"I thought I had paid for everything. Not like the woman pays and pays. No idea of retribution or punishment. Just exchange of values. You gave up something and got something else. Or you worked for something. You paid some way for everything that was any good... Either you paid by learning about them, or by experience, or by taking chances, or by money. Enjoying living was learning to get your money's worth and knowing when you had it. You could get your money's worth. The world was a good place to buy in. It seemed like a fine philosophy."Jake, to himself, p. 152
this quote really stuck out to me when I read it. not only is it strikingly beautiful in the simplicity of it, but it's got a lot of truth to it. in this part, the world is metaphorically linked to the stock market or a business endeavor: one has to "buy in" to be a part of it. in order to reap the full benefits of the final product, some part of one's property, be it intellectual or physical or emotional, must be spent in order to really be living. it's so true that in order to be fully living, there are sacrifices that must be made. no person can go through life without sacrificing some small part of themselves. again, Hemingway has presented yet another timeless aspect in life: nothing is free.
word.
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