Great Expectations/ Farewell to Arms.
In great works of literature authors use every aspect of writing, including tone, style, plot, setting and theme, to create a coherent novel. Nowhere is this more evident than in Charles Dickens' Great Expectations and Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms, in which each writer used elements of literature in various ways to create the literary classics for which they are famous.
Great Expectations illustrated the life of Phillip Pirrip, known to the reader as simply Pip, and everything he went through to gain what he desired. Frederic Henry, the protagonist in A Farewell to Arms, also changed throughout the book because of the situations in which he found himself. These transformations are essential to the underlying themes in each novel, but the themes themselves are different. Dickens' story showed how Pip, despite his best attempts to convert himself into a gentleman was still, at heart, a poor boy from Kent. It shows us that no matter what happens, people cannot change who they are or conform to what other people believe they should be. On the other hand, Frederic Henry's change is a loss of innocence. He was introduced as a callow boy, then experienced injury, war, and death and emerged a cynical man with knowledge of the harshness of life. .
Often, writers will utilize more than one theme in their works. Love also played an intricate part in both novels, but in distinctive manners. Pip was in love with Estella throughout the story, and his quest for her love was the impetus behind many of his gentlemanly endeavors. The book revolved around the pursuit for the love, not the love itself. On the other hand, Farewell to Arms was a love story, focusing on how the horrors of war were contrasted by Frederic and Catherine's love for each other. .
Tone is another part of a novel that authors use. The tone of each of the novels is intermingled with the first person point of view so that the attitude of both books changed with the attitude of their main characters.
