Big Two Hearted River Essay

Hemingway’s “Big Two Hearted River” uses nature to develop the protagonist, Nick, as he attempts to start anew by exploring in the wilderness, after the horrors of war. “The Heart of the Sourdough” (Service) has a narrator, however, whose experiences with the outdoors shaped him to believe that the wild “must win in the end.” This can be linked to Hemingway’s short story due to the fact that in each piece, the main character (or narrator in Service’s piece) is enhanced by nature; Service’s piece illustrating that the wild is all powerful, and Nick showing nature as an escape.

Hemingway’s protagonist, Nick, is further developed as a character through nature, as he attempts to begin again after a rough past. One scene that illustrates this is when with the moths, Nick …show more content…
He realized that the fire must have come the year before. He wondered how long they would stay that way.” The last line pertains to Nick wondering not only about the moths, but how long he would stay a jaded man from his time in war and the loss of his friends. His desire to start fresh, one could guess, begins when he exits the burned part of the forest, and enters into a clearing with tall grass; representing that desire brought to life. Nick, later in the short story, shows growth as a character. As he makes himself a pot of coffee while camping by the river, he reminisces about a dead friend, rather than grieving. “They were all going fishing again next summer...They said good-by and all felt bad. It broke up the trip. They never saw Hopkins again. Nick drank the coffee. The coffee according to Hopkins.” Going out and camping by the river had its effects on Nick-- he grew as a person, and was able to let go of a painful past, in order to begin a new future. Service’s poem, on the other hand, though it does explore a character through nature (the narrator) it deals with the wilder side. The narrator starts off by