Now that we have finished The Sun Also Rises, Jake's amusing first impression has now turned to a masterful show of Hemingway's beautiful craft. We, the readers now armed with an understanding of the beautiful depth and the dynamics between the characters, will feel a tug in the heartstrings, rereading the first chapter as I did.
In the very beginning description of Cohn and his boxing title there is the subtle undertone of bitterness, mixed with the condescending voice, leaving an impression of inferiority. All these elements now make perfect sense in the context of the whole novel. The fact that Jake feels insecure, and has a sort of inferiority complex at Cohn, was firmly established in Chapters 3 and 4. We learn about the reasons behind why Jake is unable to have a stable romantic relationship with Brett, which explains the sort of bitterness Jake feels, because Jake believes Cohn to be a sort of non-masculine guy, as he is a Jew, a man that is always dragged along and pushed around by the women in his life, but Cohn is able to have a realistic chance to be in a romantic relationship with Brett while Jake cannot. All of this was established pretty early in the novel, and accounted for a large part in truly understanding the true purpose of the first chapter.
However, if we delve a little deeper, it gets a little more interesting. From the first chapter, Jake states that "I rather quite liked him..." (15), and throughout the book, although it is clear that Jake dislikes Cohn's advances on Brett, Jake still cares about Cohn no matter his condescending attitude towards him. In Chapter 15, Jake is the only one who notices during the party that Cohn is missing and really tries to seek him out to check on him. I think that this is in large part because Jake sees a lot of himself in Cohn.
I think that Cohn's character represents what Jake is not, what Jake could've been. Jake obviously believes himself to be above Cohn in some sort of convoluted way, and that's why it hurts him more when he knows that he will never have the sort of relationship with Brett that Cohn is able to have. However, I think that Jake sees a lot of himself in Cohn, and perhaps believes that he would've been like Cohn if he had been untouched by the war. Even Jake himself says at one point that he would probably be worse than the way that Cohn and Mike behaves if he were them (which Brett quickly dismisses as "rot"). However, since Jake can never be like Cohn or Mike, I think that he formed himself to be the "stoic" character that he is so that he could stay by Brett's side. If he didn't play the part of emotional support for Brett, for what other reason would Brett still be by him?
The whole novel is written by Jake who recounts the events in retrospect, and I think that the he started the first chapter with Cohn to introduce, represent and contrast with himself, someone in his life that he kind of, weirdly, sort of admired kind of. Like in the bro-y, 'I'm not gay man' way.
I definitely think that it’s possible Jake is making himself seem more stoic than he actually was because he thinks it makes him look better. I like the idea that Jake’s stoicism (or perceived need to seem stoic) is more of a reaction to his situation than just the way he naturally is. There are points in the book, for example when he’s around Bill but not the others, that he seems a little less stoic than normal, which supports the idea that it’s not just the way he naturally is. I’m not sure if he’s trying to be stoic to protect his relationship with Brett though because the moments where he seems most emotionally vulnerable happen when he’s around her.
ReplyDeleteOMG this relates to my panel presentation!! I think that Cohn is a projection of some of Jake's inner most feelings. Cohn is often feels as the social outcast, and oftentimes Jake feels like the outcast because of his inability to have a sexual relationship. Jake also feels for Cohn's insecurities because he can see a lot of his own insecurities in Cohn. This can also explain why Jake is so sympathetic to Cohn. Great Post!
ReplyDeleteI completely forgot the fact that Jake is narrating this after all of this has happened. Thinking about the novel in this context adds a whole different dynamic to all of his descriptions, especially Cohn (as you mentioned). From the beginning, there seem to be hints of anti-semitism in Jake's descriptions and just an overall dislike of Cohn. I thought initially that this was because they were so close as friends and they were understanding of each other insults one another, but perhaps this was a distasteful feeling from Jake.
ReplyDeleteYour point that Jake is forming a stoic character for himself because of his insecurities makes perfect sense. You also make really good points about Jake and Cohn. You point out that Jake feels bitter towards Cohn because he reflects what Jake can't be. Something I didn't really think about was that Jake did care for Cohn more than the other characters. You pointing out that Jake looked for Cohn during the fiesta was really revealing for Jake's level of concern with Cohn. Your explanation for this (that Jake sees much of himself in Cohn) makes a lot of sense. Overall really insightful post.
ReplyDeleteI really like your idea of rereading the first chapter after finishing the book. There are so many small details, like Jake's subtle ridicule of Cohn, that really sets the stage for the rest of the novel. I think in a lot of ways Jake relates to Cohn, but on the other hand still thinks of Cohn as being lesser than him. It was interesting when you talked about how Jake is always the one to look out for Cohn, and eventually forgives him for everything that he does, and it ties in nicely with the rest of your points.
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