Cat in the Rain

Review on Cat in The Rain of Ernest Hemingway A couple of Americans traveled in Italy. At the hotel, on a raining day, the wife found a cat crouched in the rain and wanted to take the cat and possess it. She went out and searched the cat in the rain, to find it had gone. Coming back, she told her husband her wish to change her hair style and was turned down by her husband. After her several other wishes were also turned down, a waitress of the hotel knocked the door, at the demand of the hotel owner, and sent her a cat. These are the main plots of Hemingway’s novel, Cat in The Rain. Main characters in the story are the American wife and her husband. Hemingway’s purpose of writing this novel is to illustrate the relationship between the couple. But when focusing on the simple but meaningful story, it’s easy to get confused, or even worse, get nothing out of it. In this novel, as many people have pointed out, there are many metaphors. Like the cat and the rain. These metaphors could lead us to the theme. In the very first paragraph, we can see that the description is showing the state of the couple’s relationship: at first it was once quite nice, just like the beautiful scene outside, and when it’s raining, their relationship got cold, too. And also, readers can find three symbols: the sea, the garden and the war monument, which can be seen in the American couple’s room. Compared with the sea, the garden is much delicate. In some cases, the garden may be washed out by the sea at ease. The garden is at the mercy of the sea. This scene, together with the monument, illustrates the background of the novel. As for the monument, it’s the symbol of conflict and sacrifice. This symbol indicates that a â€Å"war† is ahead. We would have a better understanding in the following paragraphs. The first scene in the room is the out-looking wife and her husband who is lying on the bed. Viewing this, the relationship of the couple is obvious to readers: they do not enjoying a happy life. The wife is eager to run away from her husband. While her husband, the American man who is reading on the bed, is giving pressure on her wife. And he would like to lie on the bed comfortably and read the book. The book is a â€Å"wall† between him and her wife. It’s a barrier that prevents communication from these two persons. Along the spreading of the story, the focus turns to a cat, a cat in the rain. The American wife finds that the cat is crouching under a table, trying to avoid the rain. Thus there is a kind of connection built up between the woman and the cat. In fact, the cat reflects the woman’s situation. Both of them are under some kind of troubles and have nothing to do on their troubles: the cat can’t change the weather, just like the wife has no influence on her husband at that time. In similar situation with the cat, the woman goes out, trying to get it when finding the poor cat. While being out and searching for the cat, she can’t find it. It has gone. It’s making its effort to flee. Whether it has run away from the rain, it has gone. Anyhow, the cat’s result is a good sign. The cat is gone, but the woman has to come back. The conflict between her husband and her hasn’t come to an end. The woman comes back and makes her new effort to make some changes. She even sits on the bed, trying to communicate with her husband. But she fails. Her husband is still reading. She comes up with some other demands, desperately. But her husband still ignores her wish for change. It’s getting dark. Their relationship is getting dark, too. The woman’s efforts do not work. Her wish to transverse her husband’s influence breaks down. Suddenly,there is a change. The light comes on the square outside the window, and the change for the American woman comes, too. She is sent a big tortoise-shell cat. It doesn’t matter whether this cat is the cat in the rain several minutes ago. It’s just a symbol of change for the woman. It’s not enough for the woman. It’s just a beginning. What she wants is not just a cat. She wants to change. Anyhow, it’s a good sign, too. Also,the using of words shows some attitudes, too. The different titles of the cat, like the kitty; and that of the woman, like the girl. These different addresses show the childish characteristics of the woman. This feature shows that her inferior statue comparing with her husband. All in all, the main problem of the story is their relationship: the husband controls all affairs, while the wife’s failure of trying to make a change. However, there is still a sign of change at the end of the story, which shows the author’s hope for future.