Hemingway's code hero is almost always a man, but in The Sun Also Rises, the real code hero is the female protagonist Brett Ashley. From her short hair to her passion for partying, Lady Brett Ashley is more of a coded heroine than any of her fellow expats, including male leads Jake Barnes and Robert Cohn. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Aside from her boyish ways - from her "man hat" to her habit of referring to herself as a "dude" - Ashley is, as a woman, ironically one of the manliest characters. Who is Hemingway's ideal man? He has the stiff upper lip of a Briton and can handle women, alcohol and life's misfortunes equally well. He lives his life to the fullest. Brett is all this and more. Contrary to his carefree and fun-loving personality, he has not had an easy life. Her first (and perhaps true) love died in the war, and her second husband (Lord Ashley) was an intimidating, paranoid man who slept with a loaded gun under his pillow and forced Brett to sleep on the floor. Yet Brett doesn't flaunt these events; instead, when confronted with others, he uses his slogan: "Let's not talk about it." Another common trait of the hero of the code - which demonstrates his "manliness" - is his numerous romantic relationships. Lady Ashley certainly acts like a man in this regard. She deals with men quickly and emotionlessly, often having two or even three free relationships at a time. (At one point, she is engaged to Mike Campbell, travels with Count Mippipopolous and Cohn, and mocks Barnes. Later, she pursues Pedro Romero while still engaged and rebuffs a heartbroken and desperate Cohn.) Above all, the hero he likes women but doesn't need the code, and Lady Ashley can certainly handle herself. If Brett Ashley were a man, he would be the playboy who leaves behind a string of women in love. Like Hemingway, a code hero should have an affinity for and ability to handle alcohol well. Brett is one of the best, if not the best, drunks in the novel. She, like her friends, drinks constantly, but there is never a scene in which the spirits loosen her lips or make her lose her temper, as a drunken Cohn often does. Indeed, Hemingway writes a drunken Lady Ashley the same way he writes a (rarely) sober Lady Ashley. In keeping with the codex hero archetype, Brett is always a little reticent, even under the influence of brandy. Perhaps the only common thread in all the characteristics of the code hero is the desire for an exciting life. Lady Brett Ashley is what we might today call a "jet-setter". She parties hard, drinks all the time, and travels often, usually surrounded by a group of men ("pigs," as Cohn calls them). Brett has the glamorous life of a 1920s expatriate, but instead of living it as a woman, she lives it as a man. Compare Lady Ashley to two of the other important men in the novel. Robert Cohn often complains to Jake Barnes about his boredom with Paris. He complains about the tyranny of his girlfriend Frances and Brett's disinterest. Robert is easily provoked (his acquaintance Harvey Stone, half-jokingly, calls him a "moron" and Robert gets angry) and has almost girlish mood swings. Cohn is the only character who shows his heart openly: he is a “romantic”. In this category, Jake Barnes does better. He appears to be a quiet and thoughtful man. He's a stoic. However, Barnes fails in the romance category. He shows no hint of desire for a woman other than Brett, other than his brief (and indifferent) tryst with the prostitute Georgina, and we never hear.