A Study in Contrast The views of Catherine Barkley and Brett Ashley in their perspective classes

A detailed Summary of A Study in Contrast The views of Catherine Barkley and Brett Ashley in their perspective classes

The views of Catherine Barkley and Brett Ashley in their perspective classes

During the early 1900's, after the death of Queen Victoria, the European world went through a great change under the influence of the Free Women's movement and WWI. It was a time of great confusion, women were faced with choices unheard of before, and having to fight against what they had been taught their entire lives. Characters like Brett Ashley from Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises "presented the image of the short-skirted, shimmying, seductive, sleek femininity promising unprecedented freedom for the twentieth-century." Others characters like Catherine Barkley, A Farewell to Arms, presented a more conservative Victorian way of life, akin to a male dominant world. These, Hemingway's most famous female characters, are reflective in their contrast to the decaying Victorian society of the 1800's and the feminist movement of the early 1900's.

Hemmingway's attempt to create the perfect wife through Catherine, may have in fact been too successful, as he leaves the reader questioning whether she "is too idealistic, too selflessly loving and giving to be believed as a character." This is no truer than at the hospital after

- Copy right, Library of congress, 1971

- First edition published 1952, by Princeton University press.

- Critical Essays on Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms,

Catherine informs Frederic (Tenente), that she is pregnant her only concern becomes his happiness despite his constant pleas that he is in fact happy about the pregnancy. This is only overshadowed by her constant reassurances that she will be a "good girl", never failing to apologize hastily for any momentary lapse in judgement. In fact, Catherine never fails to support Frederic for any of the risks he takes with his health, through drinking or the operation. While this submissive support for Frederic may seem surreal, it actually reflects the women of the Victorian era. The concepts of Victorianism are in no way supportive of Catherine's realism; they only provide a potential reason for her surreal personality.

Though primarily diverse, the pre and post 1900 societies shared some of the issues surrounding war and revolution. This changing period in time showed the turn of a new generation of women whose labors and decisions became valuable through war. Through jobs like nursing, women like Catherine were able to experience a new feeling of purpose, and yet still retain the beliefs that gave them a feeling of safety. Consequently, the slow decline of Victorian beliefs due to the women's movement gave women like Brett the chance to experience the world in ways unheard of before such as the bull fights and the chance to choose their suitor. The evolutionary gap between the Victorian society and the society of today may be smaller than it seems, many of the positive beliefs in family and commitment were retained from that time as seen through Catherine. Brett on the other hand shows where the lack of freedom has gone and where the choice for women now remains.

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Approximate Word count = 1460
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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