A Very Short Story: Analysis

A very short story
The story I’ve read is called ‘A very short story’. It is written by Ernest Hemingway. He was an American writer and journalist. Hemingway’s style was significant as he was brief and straight-forward. His subject matter is love, war, wildness and loss. Most of his works are biographical, and this story is not an exception.
Let me pass on to the analysis itself. As for the title, In direct meaning it refers to the small size of the story, but indirectly it refers to transient of human relationship. Speaking about the themes, they are first love experience, devotion and treachery, illusion of first love and reality. The main one is the theme of love of a man and a woman, which was lost because of the ruined dreams and betrayal. The main idea is that the one should be careful in choosing the object of love.
Now let me pass on the plot of the story. Being wounded during the WWI young soldier met a nurse and they fell in love. Having returned to the front, their relationships were developing, they planned to get planned. Having returned to the USA, he found out the girl cheated on him (had an affair).
Speaking about composition, exposition reveals the setting and main characters of the story. We find the conflict when the couple separated from each other. The climax reveals when Luz had an affair with the major and denouement is showed when the mien hero had an affair with another girl. So, it means that sex and love are different things and they have nothing in common. The story is narrated from the first point of view. It is interesting to note that the author didn’t give the name of the man only the name of the woman. It means he was one of many but she was the only one of all women. Speaking about discourse types, narration is prevailing. It brings the reader through the chain of events and gives us an opportunity to experience the feelings and emotions of the main characters. As for characters, the author describes them indirectly. I’d like to start with the soldier. He was young, desperate and very kind. He fell in love with Luz and wanted to marry her in order to show that she belonged to him. Maybe, his love to Luz was based on the felling of gratitude, because she saved his life. Nevertheless, it was strong felling”. “It was understood he would not drink, and he did not want to see his friend or anyone in the States. Only to get a job and be married’ this shows he was truly in love with her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her even if it meant he has to give up all these liberties. “He felt seek” at the moment of separation, he tried to justify her betrayal and he attempted to forgive her with another women. Luz was determined women. She was devoted to her lover, she wrote him lots of letters, but he wasn’t able to answer them. The syntactical repetition (how it was impossible to get along with him and how terrible it was missing him at night) shows her true feelings.She loved him, but didn’t go to the USA and considered it would be better for him without her. However, she became the victim of her passion and had an affair with the major. The stylistic device – antithesis – skillfully used by Ernest Hemingway: “and she expected, absolutely unexpectedly, to be married in the spring.” We understood that she changed her planes after the war. Describing the relationship between Luz and the soldier, the author uses the repetition of word “bed” shows that firstly they were physical. However, later they decided to get married and went to the church and prayed. It means their relationship had spiritual foundation. At the end of the story, the author creates depressed atmosphere, using the epithets “muddy, rainy town», «it was lonely and rainy there” to describe that something bad will happen. We observe that the author makes use of the colloquial style avoiding professionalisms and pompous bookish words and phrases. Hemingway resorts to the language of everyday life and his choice of words is very limited. In conclusion I’d like to note, thought this story rather short, it’s still well-structured. It was interesting to follow the plot. I think that this story leaves much room for meditation especially about the theme of first love.