..." He asserts that "role-playing" by the two
main characters, and
several others in
the book, is a way to escape the realization of human mortality which is
unveiled
by war. Stubbs
thinks that Hemingway utilized role-playing as a way to "explore the
strengths and
weaknesses of his
two characters." Stubbs says that by placing Henry's ordered life in
opposition
to Catherine's
topsy-turvy one, and then letting each one assume a role which will bring them
closer together,
Hemingway shows the pair's inability to accept "the hard, gratuitous
quality of life."
Stubbs begins by
showing other examples, notably in In Our Time and The Sun Also Rises, in
which Hemingway's
characters revert to role-playing in order to escape or retreat from their
lives.
The ability to
create characters who play roles, he says, either to "maintain
self-esteem" or to
escape, is one
Hemingway exploits extraordinarily well in A Farewell to Arms and therefore it
"is
his richest and
most successful handling of human beings trying to come to terms with their
vulnerability."
As far as Stubbs
is concerned, Hemingway is quite blatant in letting us know that role-playing
is
what is
occurring. He tells that the role-playing begins during Henry and Catherine's
third
encounter, when
Catherine directly dictates what is spoken by Henry. After this meeting the two
become
increasingly comfortable with their roles and easily adopt them whenever the
other is
nearby. This is
apparent also in that they can only successfully play their roles when they are
in
private and any
disturbance causes the "game" to be disrupted. The intrusion of the
outside world
in any form makes
their role-playing impossible, as evidenced at the race track in Milan, where
they must be
alone. The people surrounding them make Catherine feel uncomfortable and Henry
has to take her
away from the crowd. He goes on to describe how it is impossible for them to
play
the roles when
they are apart and how they therefore become more dependent upon each other's
company.
Stubbs goes on to
explain how, "neither mistakes role-playing for a truly intimate
relationship, but
both recognize
that it can be a useful device for satisfying certain emotional needs." He
says that
originally Henry
and Catherine are playing the "game" for different reasons but
eventually move to
play it as a
team. Henry is role-playing to regain the sense of order he has lost when he
realizes the
futility of the
war and his lack of place in it. Catherine is role-playing to deal with the
loss of her
fiance and to try
to find order in the arena of the war. When they are able to role-play
together,
"the promise
of mutual support" is what becomes so important to them as they try to
cope with
their individual
human vulnerability.
He also analyzes
the idyllic world introduced early in the story by the priest at the mess and
later
realized by Henry
and Catherine in Switzerland. They fall fully into their roles when they row
across the lake
on their way to their idealized world. The fact that they actually are able to
enter
this make-believe
world strengthens their "game" and allows it to continue longer than
it would
have otherwise.
And once they are in this new world they adopt new roles which allow them to
continue their
ruse. They also need to work harder to maintain the "game" because
far from the
front they are
both still aware the war is proceeding and they are no longer a part of it. The
world
in which they
exist in reality (!) is not conducive to role-playing because it tries
repeatedly to end
their
"game".
Stubbs manages to
uncover numerous instances in which the two are role-playing and he makes a
very interesting
case that this is exactly what they are doing and not just his imagination
reading
into the story.
He does make certain assumptions, that their love is not "real", that
the characters
are searching for
order, which are not completely justified or even necessary to prove his point.
He also forces an
intentionality upon Hemingway which could have been avoided without harming
his theory.
Towards the end of the essay Stubbs infers that their role-playing is
"inferior to true
intimacy,"
which is a point that, although he defends well, is not central to his theory
and seems to
detract from his
objectivity.
The essay is a
valuable tool to help the reader understand this view of what is happening
through
Henry and
Catherine's relationship and how they use each other to maintain their
self-images,
provide
themselves with psychological support, and in a way escape the war. Hemingway
may not
have been trying
to purposely create a role-playing scenario, but Stubbs' essay will benefit
someone wishing
to explore this aspect of the relationship of the two main characters in
greater
depth.
Bibliography:
Bruccoli, Matthew
J. and Clark, C.E. Frazer (ed.), Fitzgerald / Hemingway Annual 1973, pp.
271-284, Microcard Editions Books,
Washington, D.C.,
1974
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