Catherine Barkley, controversial character, Ernest Hemingway
Catherine Barkley has been seen as a controversial character throughout the years. To explain the way she was portrayed and her role as a hero, we need to take into account different views of the critics, mainly opposed views.
On the one hand, we know that Ernest Hemingway has been always considered as a misogynist/sexist writer. Many critics have proved this sexism in connection with Catherine Barkley's character. They see it clearly in her dead at the end of the novel, which they consider a triumph of male domination. Another factor could be the idealistic view of Catherine. Henry might not be seen her as she actually is but dreaming and speculating about her personality. In this case, the female character is being dehumanized and the mere object of Henry's fantasies; a total passive character. The first critic to suggest this consideration was Edmund Wilson (1939) who considered that Hemingway's "instinct to get the woman down grows out of a fear that the woman will get the man down".
On the other hand, the opposite view sees Catherine as the main hero of the story. For some critics (like Philip Young and Carlos Baker) Catherine is "the first true Hemingway's heroine and the most convincing one". She is the one that makes Frederic's character undergo a series of changes that lead him to a mature state.
[...] This last view is the one I will take to develop the character of Catherine Barkley as a heroic figure. DIFFERENT MEANINGS FOR “HEROISM” When we first approach Catherine Barkley, we see that she is an already grown-up character. She has undergone many circumstances during her life that make her a mature subject. She has lived war from the beginning and has also suffered the loss of her beloved fiancé. This character is opposed to Frederic's, representing the male role, who hasn't developed his personality when the novel starts. [...]
[...] Many critics have proved this sexism in connection with Catherine Barkley's character. They see it clearly in her dead at the end of the novel, which they consider a triumph of male domination. Another factor could be the idealistic view of Catherine. Henry might not be seen her as she actually is but dreaming and speculating about her personality. In this case, the female character is being dehumanized and the mere object of Henry's fantasies; a total passive character. The first critic to suggest this consideration was Edmund Wilson (1939) who considered that Hemingway's “instinct to get the woman down grows out of a fear that the woman will get the man down”. [...]
[...] She is brave and courageous even in her dying moment, not looking for a spiritual help. One of the most important acts of heroism in Catherine is the moment of her death. She undergoes a fight with her own body, as well as many soldiers are undergoing the fight in the battlefields. She is also a soldier fighting for her life and her child's life also. We may also mention the fact that Catherine was afraid of only two things: the rain and losing Frederic. [...]
[...] There is another example in the runaway to Switzerland when Catherine laughs about Henry holding the umbrella which she used as a sail. She also makes fun of encountering the Swiss navy. Even Catherine's last words seem to be ironical and humorous: dirty trick”. Catherine doesn't care for traditions or conventions. She lives for her private and personal self and doesn't let anything ruin it. The most valuable thing for her is love, as she says many times to Frederic. For her, they are joined in a spiritual way and there is no need for legal marriage. [...]
[...] The other fear is losing Henry. It may not be much exemplified in the text but, in my opinion, it can be understood from some dialogues. She is always mentioning the fact that they are only one and that nothing can come between them. He is her love, her religion and also becomes her life. At the end, when she is dying she doesn't seem to be afraid of dying but of losing everything she has unified in the person and of Frederic Henry. [...]
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