Cat in the Rain – Analysis

Point of View

In common with many Hemingway short stories, Cat in the Rain is told in the third person by a limited omniscient narrator in combination with the dramatic method. We are given some information about what the woman is thinking, but nothing about the man’s thoughts. These (the husband’s) thoughts are important in understanding the cause of the problems in the relationship. In the dramatic method, we only see what characters say and not what thoughts may be behind their words. This leaves many aspects of the story open to the reader’s interpretation.

Plot

The story describes an empty relationship, and Hemingway leaves it to the reader to decide the reasons. Of particular note is the way Hemingway’s description of the setting creates atmosphere. After an idyllic description of the square outside in good weather, we have dripping water everywhere and this line emphasizing the monotony of life in the rain: The sea broke in a long line in the rain and slipped back down the beach to come up and break again in a long line in the rain.

For me, a turning point occurs when, after the woman had finished talking about her appearance as she examined her face and hair in the mirror, George says: You look pretty darn nice. We are told that George had shifted his position in the bed and hadn’t looked away from her since she started to speak. Something had got his interest.

In English, as in most languages, the way you say something can convey more meaning than the words themselves. If George had spoken these words as a plain, polite response, he is guilty of not recognizing his wife’s needs and perhaps no longer being attracted to her. However, if spoken in a deeper voice than normal with stress on the “darn nice”, the words could be taken as a compliment and perhaps even an invitation for love making. The wife doesn’t sense a compliment. She puts down the mirror, walks over to the window rather than the bed, and starts talking about all the things she wants. This makes George angry. He tells her to shut up and get something to read, then goes back to his book. One of them has just spoiled their day, and perhaps the whole holiday. Which one do you think it was?

Characters

The husband: 1) Thoughtless and uncaring. He seems to care more about the book he is reading than his wife. Although he at first offers to get the cat, he readily agrees to let her do it; 2) Dominating. The woman thinks that because he likes her hair the way it is, she is not allowed to grow it longer. If I can’t have long hair or any fun, I can have a cat; and 3) Potentially cold and physically indifferent towards his wife.

The wife: 1) Childish, and possibly much younger than her husband. The word “kitty” is a childish term for a cat. When she is in the room, Hemingway refers to her as “the wife”; when she is outside the room, he refers to her as “the girl”; 2) Materialistic and demanding. I want…, I want…, I want…; and 3) Bored and dissatisfied with their life and the relationship. She spends a lot of time looking out the window. Her desire for the cat could suggest a wish for a child or someone to love. She is not happy with the way she looks and attracted to the padrone (hotel-keeper), who she sees as a stronger, more caring man.

The cat: Not a ‘character’ in the true sense of the word, but nevertheless important to the story. One wonders whether the cat hiding under the chair outside is symbolic of the way the wife feels (miserable, trapped, alone), or the title of the story actually refers to the wife rather than the animal. As the ‘girl’ side of the woman calls the cat a “kitty”, we can assume that it is small and relatively young. Does the fact that the padrone sends her a fat house-cat at the end of the story also symbolize fear of what she may become?

Themes

Themes can be divided into two groups: these external the troubled marriage, and those related to it. External themes include American privilege and indifference in the aftermath of war, and kindness (or it just good business sense?) on the part of the padrone. Themes related to the relationship include communication breakdown, isolation and loneliness, boredom and disappointment, gender roles and femininity, dissatisfaction and unfulfilled desires.