*Calling all literary sleuths, where else have you heard the term "a separate peace"? What does Lt. Henry mean when he says this?
Some other topics to consider:
*What does the bar operator offer to do? How does he help Henry?
*Who is Simmons and how does he help?
*How does Henry feel about life at this point?
*Is Henry still in danger? What must he do?
*Who is Count Greffi? Why did Hemingway include this scene?
*What kind of person is Emilio? How do you know?
*What happens when Catherine and Lt. Henry reach Switzerland?
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In book four, Henry is in danger of being arrested. Henry knows that he must find Catherine and then get to Switzerland. The night Henry and Catherine leave for Switzerland, the ever common rain once again appears. In my opinion the rain is a symbol of fear and earlier in the book an evercommen symbol of the loneliness that both Henry and Catherine are feeling. When Henry and Catherine row to Switzerland and it is storming, the mood is set by the rain making it more intense and altogether more suspenseful. Being that I read this book previously, i picked up on the fact that whenever Hemingway wants readers to see the fear or lonliness he always makes it rain and then describes everything in a very dreary manner, using words such as grey. When Henry and Catherine make it to Switzerland the mood changes very quickly to cheerful. Henry even makes a comment that Swiss rain is cheerful much different from the rain described in Italy.
ReplyDeleteIn Ernest Hemingway's, A Farewell to Arms, Henry is in danger of getting arrested because he is an Italian soldier out of uniform, who has not recieved permission by the army to leave. As a result, Henry must leave Italy and escape to Switzerland where there is peace. After Henry comes upon the police that are questioning generals and officers that have been separated from their armies and regiments, he realizes that if he does not escape then he will be shot to death. Henry makes a quick decision to run and jump into the river to prevent being killed. After floating in the river for a long while, Henry struggles to get out of the river and later catches a military train to Milan. Henry soon learns that Catherine and Miss Ferguson are in Stresa, so he travels to meet them there. In Stresa, Henry finds out from Emilio that he must go to Switzerland because he will be arrested if he doesn't. Because of this danger that Henry is in, he and Catherine make the long dangerous, but mandatory trip to Switzerland. Meanwhile, the symbol of rain is seen a lot in the trip to Switzerland. The rain symbolizes that even when all seems right, there can not be total happiness without a storm. In the trip to Switzerland, though Henry and Catherine may seem to be happy to leave Italy to be safe, they honestly are not that happy.
ReplyDeleteIn Ernest Hemingway's novel, A Farewell to Arms, the character of Simmons is depicted as a great and generous friend to Henry when he arrives in Milan. Simmons, an aspiring opera singer, is the first person that Henry goes to see in Milan. Henry asks Ralph Simmons for advice on traveling to Switzerland and for a pair of civilian clothes to travel in so that people will not be suspicious of him. Simmons, without question or suspicion, gives Henry the advice that he needs and the clothing that he asked for and convinces Henry not to go shopping for new clothes in the town because he will most likely get caught being out of uniform. Out of fear of getting arrested and possibly killed, Henry accepts the new clothes, but feels weird not being in the uniform he has been in for so long.
ReplyDeleteBook Four was another interesting chunk of A Farewell To Arms, starting with Simmons; who was one of the men Henry knew that was studying singing. Simmons was able to help Henry figure out the mechanics of going to Switzerland and how he would be treated there, and then Simmons helped Henry get civilians clothing so that he wouldn't be easily detected by the Italian military. At this point, Henry was feeling very lonely being apart from Catherine for so long and was on his way to Stresa. Despite Henry being lonely, he is able to find Catherine again in Stresa. However their happiness gets overshadowed by the risk of Henry being arrested, forcing them to then leave to Switzerland by rowing across the lake. The rain is back while they are on their journey to Switzerland, which really foreshadowed the bad things that were going to happen while in Switzerland. The rain was the warning sign of both the arrest when they finally got to Switzerland (though they were able to lie themselves out of that one) and the death of both Catherine and her baby.
ReplyDeleteI was happy when Henry and Catherine met up with each other once again. It is still very obvious that Ferguson does not like Henry at all. She tells Catherine that he has done nothing but ruin her with his sneaking Italian tricks. Despite Ferguson’s opinion, Catherine and Henry still love each other. When Henry wakes up one night due to the rainstorm, it was no surprise that something bad was going to take place. When Emilio tells Henry that he heard people talking about how they were going to arrest him, he offers to lend him his boat in order for Henry and Catherine to get away and go to Switzerland. Henry and Catherine leave and when they finally arrive in Switzerland they are both very relieved. Shortly after Henry and Catherine are finished eating breakfast, Henry is arrested. Fortunately, he is able to completely lie himself out of the arrest.
ReplyDeleteBook four was full of action more so than the others. His escape to Switzerland was quite intersting. The rain soaked boat ride added a little something to the story line. I had a big sigh of relief when they finally made it to the coast of Switzerland! However, when they were arrested I was nervous they would be sent back to Italy. Thankfully they weren't caught because that would have added even more drama to their already complicated lives.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading book four, Henry’s life changes, meaning that he wants nothing to do with the war and he wants to start a new life with Catherine. However, Henry is still in danger and he still tries to escape. The bartender warns Henry that the police will arrest him in the morning and he offers Henry and Catherine his boat to take to Switzerland. I could feel the tension during their escape because I wondered if they would ever make it to their destination. The symbol of rain brought a lot of fear to their escape.
ReplyDeleteHelen Ferguson's opinion about Catherine and Henry's relationship seems some what of a foreshadowing. In Ferguson's perspective, something so pure like love could not exist during a time of war, cruelty, and hate. The escape to Switzerland gave book four some excitement. I find it funny how it was raining while Henry and Catherine were on the boat, since it almost always rains when their together.
ReplyDeleteBook four was very entertaining to me. I think I felt this way because I disliked book three so much. It becomes blatantly obvious that some people do not like the ongoing war. This becomes clear with how Simmons, Emilio, and Count Greffi react towards Henry. They all try to help to help him in some way shape or form flee from the war. Henry and Catherine really begin discussing their future together in this book, and I really noticed how their love changed drastically from their first encounter. At first Catherine was no more than a crazy woman desperately seeking attention. Her character never really appealed to me until this book. She becomes a much more rounded character towards the end of the novel. I do think they will remain devoted to one another no matter where life takes them. I believe Henry feels guilty for leaving the front which is the reason why he refuses to read or discuss the war. The climax occurs in this novel when Catherine and Henry have to escape to Switzerland. Overall, this book pertained to the novel very well and I am excited to read what happens next.
ReplyDeleteI think I like the book better when Catherine is in it like in book four. It makes it more interesting and I actually want to find out what happens. In book four I've realized that Henry has a lot of friends that are willing to help him. He has had the priest, Rinaldi, and his men from the retreat. He also has Simmons, Emilio, and Count Greffi that he meets up with in book four. I think this shows that Henry is a well liked person that is generally kind to all. In return, he gets help from these people when he needs it the most. I agree that Henry was guilty about leaving the war so whenever anybody asked him about it he did not want to talk. I was a bit nervous as Catherine and Henry had to escape to Switzerland in the middle of the night. I felt bad for Fergy because they just left her back at the other hotel. Especially after her crazy freak out at dinner the night before. I'm glad Henry and Catherine made it somewhere safe where they can finally settle down and have a normal life. I think it's funny how Catherine hates the rain, but once she steps into Switzerland Henry says, "Isn't the rain fine? They never had rain like this in Italy. It's cheerful rain." I want to find out what happens with the baby and if they will be caught or not.
ReplyDeleteBook four seemed more interesting to me because Catherine was back in the picture. These scenes seem more interesting to me than the war parts. With book three talking only about the war and what was happening, book four was a refreshing change. The part about them escaping to switzerland actually had me interested about reading more. Hemingway did a good job making that part become interesting and suspensful. I was relived when Catherine and Henry made it to shore because it seemed like they could focuse on the baby, but when they were arrested it threw an unepected curve into the book. Now that they are safe I am excited to read the rest of the book to see how it plays out.
ReplyDeleteI was disappointed that Earnest Hemmingway could not maintain a respect for God and holy entities while writing "A Farewell to Arms." Throughout the book, Mr. Hemmingway had different characters mock a priest for loving and serving God. Another instance of this neglect of respect was when a Saint Anthony charm was given to Lt. Frederic Henry, meant to keep him safe and bring him back to Catherine. St. Anthony is the saint prayed to for the recovery of lost things. Ironically, Mr. Hemmingway wrote Lt. Henry was harmed and taken away from Catherine, the direct opposite of the saint's purpose. At another point Lt. Henry is comparing the self-inflicted blisters on his hands from rowing to the nail holes in Jesus' hands. Mr. Hemmingway goes further and takes the sacred union of marriage and tarnishes it by having Catherine and Lt. Henry have a fake and false marriage resulting in a child born of adultery. Regardless of Mr. Hemmingway's personal faith, Mr. Hemmingway should have retained a proper respect for religion while writing his book.
ReplyDeleteA few lines in the fourth book of "A Farewell to Arms" caught my eye. These lines state that Catherine is no longer afraid of the rain. In fact she describes the rain as "cheerful." Early, in book two, Catherine had stated she was afraid of the rain because she saw her and Lt. Henry's deaths in it. This could be a premonition or foreshadowing of the danger the couple is in, fleeing arrest for desertion across a large, stormy lake, with no apparent experience of rowing long distances or rowing in bad conditions. With that possibility of death behind them, Catherine is no longer afraid.
ReplyDeletei personally feel that book four was the best in the entire book after the first three were terribly boring and the fifth one was boring in the beginning and made me sick and depressed at the end when cat and the baby die :'(. To allison do u think that maybe cat thought the rain was more cheerful in Switzerland because they were now safe from arrest and now had a promising future in sight and they were super happy even though it was a rough journey?? plus anyone can row a boat without expierence its all about having the determination to push through the pain and weather to make it and since Lt. Henry is rowing to protect his girlfriend, and unborn child he would be willing to do anyhting to protect them form being in warms way.
ReplyDeleteI agree with courtney about how nurse Ferguson makes a forswadowing saying that Lt. Henry has gotten cat into trouble, but i don't think Ferguson had any idea how much trouble cat was really in. I also have a compariso, I dont know how many people have seen the movie "Orphan" because in the beginning of the movie the mom has a still birth and has hemoraging and nearly bleeds to death herself. Both were very disturbing to me and i nearly threw up in the movie theatere. I felt seriously saddened when both cat and the baby died, but i was shocked that Lt. Henry did not want a son or did not feel happy about fatherhood.
ReplyDeleteChelsea Malak, don't u think that everyone wanted to help out Lt. Henry because he was friends with them and they wanted to make sure he wasn't wrongly arrested and taken away from his wife and unborn child? How ever i do agree with you on how cat isn't really a interesting caracter in the beginning she is a crazy girlfriend that wont leave Lt. Henry alone and he becomes aprehensive of her craziness but eventually both ease as the story go on.
ReplyDeleteI was relieved when Catherine and Henry met up with eachother once more in Stresa. I also thought that Book Four added more excitement to the novel, Henry and Catherine's escape from arrest through the boat ride was interesting. I also noticed how the boat ride was in the rain, and once more when Henry and Catherine were together it was raining. I think that the rain is a symbol for fear. After the couple lands in Switzerland, they are arrested, which made me nervous, fearing that they would have to return to Italy, but they once again escaped, and the novel takes an upbeat, cheery tone.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of Book 4, I think it is interesting that the bar operator would offer Henry a place to stay if he were in trouble. It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it might play a bigger role later on in the book. Henry and Catherine are back together again, and they both seem to be very happy, however, it seems like everyone else is not so thrilled with them being together, (Rinaldi in Book 3 and Fergy). Later, Emilio comes to Henry’s rescue and warns Henry about his arrest and helps him and Catherine escape to Switzerland. You find out that Emilio is a really nice guy, and defiantly a good friend to Henry. I am not sure the reason why Hemingway put the Count Greffi scene in the book, however, there was a good quote on pg 261 by Greffi, “No, that is the great fallacy; the wisdom of old men. They do not grow wise. They grow careful.”
ReplyDeleteOut of all the books, book four was my favorite. Unlike the other three it kept my attention and kept me guessing. From the beginning of this book I found many situations forecasting Catherine and Henry's escape to Switzerland . When Ferguson became upset during dinner I felt a sense of fear in the room. During Henry's nighttime speech he began to say that the world only breaks what is good and gentle. I knew that the best thing in his life was going to try to break, his relationship with Catherine. While Henry was fishing with Emilio, Emilio said that Henry could use his boat whenever necessary. It was obvious that Henry was going to need the boat. The last clue was the rain. Every time rain is mentioned in the novel it is symbolized as Catherine and Henry's fear.
ReplyDelete"A Separate Peace" was written by John Knowles and is said to get its inspiration from "A Farewell to Arms". This comes specifically from Book 3 where Henry makes a peace by leaving and denying the reason for war that separate from the peace that the war has energy wants to make. Henry never gave his reasons for his patriotism and shows his openness for others and the whole world with his speaking Italian and the loving descriptions of territory that a novel written about a war hero would show scorn to. I believe this shows that Henry's heart was never in the war and I think he wished to do something else, especially when he showed his fondness to the priest. Who I think was only in the story as an indicator of this not really an actual character as many of the characters were.
ReplyDeleteBook four was my favorite to read in the novel. The impending arrest for Henry and the couple's exciting escape to Switzerland added a few chapters of action that was very entertaining to read. Although Henry is charming and has many friends in the war, it's ironic that Ferguson hates Henry so much. She says something like "you have gotten Cat into trouble." The foreshadowing is obvious at that point. Ferguson has no idea what kind of trouble she really is in. The symbol of rain was also present during Catherine and Henry's escape from Italy. Overall, this book was most interesting and related to the novel the most.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed throughout "A Farewell to Arms" that a reacurring theme has been coping with pain. The reader first sees this through the soldiers use of the brothels as a distraction from war. Henry and the other men welcome this sexual distraction partially as a way to cope with their pain.
ReplyDeleteWe again see this theme play it's role in Henry's drinking. Even when he is in the hospital with a serious wound, Henry uses alcohol as an escape from the pain. He even goes as far as sneaking alcohol into the hosipital.
Coping with pain can also be seen in the very start of Henry and Catherine's relationship. They both find refuge from the harsh world around then in each other.
Relief from pain can even be found in Henry's ending thoughts in the novel. He makes a comment on his gratefulness for the anesthesia adminatered to Catherine to hide her pain.
It's somewhat strange, the most interesting thing i found in this book wasnt the escape to switzerland nor the fear of Henry's capture and execution. The thing that got me thinking most was the line said by helen ferguson about love. Ferguson believes that something as pure as love could not exist during a time of war, and cruelty. This sort of made me think of the elements of love ive faced in my life (which probably arent that extensive, i am just a highschooler lol). My final conclusion was that Love appears to be a force stronger then any other on earth, and that true love could actually be excelled through times of hardship. I think that is what gave Henry and Catherine their beginning spark and get their Romance strong throughout the novel, (although at some points it threatened to tear them apart)and without it, i have no doubt their relationship wouldnt be the same. Although it appears Fergusons line is somewhat foreshadowing, i would have to disagree with her philosophy compleately on love in times of hardship
ReplyDeleteAlthough the book has many prominent themes and choosing one as the main one might be controversial, I feel as if the love theme outshines the others. I noticed that the novel is cut up into “five books” based upon Henry and Catherine’s situation/location, and whether they are apart from one another or not.
ReplyDeleteIt partially bothers me how submissive Catherine is; she tends to lose herself purposely and eliminate any opinion in order to automatically take Henry’s. Also, it is a bit irritating to me when every other word out of Catherine’s mouth is “darling.” I do not get annoyed because the word is said a lot, but because it seems to be very fake most of the time, and not necessarily from the heart. It almost seems as if she is saying it because that is what people in relationships are known to say (that thought pattern/action is not unique or rare, for many act the same way based on that same reason).
Even though he was only in the novel for a few pages, Count Greffi was an interesting character. Some of the things he said were very profound. Count Greffi is a 94 year old man who kicks Henrys butt at billiards and has a very good outlook on life. When Henry asks him if he would like to live after death, Count Greffi responds by saying “It would depend on the life. This life is very pleasant. I would like to live forever… I nearly have.” He almost seems to be opposite of Henry. Count Greffi loves life and is an old man who is still enjoying life while Henry seems to not care about much and just goes through the motions until he meets Catherine. I also thought that Count Greffi was very smart and has obviously been through many experiences. “It is the body that is old. Sometimes I am afraid I will break off a finger as one breaks a stick of chalk. And the spirit is no older and not much wiser.” Count Greffi is very wise, even though he denies it when Henry says that he is wise. “No, that is the great fallacy; the wisdom of old men. They do not grow wise. They grow careful.” One thing that Count Greffi said that was very wise was that Italy would win the war because they were a young nation and that they were apt to win for a time. When Henry asks what happens next Count Greffi responds by saying “They become older nations.” I wish that Count Greffi would have been in more of the novel because I think he could have brought up some very interesting points in conversations with Henry.
ReplyDeleteI feel that Henry was almost careless with his escape. He just runs away still in his military jacket but just takes the stars off of his shoulders, but he's still in uniform technically. And is it just me or are all the Italians in this book ridiculously nice? Strangers, like the barkeeper, see Henry and realizes that he is in trouble and offers him protection. If I was Henry I think I would have taken his offer. And then once Henry finds Catherine the barkeeper finds him the tell him that they are coming to arrest him, so naturally, lets take a boat to Switzerland! I don't think Catherine realizes how much danger Henry is putting her in when he decides to do this. Apparently everything is better in Switzerland too, even the rain. I must say though that Henry was quite impressive when he was being questioned by the police about how and why he came into Switzerland. They even end up getting help from them and directions to a hotel!
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