The Bell Tolls For Bullfighters:Life And Death In Hemingway's Death In The Afternoon

This thesis is a research about life and death in Ernest Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon. Hemingway's books abounded in code heroes who faced difficulties without complaint even though life was an unending fight against death and hardships. They glorify discipline, competence and masculinity, which teach them "grace under pressure". According to this thesis, Hemingway's "grace under pressure" is a psychological strategy to deal with death. By describing death in his books, Hemingway was actually telling people how to live under death threat.Death in the Afternoon is a fascinating book on the art of bullfighting. It provides a snapshot of Spanish bullfight. Performers of grace and cunning will arouse deep contemplations on the nature of cowardice and bravery. Hemingway's view of life and death and its manifestation in Death in the Afternoon are the gist and core element of this thesis. The task is to make clear Hemingway's findings of his life-long research on death, which is "grace under pressure" like a code hero according to this thesis. Aiming to show people the value of Hemingway's "grace under pressure" in the struggle against adversities, this thesis adopts some research methods like concept explanation, literature methodology, comparative analysis, close reading and so on.The thesis consists of four chapters. Chapter1is a general description of some facts and definitions about life and death, which paves the way for the further discussion; Chapter2focuses specifically on Hemingway's view of life and death as a whole; Chapter3tries to connect Hemingway's death consciousness with the creation of Death in the Afternoon; Chapter4, which is the principal part, discusses life and death reflected in Death in the Afternoon and how Hemingway's view of life and death make sense in the bullring and also in the whole world. The implications of this study lies in the emphasis on "grace under pressure". It is not only the core content of Hemingway's view of life and death, but also recommends a way of heroic living."Grace under pressure" is of both instructive value in text reading and practical value for survival.