1. What was the WWI ambulance service like? How did it resemble and differ from, say, today's volunteer rescue squad in personnel, equipment, priority of calls, etc.?
  2. This novel is based somewhat on the experiences of its author, Ernest Hemingway, on the Italian Front in WWI. What differences were there between Hemingway's own reasons for joining the Italian ambulance corps and those of the character in his novel, Lt. Frederic Henry?
  3. What differences were there between what Hemingway himself went on to after his wound healed and what Lt. Henry went through?
  4. What was a V.A.D. and how were Catherine Barkley's duties typical of a V.A.D.'s duties or not? How is the training program different from that for an L.P.N. (Licensed Practical Nurse) or nurse's aid today?
  5. What was the fighting like at the Battle of the Somme on the Western Front and why might Hemingway have chosen this battle to be the one in which Catherine's fiancé died?
  6. What were trench works like in WWI, and how did they include bunkers like the one where the ambulance drivers ate? Describe the hazards and horrors of trench warfare that cost so many lives; if possible, mention the Italian front specifically, and how networks allowed troop rotation.
  1. How was Hemingway's own wounding similar to and different from Lt. Henry's? Trace how Lt. Henry is treated as a patient after he is wounded in Chapter 9 through his discharge from the Milan hospital, especially through Chapter 13. For what diseases (such as tetanus or cholera or typhus) is he treated? What are the sources of these diseases in a war zone? What surgical procedures (such as debridement) are debated to treat his knee and other wounds? If possible, find out how this depiction corresponds with the actual procedures and conditions faced by WWI wounded?
  2. What anesthesias (such as cocaine, ether, and chloroform) might have been used in 1918 on Lt. Henry during his surgery and later on Catherine? What antiseptics were available (such as carbolic acid, bichloride of mercury, iodine, ethyl alcohol, boric acid, and hydrogen peroxide)?
  3. What surgical techniques were there in 1918 to operate on a wound like Lt. Henry's?
  4. What were some differences between Hemingway's nurse and Catherine Barkley, and how did Hemingway lose Agnes von Kurowsky?
  5. Concerning Lt. Henry's relationship with his family, are there hints in Ernest Hemingway's familial relations that might explain Lt. Henry's estrangement as a biographical parallel? (Hints: The novel mentions quarrelling, sight drafts [bank drafts], and a postcard.)
  6. How effective were birth control measures of this era? What birth control methods existed in the first quarter of the 20th Century? What would an informed adult, like a nurse or a soldier, have known about birth control in this era?
  7. Could Lt. Henry's jaundice have been caused by drinking? How does drinking cause jaundice of the liver? How much drinking does it take? Trace Lt. Henry's drinking through the novel; does he deliberately try to induce jaundice, do you think? Besides drinking, what causes jaundice? Does Lt. Henry's drinking diminish after he loves Catherine? Does it decrease after he's in Switzerland? Secondarily, review the kinds of drinks the characters imbibe in the story; what are they and what do they taste like, such as Kimmel?
  8. What made World War I the first "modern war"? Note casualties (and other statistics), the number of nations at war, dismemberment and disease during and as a result of the war, weapons (in the air, on the ground, at sea), strategies, if possible emphasizing the Italian front as depicted in Hemingway's novel, such as the battle of the Plava river and the Tagliamento river and action between the cities of Udine and Gorizia in northern Italy, e.g. at Mt. Grappa. Include notes and photos of weapons and equipment.
  9. Describe the Battle of the Somme in which Catherine's fiance died. Calculate what year he died from the clues early in the novel. What did the British and French expect the battle to be like? What was it really like? List casualties from all sides who fought in this battle.
  10. What caused the Russian Revolution? What were the major goals of the revolutionaries? How did the Bolsheviks differ from the Mensheviks? How did the Trotskyites fit in? How does this revolutionary plan compare with the Italian ambulance drivers' and the priest's view of war? How do the revolutionaries' goals fit with the "we" vs. "they" feeling of Catherine and Frederic, if at all?
  11. What are the facts about the retreat from Caporetto? Why did it occur and when? What was the eventual result--give details such as dates, casualties, desertions, spies, battle police, field courts martial, etc., as you find them. Did the army hold and later advance? Compare your findings with Chapters 21-32 in the novel to report on what Hemingway did to fictionalize his account of the retreat. What are some important differences between the actual retreat from Caporetto and the version in this novel?
  12. What are the locations of Gorizia, Udine, Pordenone, and Milan, and how did each serve as a goal for Lt. Henry during the retreat? (Hint: Search Expedia for these "places.") Secondarily, what were these places like in terrain, culture, size, manufacturing (especially munitions)?
  13. What was the treatment for syphilis around 1918? How was mercury used? What were the symptoms, and does Rinaldi have any? Was syphilis curable or just treatable? What was the treatment for gonorrhea in this era? Does Lt. Henry show any symptoms of the disease? Would it result in stillborn babies? Was it curable or just treatable?
  14. How did Switzerland come to be a neutral nation, and how did this neutrality affect refugees from WWI? Did Switzerland return deserters in 1918? Did it ever? Was the opera singer's account and what happened to Catherine and Frederic accurate regarding arrest, detention, and surrender of passports?
  15. What are some useful facts about Lake Maggiore, Stresa, and Brissago on the Swiss-Italian border, and how realistic (feasible) is the novel's depiction of the trip across this lake?
  16. Where is the Abruzzi province of Italy? What is its historical connection with the Catholic Church? How was it affected by the Lateran Treaty? (Hint: Find a map of the "Papal States.")

What is its terrain like? (Hint: Compare and contrast a description you find in a travel guide with the description in the novel given by the priest.) Secondarily, what was its culture like? (Compare/contrast information you find with the priest's description of the peasant class.)

  1. What was the "Lost Generation"? Why were they lost? Specifically, who were the expatriate writers, especially those like Hemingway, who lived in Paris and knew Gertrude Stein between WWI and WWII?
  2. Even today, labor may last up to 20 hours or more. How believable are the labor and birthing procedures for the era, as depicted in the novel? (Hints: What were the rates of infant mortality at birth? How common was death in childbirth until 1918 or so compared with today?) What complications occur late in a pregnancy that threaten the baby and the mother?
  3. To what extent are the pregnancy and birth in the novel based on Pauline Pfeiffer's 1926-1927 pregnancy?
  4. Was Hemingway an irresponsible womanizer? How many wives did he have? Why did his marriages break up? Can you draw any conclusions about the transformation of Lt. Frederic Henry (or lack of one) based on Hemingway's early experiences with women?
  5. Literary Criticism: Read at least 4 different reviews or commentaries on the novel, preferably from different decades, and trace how critics have responded to the novel's themes or to some specific aspect of the novel, such as the characterization of Lt. Henry or Catherine Barkley.