Friday, December 31, 1976

Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises published 50 years ago this year

First posted 6/25/2020; last updated 7/5/2020.

The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway

First Publication: 1926


Category: semi-autobiographical novel


Sales: ?

Accolades (click on badges to see full lists):

About the Book:

“The quintessential novel of the Lost Generation.” AZ Hemingway presents the idea that the generation which was “considered to have been decadent, dissolute, and irretrievably damaged by World War I – was in fact resilient and strong.” WK “Additionally, Hemingway investigates themes of love and death; the revivifying power of nature, and the concept of masculinity.” WK

The Sun Also Rises is “a classic example of his spare but powerful writing style.” AZ It “helped to establish Hemingway as one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century.” AZ

“It received mixed reviews upon publication. However, Hemingway biographer Jeffrey Meyers writes that it is now ‘recognized as Hemingway's greatest work,’, and Hemingway scholar Linda Wagner-Martin calls it his most important novel.’” WK

“The story follows the flamboyant Brett and the hapless Jake as they journey from the wild nightlife of 1920s Paris to the brutal bullfighting rings of Spain with a motley group of expatriates. It is an age of moral bankruptcy, spiritual dissolution, unrealized love, and vanishing illusions.” AZ

“The characters are based on real people in Hemingway's circle, and the action is based on real events,” WK including “Hemingway’s trip to Spain in 1925. The setting was unique and memorable, depicting sordid cafĂ© life in Paris and the excitement of the Pamplona festival, with a middle section devoted to descriptions of a fishing trip in the Pyrenees.” WK


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