Happiness Comes From Within

Relationships are a fundamental part of life for many people. We characterize ourselves by the relationships with we have with others. We are mothers, brothers, husbands, friends, and co-workers. However, are relationships really the one thing in life that define us a person? The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway is a novel that explores a man and his struggle with being incapable of the romantic relationship he wants with the woman he loves. However, in the end he is redeemed by coming to terms with the fact he will only ever be able to rely on himself. His relationships do not define Jake, the only thing that defines Jake is his ability to be in tune with himself. His true contentment and happiness will come from within himself, not someone else.
In the beginning of the novel this woman, Brett, consumes his life. He does not feel happy without her and is put through immense pain every time they spend time together. He says, “I was thinking about Brett and my mind stopped jumping around and started to go in sort of smooth waves. Then all of the sudden I started to cry.” (page, 39). In this quote you can see the pain he is in when he thinks about her. On one hand, she eases his mind ‘my mind stopped jumping around and started to go in smooth waves’. The thought of her calms the busyness of his mind. But on the other hand, this thought makes him break down in tears because thinking about her is painful. He will never be able to have sex, and be in a relationship with the woman he loves. However, at this point in the novel he is still ceaselessly devoted to her even though he is miserable being attached to her.
Near the end of the novel Jake has seen Brett go through Cohn, Mike, and Romero. He escaped to San Sebastian to retreat from the ‘fiesta’. Seeing Brett be fought over by three men had helped Jake realize that he will only be ever to rely and depend on himself. In his retreat he redeems himself when he becomes in touch with how he feels and his body and self. He vividly describes his experience swimming, something he enjoys doing, “I waded out. The water was cold. As a roller came I dove, swam out under the water, and came to the surface with all the chill gone.” (page, 238). Jake is appreciating the simplicity and pleasantness of going for a swim. This is an act that he is doing completely for himself. At this moment he is happier than he could ever consistently be with Brett.
At the very end of the novel Jake has finally redeemed himself from the grasp of Brett and the hold that she has on him. He does not show this in an act of refusal to her, but he has grown and changed in his language from the beginning of the novel. Brett and Jake are riding in a cab and she leans into him, “Oh Jake” she said, “we could have had such a damn good time together.” He replies, “Yes – Isn’t it pretty to think so” (page 250). Jake has finally let go of the fantasy of him and Brett being together. It does not hurt him anymore to think about them being together because he has discovered by being alone that he does not need her. However, he is not mad either. He does resent Brett because of the way she acts or because they cannot be together. He knows that it is ‘pretty’ to think that they could have had a good time together, but he knows that it would not have been good. She would have kept breaking his heart as long as he relied on her as part of his life. When he lets go of that, he can finally be happy.
Ultimately Jake has to let go of his fantasies and hopes of a relationship with Brett in order to feel okay and content with his own life. Although friends like Bill and Mike bring him happiness at times, he is not truly solid and happy until he lets go of Brett and focuses on himself and what he needs. For Jake, what he needs is no more chaos. In The Sun Also Rises relationships are one of the biggest things that affect the characters of this ‘lost generation’. However, in the end Jake must face and accept himself, not anyone else, to be redeemed.