Symbolism in ‘A Farewell to Arms’

Symbols are considered to be an artistic device. The writers do not convey their thoughts in cheaper
words but they use symbols to foreshadow and make their language rich and impressive. ‘A Farewell
to Arms’ depends heavily on Hemingway’s symbolic technique to convey the subjective condition of
his characters.

Hemingway’s use of symbols and metaphors is always sublime and subtle. But this does not
mean that his symbolism is tinged with obscurity or ambiguity. Rather his idiomatic expressions and
under-statements are quite clear and far from being incomprehensible. The writer uses simplicity and
naturalness to decorate his narrative and to draw the attention of his reader.

The very title of the novel ‘A Farewell to Arms’ is itself symbolical. The title bears two-fold
symbolic meanings. The hero in the novel bids farewell not only to the war but also to the arms of the
woman he loves. He bids farewell to war because he is disgusted with it. But he also bids farewell to
the arms of his beloved woman because she has become a victim of her cruel fate.

“This was the price you paid for sleeping together. This was the end of the trap. This was what
people got for loving each other.”

Throughout the novel Ernest Hemingway uses water and rivers as metaphors. Rivers are used as
symbols of rebirth and escape and rain as tragedy and disaster.

Rivers in ‘A Farewell to Arms’ represent rebirth. They symbolize a departure from a previous
life and an entrance to a new one. Henry already fed up with the war, no longer believes in “war
heroism”. While walking with his fellow soldiers, after the retreat, he is arrested and fears that he will
be executed. "He jumps in the river with a splash", allowing it to float him along. Thus he is able to
save his life. As a result of this plunge, his “anger was washed away in the river along with any
obligation”. When Henry emerged from the river, it was as if he was reborn.

The seasons are also symbolic. Throughout the novel, the change of seasons occurs, suggesting
the changing of life as well as its temporal qualities, much like those of love.

Weather plays a significant role throughout the novel. Daniel J. Schneider writes that “the
dominant state of mind, the sense of death, defeat, failure” are conveyed with the images of rain,
mist, river, fog and so on.

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 Snow is natural symbol of beauty and affection. Settled in Switzerland in a small villa in snow
covered mountains, Catherine herself becomes the symbol of home, happiness, security, and comfort.
Besides, autumn stands as a symbol of destruction and winter a symbol of death as Hemingway writes
“… the country wet and brown and dead with the autumn.”

In the novel, rain serves as a potent symbol of tragedy. Already beginning in the first chapter,
the reader learns that "the permanent rain brought the cholera" and that seven thousand men have
died of it. The rain degrades Henry’s happiness in the hotel as he awakens to the sound of rain and
learns that he will be arrested. Rain also falls during the troop's retreat which is symbolizing a failure.
And during their time of escape from Italy to Switzerland it is very windy and rainy. That symbolizes
how their escape would definitely be difficult. The rain in the novel is a constant foreshadowing of
the tragedy that soon befalls the lovers. Hemingway reflects the supreme dominance of death in the
novel, and how it looms over all the protagonists’ thoughts. Catherine tells Henry:

"I'm afraid of the rain because sometimes I see me dead in it... And sometimes I see you dead in
it."

This may be interpreted as the rain is an omen of death. It is in the rain that Henry loses both his child
and his wife, and the book ends with the image of Lt. Henry, trudging back to his hotel, alone in the
rain. Last word of the novel is also “Rain.”

Also cholera refers to both physical and spiritual disease. It is also a reason to death on a larger
level as in the army seven thousand soldiers died of cholera. It was brought by rain as in the first
chapter it is told:

“At the start of the winter came the permanent rain and with rain came the cholera”

Mountains and Low-lying plains are also important symbols. Mountains symbolize love, dignity,
health, happiness, and the good life. On the other hand, the low- lying plains serve as a symbol of
indignity, suffering, disease, death and destruction.

Catherine serves as one of the symbols of isolation and seclusion. During their sweet nights
in Milan, Catherine lets down her hair and lets it cascade around Frederic’s head. This lovely
description of hair that reminds Henry of being enclosed inside a tent or behind a waterfall stands as a
symbol of the couple’s isolation from the world and serves as a sort of security blanket for Henry as
he thinks himself sheltered from Italian authorities.

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 Hair also have symbolic importance. As they begin their relationship, Henry loves to let
Catherine’s hair down so that it is like being “inside a tent or behind a falls.” He wants to hide in
Catherine, to be isolated with her from the rest of the world. After their escape to Switzerland, Henry
grew longer hair and beard to hide his identity. Catherine also suggests to cut her hair short as:

“No, let it grow a little longer and I cut mine and we’d be just alike…”

In Ernest Hemingway's ‘A Farewell to Arms’, Frederick's narration of the burning of ants in

a log that he places on a fire is symbolic of the plight of the soldiers in the war. As the ants are attracted
towards the fire, they come near and fall into it, and thus become a victim of its heat. Likewise the
soldiers, in their infatuation with the war, plunge and throw themselves blindly into the war, and are
deprived of their lives. Hemingway uses this symbolic passage of the ants' death to highlight the futility
of war. This burning of ants takes on a symbolic significance. Hemingway uses this analogy to
propound his atheistic beliefs. As the ants are falling into the fire, Frederick:

"remember[s] thinking at the time that it was the end of the world and a splendid chance to be a
messiah and lift the log off the fire"

But Henry will not save the dying ants. In a metaphorical sense, Hemingway questions if there is a
God that has control over all those characters in the novel who are surrounded by death.

Officers' Star are also important symbols. The stars that military officers wear on their sleeves
in A Farewell to Arms represent competence and duty. When Dr. Valentini agrees to operate on
Henry's leg, Henry is comforted not only by Valentini's brash confidence but also by the stars on his
sleeve as “There was a star in a box on his sleeve because he was a major”. When Henry deserts and
cuts off the stars from his sleeve to disguise himself, he throws away his former identity and
responsibilities.

To conclude, from the first chapter to the last word, the novel is flooded with rain and other
images of water. The rain almost always heralds destruction and death; it impinges upon whatever
momentary happiness the characters have and turns it into muddy misery. Similarly the whole novel
is crowded by such rich symbols to authenticate the message conveyed by it.