Show how The Sun Also Rises reflects some of the problems left behind by the First World War .

World War - I undercut traditional notions of morality,faith and justice. The generation is no longer able to rely on the traditional beliefs that gave life meaning. The men and women who experienced the war became psychologically and morally lost and they wandered aimlessly in a world that appeared meaningless. Jake, Brett and their acquaintances give dramatic life to this situation. Because they no longer believe in anything, their lives are empty. They fill their time with inconsequential and escapist activities, such as drinking,dancing and debauchery.



World War - I forced a radical re-evaluation of what it meant to be masculine. The pre-war ideal of the brave,stoic soldier had little relevance in the context of brutal trench warfare that characterized the war. While Jake's condition is the most explicit example of weakened masculinity in the novel, it is certainly not the only one. All of the veterans feel insecure in their manhood. Again, Hemingway does not state this fact directly, but rather shows it in the way Jake and his veteran friends react to Cohn. They target Cohn in particular for abuse when they see him engaging in "unmanly" behavior such as following Brett around. They cope with their fears of being weak and unmasculine by criticizing the weakness they see in him.


Sex is a powerful and destructive force. Sexual jealousy, for example, leads Cohn to violate his code of ethics and attack Jake,Mike and Romero. Furthermore, the desire for sex prevents Brett from entering into a relationship with Jake, although she loves him. Hence, sex undermines both Cohn's honor and Jake and Brett's love. Brett is closely associated with the negative consequences of sex. She is a liberated woman, having sex with multiple men and feeling no compulsion to commit to any of them. Her carefree sexuality makes Jake and Mike miserable and drives Cohn to acts of violence. In Brett, Hemingway may be expressing his own anxieties about strong,sexually independent women.


The conversations between Jake and his friends are rarely direct or honest. They hide true feelings behind a mask of civility. Although the legacy of the war torments them all, they are unable to communicate this torment. They can talk about the war only in an excessively humorous or painfully trite fashion. An example of the latter occurs when Georgette and Jake have dinner and Jake narrates that they would probably have gone on to agree that the war "would have been better avoided" if they were not fortunately interrupted.


Nearly all of Jake's friends are alcoholics. Wherever they happen to be, they drink, usually to excess. Often, their drinking provides a way of escaping reality. Drunkenness allows Jake and his acquaintances to endure lives severely lacking in affection and purpose. Hemingway clearly portrays the drawbacks to this excessive drinking. The generation thinks that drinking alcohols can be a relaxing, friendship-building, even healthy activity.


False friendships relate closely to failed communication. Many of the friendships in the novel have no basis in affection. For instance, Jake meets a bicycle team manager and the two have a drink together. They enjoy a friendly conversation and make plans to meet the next morning. Jake, however, sleeps through their meeting, having no regard for the fact that he will never see the man again. Jake and Cohn demonstrate another, still darker type of false friendship.