He is alone, he is isolated, sitting in the shadow left by nature in the modern, artificial world. Study Guides After Friedrich Nietzsche’s proclamation that “God is dead” in How to live in the face of despair—the central question of “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place”—is a common question throughout literary history. Unlike the young waiter, who is impetuous and has a wife to go home to, the old waiter is unhurried because he has no one waiting for him; he has no place to go except to his empty room. He drinks without spilling. Initially, however, the comments of both waiters concerning a passing soldier and a young girl seem very much alike; they both seem to be cynical. Homer’s And when the young waiter says that old men are nasty, the old waiter does not deny the general truth of this statement, but he does come to the defense of the old man by pointing out that this particular old man is clean and that he likes to drink brandy in a clean, well-lighted place. How is that person able to avoid the darkness of nada, or nothingness?The setting is a clean Spanish cafe, where two unnamed waiters — one old and one young — are discussing an old man (also unnamed) who comes every night, sits alone, and drinks brandy until past closing time.
"The young waiter refuses to serve the old man another drink because he wants to get home to his wife, and, in contrast, the old waiter is resentful of the young waiter's behavior. asks the old waiter. Our They're like having in-class notes for every discussion!” Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does.Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts.The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of If everything else has failed, man must have something to resort to or else the only option is suicide — and that is the ultimate end of everything: "It is all nothing that he knew too well. He is standing at a dirty, unpolished bar. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof."
The young waiter leaves for home, and the older waiter walks to an all-night cafe where, thinking about the terrible emptiness of the old man's life which he keenly identifies with, he orders a cup of nada from the waiter. Late in the early morning hours, in a Spanish cafe, an old man drinks brandy. By misquoting the Lord’s Prayer, a prayer that brought meaning to millions in the West for centuries, Hemingway contributes his own answer to and criticism of Christianity. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our However, when readers look for deeper insight, they can find how meaningful this story is.

The old man has his dignity. . . In fact, because there is no plot, Hemingway enables us to focus absolutely on the story's meaning — that is, in a world characterized by nothingness, what possible action could take place? What do the characters stand for? "Nothing," answers the young waiter.The young waiter reveals that there is absolutely no reason to commit suicide if one has money — which he's heard the old man has. from your Reading List will also remove any For an old, rich man to try to commit suicide over the despair of confronting nothingness is beyond the young waiter's understanding. Struggling with distance learning? Teachers and parents! Thus, Hemingway's real subject matter is the feeling of man's condition of nothingness — and not the nothingness itself. Test Prep A pool of greenish lamplight falls across the desk where an elderly woman scratches with a quill. Until then, he must try to cope bravely with the dark nothingness of the night.What happens in this story? Because he has been contemplating the concept of nada, he says, when the barman asks for his order, "Nada," which prompts the barman to tell him (in Spanish) that he's crazy.


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