The Hemingway Review

For decades, Jake Barnes' narration of The Sun Also Rises has effectively obscured the intricacies of Brett Ashley's character. By acknowledging Jake's narrative bias, and moving beyond it and the volumes of critical commentary that it has inspired, readers can begin to appreciate Brett as a complex character. Freed from the limits Jake's narration imposes, a re-examination of Brett and her role in Jake's life shows that she stands as one of Hemingway's most developed female personae, a woman eminently worthy of Jake's fascination, as well as our own.