Degraded Sexuality in Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises

Abstract

This study is an attempt to explore sex as a powerful and destructive force. It uses the trend of Lost Generation. Lost Generation writers revealed the sordid nature of the shallow, frivolous lives. The characters spend their time socializing, drinking, dancing, and involving in an erotic nature. In Ernest Hemingway’s novel The Sun Also Rises, sexual jealousy leads one of the characters like Robert to violate his code of ethics and attack Jake, Mike, and Pedro. The desire for sex prevents Brett from entering into a relationship with Jake though she loves him. Here, sex undermines both Robert’s honor, and Jake and Brett’s love. Brett is closely associated with the negative consequences of sex. She is a liberated woman, having sex with multiple men and feeling no compulsion to commit to any of them. Her carefree sexuality makes Jake and Mike miserable and drives Robert to acts of violence. She is a symbol of infantile sexuality, resistance, and transference about a strong, sexually independent woman.