The trip to Spain offers respite to Jake. In Paris, he is
truly a lost soul, an expatriate who seems to enjoy nothing in life, so he drinks
excessively. In this chapter and in the following ones, we see the difference between
France and Spain. The French are intent on being sophisticated, but the Spaniards are
more fun-loving. They drink wine out of skins that they pass around, they enjoy bull
fighting. The French in Paris seem a bit snooty, whereas the Spaniards are friendly. The
weather is sunny and it is hot in Spain, and this seems to affect the peoples'
dispositions. They have a week-long fiesta prior to, during and after the bull fights.
Hemingway is making a contrast between the outlook on life between the French and the
Spaniards.
In Spain, Jake goes into the churches sometimes.
Before he goes in, he always mentions that he "isn't drunk." One time he goes to church
with Brett because she says she wants to hear his confession and he replies that "it
isn't all that interesting." Jake has been raised a Catholic, but he is not religious.
However, something is left in his soul, a remainder of the peace that his faith may have
brought to him at one time. He keeps getting drawn back to church, even though he
protests that he is not religious, and "maybe next time" - he keeps hoping that he can
find some redemption by going to church, but he never
does.
The closest Jake comes to "freedom" however is in
Spain, on the fishing trip with Bill, out in nature. One can really see Hemingway's
values coming through here - in his own life, religion failed him, just like Jake. Jake
makes only a half-hearted effort to let faith heal his soul. He looks upon it as
something magic that might work, but he does not understand the nature of
faith.
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