Analysis on the theme of the novel "A Farewell to Arms" A Farewell to Arms Theme

As the winner of the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for Literature and the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature, Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) is recognized as one of the best American writers of the 20th century. His outstanding feature lies in expressing profound themes through a concise telegraphic style and creating a unique Hemingway style. The author will use linguistics as a research method to analyze the themes of desire, war, and mourning contained in "A Farewell to Arms" through specific discourses. It aims to analyze the discourse of characters from all walks of life in the novel and compare the changes in the source language in different contexts to reveal the anti-war theme of the novel.

1. Expressing the theme of war weariness by quoting poetry and the Bible

Hemingway's careful choice of words can be seen from his consideration of the title of the novel "A Farewell to Arms" . After discarding 32 proposed titles, Hemingway found the novel's title - "A Farewell to Arms" - from the title of a poem by George Peale. Different from George Peale's exploration of the theme of love, the title of Hemingway's novel uses a rhetorical technique of semantic pun to reveal the fact that there is no so-called glory and honor on the battlefield, and love will eventually die. The title of the novel can be understood as either "Farewell to Arms" or "Farewell to Love". The title of the novel makes the theme of war and desire appear vividly on the page. American novelist Fitzgerald once said: "A writer's writing style is often reflected in the grammatical sentence patterns and word choices he likes to use, both of which are equally important. Word choice is a deeper language perspective that can both deepen Existing viewpoints can also provide new perspectives. "Word choice and sentence construction complement each other, making literary works shine with new brilliance."

Hemingway wrote to the Russian literary critic Ivan Kashkin in 1939: "We all know that war is bad, and yet sometimes people have to fight. But war is terrible, and any denial of it Anyone who says this is lying." In the novel "A Farewell to Arms", the protagonist's view of the war gradually changes from a bystander to an evader and opponent. This change can be seen from Hemingway's precise wording. , poetry, and biblical quotations.

Take the protagonist Frederick Henry (hereinafter referred to as Henry) as an example. At first, he still had illusions about World War I, thinking that war and death were far away from him. Henry's impression of the war in the spring of 1917 was vague, more like a bystander. Hemingway uses the "maybe" subjunctive three times in the monologue to portray Henry's uncertainty about war and death.

After Henry was injured on the front line, he lived in a nursing home in Milan for rehabilitation treatment. After recovering from the injury, Henry had to return to the front line. Just before setting off for the train station, he lamented to his lover Catherine:

I can always hear the sound of the time carriage coming from behind

> ("A Farewell to Arms", page 158)

Hemingway vividly depicts Henry's attachment to Catherine by quoting the poet Andrew Marvell's poem "To a Cunning Lover" . It is obvious that Henry's attitude towards the war has changed from previous indifference to disgust. The war is no longer something that has nothing to do with him, but a cruel torture that separates him from his lover. His reluctance to return to the army hints at his dilemma between love and war.

When Catherine made fun of Henry, she also quoted literary works. She laughs at Henry as "unemployed Othello." ("A Farewell to Arms", page 260) When Henry saw through the cruel nature of war and fled the army, he found that he had nothing: his military rank and income were lost because he was away from the war. "Othello" is one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies. Through Catherine's lines, Hemingway foreshadowed the tragic ending of "A Farewell to Arms" by analogy, condemning the destruction of human nature by war.

In addition to quoting poetry and literary works, Hemingway also quoted a large number of biblical allusions in "A Farewell to Arms" to reflect on the devastation of war on the human soul. Italian military doctor Rinaldi, Henry's roommate, vents the stress of doing too many surgeries by drinking and having fun. The following is the dispute between Leonardi and the priest:

"Why do you eat meat? Don't you know that today is Friday and you should fast?" Leonardi said to the priest.

"Today is Thursday." The pastor replied.

"You lied, it's Friday. You're eating the body of Jesus, the flesh of God.

I know, this is the meat of Austrian soldiers, this is what you eat. "

("A Farewell to Arms", page 176)

As we all know, Italy is a Roman Catholic country, and Roman Catholics should fast on Friday. Although the priest defended "Today "Thursday", but Leonardi still picked quarrels and caused trouble. It can be seen that the war has degenerated the optimistic and humorous doctor into a paper tiger who attacks vulnerable compatriots for fun.

Chapter 26 of the New Testament of the Bible records the disciple Peter's The story of the garden's attempt to save Jesus from the Romans but his rejection was in sharp contrast to the priest's Roman Catholic fatalism, which placed his hope in God, while Henry believed otherwise. We should passively accept the destiny and fight for a better life. Hemingway loved reading the Bible and often cited biblical allusions in his writing. Dong Hemingway believed that "Hemingway drew on the writing characteristics of the Bible: straightforward expressions. , unpretentious; use less adjectives and adverbs to modify; simple sentence structure; use concrete and vivid words instead of abstract words. ”

In short, the purpose of Hemingway quoting poetry, literary works and the Bible in "A Farewell to Arms" is not to increase the literary grace of the novel, but to strengthen the condemnation of the destruction of human nature by war through word selection.

2. Revealing the cruel nature of war through professional terms

As an excellent war-themed novel, "A Farewell to Arms" contains many articles related to weapons, military ranks, first aid, and medical treatment. The technical terminology in the novel helps readers to truly feel the smoke-filled battlefield and better examine the bloody nature of the war.

Before Henry was injured, he was in the trenches with four people. The mechanic discusses the specifications of the artillery shell:

"420 diameter mortar. "Jia Woods said.

"There are no 420-diameter mortars in mountainous areas. "I said.

"The enemy has a large Skoda machine gun, and I have seen bullet holes. "

"305 diameter. "

("Farewell to Arms", pp. 58-59)

If you don't check a professional dictionary, I am afraid that few people know that "mortar" is the German spelling. "Skoda" was the name of a Czech arsenal during World War I, which was transformed into an automobile manufacturing plant after the war. "420" and "305" describe the diameter of the artillery shell. Hemingway uses precise and objective military terms to create a sense of immersion for the reader. The atmosphere of the scene, and the tense war environment experienced with the protagonist, produced a sense of excitement. This writing technique was also used in the chapter describing the retreat of Kapu Retu. Because the description of the defeated retreat was too realistic and depressing, World War II During the period, the Italian fascist government even banned the publication of the novel "A Farewell to Arms". This is another example of Hemingway's precise portrayal of war scenes achieving perfect results.

As the products of war, injuries, surgeries and deaths are the result. Inevitably, the cruelty of war is vividly expressed through the medical terminology used by the doctor when the protagonist undergoes surgery in a field hospital.

"There are multiple skin abrasions on the left thigh, right thigh, left knee, right knee, and right foot. hurt. The right knee and right foot were seriously injured. Scalp lacerations...possible skull fractures. Please get your tetanus shot and make cross marks on your legs. Thanks. I clean the surface of the wound first, then rinse it, and then bandage it. The scab on your wound is healing well. It's best not to drink too much brandy. If you break a bone, no one wants the wound to become inflamed.