30 pages 1 hour read

Ernest Hemingway

Big Two-Hearted River

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1925

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Essay Topics

1.

How does “Big Two-Hearted River” create a juxtaposition between the destructive qualities of war and the healing powers of nature.

2.

Examine the symbols in “Big Two-Hearted River” (e.g., the burned town of Seney, the grasshoppers, the river, etc.). How do they contribute to the story’s meaning?

3.

Why do you think the narrative recounts all the minute details of Nick setting up camp? Consider the words of the narration when he is finished, “He had made his camp. He was settled. Nothing could touch him. It was a good place to camp. He was there, in the good place. He was in his home where he had made it” (Paragraph 26). What might he fear that could touch him and why can’t it now? Why is this a “good place”? Why is it “home”?

Related Titles

By Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

A Clean, Well-Lighted Place

Ernest Hemingway

A Clean, Well-Lighted Place

Ernest Hemingway

Plot Summary
logo

Across the River and into the Trees

Ernest Hemingway

Across the River and into the Trees

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

A Day's Wait

Ernest Hemingway

A Day's Wait

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

A Farewell to Arms

Ernest Hemingway

A Farewell to Arms

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

A Moveable Feast

Ernest Hemingway

A Moveable Feast

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

A Very Short Story

Ernest Hemingway

A Very Short Story

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

Cat in the Rain

Ernest Hemingway

Cat in the Rain

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Ernest Hemingway

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Ernest Hemingway

Plot Summary
logo

Green Hills of Africa

Ernest Hemingway

Green Hills of Africa

Ernest Hemingway

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE
logo

Hills Like White Elephants

Ernest Hemingway

Hills Like White Elephants

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

In Another Country

Ernest Hemingway

In Another Country

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

Indian Camp

Ernest Hemingway

Indian Camp

Ernest Hemingway

Plot Summary
logo

In Our Time

Ernest Hemingway

In Our Time

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

Old Man at the Bridge

Ernest Hemingway

Old Man at the Bridge

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

Soldier's Home

Ernest Hemingway

Soldier's Home

Ernest Hemingway

Plot Summary
logo

Solider's Home

Ernest Hemingway

Solider's Home

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

Ten Indians

Ernest Hemingway

Ten Indians

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

The Garden of Eden

Ernest Hemingway

The Garden of Eden

Ernest Hemingway

Study Guide
logo

The Killers

Ernest Hemingway

The Killers

Ernest Hemingway

Plot Summary
logo

The Nick Adams Stories

Ernest Hemingway

The Nick Adams Stories

Ernest Hemingway