Cantos by Ericka Koehler

One of the written pieces that I chose to analyze is “Cat in the Rain.” This short tale was written by Ernest Hemingway. It was published in 1925.

Hemingway highlighted the Italian accent in this tale. He lived in many countries and mastered different languages which we can be observed when reading many of his works. For example, he did something similar when he wrote “The Old Man and the Sea.” He wrote that story with some words in the Spanish language to let the reader imagine that the setting is in Cuba.

In the piece “Cat in the Rain,” Hemingway chose to write the piece with some Italian words to give a more realistic essence to the characters. He also highlighted the Italian accent to make the reader have the idea that the story is developing inside a hotel somewhere in Italy.

Following is an excerpt:

                     “»I’m going down and get that kitty,» the American wife said.

                      «I’ll do it,» her husband offered from the bed.

                      «No, I’ll get it.  The poor kitty out trying to keep dry under a table.»

                       The husband went on reading, lying propped up with the two pillows

at the foot of the bed.

                      «Don’t get wet,» he said.

                       The wife went downstairs and the hotel owner stood up and bowed to her

as she passed the office.  His desk was at the far end of the office.

He was an old man and very tall.

                       «Il piove [It’s raining],» the wife said. She liked the hotel-keeper.

                       «si, si, Signora, brutto tempo.  It is very bad weather» (Hemingway, 1925).”

In order that the English speaker readers can understand what the writer wanted to communicate, a translation was followed after the Italian sentences. As for example, “Il piove” means it’s raining or “brutto tempo” which is “it’s very bad weather.”

Hemingway’s English belongs to Modern English, and he is known for writing simple sentences and using a lot of symbolism.

“Hemingway’s minimalistic style, which he called the Iceberg Theory, is where many details of the story require interpretation to find (Stufienet.dk2021).”

“The narrator uses simple language, combining English with Italian phrases, which helps with the realism of the setting. The story is told in a minimalistic style, with symbolism hinting at the deeper meaning of the events (Studienet.dk, 2021).”

In the tale, the characters speak English and Italian. We know which characters are not Americans in the story. Even if some characters speak English, they may have some accent. For example, the character of the maid speaks English, but with an Italian accent. Following the excerpt:

        “»A cat?» the maid laughed.  «A cat in the rain?»

        «Yes,» she said, «under the table.»  Then.  «Oh.  I wanted it so much.  I wanted a kitty.»

        When she talked English the maid’s face tightened.

        «Come, Signora,» she said.  «We must get back inside.  You will be wet.»

        «I suppose so,» said the American girl (Hemingway, 1925).”

Now, Hemingway was from Illinois. In the tale, we do not notice that the American characters are from that area. They don’t use any obvious words from the Midwestern area. On the contrary, they speak an English that everyone can understand regardless of which region of the US you come from. This may be because Hemingway was not only a writer or poet, he was a journalist too, and he chose words that sound familiar to different audiences.

References

Hemingway, Ernest (1925). «Cat in the Rain». Retrieved from:

https://www.docdroid.net/l309/cat-in-the-rain-by-ernest-hemingway-pdf

Studienet.dk: “Cat in the Rain” (2021). Retrieved from:

https://www.studienet.dk/