(The Sun Also Rises) Taxi Rides: Jake & Brett's Transforming Relationship
Taxi Rides: Jake & Brett's Transforming Relationship
In Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, Jake and Brett have two intimate interactions during taxi rides, one at the start and one at the end of the novel. Through these drives, we glimpse the true nature of Jake and Brett's relationship at the present time. In the beginning, we see Jake yearning for a romance with Brett that she believes is doomed to fail and leave her unsatisfied. In the end, the doomed perception of their romance remains; however, Jake and Brett's positions have switched.
In the first taxi ride at the beginning of the novel, Jake actively seeks Brett and takes initiative to intimately interact with her while she pushes him away. Responding to Jake's advances in the taxi, Brett says, "Please don't touch me... I can't stand it." While Brett does not resist Jake's advances too much and even urges him to kiss her later, she makes it clear that their romance is an impossibility despite their apparent intimacy. It seems Jake's war injury renders him incapable of satisfying Brett's physical needs and is a deal breaker for her.
In the ending taxi ride, the doomed perception of Jake and Brett's romance remains; however, Jake and Brett's positions have swapped. Unlike the starting taxi ride when Jake advances on Brett, Jake is now on the receiving end of Brett's advances. Brett "[moves] closer to [Jake]," taking initiative to interact with him and seek his affection (Hemingway 251). Unlike Brett's earlier refusal to give him a chance, she seems to somewhat opens that possibility at the end by prompting Jake to pursue her with the line, "Oh, Jake, we could have had such a damned good time together." (251). However, Jake seems to refuse Brett and implies that their romance is impossible like how she does to him in the beginning. Responding to Brett, Jake says "Yes... Isn't it pretty to think so?" (251). With this question that states more than it inquires, Jake cuts of Brett's advances and hopes by implying that he believes their romance is just a thought or dream, not a real pursuit or possibility. In Pamplona, Jake helped Brett pursue a fling with Romero and saw how she betrayed and destroyed Mike with her adultery. Jake likely envisioned himself in Mike's position and realized that he would also inevitably be betrayed by Brett because his injury renders him incapable of satisfying her physical needs. Witnessing Mike's sorry state at the end of the novel, Jake becomes disenchanted with Brett, relinquishing his pursuit for her love to avoid inevitable betrayal. While Brett still needs Jake's as an emotional support tool to validate herself, Jake becomes less charmed by Brett after seeing her crush her male partners and sacrificing his feelings and friendships to do her bidding. Coming to terms with the impossibility of their happily ever after, Jake assumes Brett's initial position of doomed romance in their first taxi ride while Brett actively seeks Jake's affection instead.
While both Jake and Brett could just be wistful in the ending taxi ride, I believe this interpretation is more plausible as Jake seems upset and despondent the entire time he eats and drinks with Brett during their meeting at the end of the book. Brett's final words could also be interpreted differently and may also indicate the impossibility of their romance; however, I believe Brett still yearns for Jake as she has demonstrated this entire novel. When Jake acts more distant and platonic than before, Brett begins to actively encourage and pursue Jake in their ending taxi ride.
What are your thoughts on the differences in Jake and Brett's relationship at the beginning and end of the novel?
- Max Bolton
These are interesting scenes to analyze because they give the book a feeling of coming full circle. You can compare the two moments and see how the characters react differently, due to all that has happened between them from the first taxi ride to the last one. I agree with your point that the characters swapped roles in a way. This feeling of resolution is made complicated with Jake's final remarks that give it a sense of ambiguity.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning, Jake was infatuated with the idea of Brett, only to be met with resistance due to his physical injury from the war. However, at the end, Jake has a bittersweet realization of the pain and emotional damage both of them would experience had they gotten together.
ReplyDeleteI especially like your insight that Jake may well identify with Mike, as one of Brett's unfortunate "victims," at the end of the novel: when they talk about how "badly" Cohn and Mike have "behaved," Jake repeats his view that "it's been damned hard on Mike." I've often thought of this novel in terms of how Jake might see more of himself and his situation in COHN than he'd care to admit--which is why he spends the early pages of the novel deflecting and prejudicing us against Cohn, so we can't see all the parallels as easily--but the Mike connection also makes a lot of sense. Jake never sees Mike as a "rival" for Brett's affections, and Mike talks to Jake with candor and openness about how she inevitably goes off with other fellows--and they BOTH see Cohn as an unwelcome interloper. It's been damned hard on Mike, but it's been damned hard on Jake, too. The reader can see that in a way that even Brett can't.
ReplyDeleteAwesome analysis, Max! Before I dive in, I want to say how much I love the full-circle writing technique, especially in this novel—it really highlights the characters’ development from the beginning to the present. I feel like this scene is particularly tricky to break down because its vagueness allows for so many interpretations. I do believe that, to some extent, Mike represents an alternate version of Jake—one where he hasn’t suffered the same injury but is still crushed by Brett’s actions. So, I totally get the perspective that Mike’s response is more sarcastic and bitter. Additionally, it’s fascinating to consider whether Jake’s injury is part of why he’s so drawn to Brett. She knows him on such a personal level and has acted as a caretaker or nurturing figure. This could explain why he can’t fully move on from her. He might have accepted that his feelings are wistful, but it could also be a vicious cycle. On a more unrelated note, I think that, at heart, Jake is a bit more conservative and traditional. Without the injury, it’s entirely possible he would have pursued a different woman and settled down. In that case, Brett might not have had such a hold on him—unless, of course, he took a more Robert Cohn-like approach.
ReplyDelete