ISSN:
0021-8758
Source:
Cambridge Journals Digital Archives
Topics:
English, American Studies
,
History
,
Political Science
,
Sociology
,
Economics
Notes:
Hemingway's convictions and beliefs about the larger scheme of the world are generally informed by the tendency to see human action and the human predicament in terms of a circle, a convenient way of affirming his persistent conviction that one cannot consciously order or direct one's life in a chosen manner, chiefly because of the ironic and virtually constant discrepancy between one's expectations and accomplishments. This helpless plight is accurately described by Robert Jordan as a forced ride on an unusual merry-go-round:It is a vast wheel set at an angle, and each time it goes around and then is back where it starts. One side is higher than the other and the sweep it makes lifts you back and down to where you started. There are no prizes either, he thought, and no one would choose to ride this wheel. You ride it each time and make the turn with no intention ever to have mounted. There is only one turn; one large, elliptical rising and falling turn and you are back where you have started. We are back again now, he thought, and nothing is settled.The rider has no choice in making this circular trip; neither does he accomplish anything worthwhile. There is no aim, no purpose, and no meaning discernible in this whirl. This image of the wheel seems to be central to Hemingway's view of man's place in the world as it is revealed in his fiction and non-fiction.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0021875800007076
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