Cohn vs. Mike

 

Two Soldiers on Horseback by Horace Vernet

Despite Ernest Hemingway’s straightforward and simple style of writing, there is a lot of ambiguity in the relationships between characters in The Sun Also Rises. One of the relationships riddled with unanswered questions is that of Jake and Brett. Jake clearly is in love with Brett, but underneath the surface are complex and conflicted feelings about her. He seems frustrated, saddened, and conflicted about his situation with Brett, and these feelings are further complicated when other men express interest in Brett, namely Robert Cohn. Jake seems relatively okay with the fact that Brett is going to marry Mike, but he becomes intensely jealous upon discovering that Brett and Cohn had a thing. So, what is the difference between Mike and Cohn to Jake?

One of the differences between Mike and Cohn are the circumstances of their relations with Brett. Mike is going to marry Brett, and Cohn takes a trip with her. Jake believes that Brett’s past marriages have not been motivated by actual feelings of love, and that her relationship with Mike is no different. In Jake’s and Cohn’s first conversation about Brett, Cohn says, “I don’t believe she would marry anybody she didn’t love”, to which Jake responds, “Well, […] She’s done it twice”. Additionally, in the same conversation Jake says that Brett is going to marry Mike, and that Mike is “going to be rich as hell some day”. The fact that Jake includes this detail about Mike when talking about Brett marrying him suggests that Jake believes Brett is marrying Mike for financial reasons. If Brett is simply marrying Mike for money and stability, then there is no reason for Jake to be concerned about Brett being in love with him, and therefore no reason for Jake to be jealous of him. Cohn’s situation with Brett is very different in Jake’s mind. Brett obviously doesn’t take a trip with Cohn to marry him for his money. Brett likely chooses to spend time with Cohn because she genuinely thinks she might have a good time doing so, which gives Jake cause for concern.

I think Jake’s jealousy of Cohn also largely stems from his own ego-boosting dynamic with Cohn. Jake constantly criticizes Cohn in his head. He points out the ways he perceives Cohn as being un-masculine and dull to make himself feel better. Thus, it would be a profound hit to Jake’s pride if Cohn had a real relationship with Brett, when Jake’s relationship with her was unsuccessful. If Brett had feelings for Cohn, it would indicate to Jake that in some ways Cohn is better than him, which he does not want to believe. In addition to Jake’s conclusion that Brett is marrying Mike for financial stability, Jake’s pride isn’t hurt by Brett’s relationship with Mike because he likes Mike and thinks he’s a nice guy. Therefore, the fact that Brett is with Mike is not degrading to him like a relationship between Brett and Cohn would be.

Comments

  1. Kethan NaiduOctober 15, 2020 at 9:54 PM

    I do understand why Jake is jealous of Cohn for being so friendly with Brett, but I don't think that Jake would see Brett marrying Mike as just for financial regions and wouldn't be jealous about. He seems very upset that she is marrying Mike and I think he is jealous of all her relationships even if he thinks that she doesn't love them simply because they get to spend time with her and they can develop their relationship much easier and better than Jake and Brett can.

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  2. DinaOctober 17, 2020 at 5:53 PM

    I completely agree with your observations. In addition, I also found it interesting how Jake came to deduce that Brett was hanging out with Cohn for his character and no other reason. Jake dismisses her relationships with other men because he knows the personality of the other men to not be that attractive. However, he is worried when she starts seeing Cohn. This means that Jake, no matter how much he criticizes Cohn for not being manly enough, knows that Cohn is in fact better in character compared to the other men, and maybe even himself. I feel that in general Jake uses criticism as a coping mechanism.

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  3. Stefania October 22, 2020 at 10:42 PM

    I agree that Jake's heavy criticism of Cohn definitely comes from a place of jealousy, and as many things that he does, his way of making Cohn seem less masculine and less like a threat seems to be done in order to give himself peace of mind and security in his own masculinity. I think viewing all of the various things that Jake has and will ctiticize in the novel throug the lense of "is this just a projection of his own insecurities?" could probably reveal many more things about Jake.

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