The Sun Also Rises : Summary

Summary

Life in Paris—Jake, Cohn, Brett, Mike, and Bill

Jake Barnes lives in Paris after the First World War. He works as a journalist. He is calm and polite. He spends a lot of time with friends in cafés. He has many friends, but deep inside, he feels lonely. Jake fought in the war. He carries a terrible wound from the war. His war injury has made him impotent. He is unable to have a normal sexual life. This wound is always with him. He is haunted by the war and his injury throughout the novel.

Among his friends is Robert Cohn. Cohn once went to Princeton College and was a good boxer there. Later, he became a writer. He had some success with his first novel and made some money. But he is not a successful writer. Cohn feels unhappy and restless. He wants love, excitement, travel, and adventure. Cohn also feels separate because he is Jewish in a mostly Christian group.

Cohn has a girlfriend named Frances. She wants to marry Cohn, but Cohn is unsure. When Frances finds out Cohn does not plan to marry her, she feels angry and hurt. At the cafe, she scolds Cohn in front of Jake. Cohn just sits quietly and does not defend himself.

Lady Brett Ashley is the woman everyone talks about. She is beautiful. She can easily attract men. She is lively. She enjoys her freedom. But deep inside, she is unhappy and restless. Brett is separated from her husband, Lord Ashley, and is awaiting a divorce. She is now engaged to Mike Campbell. But Brett is not serious about this engagement. She continues to have affairs with other men. Brett seeks love, and she also wants to keep her freedom. She honestly admits that she cannot live without having sex.

Jake loves Brett deeply. But he cannot have a complete relationship with Brett because of his injury. His love for Brett becomes painful and hopeless. Brett also likes Jake very much. But she knows she cannot sacrifice her physical pleasure for Jake. She rejects Jake’s love because she knows she would go to other men, and it would only hurt Jake more. This truth hurts both of them. Even though they care for each other, they know they can never be fully happy together.

One evening, Brett comes to Jake’s apartment drunk, and they kiss. She says she loves him, but she also pushes him away. She cries, saying, “Oh, darling, I’m so miserable.” This moment shows the impossible situation they are in. They want to be together, but they cannot.

Meanwhile, Robert Cohn becomes interested in Brett. He falls in love with her quickly. Brett goes away with him for a holiday in San Sebastian. This shocks and annoys Jake. When Brett tells Jake about it, he hides that he is hurt.

Later, Jake’s American friend Bill Gorton arrives in Paris. Bill is funny, easygoing, and drinks a lot. He has been traveling in America and Europe and has many wild stories. Jake and Bill decide to go fishing in Spain and then to the fiesta in Pamplona. Brett and her fiancé Mike agree to meet them in Pamplona, and Cohn insists he will come too. This sets the stage for all the problems to come.

The Fishing Trip

Before leaving for the fishing trip, Jake and Bill spent some time drinking and joking in Paris. They laugh about the strange life they see around them. Bill teases Jake, but also shows he cares about him. Bill often speaks crudely, but he is honest and loyal. He is different from Cohn, who tries too hard to fit in and often ends up disliked.

Jake and Bill set off on the train. The train is crowded with Catholic pilgrims, and they have trouble finding seats in the dining car. They eat simple meals, drink wine, and look out at the countryside. At Bayonne, they stop for a short stay. There, they meet Cohn. Cohn seems uneasy around Bill because Bill is a successful writer, while Cohn always feels insecure about himself. Bill teases him in ways that make Cohn uncomfortable. Still, the three continue their journey into the Spanish countryside.

When they reach Burguete, Jake and Bill settle down for a few days of fishing. The countryside is quiet and beautiful. They fish in the cold, clear streams, eat simple food, and drink Spanish wine. At night, they eat a good meal at the inn, drink wine, and talk until late. They discuss love, women, and the war. Bill says that Jake has paid too high a price for being wounded in the war. Jake laughs, but deep inside he feels the truth of those words. Jake and Bill sleep peacefully at night. These days are restful, showing the simple joy of nature and friendship. Jake feels a kind of peace here that he does not feel in the noisy city.

But this peace does not last long. After a few days, Jake and Bill travel again to meet Brett, Mike, and Cohn in Pamplona. The big fiesta and the bullfights are about to begin, and with them will come noise, excitement, and trouble.

Arrival in Pamplona

When Jake and Bill arrive in Pamplona, the mood changes completely. The town is alive with excitement. Streets are decorated, music is played, and people crowd every corner. It is the week of the fiesta, and the whole city feels like a stage where joy, madness, and danger are mixed together.

Mike and Brett were already there, waiting for them. Brett looks beautiful as always, and her presence immediately pulls Jake back into the old circle of longing and pain. Mike, as usual, is half-drunk and keeps making rude comments about Cohn.

Cohn has also come to Pamplona, but his position in the group is very uncomfortable. He still loves Brett desperately, but Brett has already moved on from him. She is tired of him, but Cohn refuses to let go. Whenever he sees Brett, his face shows jealousy and sadness. Mike openly insults Cohn. Cohn tries to ignore the insults, but it hurts him deeply.

Despite this tension, the fiesta begins. Drums, fireworks, and trumpets fill the air. Every morning, the famous “running of the bulls” takes place, when the animals are released into the streets and men run in front of them to prove their bravery. Jake loves watching this event because it shows a mixture of courage, danger, and beauty. However, Cohn cannot bear to see this. Mike insults Cohn for being too soft.

At the center of the bullfighting world is Pedro Romero, a young matador. He is only nineteen, but his talent and grace in the bullring amaze everyone. He is handsome, calm, and completely dedicated to his art. When he fights, it is not just a performance but almost a religious act. The crowd admires him. Soon, Brett develops a liking for him.

Romero and Brett

As the fiesta goes on, the group spends their days drinking, eating, and watching bullfights. But beneath all the music and laughter, there is growing tension. The reason is clear: Brett and Pedro Romero.

Romero is different from the men Brett usually spends time with. He is not careless, not broken by the war, not lost in endless drinking. Instead, he is focused, serious, and full of pride in his art. When he steps into the ring, he moves with such grace that people compare him to a dancer or an artist. He has made bullfighting look noble, not just violent.

Brett is fascinated. She admires his bravery and his beauty. Soon, Jake realizes that Brett has fallen in love with Romero. Jake feels torn. He fears that Romero is too young and innocent, and Brett would spoil his talent. Still, Jake cannot stop her. He loves Brett too much to refuse her anything. He helps Brett and Romero talk.

Cohn’s Jealousy

Meanwhile, Cohn grows more and more jealous. He cannot accept that Brett has left him behind. His behavior becomes embarrassing for the whole group.

Mike, who already hates Cohn, makes things worse. He insults Cohn almost every day. He laughs at his devotion to Brett. These insults are cruel, but they come from Mike’s own pain. He knows Brett loves other men, yet he is still engaged to her. This makes him angry, and he takes out his anger on Cohn.

The situation explodes one night when Cohn discovers that Brett has gone out with Romero. Cohn cannot bear it. He confronts Jake first. He approaches Jake and demands to know where Brett is. Jake refuses to tell him. Mike says that she has “gone off with the bullfighter chap.” Furious, Cohn calls Jake a pimp. Jake takes a swing at Cohn, and a fistfight starts. But Cohn shows his boxing prowess and knocks out both Jake and Mike.

Later, Cohn also confronts Romero. He hits him badly. But Romero does not give up. He keeps coming back and fighting. At one point, Cohn does not want to fight anymore. He is ashamed and broken. Cohn cries and begs Brett to forgive him. 

Back at the hotel, Cohn also asks for forgiveness from Jake. Jake refuses. But Cohn says that Jake is the only friend he has. Then, Jake forgives him. Feeling broken, Cohn leaves Pamplona.

The Fiesta Continues

After Cohn’s departure, the fiesta carries on, though the group is shaken. Romero continues to fight in the ring, and his performances are even more powerful. He cuts off a bull’s ear and gives it to Brett as a gift. People cheer as Romero faces the bulls with calm and courage. For Jake, the bullfights symbolize something pure and meaningful, something the war generation has lost.

Breaking Apart

When the fiesta ends, the group scatters. Brett has left Pamplona on a train with Romero. The next day, Mike, Bill, and Jake share a car to Bayonne. They get drunk and drive to Saint Jean de Luz to drop Mike off. Jake says goodbye to Bill at the train station in Bayonne.

Jake Alone in San Sebastian

Jake travels alone to San Sebastian, a peaceful seaside town. The sharp contrast to Pamplona strikes him immediately. Instead of noisy music and drunken crowds, he finds calm beaches, quiet streets, and the soft sound of waves. But even in peace, Jake cannot escape the emptiness inside him.

Telegram from Brett and Meeting Her in Madrid

Soon, Jake receives two telegrams from Brett. She wants him to come to the Hotel Montana in Madrid because she is “in trouble.” He immediately makes arrangements to leave San Sebastian and meet her.

When Jake arrives in Madrid, Brett greets him with a kiss. She has broken up with Romero. She sent for Jake because she was not sure if she could make Romero leave. Moreover, Brett had no money to leave. So, she asks Jake for help.

Romero wanted Brett to grow her hair so she would look more like a woman. He wanted to marry her so that she would never leave him. But she forced Romero to leave because she did not want to ruin him. She also tells Jake that she wants to go back to Mike.

Jake stays with her. She and Jake go to a bar and have three martinis each before having lunch in a nice restaurant. There, Jake drinks three bottles of wine. He then orders two more bottles of wine. Brett asks Jake not to get drunk and assures him that he will be “all right.”

The Final Ride

Jake and Brett take a ride in a taxi through Madrid. Jake puts his arm around her. Brett leans close to Jake and speaks the words that capture their whole tragic love. She says:

“Oh, Jake, we could have had such a damned good time together.”

It is a heartbreaking line. She admits what Jake already knows: that they love each other deeply, that they would have been happy if not for his wound. Jake sadly replies:

“Yes. Isn’t it pretty to think so?”

These final words sum up the truth. Their love is strong, but it can never become real. They would always circle each other, always dream of what might have been, but never find peace together.

In this novel, Hemingway wanted to show a generation trying to live after the war, searching for meaning in a world that felt broken.