Ernest Hemingway was born in Oak Park, Illinois yet he wrote more about other places than about his birthplace. His first novel The Sun Also Rises has Paris and Spain for the setting. It starts in Paris, culminates in Spain, and ends with Jake and Brett leaving Spain. In Hemingway's novel, a group of friends wanders from place to place with no fixed destination showing that they are the lost generation with no aim in their lives. This paper will show how this group of friends is affected by their destinations with modern, cool Paris that mutes and controls their passions and Spain's fiesta where they go berserk. In Hemingway's novel, Paris and Spain are the two ends of the spectrum. In Paris one can see everything - from homosexuals to prostitutes, and Spain is more traditional and looks down on Brett because of her hairstyle and her wardrobe. One perceives Paris and Spain as romantic places, yet Hemingway shows that Paris is the place of twisted sexuality while Spain is more conservative.
