The War Within: Internal Struggles In Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises

Abstract

This article will examine how the novel The Sun Also Rises depicts the unseen wounds and scars caused by World War I. Ernest Miller Hemingway stands as a premier first-hand chronicler of life entwined with war, owing to his direct encounters with conflict and his avant-garde approach to articulating these encounters. Not only did the war change the borders of many countries, it also changed the lives of the people who lived there immensely. The “Lost Generation” comprises those who emerged from World War I, marked by disorientation and aimlessness due to the war’s aftermath. Stories of hopeless lives and helpless loves are woven throughout the book, mirroring Hemingway’s personal experience with the fallout from the war. The characters, who represent the war’s fallout, show how empty life was during that time. Set in the 1920’s, the narrative follows expatriates whose moral compasses are adrift. Their lives lack purpose, leading them to wander aimlessly between locales in search of meaning. This paper uses existential philosophy to show how the war hurt people emotionally in ways that can't be seen. Existential philosophy is a way of thinking that asks how to live a meaningful life in a world that often seems confusing and pointless.