Fight or Flight
In In Our Time, Ernest Hemingway writes stories in which various characters experience and cope with loss. Set around World War I, the stories’ characters usually only appear once, except for one. Nick Adams appears multiple times throughout the collection, and seems to age as he does so. The first few stories describe his boyhood, and later ones, his transition to manhood. In depicting Nick’s mindset during his youth and young adulthood, Hemingway accurately illustrates the progression of man’s mechanisms for dealing with loss as he matures.
Nick is the most prominent figure throughout the book, as his experiences show how he transitions from boyhood to adulthood, as well as his encounters with loss and evolving coping mechanisms. …show more content…
He is skiing with a friend named George, and as they prepare to end their trip, they discuss their futures. George mentions that he has to “get educated” (110). He then goes on to ask Nick whether his significant other, Helen, is pregnant, and if the two are moving to the States. Nick answers both with a yes, however, when asked if either of them want to do so, he replies in the negative. George responds in a somewhat sympathetic manner, asking “It’s hell, isn’t it?” (111). Nick replies to the question, stating, “No, not really” (111). Here Nick accepts his own loss of control over the situation, choosing to accept it and move on rather than dwell on it and let it upset him. Yet, he then proves that he has not quite matured fully. During the conversation, George suggests that the two of them may never go skiing again. This statement, with the implication that they would lack of time together as they each age and pursue different lives in different worlds, scares Nick. He reacts by stating, “We’ve got to…It isn’t worthwhile if you can’t” (112). Presumably, the “it” he is referring to is the rest of each of their respective lives. He behaves a tad melodramatically in his refusal to believe that his youth, and all the free-spirited fun that comes with it, is coming to its close. At the same time, he also appears to show a hint of acceptance of that fact, because just a few lines later, he refuses to promise that they will do so, stating, “There isn’t any good in promising” (112). Slowly, Nick begins to show his ability to accept loss as a part of life, and thus, matures into a
In In Our Time, Ernest Hemingway writes stories in which various characters experience and cope with loss. Set around World War I, the stories’ characters usually only appear once, except for one. Nick Adams appears multiple times throughout the collection, and seems to age as he does so. The first few stories describe his boyhood, and later ones, his transition to manhood. In depicting Nick’s mindset during his youth and young adulthood, Hemingway accurately illustrates the progression of man’s mechanisms for dealing with loss as he matures.
Nick is the most prominent figure throughout the book, as his experiences show how he transitions from boyhood to adulthood, as well as his encounters with loss and evolving coping mechanisms. …show more content…
He is skiing with a friend named George, and as they prepare to end their trip, they discuss their futures. George mentions that he has to “get educated” (110). He then goes on to ask Nick whether his significant other, Helen, is pregnant, and if the two are moving to the States. Nick answers both with a yes, however, when asked if either of them want to do so, he replies in the negative. George responds in a somewhat sympathetic manner, asking “It’s hell, isn’t it?” (111). Nick replies to the question, stating, “No, not really” (111). Here Nick accepts his own loss of control over the situation, choosing to accept it and move on rather than dwell on it and let it upset him. Yet, he then proves that he has not quite matured fully. During the conversation, George suggests that the two of them may never go skiing again. This statement, with the implication that they would lack of time together as they each age and pursue different lives in different worlds, scares Nick. He reacts by stating, “We’ve got to…It isn’t worthwhile if you can’t” (112). Presumably, the “it” he is referring to is the rest of each of their respective lives. He behaves a tad melodramatically in his refusal to believe that his youth, and all the free-spirited fun that comes with it, is coming to its close. At the same time, he also appears to show a hint of acceptance of that fact, because just a few lines later, he refuses to promise that they will do so, stating, “There isn’t any good in promising” (112). Slowly, Nick begins to show his ability to accept loss as a part of life, and thus, matures into a