A Comparative Analysis of the Themes of ‘War’, ‘Love’, and ‘Illusion’ in Postmodern Age in A Farewell to Arms and Eye of the Needle

Abstract

The study attempts to explore and analyze the themes of 'love', 'war' and 'illusion' in the two novels written by two different authors. One is A Farewell to Arms (1929) written by Ernest Hemingway and the other is Eye of the Needle (2015) written by Ken Follet. Hemingway way and Follet both are American novelists who are known for their fondness for writing on the theme of war. Hemingway wrote many novels using the backdrop of the First World War whereas Ken Follet's Eye of the Needle is authored in the backdrop of the Second World War. Hemingway is one of the representative of modern age writers, whereas Ken Follet is one the writers of postmodern age. It has been observed that both writers while writing on the theme of war in the chosen novels involve, consciously or unconsciously, two sub-themes of 'love' and 'illusion' in their fiction. The research analyzes that what are the differences and the similarities between these writers’ approach towards the said themes. This paper aims at interpreting these themes in the context of postmodernists' scholarship while comparing and contrasting the treatment, which both writers have given to the themes of war, love, and illusion.