For your second essay of the semester, you are to focus on the short stories of Ernest Hemingway. Once again, your purpose is to create an argument--a thesis that states what you believe the central theme of a story (or stories) is. That thesis should reflect the opinion that you are going to support throughout the essay. Avoid a thesis that is obvious, and, of course, one that is factual. You may focus on one story, or you may discuss several stories (no more than three). If you choose to write on one story, be sure to make references to a couple of other stories in which you believe that the same--or a similar--theme appears. My purpose here is for you to reflect your understanding of several of the stories, not just one. If you don't want to focus on one story, you may follow the same theme through two or three stories--no more than three. In any case, please don't write an essay discussing what we have already talked about in class. Take a different approach, or at least expand on the one we took in class. Support your views with three critical sources (these are referred to as secondary sources) outside the primary works (the stories) in your Hemingway text. Document those sources according to the MLA format found in your Diana Hacker text or on my web site. When you quote material, be sure to use in-text citations. For the stories, those citations will simply state in parenthesis the author's last name, the story, and the page reference. For instance, a reference to a story might appear in your in-text citation as follows: Reflecting his desire to lead a simple life, Harold Krebs observes the young women of the town and thinks that he wants no part of them, that "they were too complicated" (Hemingway, "Soldier's Home" 147). If you mention the author's name before the citation, then there's no need to repeat "Hemingway" in the parenthesis. For instance, Reflecting Hemingway's theme of the alienation a soldier experiences after a war, Harold Krebs observes the young women of the town and thinks "they were too complicated" ("Soldier's Home" 147). If you quote up to four lines in your paper, run them into the normal paragraph of your text. If you quote five or more lines in your paper, then indent the quotation ten spaces from the left margin of your paper. Unless there is dialogue within the quotation, an indented quotation requires no quotation marks. The indentation alone tells the reader that the passage is a quotation.
One important caveat: Please do not devote your essay to Hemingway's personal life. There have been enough biographies written about him for us to read more than we want to know about him. Focus on the stories as fiction, and analyze them as such. Although a reference or two to Hemingway's biography may fit into your discussion, do not make the writer's life the focus of your paper.
Some Suggested Topics
1. Hemingway has said that his writing is like an iceberg; that is, one-eighth of the story lies above the surface of the sea (what's written), and seven-eighths lies beneath the surface (what's implied). Choose a story or stories in which you argue that Hemingway's presentation of his material adheres to this metaphor, and then analyze for us the meaning of what occurs in the piece and then what is implied by it.
2. Gertrude Stein has referred to Hemingway as a writer of the "lost generation." Define what Stein may have meant by this phrase, and then use one or more of the stories from our text to support her view of Hemingway's work and characters.
3. Many critics see Hemingway as an existentialist. Briefly discuss the principal points of existentialism, and then choose one or more stories to support the view that Hemingway is an existentialist. Remember to focus on the stories, not on an explanation of existentialism.
4. Critics differ about the implied meanings of "The Big Two-Hearted River Parts I and II." Some say that Nick Adams is the wounded veteran returned from World War I, and the only way he can deal with life is by escaping humanity and living alone in nature. Others say that this is Hemingway's story about writing. That is, that the form of the story--all show and little tell, mostly action and less interior monologue--is Hemingway's way of saying "This is the way a story should be written." What do you make of the these two stories of Nick's fishing in the wilderness? Provide an argument that reasonably defends your view (perhaps even different from the two mentioned above) of the pieces.
5. Carlos Baker has called Hemingway's "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber" an almost perfect piece of short fiction. Analyze this story in terms of its aesthetics--that is, its plot, character, setting, tone, mood, and style, and argue that it is or isn't a well-made story. Pay particular attention to the end of the piece and its implications.
6. Much has been written about what Phillip Young calls the Hemingway code hero, that is the man who stands bravely alone, faces death with dignity, disregards middle class values, and creates his own moral code. However, in many instances, Hemingway's central character seems to defy this code-like figure. Using several stories, create an analysis of what you believe are the qualities of the central character of Hemingway's fiction.
7. If none of the above topics appeals to you, create your own topic, but be sure to run it by me before you write your paper.
8. Check your syllabus for the due date for this essay.