# XXV explained — A Farewell to Arms

> Chapter companion for A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway.

## What happens

Frederic Henry returns to Gorizia in the fall, finding the landscape bare and the war-weary atmosphere pervasive. He reports to the major, who describes the brutal summer and assigns him to the Bainsizza. Frederic reunites with Rinaldi, who is drunk and cynical, and the priest, enduring Rinaldi's baiting. Rinaldi reveals his exhaustion and possible syphilis, while Frederic tries not to think about Catherine.

## Themes in this chapter

### War and Disillusionment

The major and Rinaldi express deep fatigue and hopelessness about the war, calling it 'all over' and 'terrible.'

### Masculinity and Identity

Rinaldi's bravado and drinking mask his emotional and physical exhaustion, while Frederic struggles with his own detachment.

### Religion and Faith

Rinaldi's baiting of the priest and his cynical reinterpretation of Saint Paul highlight a crisis of faith amid war.

## Character check-ins

### Frederic Henry

Returns to Gorizia after recovering from his wound; feels tired and detached, tries to suppress thoughts of Catherine.

### Rinaldi

Drunk and cynical, expresses deep war fatigue and possible syphilis; baits the priest but shows vulnerability.

### The Priest

Patiently endures Rinaldi's taunts; remains calm and kind, offering support.

### Piani

Mentioned as the driver who will accompany Frederic to the Bainsizza.

## Key lines

> It did not feel like a homecoming.

Returning to Gorizia felt alien and unwelcoming.

_Frederic's emotional detachment from the place he once knew._

> This war is killing me, I am very depressed by it.

Rinaldi says the war is destroying him and he feels deeply depressed.

_Rinaldi's raw confession of war-induced despair._

> You act like a married man, what's the matter with you?

Rinaldi teases Frederic for seeming subdued and serious, like a married man.

_Rinaldi's perception of Frederic's changed demeanor._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_farewell_to_arms_se/chapters/xxv
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_farewell_to_arms_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_farewell_to_arms_se/chapters