Francis Macomber Characterization

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In “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”, Ernest Hemingway shows how courage is viewed as the ideal representation of masculinity and fear is viewed as cowardness. Every theme in a story is supported by a literary device. Hemingway shows this theme mainly with characterization. Characterization is the step by step process in which the author introduces and describes the characters. The main characters in “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” used by Hemingway are Francis Macomber, Margaret “Margot” Macomber, and Robert Wilson. Ernest Hemingway uses the character, Margaret Macomber, to show how women tend to prefer the men who are fearless over the men who are cowards. In the beginning, Margot, Francis’ wife, shows fondness towards him and has confidence that he could hunt animals like Robert Wilson, who doesn’t attract Margot. When Francis starts to show reasonable uneasiness while hunting the lion, he runs away instead of fighting back. Rather than being supportive to her husband, she mocks him for being a coward and sleeps with Robert Wilson, the man who’s more courageous and hunts vicious animals for a …show more content…
Robert Wilson is Hemingway’s version of the ideal man. Wilson’s occupation is a professional animal hunter. He’s called by other men to help them become more courageous and fight animals like lions and buffalos. He never worries about the violence of the kill or what can go wrong. Wilson only focuses on catching and killing his prey. The men who hire him compare themselves to Robert and feel threatened by him. Francis Macomber is an example of the men who feel threatened by Wilson. When he feels afraid, he thinks about the fact that Robert Wilson wasn’t afraid. His courageous nature also catches the attention of the women who are married to cowardly men. As shown by Hemingway, women tend to turn to the men who are more
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