Book Review: For Whom the Bell Tolls

I just finished my 3rd Ernest Hemingway book, For Whom the Bells Toll written in 1940. The book is set during the Spanish Civil War and pertains to an American, Robert Jordan, who has joined a band of Spanish anti-fascist fighters up in the mountains. His mission is to blow up a bridge, but little does he expect to fall in love. The novel was inspired by Hemingway's correspondence of the Spanish Civil War of which he supported the left leaning Republican cause with his fellow writers. The portrayal of his experience in Spain is well portrayed in the 2012 film Hemingway and Gellhorn starring Clive Owen and Nicole Kidman. He completed the book after returning from the war and dedicated it to his fellow correspondent and lover, Martha Gellhorn.

I've often seen this book regarded as one of the greatest novels of all time, and I would certainly say it's one of the greatest war novels. As most of Hemingway's writings you can tell he's pulling from experience and provides so much knowledge on the setting. The story truly takes you up into the Spanish mountains and establishes the raw emotions of fear and courage during this horrible time. The entire story takes place in about 3 to 4 days, with lots of dialogue, leading up to Robert Jordan's climatic mission to blow up the bridge. I would say it's a very well written book with great insight and detail, but maybe not as good as The Old Man and the Sea or The Sun Also Rises.

Plot Summary

Robert Jordan is an American idealist and a professor of Spanish from Montana who also happens to be a specialist in explosives. He voluntarily joins the Spanish Republican cause with passionate political ideals to fight again fascism. He is given direct orders from the Soviet General Golz to blow up a bridge in the Sierra de Guadarrama mountains in order to halt an upcoming Spanish Fascist attack. The elder guerrilla fighter Anselmo takes Robert Jordan through the mountains and to their camp hideout of other anti-fascist fighters. It is a small group led by the eccentric Pablo, his strong-willed wife Pilar, Agustin, Fernando, two brothers, Rafael the gypsy, and a younger woman named Maria. The bulk of the novel pertains to each of these characters' development and interactions with each other as they prepare for this mission.

Robert quickly comes to odds with Pablo, and finds him to be too untrusting and cowardly. He does however find favor with the matriarch of the group Pilar who has been through alot during the war. He also is quickly attracted to the young Maria, who serves him drink and food. She is not a fighter but rather an adopted member of the group who helps anyway she can. We later discover that her parents were killed by Falangist soldiers and she took refuge with Pilar and Pablo's band of guerilla fighters. We also discover all the trials and tribulations both Pilar and Pablo have endured throughout the civil war.

Robert Jordan falls deeply in love with Maria and spends each night with her in his tent, making love and planning their future together. However he is also very dedicated to his mission, despite challenges from the enemy and also within the group, primarily Pablo. On several instances he comes close to shooting Pablo dead, after various verbal disagreements that threaten the mission. It is clear that Pablo does not support the blowing of the bridge and the night before the mission he steals Robert's dynamite. This infuriates Robert the next morning, but he still plans to proceed with the mission using grenades instead. Pablo later returns to the group, feeling ashamed, but redeeming himself by bringing more soldiers to their mission.

The morning of the mission, Robert and Anselmo begin wiring the grenades while the others fight off the sentry guards throughout the bridge. Since they are using grenades instead of dynamite they have to stay closer to the bridge. Anselmo then pulls the string on Robert's command and the bridge explodes and sends steel debris flying everywhere, which crushes Anselmo to his death. Robert then reunites with the others in the group and is once again furious at Pablo for stealing the dynamite which caused Anselmo's death. However now he must put that behind him as they make their escape from the Nationalist assault.

The group joins up with Maria and mounts their horses to leave the scene of the explosion while the Nationalists rain heavy fire upon them. Robert Jordan bravely takes to the rear, and his horse is shot dead by tank fire, which results in a terrible collapse that shatters Robert's leg. He knows at this point that he would only slow down the others and bids them to carry on without him. He says goodbye to Pilar, Pablo, and Augustine, who offers to shoot him, but Robert declines. Maria is hysterical but he tells her that he will always be with her and finally they part ways. In the final moments Robert gives a thorough reflection of his life and his situation. He finds peace in the success of his mission and that he found love with Maria, as brief as it was. As the pain begins to increase he debates committing suicide, but later is relieved to see the oncoming enemy soldiers. The book ends without any clear indication of how Robert dies, only that he is ready to go out fighting. 

The Characters

Robert Jordan: He is the iconic example of the tragic hero. Surely a character Hemingway saw himself as, this person is intelligent, passionate, and very courageous. He is a foreigner to the Spanish cause, but is so committed to his political ideals that he wants to support them against the evil of fascism. Without any intentions he falls in love quite unexpectedly which offers him a softer side in the midst of such a terrible setting. Thru his new found love with Maria, he begins to want so much more out of life that this political passion, but as life often goes it is just not meant to be. 

Pilar: She is the matriarch of the group, strong-boned and strong-willed. As the wife of the commander Pablo, she has endured much violence and pain. She has a toxic relationship with her drunken husband, filled with hatred but also loyalty. She also has motherly instincts as she looks over the younger Maria, and protects her from the terrors of men and war.  

Pablo: He is the drunken commander of the guerilla unit, who is very unpredictable and untrustworthy. Robert respects his knowledge and experience but simply dislikes his negative attitude. Throughout the story Robert takes Pablo's place as the leader while Pablo sinks further within himself. Despite his nearly sabotaging of the mission, he does redeem himself in the end to join the final fight.    

Maria: She is the young, naïve, cliché, damsel-in-distress who clings to the strong and heroic Robert Jordan. She has endured the hardships of the war as a civilian and after losing her parents was forced to find refuge with this group of fighters thanks to Pilar. She wants nothing more than to be Robert Jordan's woman, to please him, and live a peaceful happy life in Madrid with him.  

Anselmo: He is the dedicated loyal elder of the group who quickly befriends Robert Jordan from the onset. He tells Robert that he does not like to kill men, even if they are fascists, and would much rather prefer to hunt and kill animals. In the end he dies from the explosive debris of the bridge. 

Augustin: He is a strong guerilla fighter, who is very vocal and opiniated. He also does not like or trust Pablo and on several instances threatens to kill him. He is cautious of Robert Jordan, and even a bit jealous when Maria choses Robert over him. In the end however he befriends, follows, and respects Jordan.

The Review

When I first started the book, I kind of assumed there would be a lot more action, fighting, and tragedy set during the Spanish Civil War. It was clear what Robert Jordan's mission was from the onset, but I did not think it would take the entire book to perform his one main mission. Instead of a series of battles we really got a series of dialogue and conversations amongst this group of guerilla fighters. Which at first I found to be somewhat dull but later realized it was really painting a very real scenario. Each of these characters were sharing their complex stories and personalities with one another. I think each of the characters is no doubt based on people Hemingway met throughout his experience covering the war in Spain. 

I did enjoy Hemingway's use of Spanish slang terms such as "Que Va" or even the various Spanish curses he uses, such as "obscenity in the milk". I don't however understand why he felt the need to use an Old English style of "thee, thy, thou, and thine" when the characters addressed one another. This wasn't meant to be some Shakespeare drama but rather a raw and vivid setting with very realistic, relatable, and modern day characters. I did however also enjoy how Hemingway frequently took us into the busy thoughts of Robert Jordan. The writing is truly passionate though with such great quotes, details, and metaphors. The way he explains this desire for mankind and love, or the shattering of the earth in the midst of an explosion. The book truly has some powerful drama and poetry in it, perhaps which is why Hemingway felt the call to use some Old English style. 

This book definitely inspired me to better understand Spanish history and culture. I first came to understand the Spanish Civil War through one of my all time favorite movies, Pans Labyrinth. But this book gave me even further insight into this terrible conflict of political ideals, that served as the staging grounds for the much larger global war to follow. Hemingway was there for it all, both the Spanish Civil War and World War II and got a first hand account of the people, both soldiers and civilians, involved in these major conflicts. While his works are mostly fiction, I think what makes them so unique and awe-inspiring is that he is writing from his own personal feelings and experience.