| |
The plot is the story of Cantwell, a retired United States Army officer. The colonel, Cantwell, is taking liberty in Italy, and ponders wrong that he perceives to have been done to him by generals Eisenhower, Patton, Leclerc and Montgomery. He rose in rank under his own steam, and made more powerful soldiers jealous and receiving a demotion because of an impossible situation.
After a brief affair with a nineteen year old Venetian contessa, Renata, fifty year old Cantwell reflects on his life, quotes Stonewall Jackson, crawls to the backseat of his staff car, and dies of a heart attack. His aide, angered by a criticism, chose to disregard a request to return personal items to Venice directly, but sent them through channels. The theme seems to be that politics controls our lives.
Some critics have called this the low point of Hemingway’s career. It was one of several pieces he wrote in Cuba, after World War II. The hero is the victim. |
|