War Novels: Compare and Contrast between Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’& Ernest Hemingway’s ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’
I am Riddhi Bhatt. And today I am coming with something interesting .You know...what is our today's blog ? This thinking activity task is For Whom the Bell Tolls is assigned by Our Prof. Heenaba Zala at English Department of Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavsinhji Bhavnagar University (MKBU). As a part of the syllabus, students of English department are learning the paper called . So, let’s start friends.But before we start I want to give short information about what kind of things we see here…
FIrst of all i would like to give brief information about both novels.
For Whom the Bell Tolls:
“There is nothing else than now. There is neither yesterday, certainly, nor is there any tomorrow. How old must you be before you know that? There is only now, and if now is only two days, then two days is your life and everything in it will be in proportion. This is how you live a life in two days. And if you stop complaining and asking for what you never will get, you will have a good life. A good life is not measured by any biblical span.”
― Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
For Whom the Bell Tolls is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940.It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned to blow up a bridge during an attack on the city of Segovia.For him it was a dark passage which led to nowhere, then to nowhere, then again to nowhere, once again to nowhere, always and forever to nowhere . . .
For Whom The Bell Tolls opens in May 1937, at the height of the Spanish Civil War. An American man named Robert Jordan, who has left the United States to enlist on the Republican side in the war, travels behind enemy lines to work with Spanish guerrilla fighters, or guerrilleros, hiding in the mountains. The Republican command has assigned Robert Jordan the dangerous and difficult task of blowing up a Fascist-controlled bridge as part of a larger Republican offensive.
A peasant named Anselmo guides Robert Jordan to the guerrilla camp, which is hidden in a cave. Along the way, they encounter Pablo, the leader of the camp, who greets Robert Jordan with hostility and opposes the bridge operation because he believes it endangers the guerrilleros’ safety. Robert Jordan suspects that Pablo may betray or sabotage the mission.
At the camp, Robert Jordan meets Pilar, Pablo’s “woman.” A large, sturdy part-gypsy, Pilar appears to be the real leader of the band of guerrilleros. A rapport quickly develops between Robert Jordan and Pilar. During the course of the evening, Robert Jordan meets the six other inhabitants of the camp: the unreliable Rafael, feisty and foul-mouthed Agustín, dignified Fernando, old Primitivo, and brothers Andrés and Eladio. The camp also shelters a young woman named Maria, whom a band of Fascists raped not long before. Robert Jordan and Maria are immediately drawn to each other.
As dawn breaks, Robert Jordan and Anselmo descend on the bridge, shoot the Fascist sentries, and plant the explosives. Pilar arrives and says that Eladio has been killed, while Fernando, fatally wounded, must be left behind. When Robert Jordan detonates the explosives, the bridge falls, but shrapnel from the blast strikes Anselmo and kills him. Pablo emerges from below, saying that all five of his men are dead. Agustín accuses Pablo of shooting the men for their horses, and Pablo does not deny it.
As the group crosses the road in retreat, a Fascist bullet hits Robert Jordan’s horse, which tramples on Robert Jordan’s left leg, breaking it. Knowing that he must be left behind, Robert Jordan says goodbye to Maria, saying that he will be with her even if she goes. Pilar and Pablo lead Maria away.
Alone, Robert Jordan contemplates suicide but resolves to stay alive to hold off the Fascists. He is grateful for having lived, in his final few days, a full lifetime. For the first time, he feels “integrated,” in harmony with the world. As the Fascist lieutenant approaches, Robert Jordan takes aim, feeling his heart beating against the floor of the forest.
Half of a Yellow Sun:
“The real tragedy of the postcolonial world is is that the majority of people had no say in whether or not they wanted this new world; rather, it is that the majority have not been given the tools to negotiate this new world.”
-Odenigbo, page 129
Narrative Technique of For Whom the Bell Tolls:
“direct and personal, his imagery rich and earthy, and his words simple and vigorous”
For Hemingway, point of view is important. ‘For Whom Bell Tolls’ presents the narrative through an omniscient point of view that continually shifts back and forth between the characters. In this way, Hemingway can effectively chronicle the effect of the war on the men and women involved.The narrator shifts from Anselmo’s struggles in the snow during his watch to Pilar’s story about Pablo’s execution of Fascists and El Sordo’s lonely death to help readers more clearly visualize their experiences. Against the backdrop of the group’s attempt to blow up the bridge, each character tells his or her story: Maria tells of her parents’ murder and her rape; Jordan shares what he learned about the true politics of war at Gaylord’s in Madrid.
Narrative Technique of Half of a Yellow Sun:
The narrative techniques shift from a third person objective point of view and first person subjective point of view when various characters begin to narrate the events.
Characterisation:For Whom the Bell Tolls:
An American volunteer for the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War and the protagonist of For Whom the Bell Tolls. Robert Jordan is pragmatic, very good at what he does, and never lets his emotions interfere with his work.
Pablo
The leader of the guerrilla camp. Pablo is an individualist who feels responsible only to himself. Hemingway often compares him to a bull, a boar, and other burly,stubborn, and unpleasant animals.
Pilar
Pablo’s part-gypsy “woman.” Pilar means “pillar” in Spanish, and indeed, the fiercely patriotic, stocky, and steadfast Pilar is—if not the absolute leader—the support center of the guerrilla group.
Maria
A young woman with Pablo’s band who falls in love with Robert Jordan. The victim of rape at the hands of Fascists who took over her town, Maria is frequently described by means of earth imagery.
Anselmo
An old, trustworthy guerrilla fighter. For Robert Jordan, Anselmo represents all that is good about Spaniards. He lives close to the land, is loyal, follows directions, and stays where he is told. He likes to hunt but has not developed a taste for the kill and hates killing people.
Agustín
A trustworthy and high-spirited guerrilla fighter. Agustín, who mans the machine gun, curses frequently and is secretly in love with Maria.
Fernando
A guerrilla fighter in his mid-thirties. Short and with a lazy eye, Fernando is dignified and literal-minded, embraces bureaucracy, and is easily offended by vulgarities. These factors, combined with his lack of a sense of humor, make Fernando the frequent target of Pilar’s jokes.
Primitivo
An elderly guerrilla fighter. Despite his gray hair and broken nose, Primitivo has not learned the cynicism needed for survival in the war.
Rafael
A gypsy member of the guerrilla band. Frequently described as well-meaning but “worthless,” Rafael proves his worthlessness by leaving his lookout post at a crucial moment.
Andrés
One of the guerrilla fighters, in his late twenties. Andrés comes into conflict with the Republican leaders’ bureaucracy in his attempt to deliver Robert Jordan’s dispatch to the Republican command.
Eladio
Andrés’s older brother and another of the guerrilla fighters. The jumpy Eladio plays a relatively minor role in the novel.
Joaquín
One of the members of El Sordo’s band. Joaquín originally wanted to be bullfighter but was too scared. He lost most of his family at the hands of the Fascists and cries when he talks about them.
General Golz
The Russian general, allied with the Republicans, who assigns Robert Jordan the bridge-blowing mission. Robert Jordan says that Golz is the best general he has served under, but the Republican military bureaucracy impedes all of Golz’s operations.
Captain Rogelio Gomez
A former barber and now commander of the battalion that Andrés first reaches after crossing the Republican lines.
Characterisation of Half of a Yellow Sun :
Olanna
Olanna is one of the novel’s protagonists, and the personification of strength and morality. She moved back to Nigeria after completing her studies in London. She is truly in love with Odenigbo, but her love is tested in the most brutal ways in the midst of a ruthless war. She witnesses endless massacre and atrocities just because she is Igbo, but comes out stronger than before.
Richard
An English expatriate, Richard has a fascination with the Igbo-Ukwu culture. He falls in love with Kainene. As this is reciprocated, they form a bond and soon get into a relationship. Richard bleeds for the suffering of countless in the Biafran War, not realizing that he would always be an outsider. However, as this dawns upon him, he uses his agency to lend a voice to those in the war who are not being heard.
Odenigbo
Olanna’s lover and then husband. A man of strong character and opinions, he is found often arguing about politics in the story. His love for Olanna is tested when he impregnates another woman, but they survive that hurdle. Odenigbo also educates Ugwu in the story, playing an important role in his life. He is a patriot and a man with the beliefs of a revolutionary, but is shaken by the death of his mother and starts to drink.
Ugwu
he novel’s first protagonist, a young Igbo boy from the small bush village of Opi. Ugwu becomes Odenigbo’s houseboy and initially marvels at all his possessions and education. Ugwu possesses a natural brilliance, and quickly excels at school and becomes an excellent cook. He goes through puberty and lusts after girls (and Olanna).
Odenigbo’s Mother (Mama)
A village woman who is a stranger to Odenigbo’s educated modern world. Mama thinks Olanna is a witch because her mother didn’t breastfeed her, and she plots to get Odenigbo to have a child with Amala. Mama refuses to leave her village and is killed in the war.
Chiamaka (Baby)
Amala’s child by Odenigbo. Olanna takes the girl in as a baby and raises her as her own. Baby grows up amidst constant danger and moving from place to place, but she seems happy.
Amala
A village girl who helps Mama and then unwillingly bears Odenigbo’s child.
Eberechi
A girl Ugwu falls in love with in Umuahia.
Madu Madu
Kainene’s friend, an army major and then colonel. He is a huge, confident man, and Richard is always jealous of him.
Effect of War in For Whom the Bell Tolls:
“There's no one thing that's true. It's all true.”
― Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
At first glance Hemingway's novel For Whom The Bell Tolls appears to be an action packed war novel. But underneath all the action there are underlying ideas that reveal much about how war changes a man and causes him to realize the importance of time.
Hemingway reveals these ideas about war through the narrator's thoughts and through the interaction between the major characters. Hemingway shows that war brings about a personal change, that reveals much about man's individuality and that time is limited.
Effect of War in Half of a Yellow Sun:
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