Comparative Paper of William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway
In the history of American literature there have been many great novels. To write a good novel there must be a great author who knows how to manipulate words and phrases to set a mood or feeling that lets the reader understand how the characters feel on a more personal level. These authors grab the attention of readers by expressing their thoughts through theme and style. Style gives an insight into the author's thoughts and how he/she wants the reader to interpret these thoughts. The theme of a novel lets the reader know how the author wants to portray these thoughts. Some authors styles and themes are similar while others vary tremendously. Great authors whose style and theme allowed people to understand who and what was being written are Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner. In a comparison of two great writers it will be shown how styles and themes parallel and differ while still telling stories. A writer often allows us to understand their feelings by creating their presence in a character of their story. William Cuthbert Faulkner (1897-1962) shows his feelings in the novel by using himself as the character Darl Bundren in the novel "As I Lay Dying." Ernest Miller Hemingway (1899-1961) also allows the reader to see
Both of these authors lived in the same time period. This allowed for both books to be about things that were going on at the same time but in different places. Faulkner wrote about a family of poor white people that's faced hard times while Hemingway wrote about a soldier who was unsure of where he belonged. The themes of these novels are different however both deal with the struggles that people faced during the 1900's. Both authors accurately portrayed the lives their views of the world while maintaining their own styles. Although both novels have more than one classification of genre, they can both considered romance novels. Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms," can be said to be about a young couple falling in love and the problems surrounding their unity. In Faulkner's novel, this romance can be interpreted as the love that Addie has for her son Jewel. Although the love between Addie and Jewel isn't a physical love like that of Catherine Barkely and Frederic Henry, it is a love that creates a feeling and a separation from the rest of the story. Another similarity that the authors portray is that the main characters in the novels are trying to find themselves. Frederic Henry of "A Farewell to Arms," is trying to find where he belongs as an American in the Italian army. His battle with himself goes on throughout most of the book. Also he is battling with his alcoholism which has become one of the biggest parts of his life. This idea of self-conflict is also seen in "As I Lay Dying." All of the characters in this novel are fighting with either there past or trying to find out where they belong. These issues lead to the slow deconstruction of a family at the
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Approximate Word count = 1136
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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