Ernest Hemingway Big Two-Hearted River Analysis

Big Two-Hearted River In Ernest Hemingway’s “Big Two-Hearted River” Nick returned from to the war only to head back to his old favorite fishing spot. Even though Nick has not been around this place in a while and knows the town in the distance, burnt down, he still gets that feeling that he is home despite the idea that even his hometown seemed destroyed by the war. Hemingway states, “He felt he had left everything behind, the need for thinking, the need to write, other needs, it was all back of him” (Hemingway). It has been such a long time since Nick has felt at peace in nature due to the horrors of the war. Deep down Nick was scared his old spot would not feel the same, but that is just the opposite. Nick spotted a black colored grasshopper while enjoying a cigarette. He saw the soot that covered the hopper, and thought deeper about it. The insect was colored black from the fire, but it was still living and underneath the soot, the green iridescent color was there. I think that Nick felt a connection with this grasshopper. Due to the war nick had a black covering, but deep down underneath it was his normal vibrant self. …show more content…
While opening a can of apricots nick remembered his old friend Hopkins, of the humorous arguments they had and how no one ever saw him again. His happiness went away, but Nick tried not to go to that place in his mind. The story states, “His mind was starting to work. He knew he could choke it because he was tired enough” (Hemingway). The point of Nicks trip was to fish, but when he started to catch trout he found he was not enjoying it. He was thinking about the fish and the grasshoppers he was hurting. He seems to grow attached to each bug he tried to use as bait, “Holding the rod in his right hand, he let out line against the pull of the grasshopper in the current. He stripped off line from the reel with his left hand and let it run free”