Cohn the Antihero

"I was enjoying it. It was lousy to enjoy it, but I felt lousy. Cohn had a wonderful quality of bringing out the worst in anybody," (page 104).


I couldn't have said it any better myself. Chapter ten does nothing but prove what an arrogant son of a gun Cohn can be, especially toward his best friend. The fact that he completely lied about staying in San Sebastian with Brett and then went behind his friends' backs and wrote to Brett as well is more than irritating. Robert Cohn is no doubt about it, the antihero of the story. He posseses no moral scruples and sheds no light on anybody but himself. He lacks courage, grace, intelligence, and according to Jake, brings out the worst in anybody. However, if Jake is so sure of his friend's loyalty, or lack thereof, then why has he kept him around for so long? He may possibly just have been a tennis partner, or maybe the author has left us in the dark and is waiting to reveal more information on Cohn. He has to serve more importance than he does at this point in the book; I mean, the first sentence of the novel gave the reader insight to his achievements. So confusing! As for right now though, I'm glad Jake and Bill have left him behind.