"A Cat in the Rain"

When I first read “A Cat in the Rain” by Ernest Hemingway, I was struck by how much dialogue there was. This made it difficult, or at least more challenging to interpret or completely understand the story. It starts out in Italy with a wife and her husband, George, in their hotel room facing the sea. The wife sees a cat huddled under a table outside in the rain, and she becomes determined to save it. When she goes out to rescue it, she discovers that it was not there anymore. She returns to her room dejected, only to be surprised by a knock on the door. It is the maid holding the cat from outside, which she says is from the padrone. I thought that it was quite obvious from the lack of interest and non-personal responses from George that the couple’s marriage is starting to crumble. She notices and begins to like the old man at the front desk of the hotel, because he “made her feel very small and at the same time really important.” She, like everyone, wants to feel special and loved and she gets that feeling from the old man. The wife relishes this feeling since her husband, George, is disinterested in her. The conversation she and George have concerning her hair is also important. She likes the idea of letting it grow out, but he says he likes it the way it is. George can be seen as controlling his wife, not letting her do what she wants, either with her hair or with any aspect of her life. Compare this to the kind old man, who always wishes to serve her. He even sends a maid out with an umbrella so she would not get wet, and truly cares about her well being. The only thing that her husband does is warn her not to get wet. I thought the cat in this story was a symbol for the wife. She is feeling all alone and desolate, waiting for someone to come and rescue her. When she tells George about the cat, or herself, suffering out in the rain, he says that he will get it, yet makes no move to back up his words with actions. His love for his wife is only superficial- he says that he does, but does not really mean it. Meanwhile, the padrone bows to her and treats her like royalty, always making her feel important. He went out and got the cat but did not say anything about it. Here is a man that speaks with his actions, effectively “rescuing” the woman from her unloved state out in the rain. The wife sees this and I think she will leave her husband for the padrone.
All in all, I thought this was an interesting story. There is a lot of meat in it, but just like with other Hemingway works, it is not at the surface; one has to dive down to unearth the true meaning.