Entry #12

Allusion-

"'You ought to dream,' Bill said. 'All our biggest business men have been dreamers. Look at Ford. Look at President Coolidge. Look at Rockefeller. Look at Jo Davidson'" (page 129).

Here, Bill incorporates many men from culture, including politics and history. I think this is an excellent allusion because all of these men had dreams and tried to fulfill these dreams. He is giving Jake advice on how to succeed and become well-known.

I think that when Bill is saying this he means two different things. He is telling Jake that he should dream as in when he is sleeping, but also that he should have dreams as in aspirations and goals in life. I think that so far it has not seemed like Jake has had many aspirations. He seems to live a lazy life that is headed nowhere. I think he needs to listen to Bill more often and try to live by what Bill tells him.

Entry #11

1st Person point of view-

"'Were you ever in love with her?'

'Sure.'

'For how long?'

'Off and on for hell of a long time.'

'Oh hell!' Bill said. 'I'm sorry, fella.'

'It's all right,' I said. 'I don't give a damn any more' (page 128).

Okay so this has been evident from the beginning but just in case anyone missed it this book is written in a first person point of view from Jake's view point. Okay now that we have that settled lets move on. I think that this passage shows how genuine the relationship between Jake and Bill is. Unlike his relationship with Cohn whom he often speaks badly of, Bill and Jake can have a serious conversation about their personal lives. So far, I have not picked up on Jake bed mouthing Bill or vice versa. Jake can share his true feelings about Brett with Bill, even though I believe that he might be telling a little white lie. I believe that he is still very much in love with Brett, but he is denying it even to himself. This relationship between Bill and Jake seems realistic to how a friendship would be in real life.

Entry #10

"He shook hands and turned around to the back seat again. The other Basques had been impressed. He sat back comfortably and smiled at me when I turned around to look at the country. But the effort of talking American seemed to have tired him, He did not say anything after that" (page 113).

I found it interesting that although Jake and Bill could not communicate with the Basques, they still enjoyed a great trip together. They drank with the men and through this connection they became friends. When this one man who had spent 15 years in America spoke to them, the other Basques were in awe. This seems odd to me that these Basques looked at two men from a different country with such reverence. They seem to almost worship the men even though they have no idea who they are. It is weird to think that as soon as people see Jake and Bill, they know that they are not from around the area and that they are Americans specifically. I think this shows how different and secluded America is. I believe this to be a bad thing and I think that we need to follow Jake and Bill and at least attempt to widen our horizons and expand our culture.