How would you interpret this sentence? How would you interpret this sentence ‘It is one for The Lancet’ in the second passage? Does it mean the speaker had written some paper on the operation of remov

Wu Ting

How would you interpret this sentence? How would you interpret this sentence ‘It is one for The Lancet’ in the second passage? Does it mean the speaker had written some paper on the operation of removal of three metres of small intestine and he wanted to send it to the magazine, The Lancet? Thanks. It’s from A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (Chapter 10).the context: "How is everything?" "Splendid. We are all splendid. Everybody is proud of you. Tell me just exactly how it happened. I am positive you will get the silver. Go on tell me. Tell me all about it." He paused and thought. "Maybe you will get an English medal too. There was an English there. I'll go and see him and ask if he will recommend you. He ought to be able to do something. Do you suffer much? Have a drink. Orderly, go get a corkscrew. Oh you should see what I did in the removal of three metres of small intestine and better now than ever. It is one for The Lancet. You do me a translation and I will send it to The Lancet. Every day I am better. Poor dear baby, how do you feel? Where is that damn corkscrew? You are so brave and quiet I forget you are suffering." He slapped his gloves on the edge of the bed.

May 12, 2016 1:14 PM

Answers · 7

The Lancet is a famous and respected British medical journal, founded in 1823. I don't think that Rinaldi has actually written anything for the Lancet. He's in an emotional state and is just chattering for the sake of it, trying to sound cheerful and positive. You can see this from the disjointed and emotional style of language. I think that he mentioned the English language magazine and the idea of FH translating the almost certainly non-existent article as a way of appearing positive. It's almost as if he's saying 'I'm doing well, you're doing well, you're going to recover and we're going to do great things together.' The first line of the speech says it all 'We're all splendid.' It's an expression of desperate optimism in the midst of the senseless carnage of war.

May 12, 2016

Hello Gordon. You are correct -- the speaker has either written (or will write) an article on the operation and wants to send it to the Lancet. The Lancet is a British medical journal/magazine.

May 12, 2016

Thank you, Shirley.

May 13, 2016

This is similar to the saying "It is one for the record books." That doesn't mean you should send it to the Guinness Book of Records, just that it is something extraordinary. As already mentioned, the Lancet is widely renowned so the statement would have been understood by the person it was addressed to.

May 13, 2016

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