For Whom the Bell Tolls Essays

For Whom the Bell Tolls Essays For Whom the Bell Tolls Essay For Whom the Bell Tolls Essay Essay Topic: For Whom the Bell Tolls I choose Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls because I have been curious about what is behind any war and what can be gained from it. I know that nobody wins in a war and no one is righteous.   Recognizing the good or bad people in this situation depends which side you are in. I’m sure this book can give me detailed description of the cruelty of war. The epigraph, seen at the beginning of the story, starts with, â€Å"No man is an island†¦Ã¢â‚¬ I have an idea that it is about the camaraderie and the need for the others in order to survive. The rest of the epigraph is appropriate to the major theme of the story: death. Since it is a war novel, I am certain that death will plague its entirety. I am not yet sure, though, who will die and who will survive since I am able to read only chapters one to seven. In the first chapter, Robert Jordan, an American bomb expert, is sent to Spain to blow up the bridge in behalf of the anti-fascists guerillas. He is assisted by the local guerillas led by Pablo. Ironically, Pablo himself strongly opposes Jordan’s mission. He reasons that blowing up the bridge may put the guerillas’ lives in danger. In the succeeding chapters, Jordan spends his time scouting the bridge and sketching plans on how to destroy it. He becomes friends with the other members of the guerillas, including Pilar, the ugly but strong-willed wife of Pablo. Jordan falls in love with Maria, a single woman who has bitter experience from the fascists. Despite the effort of Jordan to befriend him, Pablo still refuses to cooperate. This causes Pilar to take over as the leader. Jordan and the rebels who support him see Pablo’s defiance as a threat that may jeopardize their mission; thus, Jordan considers of killing the former leader. In the end, though, he decides ag ainst it. Chapters six and seven exploit the growing love between Jordan and Maria. They discover that their ancestors are both Republicans. They become so intimate that Maria does not hesitate to reveal to Jordan that she is a rape victim. They make love afterward. : Work Cited: Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom the Bell Tolls. Simon Schuster Adult Publishing Group (January, 1968).