The reader is introduced almost immediately to the death and desolation that are to become commonplace as the book progresses. At first one seems puzzled by Hemingway’s almost agonizingly painful attention to detail, especially when it comes to portraying the narrator’s surroundings and landscape. However, on reading more closely one finds that his purpose in doing so is to send the reader a message through his explicit descriptions of the prevalent climatic conditions:
Almost from the very first page itself, we realize that Hemingway considers rain to be a bad omen, or the bearer of bad luck, even death. Though he describes the countryside to be “rich with crops”, he goes on to say that the rains were followed by the outbreak of disease, specifically-cholera. Also, the narrator of the story (with who we have yet to be acquainted), says that, “in the fall when the rains came the leaves all fell from the chestnut trees and the branches were bare and the trunks black with rain. The vineyards were thin and bare-branched too and all the country wet and brown and dead with autumn”; implying once again that rain heralds decay and extinction.
Also while the narrator describes in great detail the trucks that go by carrying arms and ammunition, the soldiers that march on, the mules, and even the motor cars carrying such high ranking officials as the King himself which pass him by; we begin to notice that he seems to be on the sidelines of the action, both figuratively and literally. Though we do not know much about the narrator as yet, we begin to get a sense that he is not totally drawn into the war, but appears to be on the periphery of it, a silent observer. This sets the tone of the extent of his involvement in the war for much of the remainder of the book.
When speaking of the soldiers marching by, the narrator remarks that the troops are burdened by their guns and ammunition, and seem to be marching “as though they were six months gone with child.” In saying this, he hints to the reader the heartbreaking manner in which the book will end. One notices how Hemingway does not simply say “six months pregnant”, but instead chooses to say “six months gone”, once again indicating to the tragedy that is soon to strike.
Though one sometimes feels as if the narrator’s seemingly detached viewpoint and descriptions are perfunctory and somewhat clinical, Hemingway manages to bring out the emotion by painting vivid pictures in the reader’s mind. He does not dwell on the glory of war, nor on the bloodiness of it. Instead he ‘says a lot by saying a little’-his language is empty of passion or emotion, the narrator simply tells it as it is. For example, he says that the fighting is “not successful” and that things are going “very badly”, thus showcasing Hemingway’s trademark, clean and simple form of expression.
Another reason for this style of writing could be to put across to the reader the effect of the war on the narrator. Perhaps the reason why he portrays things in such an unemotional manner is because he has seen too much violence and death, and he is now too disillusioned by the war and the cruelty that comes with it to describe it in a more passionate manner. Perhaps, he has given up.
Though Hemingway uses simple and easy to understand language, he has an extremely distinct and original style of writing, which takes some getting used to for a first time Hemingway reader. One notices the frequent use of abrupt, declarative sentences that are largely descriptive and informative. On the other hand, also to be seen are long, seemingly endless sentences, which are really a number of clauses held together by conjunctions.
The prevailing tone for most of the first chapter is one of dryness and sarcasm. This reaches its climax at the close of the chapter, where the narrator, in reference to the outbreak of the cholera epidemic, reports that “in the end only seven thousand died of it in the army”. The casual yet somewhat cynical manner in which he talks of death is a very stoic approach. Like most of Hemingway’s heroes, the narrator seems impassive and undisturbed by the death that surrounds him, taking it in his stride and accepting it as something which he cannot amend.