The Hemingway code embodies principles that govern the actions of Hemingway's main protagonists in his novels. They are "rules which if completed would become...the manual of conduct" (Waldhorn 26). As Arthur Waldhorn says "the Hemingway code does not ask that a hero be fearless or entertain illusions about refuge or escape. But it insists that he discipline and control his dread and, above all, that he behave with unobtrusive though unmistakable dignity" (26). "The code that does concern Hemingway and his tyros is the process of learning how to make one's passive vulnerabilities (to the dangers and unpredictabilities of life) into a strong rather than weak position, and how to exact the maximum amount of reward (honor, dignity) out of these encounters" (Rovit 92). In advance, a character knows what is expected of him in the game of life, although he do

This year, 1999, marks the one-hundredth year since the birth of Hemingway. Because of this anniversary, Hemingway's greatness as an American writer is being especially celebrated this year. The two works considered in this paper- The Sun Also Rises and The Old Man and The Sea- are representative examples of his greatness. They not only tell interesting stories but they treat an important human theme - the hero code.

I thought I had paid for everything. Not like the woman pays and pays. No idea of retribution or punishment. Just exchange of values. You gave up something and got something else. Or you worked for something. You paid some way for everything that was any good. I paid my way into enough things that I liked, so that I had a good time. Either you paid by learning about them, or by experience, or by taking chances, or by money. Enjoying living was learning to get your money's worth and knowing when you had it. You could get your money's worth. The world was a good place to buy in. It seemed like a fine philosophy. In five years, I thought, it will seem just as silly as all the other fine philosophies I've had.

"That too has a place in my values."

Not only must Hemingway's hero face the unpredictablilities of life with honor and dignity, but he must also face the challenges alone. "Each man faces his struggle alone...for only as solitary individuals can they assert their manhood" (Weeks 165). Robert Weeks states that a man must depend upon himself alone in order to assert his manhood, and the assertion of his manhood, in the face of insuperable obstacles, is the complete end and justification of his existence for the Hemingway hero (164). While alone man can make promises to himself but if he fails he must be able to forgive himself for his mistakes and inadequacies (Rovit 97). If a man becomes unable to forgive himself for his past actions, he will become obsessed with them, resulting in the loss of his freedom to begin anew. His forgiveness liberates him from the past and allows him to make new promises in the future (97).

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2334
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)