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| 등록일자:
2012-04-16 조회수 : 1794 |
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What is fear? Some of us wonder what the answer to that question is all the time. Fear can be defined as an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight). We hear all of these different sayings such as, "There is nothing to fear but fear itself" or something to the point of not knowing what fear is until you face it. In Ernest Hemingway's short story, "The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber" The main character, Francis and his wife Margaret, are on a safari with a man named Robert Wilson. Francis and Margaret fight about many things when he runs away from a charging lion. In the end, Margaret who was trying to protect him from a charging wounded buffalo "accidentally" shoots him. The theme that is being conveyed is that facing one's fears can lead to happiness in some way or another; not necessarily being shot. The theme will be traced through the essay by the cause and effect of the lion incident, the change of Francis' attitude toward different aspects of his life after the incident, and the attitude he has at the end of the story. Throughout the events in the story, Hemingway shows his theme that facing fears can lead to a happy life.
Francis realizes that he doesn't have to be afraid of anything anymore after he confronts the lion. We knew that Francis had a fear of lions when he "woke in the night to hear it, he was afraid" (7). This proves that Francis is scared of something and that he doesn't really want to confront it. After he injures the lion, they sit and wait for it to bleed for a while. After the lion starts charging, "he was running; running wildly, in panic in the open, running toward the stream" (13). This also proves the fact that Francis was afraid of what might happen if he had stuck around. After the incident had occurred, he felt ashamed of what he had done and he apologizes to Wilson on more than one occasion. "`I'm awfully sorry about that lion business'" (3). This suggests that Francis was embarrassed and didn't want anybody other than the camp to find out about his cowardly ways. But on a lighter note for Francis, he finally faced what he was afraid of, which starts a chain reaction of changes for himself.
After the lion incident, Francis has a different attitude towards everybody at the camp. Sitting around the fire during the night On the day of his death, Francis argues with his wife about his actions the day before
Francis' attitude towards his wife at the end of the story shows his ability to face his fear and change his attitude about his life to make him happy. After he realizes that Margot had been cheating on him with Wilson, he confronts her after she came back into the tent. After he asks where she had been she says, "Out to get a breath of air" (15). Francis soon follows with, "That's a new name for it." (15). This suggests that she had been in Wilson's tent previously doing the naughty dance. It's a change in attitude because he's finally stepping up to his wife. As the fighting continues towards the end, Francis comes face to face with a small herd of buffalo; he's ready to kill them when he gets the opportunity to do so. Margot notices that he's full of confidence and asks "Isn't it sort of late"" (23). Francis answers, "Not for me" (23). This suggests that Francis is no longer afraid to do things that he should have done a long time ago such as sticking up to his wife and realizing that he should have gotten rid her.
On a brighter note, Hemingway's idea of facing your fears makes Francis a happy man whether it is for a short time or not. He started out scared and uncertain of his ideas of hunting big game animals by running away from an injured lion. He then changes his perspective on life after the incident, which in the end causes him to not be afraid of charging animals anymore. Although he gets killed after his triumph, for that short time, Francis was a happy man. This theme applies to everybody in the sense that one can never truly know what he or she is afraid of until they confront it face to face. |
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