Introduction
It is no secret that events that threaten a person’s well-being, health, and very life have a high possibility of changing their behavior and worldview. It is a well-known fact discussed multiple times in historical, biographical, and fiction literature. However, I can say that an event of any nature and scale can change an individual’s character entirely in a new or opposite direction. A Farewell to Arms by Hemingway showed me that a significant shift in my worldview in a more skeptical and pessimistic way was due not to my growing up but rather to the COVID-19 crisis.
Frederick Henry and Me
Frederick Henry undergoes a radical internal philosophical transformation in A Farewell to Arms. At first, he sees war as a new element in his daily life; he considers it a natural phenomenon. Henry perceives “flashes from the artillery” and “summer lightning” as harmless events of similar nature that just happen (Hemingway, 2014, p. 3). His perspective radically changes when he faces near death after being accused of desertion by the Italian military police after the defeat at Caporetto (Hemingway, 2014). After that, he fears war and wants to escape to a place without fighting, such as Switzerland. I had a similarly drastic change in perspective regarding the future. When the pandemic, mass hysteria, and lockdowns came, I realized that the world had not become a safer space and that it would repeat some of the horrors of past centuries. Constant anxiety for relatives and friends and new uncomfortable life rules made me more skeptical and pessimistic. However, it taught me to appreciate every moment with loved ones and cherish every good day.
Conclusion
A Farewell to Arms is not only about the horrors that young people experienced during the Great War and how Hemingway got through the second-largest global military conflict. This book also very realistically depicts and profoundly analyzes the causality of life-threatening events and personality changes and the process of one’s inner transformation. This work by Hemingway has helped me to introspect myself, and I think the relevance of this book will only grow considering the recent world crises.
Reference
Hemingway, E. (2014). A farewell to arms. (S. Hemingway, Ed.). Scribner.