ROBERT JORDAN OF ‘FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS’ AS A

CODE HERO

THE HEMINGWAY HERO

The Hemingway Hero is defined by a static set of characteristics. These

characteristics remain essentially the same throughout all of
Hemingway’s works. The Hemingway Hero is always courageous,
confident, and introspective. He does not let his fears get to him. The
Hemingway Hero is expressed differently in each of his novels, though.
Sometimes he is young, and sometimes old. In most of the Hemingway’s
novels the Hero is introduced differently. However, these heroes are
different from the code heroes of Hemmingway as the code heroes
express the same qualities that we will discuss in the following point.

THE HEMINGWAY CODE HERO

In Hemingway’s works, there exist certain common features among the

protagonists. These characters share identical personalities and life
experiences and they bear similar attention towards society. Their way
of life can be defined by the way in which they responded to conflicts as
well as the way in which they are depicted. We use the term “code hero”
in description of Hemingway’s characters. Such a concept seems to have
created the illusion that Hemingway’s heroes all behave in accordance
with certain principles, or that some code rules their behavior, and that
certain principles dominate their inner conflicts and control their life
orientation. The “Code hero” has been interpreted as courageous and
stubborn. “Code hero” is not a concept concerned with individuals, but
with groups. The essence of “Code hero” is a pessimistic world outlook
and an aesthetic faith in life. Hemingway’s four important novels, A
Farewell to Arms, The Sun Also Rises, For Whom the Bells Tolls and
The Old Man and the Sea, can be regarded as a quartet of code heroes.
Through the four heroes’ life experiences and their pursuit of values, this
quartet demonstrates the process of the development of the “code hero”,
and thus represents the course of the construction of the world outlook.
The “code”, sometimes called “grace under pressure”, is an ideal set of
belief and attitudes, essentially a mode of self- regard, which enables the
heroes to function in a hostile, destructive environment. According to
this code, a man is defined by ill, pride, and endurance: the ability to
accept pain, even loss, when loss cannot be avoided. The pride of
knowing that one has done one’s best, with the courage to act truly to
one’s nature; and the will to face defeat or victory without complaint on
one hand or boasting on the other.

The word “hero” can mean both “hero” and “protagonist” in English. In
the literary works the two concepts “hero” and “protagonist” are both
closely related and distinctive. Talking of hero, we have to trace back to
its original meaning and connotation in the ancient Greek civilization. A
man can be a hero because of unusual bravery, nobility of action, moral
and intellectual qualities. Like Prometheus, Odysseus, Julius Caesar,
Napoleon, a great number of figures are esteemed and respected as
models for heroes because they represent the collective desire and
yearning for sublimity, and grandeur. So the hero carries its traditional
meaning and serves as a prototype for instruction, education and
imitation. However, from the late 19th century, owing to the social,
political and cultural changes, the hero in the contemporary world bears
different meanings. Hemingway’s heroes make a breakthrough in the
connotation and transcend the traditional function of heroes. Many of the
characters in Hemingway’s novels and stories are called heroes because
they still preserve some of the virtues of the romanticized figures and the
noble people in the traditional sense – bravery, courage, faith,
perseverance, dignity, etc. Meanwhile, from their external action and
internal mind, there always permeates a pessimistic mood and overtone.
These heroes are more human than divine, more complex than simplex.
The virtues Hemingway’s heroes show when facing the harsh reality
serve not as models for people to follow but purely as the revelation of
the consolation and comfort for the bitter agony and pains.
Hemingway’s heroes are not always strong-minded, tough, sturdy, but
rather dualized. Their courage, faith and moral code are rooted in the
firm presumption that “Man proposes God dispose”. Nobody can
achieve ultimate success when confronting the decided fate. So
Hemingway’s heroes, unlike those to be worshipped and honored,
always show the weakness of human beings – cowardice, resignation,
vanity and so on. The reason why they are entitled “heroes” rests not
with their awareness of the emptiness of the world, but with their
consequent attitude toward the meaningless life. They display the
outstanding quality in spite of the doomed end. A protagonist in a story
is supported by other minor characters or gains his position by direct
conflict with the antagonists. Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea is the
protagonist and the “hero”. In the story the presentation of facts such as
going out to the sea, fishing, fighting, losing, and turning back from the
sea is unfolded along with the development of the protagonist Santiago.
And the conflict between characters as well as the settlement of the
conflicts such as that between Santiago and sharks focuses on Santiago.
There are very few characters in the stories and the personal background
of the protagonist is left unexplained, so the reader’s full attention is
focused on the hero. The “code hero” has great physical potential and
courage. Whether he is a soldier, a hunter, or a fisherman, his physical
power is always activated by critical situations. However, the physical
power will encounter harm from the greater forces. The real value,
according to Hemingway, lies in the fact that the hero can always rise
from destruction. They were all hurt in some way, yet they were not
defeated. The “code hero” measures himself by how well they handle
the difficult situations that life throws at him. In the end the “code hero”
will lose because we are all mortal, but the true measure is how a person
faces death. The “code hero” is typically an individualist and free-
willed. Although he believes in the ideals of courage and honor he has
his own set of morals and principles based on his beliefs in honor,
courage and endurance. A code hero never shows emotions; showing
emotions and having a commitment to women shows weakness. A final
trait of the “code heroes” is that they are endowed with certain
specialized skills, such as fishing, bull fighting, and hunting, etc. Such
skills are necessary for the internal courage and constraint in the heroes.
In another sense, a person that is good for nothing is likely to be
presented as “weak” or useless, yet the Hemingway’s heroes are free
from such deficiencies as they possess practical skills. Hemingway
defined the Code Hero as “a man who lives correctly, following the
ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes
chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.” He measures himself by
how well he handles the difficult situations that life throws at him. In the
end the Code Hero will lose because we are all mortal, but the true
measure is how a person faces death. He believes in “Nada,” a Spanish
word meaning nothing. Along with this, there is no after life. The Code
Hero is typically an individualist and free-willed. He never shows
emotions; showing emotions and having a commitment to women shows
weakness. Qualities such as bravery, adventuresome and travel also
define the Code Hero.

ROBERT JORDANASA CODE HERO OF HEMMINGWAY

The protagonist of the classical novel of Hemmingway ‘For Whom the

Bell Tolls’, is Robert Jordan. Hemmingway wrote this novel to show his
hatred against the way in which the Civil war had betrayed the Spanish
people both through internal disputes and through foreign interference
for an upcoming war. To demonstrate this, Hemmingway has very
skillfully pen portrayed the character of Robert Jordan. Jordan is a kind
of code hero of Hemmingway. There are some basic characteristics of
all the heroes of Hemmingway such as:

- All the heroes are men of action

- They all are occupied in internal conflicts with themselves
- Deaths are the ultimate results
- Pride comes prior than death to all
- All the heroes are the showcase of Hemmingway himself

Robert Jordan is a man of action. In the novel, he undertakes a

dangerous mission. Like other Hemmingway’s heroes, he seems to
understand:
“dying well can be even more important than living well”
Moreover, he also seems to follow the ideology of Santiago, the old
fisherman of ‘The Old Man and the
Sea’ because Santiago believes that:
“Man is not made for defeat...
A man can be destroyed,
but cannot be defeated”

Robert Jordan left his job as a college instructor in the United States to
volunteer for the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War. Initially, he
believed in the Republican cause with religious faith and felt an
“absolute brotherhood” with his comrades on the Republican side.
However, when the action of the novel starts, we see that Robert Jordan
has become disillusioned. As the conflict drags on, he realizes that he
does not really believe in the Republican cause but joined their side
simply because they fought against Fascism. Because he fights for a side
whose causes he does not necessarily support, Robert Jordan
experiences a great deal of internal conflict and begins to wonder
whether there is really any difference between the Fascist and
Republican sides. Robert Jordan’s interior monologues and actions
indicate these internal conflicts that plague him. Although he is
disillusioned with the Republican cause, he continues to fight for that
cause. In public he announces that he is anti-Fascist rather than a
Communist, but in private he thinks that he has no politics at all. He
knows that his job requires that he kill people but also knows that he
should not believe in killing in the abstract. Despite his new found love
for Maria, he feels that there cannot be a place for her in his life while he
also has his military work. He claims not to be superstitious but cannot
stop thinking about the world as giving him signs of things to come.
These conflicts weigh heavily on Robert Jordan throughout novel.
Robert Jordan understands suicide but doesn’t approve of it, and thinks
that

“You have to be awfully occupied

with yourself to do a thing like that.”
However, Robert Jordan resolves these tensions at the end of ‘For
Whom the Bell Tolls’, in his final moments as he faces death. He
accepts himself as a man of action rather than thought, as a man who
believes in practicality rather than abstract theories. He understands that
the war requires him to do some things that he does not believe in. He
also realizes that, though he cannot forget the unpleasant deeds he has
done in the past, he must avoid dealing with them for the sake of getting
things done in the present. Ultimately, Robert Jordan is able to make
room in his mind for both his love for Maria and his military mission.
By the end of the novel, just before he dies, his internal conflicts and
tensions are resolved and he feels incorporated into the world. However,
Robert Jordan, the protagonist of the famous novel, ‘For Whom the
Bell Tolls’, is a centre of the novel. Everything revolves round him.
Through his character Hemmingway tries to show his hatred of the
Spanish war.

DUTY/A MAN WITH A MISSION

Robert Jordan is manly, honorable and idealistic, even in the face of sure
defeat. He’s charged with blowing up a bridge. It’s a bad order, and he
knows it. Yet he carries out his mission, protecting the small band of
fighters who’ve been helping him in the snow-covered mountains. He
sacrifices himself, for their cause. However, we can say that “Jordan
takes up the cause of people who are less fortunate but not less
passionate.” For Robert, as for so many of Hemmingway’s heroes, it is
doing one’s duty quietly and expertly that gives life meaning above all
else. When Golz gives Robert the task of blowing up the bridge despite
impossible constraints, Robert resolves to do so according to orders.
Later, when there are not enough horses or men to carry out the plan,
and even after Pablo steals his dynamite, Robert still intends to do his
duty-even if it kills him. Robert admires this quality in others, too; that
is why he likes Anselmo so much, and why he is delighted to find the
old man maintaining his observation post despite snowfall and darkness.
The importance Hemmingway places on duty as a virtue is typical of
literature dealing with war and conquest. The Romans had a special term
for this quality: gravitas, meaning seriousness of purpose. It was the
bedrock of their powerful empire. Robert pays high price for his
attention to duty, however. He finds that he has lost his sense of humor.
Ironically, Robert understands that soldiers who manage to keep their
sense of humor are the great ones, like Golz. Soldiers, who become
gloomy, like Pablo, are the ones on their way down. Robert must also
expend a great amount of mental energy to control his thoughts and to
remain focused. For example, after making love to Maria in the middle
of the day on the way back from El Sordo’s, he finds his mind
wandering over a wide range of subjects: returning to his teaching job in
Montana after the war; the possibility of marrying Maria; the possibility
of getting killed on his current assignment. As soon as he becomes
aware that his thoughts are straying, he scolds himself and redoubles his
efforts to think of his mission: “Now lay off that sort of thinking. You
can stop that now. That’s not good for you. Do nothing that is not
good for you.” This sort of internal monologue happens quite often in
the novel. Robert constantly suppresses his natural inclinations and
reactions to war in order to fulfill his duty as a soldier.

GRACE UNDER PRESSURE

During the novel, Robert Jordan becomes the true Hemingway Code
Hero, displaying a desire for action and grace under pressure. Even
though he realizes the dangerous nature of his mission and questions the
orders of General Golz to carry it out in daylight after the offensive has
commenced, he never doubts his own ability to accomplish the task.
Even after Pablo steals and destroys some of his key equipment, he does
not run from the danger. Instead, he carefully plans the task at hand and
carries it out methodically. It is not surprising that he successfully
destroys the bridge. He is, however, upset that Anselmo is killed in the
process, for he knows if Pablo had not destroyed the detonator, Anselmo
would have been spared. Jordan more clearly displays grace under
pressure after he has been injured by fascist gunfire. Paralyzed and
unable to easily escape with the others, he insists upon being left behind
with a gun. He promises to fire at the approaching fascists, giving the
others more time to escape. When Maria begs to stay with him, he
convinces her to leave by telling her his mission will have been
worthwhile if her life is saved. He also refuses to let Agustin put an end
to his life, for that would be cowardly. Instead, he positions himself
behind a tree and stoically waits for his certain death, showing
tremendous grace under pressure.

LOVE OF COUNTRY

Robert’s alliance with the international Brigades and the Republic

suggests that he joins the fight for political reasons. As the novel
progresses, however, it becomes increasingly clear that he lacks strong
ideological commitments. The more he is exposed to the realities of war,
the more disillusioned he becomes with “the cause”. Hemmingway, in
fact, seems to suggest, especially in the later chapters, that the cause
itself has gone bankrupt. At one point in Robert’s internal monologue,
he admits to himself that he is no communist, but rather a believer “in
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. The real reason Robert fights
is his love of Spain and the Spanish people:
“He fought now in this war because it had started in a country that he
loved and he believed in the republic and that if it were destroyed life
would be unbearable for all those people who believed in it”. When
Robert first meets Pablo, he tells him that he wishes he had been born in
Spain. He can easily see Agustin, Anselmo, and the other Spaniards as
his brothers and Maria as his wife-in other words, as his family. After he
hears Joaquin’s story about how his family was executed by fascist
troops, Robert goes beyond a mere act of solidarity when he says, along
with other members of the guerilla band, that he will become family to
the boy. ‘The World Is A Fine Place ...’ Jordan is tough, principled,
heroic — and doomed. Yet he carries out his assignment. At the end of
the novel, Jordan is in a forest, looking down at the bridge he was sent to
destroy. His leg is broken and he tells his young lover, Maria, that she
must go on without him. And then, alone, lying there on the pine
needles, he faces his death.
Thus, Robert Jordan conforms to a character type that recurs throughout
Hemingway’s novels—referred to as the “code hero” because he follows
the Hemingway moral code. The code hero lives life for the present and
takes his pleasure in the physical world of food, sex, and nature.
He is a man of action rather than thought, and his greatest triumph is
conquering his fear of death and nothingness (Nada). He is sure to excel
in the area of his choice and he does not step out of that. He possesses
immense resources of courage and endurance.  In Hemingway’s novels
and short stories the code hero sets an example for the Hemingway hero
to imitate if he can.  He is a man who must perform his duty and whether
he lives or dies becomes immaterial. He is not after gains, for the real
satisfaction must come, in the last analysis, from within. Man must
overcome pessimism and find:
“his own unit of measurement”
Jordan finds his measurement in his satisfaction in readily accepting
martyrdom. Robert Jordan’s appreciation for nature and physical
experiences— the taste of absinthe that evokes Paris and his coupling
with Maria—indicates that he fits the code hero type, but we see that
Jordon evolves as a Code hero. Earlier, we see that Robert Jordan
experiences many unresolved tensions that he tries to work through in
his head.  He mostly appears as a man of thought as contrasted with man
of action-the code hero. But later, Robert Jordan’s competent behavior
under difficult circumstances fits him in to a line of Hemingway code
protagonists. Nowhere more than towards the end does Robert Jordan
display this virtue of the code hero. With Pablo gone and the explosives
stolen, Robert Jordan manages to control his anger and apply himself to
solving the new, more difficult problem of destroying the bridge with
less manpower and fewer explosives. Always supremely pragmatic,
Robert Jordan neither dwells on the past nor fears the future but instead
concentrates on the present situation. This focus on the present allows
him to savor fully the physical pleasures that fate grants him — the taste
of absinthe, sex with Maria. It also enables him not to fear death, which
is the code hero’s true antagonist.

Instead of defining him as a hero through a personal moment of dignity,

he presents a man who becomes a hero through an expression of
communal responsibility. Robert Jordan volunteers to help the Loyalists
in their war with the Fascists during the Spanish Civil War because of
his liberal politics and his great love for the Spanish people. Initially, he
is devoted to their cause; however, he soon becomes disillusioned about
the reality of war. He sees atrocities committed on both sides. He has
heard Russians, who in theory have come to aid the Loyalists, discuss
their personal gains during the war. He has also heard of how the
Spanish people, for whom he is ultimately fighting, can take enjoyment
from the brutal slaughter of the enemy. Unlike Macomber and Frederick
Henry, Jordan, however, stands his ground and shows “grace under
pressure,” not for a purely personal sense of dignity and self-worth but
for the common good.  For Pablo, Jordan is a “good boy” whose sense
of morality is tied to the protection of his community. This moral code
frames the novel. Hemingway expressed one of the tenets of his code
heroes:

 “Moral is what you feel good after and what is immoral is

what you feel bad after.”

The ultimate dignity that Jordan achieves in the novel is through his

determination not to give up his hope for the future, even though he
knows that he cannot be a part of it. Thus he achieves the status of a true
hero, one who not only honors his own sense of responsibility but also,
ultimately, that of his community – The Spanish land that he lives and
admires.