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Ernest Hemingway is possibly one of the greatest literary masters of all time, his many acclaimed stories are known around the world from his novels such as “Old Man and the Sea” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls” to his short stories like “ Hills Like White Elephants” and “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place”. The literary novel, “A Farewell to Arms” is by far one of the greatest literary masterpieces by Hemingway; it addresses his philosophy of an indifferent universe through the character of Frederic Henry, an American lieutenant in the Italian army.
Hemingway’s philosophy of an indifferent universe is shown throughout his novel “A Farewell to Arms”. “Hemingway, and indeed many of his existential peers, believed that the universe is an unordered one. There is no God to watch over man, to dictate codes of morality, or to ensure justice. Instead, the universe is indifferent, sometimes even hostile to man's plight.” (Homework Online). In the book, this indifference is portrayed best by the war, which is an ultimately hostile and deadly struggle of man against man. There are no winners in a war, and there is no reasoning behind the lives that are taken. Lieutenant Henry views the universe as being an indifferent universe in which human beings have no more privileged place than ants. This is clearly seen when he describes the ants scurrying around on the log. After Frederic places the log on the fire he has the chance of being their savior. This thought is brought about when he is waiting to hear about Catherine. He knows that he is just as helpless as those ants and that the universe is as caring as he was towards the ants (Hemingway, "A Farewell to Arms").
Existentialism is the belief that every individual is only a limited human being. Thus, every person must face important and difficult decisions with only limited knowledge and time in which to make these decisions. Existentialists see human life as being basically a series of decisions that...