Ernest Hemingway's writing to me can be compared to that of someone with terrible handwriting. One could be the best student, have all A's, SGA President, and a great personal life. But, something about that terrible handwriting of Johnny Appleseed's leaves people doubting, critiquing, and judging. The same can be said of Hemingway's novels, especially The Sun Also Rises. Hemingway is known for being "the voice of the lost generation" (Hemingway 181) and this book backs up this common belief. The lost generation, ranging from the early 1910s to late 1920s, was a type where this expatriate himself lived an aimless lifestyle. Often times jumping from activity to activity with no real purpose or goal in sight. In addition, his writing style itself has always been known for use of freight train sentences, very vivid descriptions of nature, as well as vigorous English and often times positive light shed on most situations. For example, the first paragraph of Chapter III in The Sun Also Rises reads as follows:
"It was a warm spring night and I sat at a table on the terrace of the Napolitain after Robert had gone, watching it get dark and the electric signs come on, and the red and green stop-and-go traffic signal, and the crowd going by, and the horse cabs clipety-clopping along the edge of the solid taxi traffic, and the poules going by, singly and in pairs, looking for the evening meal” (Hemingway 17).
Notice in this paragraph especially the long, dragged on sentences as well as incorporation of very useless information such as the horses or electric signs. Also, language used in onomatopoeia's like "clipety clopping" make this passage and many others throughout the book very unique and different to the literary world.
Another fun and entertaining part of Hemingway's writing style is the use of often times witty and comical dialogue. Characters such as Jake and Bill in The Sun Also Rises often engage in sarcastic commentary with one another or even engage in entertaining trash talking scenarios. For example, when Jake finds himself down after hearing about Cohn's affair with Brett, Bill cheers him up in one of my favorite passages of the book saying "Listen. You’re a hell of a good guy, and I’m fonder of you than anybody on earth. I couldn’t tell you that in New York. It’d mean I was a faggot. That was what the Civil War was about. Abraham Lincoln was a faggot. He was in love with General Grant. So was Jefferson Davis. Lincoln just freed the slaves on a bet. The Dred Scott case was framed by the Anti-Saloon League. Sex explains it all. The Colonol’s Lady and Judy O’Grady are lesbians under their skin” (Hemingway 89). Not only is this dialogue comical, but it also again portrays Hemingway's unique freight train sentence structure as well as positive light in almost any situation.
All in all, despite harsh critiques of Hemingway's newspaper-esque writing style, I find myself a fan of his works and his overall message in many of his novels as well as the entertainment these narratives bring to readers.
Example Piece: "Why do you have to be such a prude all the time?" asked Gerald, "Everyone else at this party is playing spin the bottle, why won't you ever play Roger?" Poor Roger was clearly intimidated, as Gerald's girlfriend Melissa had been his crush since the 3rd Grade. And, with Gerald being the school bully, Roger felt often threatened by his snark comments and only ever longed for the personal attention of Melissa herself.
Melissa was a 4.0 student, Harvard bound, for lacrosse, and on this night she had her hair up in a bun and looked absolutely stunning as Roger watched her from across the hall, eating his pizza in the warm party atmosphere.
What Gerald didn't know was that Melissa went to John's house three times a week, they would watch Netflix's Walking Dead and jump into each others arms at the scary parts. How did Roger know this? Well, being Melissa's neighbor his whole life and living in city style connected homes, often times one would see their neighbors using the restroom from just outside the dining room. This far fetched, nonexistent bond between Melissa and Roger would only grow more awkward with the playing of Justin Bieber and the frantic yelling of Gerald's mother as the party persisted.
