Jim Harrison’s book Legends of the Fall combines three stories into one. Three brothers and their lives of passion, madness, exploration, and danger during the start of World War I are the focus of the titular novella. The other two are The Man Who Gave Up His Name, which is about a man who is unable to let go of his obsessions with women, dance, and food. And Revenge, which shows how love drastically affects a man’s life.
Review
World War I
 The Ludlow family’s history is covered in the book Legends of the Fall title story, which spans almost a century. The story centers on Tristan against the backdrop of World War I, who Harrison has said is an American Cain. Tristan Ludlow turns into a unique kind of hero after he scalps Germans to atone for his brother’s murder during the war. Briefly loses his mind, and marries Susannah to have a son to replace his deceased brother.
After leaving his brother Albert, Tristan remarries Susannah and goes on a journey at sea. Tristan is a loner throughout the story, “much like a classic western outlaw hero.” His isolation is made complete by his wife, Isabel Two, passing away after being hit by a bullet that ricocheted off the gun of a federal agent. Despite its briefness, critics “have been split over whether Legends of the Fall is an epic or a saga.” The book is undoubtedly epic in scope and the depth of Tristan’s life’s tragedy and redemption.
Revenge
While the scope of Revenge is comparable to that of Legends of the Fall, the ending is no less tragic: Cochran, a retired fighter pilot, had an affair with Tibey. The stunning wife of his friend, a powerful drug lord from Mexico. Cochran is almost killed by beatings. While Tibey’s wife Miryea was raped, slashed, made to take heroin, and transported to a brothel. Later, Tibey decides to move Miryea to an asylum, where she passes away. It is up to Cochran to decide how to exact revenge on his former friend and why.
The Man Who Gave Up His Name
Harrison confessed to writing The Man Who Gave Up His Name “under severe duress” in an interview with Kay Bonetti. The storyline is simple enough, but the underlying topic of the importance of structure and significance is far more complex: Nordstrom meets his wife in college, they get married, he advances to vice president at Standard Oil, and they amicably divorce after they begin to drift apart.
Nordstrom, who dances at the start of the story, had taken up dancing in his early middle age. Nordstrom goes home after the death of his father, just like Harrison’s other characters who go back to the land and their roots to bring order and meaning back into their lives. He looks for a solution to the collapse of his life. By working as a cook in Islamorada, Florida, and dancing with the waitresses, Nordstrom eventually finds peace with himself.
Harrison And Ernest Hemingway’s Writing Styles
Harrison and Ernest Hemingway’s writing styles are frequently contrasted by critics. Although this collection of novellas has a certain amount of macho posturing, like many of Hemingway’s works, the tight focus on the rich details of life and death, the variety of the characters, the distinctive writing style, and the in-depth explorations of human nature resemble Hemingway’s artistic strengths and highlight Harrison’s short fiction.
