putting the 20th century in the 2020 graduating class

So I’ve been thinking about the epigraphs at the beginning of the book and how they relate to the overall narrative of The Sun Also Rises. Here are a few of my thoughts on the epigraphs. I think the epigraphs set the mood of the novel very well. Ecclesiastes’ quotation could be read as a very cynical thought that is somewhat related to the idea of irony. Although generations change, the earth still remains, the winds blow south and then north, and the rivers flow into the sea and then return. From this viewpoint, the actions of each individual in each generation seem inconsequential. From the Ecclesiastes quote, I feel a sense of detachment. Ecclesiastes takes a very zoomed out perspective, merely stating that generations pass away and generations come, without any attachments or biases. This attitude is mirrored in Jake’s facade. Jake wants to act like he’s unfazed by the actions around him, as if he’s unaffected by Brett’s multiple affairs with Cohn and Romero. However, Jake isn...

After reading Mrs. Dalloway, I've been thinking about how the characters introduce themselves to each other and what that tells us about their character. For example, one thing that struck me when I was reading Mrs. Dalloway was Sally Seton's talk with Clarissa when they were reunited at the party. After they both saw each other and greeted each other, the first line of dialogue Virginia Woolf writes is "'I have five enormous boys,' said Sally" (pg. 167). Sally mentions her five children to Peter again on page 82. The fact that Sally Seton said this twice might mean there is some significance to the phrase. Instead of talking about what she has recently done or interesting things that have happened to her, Sally mentions her sons. In addition, I don't have a really concrete idea of what Sally has been doing ever since she left Bourton. Peter went to India, Richard worked in politics, Hugh has a job at court, but Sally? Well, she got married, I guess. A l...