Summary: Chapter Two
In front of the cave that functions as the headquarters
of Pablo’s camp, Robert Jordan meets Rafael, an old gypsy who traps
rabbits. They drink wine, smoke Robert Jordan’s Russian cigarettes,
and await their food. Robert Jordan tells the others that Kashkin
committed suicide when he was captured, but he conceals the details. Robert
Jordan thinks to himself that Kashkin did more harm than good because
he let the fighters know that he was nervous.
A young, short-haired woman named Maria brings food out
of the cave. Self-conscious about her haircut, she explains that
she once had long hair, but that Fascists cut it short when they
captured her recently. She was on the Fascist train that Pablo and
Kashkin blew up, and afterward she rejoined the guerrilla fighters.
Robert Jordan feels drawn to Maria and finds out that she is not
married.
After Maria leaves, Rafael tells Robert Jordan about their
seven-man, two-woman camp and their machine gun. Rafael says that Pilar,
Pablo’s “woman,” insisted that they take in Maria. Rafael recounts
how exhilarating the train operation was and describes the engine
hurtling through the air like a “great wounded animal.” Rafael says
that he manned the machine gun.
The half-gypsy Pilar, stocky and brusque, emerges from
the cave. She makes Robert Jordan promise to take Maria with him
when he leaves. Pilar then reads Robert Jordan’s palm and seems
troubled by what she sees. Despite his claims not to be superstitious,
he wants to know what Pilar sees. Pilar says that a nearby guerrilla
band, led by a man named El Sordo, will be able to help with the
bridge. Anselmo and Robert Jordan prepare to leave to inspect the
bridge.
Analysis: Epigraph and Chapters One–Two
Together, the title and the epigraph, from which the title
comes, announce two of the main themes of For Whom the Bell
Tolls: the role of an individual within a community and
the value of human life, especially in a time of war. The funeral
bell of the title and epigraph introduce the idea of human mortality,
a reminder that all human beings are destined to die. Because everyone
belongs to humanity, the metaphorical bell that announces one individual’s death
also announces the death of something within everyone. Humankind
is inextricably united in this way, so that the loss of any one
part affects the whole. The fear of death looms large in the novel,
for the characters are involved in a wartime guerrilla operation
that is up against considerable odds. The reminder of death inherent
in the title and the epigraph sets the tone for the characters’ anxieties
about death and the novel’s celebration of life.
The conflict between Pablo and Robert Jordan, which arises
virtually from the moment they first meet, develops into one of
the central thematic conflicts of the novel. Pablo, a man of reckless individuality,
proudly announces that his primary responsibility is to himself.
He will not participate in bridge-blowing, regardless of how important
the operation may be for the Republic. Robert Jordan, in contrast,
has voluntarily left a cushy life in America to fight in a foreign
war. Even though he also has reservations about the bridge operation,
he nevertheless is committed to carrying it out. He feels it is
his duty, he knows his general is counting on him, and he retains
some hope despite all odds that the larger Republican offensive
will be a success. Just as Pablo and Robert Jordan disagree over whether
or not to blow up the bridge, the larger ideas that the two men
represent—individualism versus community involvement—come into conflict
throughout the novel.
