A Farewell to Arms: Outline of the Story

Frederick Henry, an American youth, volunteered to be an ambulance driver in the northern Italian war during World War I, during which he met Catherine Barclays, a British nurse. Henry was injured by a shell when he was on duty at the front line and was taken to Milan Hospital in the rear for medical treatment. Because of the shortage of nurses, Catherine also came to Milan, and they met again. This time, Henry found himself deeply in love with Miss Barclays.

During their stay in Milan for medical treatment, they fell in love and had a wonderful time. In the meantime, Catherine became pregnant. When Henry returned to the front line from injury, he found that the morale of the Italian army had fallen sharply, and there was a feeling of failure and despair everywhere. The German attack finally defeated the resistance of the Italian army, and the Italian army began to retreat; The soldiers were very excited and enthusiastic about the war. In front of a bridge, the front-line gendarmerie of the Italian army began to arrest officers who were so-called absent without leave, and none of them were spared, and Henry was unfortunately among them. By interrogating others, Henry jumped into the river and escaped execution.

He finally realized that his duty as a soldier had been washed away with the river. At this time, he has only one purpose, that is, to find Catherine, and then the two of them escape from the bitter sea of war. Henry came to Milan and found that Catherine had gone to a small holiday town on the border. After Henry found Catherine, the two met happily again. However, the subsequent pursuit by the Italian police forced them to flee to Switzerland. Henry and Catherine spent a happy time in Switzerland, but in the end, Catherine died in childbirth, leaving Henry alone in exile.

Extended information:

A Farewell to Arms is a novel written by American novelist ernest hemingway, which was first published on September 27th, 1929.

This work tells the story of Frederic Henry, an American youth, who volunteered to join the Red Cross to drive an ambulance in the late World War I to rescue the wounded in the northern front of Italy. During a mission, Henry was injured by a shell, and was carefully cared for by Catherine, a British nurse, during his convalescence in Milan Hospital. They fell in love. Henry returned to the front line after his injury, witnessed the cruel scenes of the war when the Italian troops retreated, resolutely left the army and fled to Switzerland after meeting Catherine. As a result, Catherine died in childbirth.

By describing their love, the work reveals the absurd and cruel nature of the war, and reflects the mutual killing between people in the war and the spiritual and emotional destruction caused by the war. ?

Creative background

1. Background of the times

At the beginning of the 2th century, the United States just experienced the First World War, and the whole society was full of turmoil and anxiety. At that time, people were full of fear of the ruthless and cruel war, and lost their previous passion and hope for the future life, and lost their confidence and belief in the new life in the future. They were like deer lost, and their eyes were full of confusion and helplessness. I can't find a glimmer of light in my heart. At that time, this generation of young people was called "the generation of fans", and their mental outlook was very bad, just like the description, full of confusion.

2. Personal background

A Farewell to Arms is an autobiographical novel. The first draft was written in 1922. Unfortunately, the manuscript was stolen by thieves in Paris and had to be re-created and published in 1929. From 1922 to 1929, apart from publishing the novel The Sun Also Rises, he got married twice. His father suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes, but the treatment was ineffective and he shot himself. These changes have made him feel that life is changeable, as if a crisis of destruction lurks at any time and place.

He was injured in wartime. He once took out hundreds of shrapnel from his body. He suffered from insomnia for a long time. When he went to bed at night, he had to light a lamp. After falling asleep, he was tortured by nightmares, and his old illness broke out. He lost control of his reason and could not stop his anxiety and fear. Because he has repeatedly thought about the experience of the First World War and has a keen and thorough understanding of general things, he often devoted his feelings and experiences to artistic creation. For example, in the second part of A Farewell to Arms, he described his rural life in Switzerland as a paradise, which is his life experience after his first marriage.

Another example is Catherine's dystocia, which is also the personal experience of his second wife's dystocia. She gave birth to her second son by caesarean section. Hemingway is a representative writer of the lost generation after the First World War. These people are pessimistic, skeptical and desperate. They volunteered to join the army, and during the war, most of their bodies and minds suffered irreparable trauma. They doubt everything, hate everything, despise rhetoric, hate reason, and deny almost all traditional values. They think that life is dark and full of injustice and violence. In short, all thoughts are hopeless and everything is empty.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-A Farewell to Arms (Hemingway's novel)