Traditional Values

In the post-war world of The Sun Also Rises, there seems to be a breakdown of traditional values. In the Left Bank, it is a new world, vastly different from what it was only a couple of decades ago. In this new place, the characters we follow are living life without a clear set of values or morals; they all have their own sorts of honor codes, but they don’t adhere to a greater cultural norm in regards to conducting themselves. Interestingly, the only characters who seem taken by traditional values are Cohn and Romero, who are the only characters who weren’t in the war. These men are also the two who most spectacularly did not work out with Brett. Both of them were uncomfortable with her lack of traditional values. Cohn, a man who tries to hold himself to these old standards of decency, can’t accept Brett’s sexual/romantic values. This is a man who seems to be filled with frustration, most likely from being the token Jew at Princeton, and he deals with it honorably, taking up boxing, only letting his aggression out in the ring. He can’t understand why Brett doesn’t buy into the antiquated value set that he does. She does not seem to have any interest in settling down and getting married, being with only one man, which is presumably what Cohn wants for her. He can’t understand her behaviors in the least, possibly explain his creepy behavior towards her after she spurns him. He courted her, she seemed to return his feelings, so why the hell was she running around with other guys? Romero is an honorable man who definitely has traditional values, which are shown in his traditional style in bullfighting. He is a kind young, arguably naïve, man who adheres to a righteous moral code. Thus, when he and Brett become a pair, he is worried by her bizarre behaviors. He gets uncomfortable, wishing to mold her into what he thinks she should be. He wants to marry her, as he thinks that is what one should do and hopefully it might chill her out. These men cannot cope with Brett’s lack of a traditional set of values.