MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
HANOI UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION
LE LAM
FEMALE CHARACTERS IN
ERNEST HEMINGWAY'S WORKS
FROM FEMINISM PERSPECTIVE
Speciality: Theory critical of literature
Classification: 62.22.01.20
ABSTRACT OF THESIS DOCTORATE OF LITERATURE
Hanoi 2015
Thesis was completed in:
Hanoi University of Education
Advisor: A. Professor. Ph.Doctor. LE HUY BAC
Reviewers 1: A. Professor. Ph.Doctor. Tran Khanh Thanh
University of Social Sciences and Humanities
Vietnam National University, Hanoi.
Reviewers 2: A. Professor. Ph.Doctor. Nguyen Van Dan
Institute of Social Sciences Information Vietnam
Academy of Social Sciences.
Reviewers 3: Ph.Doctor. Nguyen Thị Kieu Anh
Hanoi Pedagogical University 2.
The thesis presented at Library of Hanoi University of Education
At…….., date…….., month………., year 2015
The Thesis can be found at:
National Library of Hanoi,
Library of Hanoi University of Education
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INTRODUCTION
1. The reason for choosing subject
1.1. E. Hemingway (1899 1961) is the great writer of the
twentieth century humanity. He has left a strong impression in the
reader not only in the literary art, but also through his life.
1.2. E. Hemingway explored and discovered to reflect on his
writings the diversity of human life. He left a legacy for humanity
literature not many in number, not abundant in the genre, but the
works of E. Hemingway were conveyed more pressing issues that
contain the forever mankind.
1.3. In Vietnam, E. Hemingway is one of the few foreign writers
who are the most investing in translating and studying. The number of
published books and especially the number of translations of his
works have shown the interest of readers, researchers, critics,
translators... for this writer.
1.4. There are many comments on “the world men without
women” in the works of E. Hemingway. It is suggested that E.
Hemingway had an aversion to women.
Deploying the topic, we look forward to bringing a more
comprehensive view of female characters in the works of E.
Hemingway. To demonstrate another aspect: in E. Hemingway’s
iconic world, the female character still occupies a significant position
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as an inevitable part of life. The heroine of his work has contributed
significantly to convey the artistic intention of the writer.
1.5. The foreign researchers have applied the theory of feminist
literary criticism to recognize the female characters in Hemingway's
work, especially in the late twentieth century and early twentyfirst
century, this method became popular. It creates a new look, a new
debate in researching the work of E. Hemingway for all these
problems that seem to have an arrangement.
2. Objects, mission, scope of the research
2.1. Study objects
The thesis studied the female characters in E. Hemingway’s
short stories and novels to highlight E. Hemingway’s iconic heroine
characteristics and related issues.
2.2. Research mission
Outline, summarize the main points of feminist theory.
Identify the system of female characters and their role in E.
Hemingway’s works.
From theory “feminist critique”, explains some characteristics
of female characters in E. Hemingway’s works.
Format E. Hemingway's female characters in American
traditional literary.
2.3. Scope of the research
The thesis focused on the E. Hemingway's works that have been
translated in Vietnam, with the original reference (if necessary) and
expanded into other works that have not been translated.
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3. Research methodology
We apply some basic methods: systematic method; comparative
method; methods of analysis and synthesis; Historical
method; Interdisciplinary method.
4. Contribution of the thesis
4.1. This is the first project in Vietnam study of female
characters in E. Hemingway’s works in a systematic way.
4.2. Codify some features of iconic female characters in
American literature.
4.3. Clarify female characters in E. Hemingway’s works.
4.4. Provide a new approach to E. Hemingway’s works.
5. Structure of the thesis
To study the subject, apart from the introduction, conclusion,
appendices, references, we deploy the thesis in four chapters as
follows:
Chapter One: Overview of Research Issues
Chapter Two: E. Hemingway’s female characters in American
traditional feminist literature
Chapter three: Correlation female – male characters
Chapter four: Feminist over formatting female characters
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Chapter 1
OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH ISSUES
1.1. The research on the female characters in E.Hemingway’s
works through Vietnamese
We have spent more than half a century to receive and study the
works of Hemingway. He is one of the foreign literary authors studied
most in Vietnam. Many contents in Hemingway's works have been
mentioned, but the issues of the female characters have not been
studied in a comprehensive and satisfactory way.
It can be seen in the first stage, the researchers focused on
introducing the identity, the life, and the representative works of
Hemingway. The later, they focused on the contents: The Principle of
Iceberg, the dialogue art, the interior monologue art, the symbolism
art, the art of character show, and the art of using of space and time,
etc. There has not yet any researches in which the female characters in
Hemingway's works selected as independent bodies to investigate.
Here, we go through some related contents:
In 1985, in the introduction to the book Ernest Hemingway A
day’s wait by the Cultural Association published Nghia Binh, Mai
Quoc Lien said about the social trends shown by the character
Margaret (Magot) in the work The short happy life of Francis
Macomber.
In 1992, Western Literature syllabus (Episode 3) was published,
Hemingway’s works were officially taught in Vietnamese schools.
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The author, Dang Anh Dao had some comments on the character in A
Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls. These are practical
suggestions giving us bases to assess the female characters.
In 1997, Phan Quang Dinh wrote The vibrant life with enthusiasts
of Hemingway. The book has provided a number of important issues,
especially information about Hemingway's relationship with women.
In his studies, especially in The novel of Hemingway, published
by Social Sciences Publishing House in 1999, Le Dinh Cuc has had
direct comments on the female characters in Hemingway's works.
Le Huy Bac has continued to generalize this content in Ernest
Hemingway Iceberg and knights, published by Education Publishing
House in 1999.
In 2001, Education Publishing House published Hemingway the
sky of art. Some authors of this book as Le Nguyen Can, Le Hai Phong,
Le Tay have mentioned the female characters and the related issues.
Despite preliminary, some authors have stated the correct
remarks on the female characters in the works of Hemingway.
Particularly, two researchers Le Dinh Cuc, Le Huy Bac have made
specific, accurate and scientific interpretations on the female
characters in Hemingway's works.
1.2. The research on the female characters in Hemingway’s
works through English
The study of the female character in Hemingway’s works in other
countries has been focused more than in Vietnam. Although, we have not
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found the independent work on the female characters in Hemingway's
work, there are many articles as well as comments on this content.
The book Hemingway: A Collection of Critical Esays, edited by
Robert P. Weeks, and published by Prentice Hall, in 1962. In the two
works: Men without Women by Leslie Fiedler and The death of love in
"The Sun Also Rises" by Mark Spilka, the authors have mentioned
several features of building the character in Hemingway's works and
explained how to show the female characters through the character
Brett in The Sun Also Rises.
In Ernest Hemingway: The Critical Reception, edited by Robert
O. Stephens, published in 1977, when judging the plot as well as the
way of building the characters and the relationships among the
characters in The Sun Also Rises, the writer has made remarkable
insights about the relationship between the female and the male
characters.
In 1983, Robert A. Lee compiled Ernest Hemingway: New
Critical Essays. The book has collected a number of essays on the
representative works of Hemingway as In Our Time, The Sun Also
Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls, etc. The
researchers have made brief insights about the female characters,
especially two characters Brett in The Sun Also Rises and Catherine in
A Farewell to Arms.
In 1984, the University of Wisconsin published the book Ernest
Hemingway The Writer in Context, edited by James Nagel. It is
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noteworthy that the work Women and the Loss of Eden Hemingway's
Mythology by Carol H. Smith. The author has talked about an
undeniable role of the female characters in Hemingway's works.
In 1990, Jackson J. Benson compiled New Critical Approaches
to the Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway. The book has collected
many articles showing the new viewpoints of getting Hemingway's
short stories in which the female characters play an important role.
In his "The Sun Also Rises" Notes, published in New York in
1991, Gary Carey summarized briefly the biology of the character
Brett and mentioned some external appearances as well as personality
of this character.
The research on the female characters and related issues in
Hemingway's works has really brightened in the late of the 20 th
century and the 1st decade of the 21st century.
In 1996, the University of Cambridge published The Cambridge
Companions to Ernest Hemingway. Notably, there are Brett and the
Other Woman in "The Sun Also Rises" of James Nagel and
Hemingway and Gender History by Rena Sanderson. These articles
have focused on analyzing the characteristics as well as classifying the
female characters in Hemingway's works.
In 2000, Linda WagnerMartin compiled Historical Guide to
Ernest Hemingway. Some articles have refered to the gender issues in
the works of Hemingway as: The fashion of machismo by Marilyn
Elkins, Hemingway's Gender Training by Jamie Barlowe, etc.
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It can not be whole if we have not mentioned the book
Hemingway and Women Female Female Voice and the Critical,
complied by Lawrence R. Broer and Gloria Holland, published by
University of Alabama in 2002. The book is the collection of articles
by female researchers on Hemingway and his works.
Also relating to the gender issues in of Hemingway’s works, the
book Bloom's Modern Critical Views Ernest Hemingway, published
by Chelsea House in 2005 has integrated Santiago and the Eternal
Feminine: gendering La Mar in "The Old Man and the Sea" by Susan
F. Beegel.
The book Ernest Hemingway: machismo and masochism by
Richard Fantina, published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2005 addressed
a lot the encrypt and decrypt issues on the images representing men
and women in Hemingway's works, and explained the absence of
women and the domination of the symbolic value for men as hunting,
bull fighting, boxing, etc.
Linda WagnerMartin continued to publish Ernest Hemingway:
A Literary Life in 2007. A number of articles have provided important
documentary about the life as well as the gender issues and the female
characters in Hemingway’s works.
In 2007, Bloom edited Bloom's Guides on "The Sun Also Ries"
of Hemingway. In this book, Mimi Reisel Gladstein on Brett as
Hemingway's Destructive Indestructible Woman and James Nagel on
the Other Women showed the evaluation of the female characters in
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the novel The Sun Also Rises.
In 2010, Bloom continued to publish Bloom's Guides Ernest
Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. Richard Fantina on Catherine as a
Hemingway's Woman has made relatively specific insights about the
main female characters in A Farewell to Arms.
In 1984, University of Wisconsin press published the book
“Ernest Hemingway The Writer in Context”, edited by James Nagel.
A noteworthy article is “Women and the Loss of Eden Hemingway's
Mythology” by Carol H. Smith. The author talked about an undeniable
role of female characters in Hemingway's works.
In 1990, Jackson J. Benson compiled the book “New Critical
Approaches to the Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway”. The book is a
collection of articles representing new point of views on Hemingway's
short stories in which the heroines play an important role.
In "The Sun Also Rises" Notes, published in New York in 1991,
Gary Carey summarized Brett’s biography and mentioned some
features of her appearance as well as her personality.
The research on female characters in Hemingway's works and
related issues really prospered in the late 20th century and the first
decade of the 21st century.
In 1996, University of Cambridge published the book “The
Cambridge Companions to Ernest Hemingway”. Two noticeable
articles are “Brett and the Other Woman in The Sun Also Rises" by
James Nagel and “Hemingway and Gender History” by Rena
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Sanderson. The articles in the book focused on classifying
Hemingway’s heroines and analyzing their characteristics.
In 2000, Linda WagnerMartin compiled “Historical Guide to
Ernest Hemingway”. Some articles refer to gender issues in
Hemingway’s works such as: “The fashion of machismo” by Marilyn
Elkins, “Hemingway's Gender Training” by Jamie Barlowe ...
Moreover, it can not but mention the book “Hemingway and
Women Female Female Voice and the Critical” by Lawrence R.
Broer and Gloria Holland Editor, published by University of Alabama
in 2002. The book collects the articles about Hemingway and his
works written by female researchers.
In addition to the issue of gender in Hemingway’s works, the
book “Bloom's Modern Critical Views Ernest Hemingway” published
by Chelsea House Press in 2005 has integrated the article “Santiago
and the Eternal Feminine: gendering La Mar in "The Old Man and the
Sea" by Susan F. Beegel.
The book “Ernest Hemingway: Machismo and Masochism
Richard written by Fantina and published by Palgrave Macmillan in
2005 touched much on encrypting and decrypting the images which
represent the men and women in Hemingway's works; explained the
absence of women and the domination of the symbolic values for men
as hunting, bull fighting, boxing ...etc.
Linda WagnerMartin continued publishing the book “Ernest
Hemingway: A Literary Life” in 2007. A number of articles have
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provided important documentaries about the life and gender issues and
the heroines in Hemingway’s works.
In 2007, Bloom edited “Bloom's Guides Ernest Hemingway's
"The Sun Also rises”. In this book, the two articles “Mimi Reisel
Gladstein on Brett as Hemingway's Destructive Indestructible
Woman” and “James Nagel on the Other Women” shows the
evaluation of the female characters in the novel “The Sun Also Rises”.
In 2010, Bloom continues printing the book “Bloom's Guides
Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms”. The article “Richard
Fantina on Catherine as a Hemingway's Woman” has relatively
specific insights about the heroine in “A Farewell to Arms”.
Most recently, in the book “Bloom's Modern Critical Views Ernest
Hemingway” published by Yale University in 2011, there are a lot of
articles mentioning sex or female characters in Hemingway's works.
A review of researches on female characters in Hemingway's
works in English, it can be seen that foreign researchers focused on
two main aspects to recognize heroines: From feminist perspective;
from the context and background with the psychoanalytic stamp of
Hemingway. Thereby, we can see Hemingway's insight about the
status of women as well as the complex relationship between men
women in his works.
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Chapter 2
E. HEMINGWAY’S FEMALE CHARACTERS
IN AMERICAN TRADITIONAL FEMINIST LITERATURE
2.1. Feminist outline
First of all, we clarify some basic concepts:
Feminist is a concept related to the broadest problem which
brings mean of philosophy and culture of gender inequality and the
struggle for women's equality with men, as well as establish women’s
own standards in the life...
In this thesis, the concept of feminist is limited in the scope of
feminist criticism. The following contents is totally aggregated from
the works of Phuong Luu, Le Huy Bac, ... foreign works have been
translated into Vietnamese and research some of the feminist concepts
in dictionaries and books of specialized treatises
Feminist, basically understood, is "Equal rights of women in all
fields of economy, society, education ...” Researchers generally unite
that we understood in the widen level; the concept of women's rights
is the rights of women placed in relation to the rights of men to get the
reach called gender equality. At the narrow level, feminist related to
the concepts such as gender, gender in literature.
Women's rights towards is the equality between men and
women, and creates the system of own standards, confirms the
peculiarity of women.
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Feminist is the product of the struggle movement for equal rights
for women, one of the longest and broadest movements in history of
mankind. The important milestone which confirmed the coming of
feminism is the modern bourgeois revolutionary movement. Attached
to it is the struggle movement of women to demand their rights and
benefits as men.
Coming from the social movements, associated with the change
of society (about cognition, institution, nation, ethnic ...), the issues,
therefore, which related to feminist always change. Perhaps, the
feminist theoretical aspect which is the most relevant to consider the
issue of Hemingway's women’s character is the aspect of natural
beginning of women's rights rights of women.
2.2. The rights of women and female characters in American
literature
As stated above, the US is one of places where the movement for
women's rights took place in the most powerfully and violently.
Therefore, this place is considered as a startingpoint which supports
the theory of literary related to women's rights.
By Hemingway, female characters in the process of American
literature have experienced a long way to perfection. If seen from the
standpoint of feminism literary criticism, female characters in American
literature from the period of the country showed up way struggle for
rights, established social and political positions for women.
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Considering female characters in Hemingway's works, and
putting them into the mainstream of American literature, we can see
he contributed greatly to innovating methods to show this kind of
characters. It seems that Hemingway had harmonized features in
constructing female characters of American writers.
2.3. The influence of feminist ideas with the expression of
female characters of Hemingway
Hemingway has a history almost as associated with "feminist".
From his childhood, the writer saw the feminist even in his family: his
grandmother, his mother and his aunt who are social activists actively
supported the women’s rights struggle movement.
When Hemingway was an adult as well as a writer, he also met
the writers who had the tendency to women’s rights, even among them
who also helped to orient his literature.
The thing that directly effects on both Hemingway's literary and
life is the contents of the thought of feminism, but not merely
feminism criticism in literature. Feminism is as a guest of life for
Hemingway to describe more factors of literary theory which rule the
works of writers.
Summary
Synthesis of some characteristic of feminist researchers have
been mentioned, we wish to point out the correlation and its effect on
Hemingway’s method to build female characters. By him, feminism
has experienced a long way to develop both society and theories that it
is created. However we can see the stage the writer lived and
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composed is the stage where the rights of women with systems theory
to ensure its activities to achieve outstanding results. Hemingway saw
it and reflected on their pages. His female characters bring the breath
of feminism as an inevitable social life.
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Chapter 3
FEMALE – MALE CHARACTER CORRELATION
It is not difficult to recognize the appearance in an overwhelming
quantity of man world – male character in Hemingway’s works. There
were times feminist critics impute Hemingway of having gender
prejudices in this unusual correlation. However, if feminist criteria are
taken into consideration, female roles are not obscured despite the
paucity of female characters.
3.1 Female characters in quantity aspect
As surveying Hemingway’s 55 shortstories and 8 novels, the
quantity of female characters being named does not reach to 30. The
unnamed ones are also equivalent. Being divided by the ratio, each of
2 Hemingway’s works, a female character appears once. In the main
character perspective, there are 8 female characters among all of
Hemingway’s novels and short stories.
In order to explain this, it is suggested that the gender unbalance
appears in Hemingway’s works because of his enmity against women.
Several studies abroad have confirmed this.
From the fact that woman image does not appear much in
Hemingway’s works; or if it exists, it seems to be very complicated,
challenging or sometimes is considered as the threat to men. Several
researchers arrive at a conclusion that this is an act of revenge or
somehow a “reaction” of Hemingway to woman.
It is compulsive if it is observed in that way. Real literature
composing shows that it is not always true when having an aversion to
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someone; the writers will not let them appear in their papers or make
them be punished or become demons.
Studying on the huge array of content that E. Hemingway
expressed such as boxing, hunting, war, bullfighting... there are few
scenes for female characters. At a certain angle, the decision of not
mentioning a lot about female characters seems to be the converse
proofs to these given allegations. It proves that Hemingway also has
some clear considerations to women.
3.2 Gender relationships and the abnormalities about sex
and gender
Gender relationships in Hemingway’s works express many
abnormalities about sex and gender. This, to an aspect, contributes to
reveal and define the role of female characters.
Researchers abroad have soon discussed sex and gender issues in
Hemingway’s work, especially within the beginning years of 21st
century until recently. The published materials on Hemingway’s real
life and the expansion of research trends have created conditions to
cognize the issue in a more specific and objective way. In this point,
researchers have focused on analyzing the masochism spots,
homosexuality and abnormal gender relationships in the system of
characters that Hemingway built.
3.2.1. About "masochism" and the suffering of men
"Masochism" is a form of unusual sex of group sexual
deviance. In English, it is the masochism. The name is derived from
an Austrian Sacher Masoch writer (18361895). In some of his works,
this writer has described the sexual activity is not normal behavior
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with the trait of masochism, so they took him to name for this
syndrome. When talking about masochism, sexual violence in
Hemingway's works, researchers can compare the methods used to
build his characters and Masoch.
Imprint of masochism in Hemingway's works is evaluated in
terms of:
The pain, torment of the characters in the attachment
relationship.
The inability of the characters, especially male characters.
The breakdown in the relationship between men and women:
husband and wife, mistress.
The wounds suffered by characters.
Especially in the works of Hemingway, the mark of masochism
is showed much more in the male characters.
From the feminist perspective to recognize the relationship of
female sexuality and male character we can be seen masochism for
male characters as a process of denying the role of dominant men.
3.2.2. The complexity of gender
Indeed, few authors have built the kind of unusual characters like
Hemingway. In his work, we can see the female characters from non
woman or the male characters that do not carry full Masculinities as usual.
3.2.2.1. Trends and the feminine gender swap
We can see very feminine stamp indelibly on Hemingway's
works. Even the works which are absent women character we still find
it with some expressions:
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The appearance of the male characters in some of the works of
Hemingway also marked femininity.
Hemingway’s male characters are most active, present as
"muscle man" but they are human compassion and love.
Even the area reserved for masculinity mentioned above still has
the mark of femininity: The hunter is sad when the animal is killed, the
bullfighting boxer is face to face with himself after killing the animal, the
soldiers’ suffering, sadness, concern after destroying enemies ...
Hemingway's characters sometimes beyond normal standards which
had been the default gender: Men carry traits women and vice versa.
In conclusion, it stays most of the traits in terms of territory still
deep feminine in the same characters in both male and female
characters in Hemingway’s works. Feminine marked up system to
universal character both men and vice versa, Hemingway contributed
to erase the boundaries seem to have authentication over time between
masculine and feminine. The "standard deviation" of the female
characters created by Hemingway shows elements of social change
was strongly influenced women to look and how Hemingway built in
his female characters.
3.2.2.2. Imprints of gay relationships in feminist
The phenomenon of gay characters in Hemingway's works has
been recognized and evaluated by many researchers. Another
noteworthy point is the expression of the female homosexuality is
mentioned more.
The way that Hemingway mentions gay (male and female) is
very special. He did not delve into the abnormal sex of the character
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that is almost "normalize" them. Readers rarely stop to wonder about
the gender of the character that is often caught up in the events of their
lives, and they experience the ups and downs of life. It shows the
"woman trend" in his thinking. On the one hand, it describes the
feminist struggle female male, on the other hand it shows absolutely
no winner of the women in maledominated society.
3.3. Portray female characters from the feminist perspective
3.3.1. The external view
It is easy to see the majority of the women that Hemingway
described not bad. The female bias of the writer obviously reflected
this. They may have unusual features: unusually fat, stubborn,
manly... But there are not any female characters that leave an
impression on the outside looks ugly.
Writers often use external characters to show the character under
several typical: the appearance is similarity with personality; the
appearance contrasts with personality; the appearance changes with
personality, life circumstances.
The way Hemingway describe the female appearance is not
located in one of the above formats. He is not intended to use the
appearance to express personality, characters’ internal thoughts. In
Hemingway's works, the appearance has helped establish the position
of female characters in his writings.
3.3.2. Description of action to assert women's rights heroine
Hemingway's characters are action figures. The writer has
created the environment for their characters floundered. Researchers
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have shown that most of the actions in Hemingway's works are strong,
masculine and humane: antiwar, love nature, precious human lives.
One especial thing is Hemingway hardly distinctive realm of
action for the female characters. Thereby, we can see the look of
Hemingway is deeply feminist. The women, we can add one more
assertion that there is an important place on the pages of Hemingway.