The Sun Also Rises

Novel | Ernest Hemingway
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How can you describe the Parisian café culture in “The Sun Also Rises?”

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How can you describe the Parisian café culture in “The Sun Also Rises?”

Ernest Hemingway’s (1899-1961) “The Sun Also Rises” (1926) shows Paris in the 1920s with deep charm. The city lives through its cafés. Jake, Brett, Cohn, Frances, Georgette, and others meet there. Cafés become homes, clubs, and escape places. The café culture paints real Parisian life.

Cafés as Meeting Places: Cafés are places where friends gather. Jake meets Robert Cohn and Frances in cafés. He sits with Harvey Stone at the Select. Jake says, 

“Come on down-stairs and have a drink.” 

This shows how drinks and cafés bring people together. In Paris, cafés replace drawing rooms. People talk, laugh, argue, and plan. The café is a center of community. Even strangers like Georgette join Jake for coffee and wine at the Napolitain.

Cafés as Escape from Loneliness: Jake often goes to cafés when

he feels sad. He sits alone at the Napolitain. He watches the crowd. He says,

“It was a warm spring night and I sat at a table on the terrace.” 

This shows his habit. Brett also meets Jake in cafés to escape her troubles. They drink, forget pain, and try to be happy. The café is a place of escape, where loneliness turns into a little comfort.

Cafés as Symbols of Modern Life: Paris cafés are full of energy, light, and music. At the bal musette, Brett, Cohn, and Jake see the dancing crowd. Drinks flow. The owner plays the accordion. Jake notes, 

“It was hot and we came off the floor perspiring.” 

This shows modern life full of heat, drink, and restless joy. The café reflects post-war youth, full of motion but also empty inside.

Through Jake, Brett, Cohn, Frances, Georgette, and others, Hemingway shows Parisian café culture as a meeting place, an escape, and a symbol of restless life. Cafés are the heart of Paris in “The Sun Also Rises”.

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Ernest Hemingway
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from The Sun Also Rises