Catherine Barkley is a VAD in the British army, stationed in Italy, during the First World War in Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. She begins the novel as a code hero, which is unusual for Hemingway, given his experience with women throughout his life. During the novel, Catherine conducts herself with grace while living her life with love, loyalty, and respect as her guiding ideals. At the end of the novel, her hero status is transferred to Frédéric Henry, her lover, when she dies after childbirth. Catherine is almost obsessed with the ideal that women were put on this earth to serve their men. She's childish with her persistent questions: "Is there anything I do that you don't like?" Is there anything I can do to please you? (137) Even before Catherine tells Frédéric that she is pregnant, she worries about what he will think. She doesn't want to make him unhappy or worry him. She seems so scared and shy, as if she is afraid of generating feelings in Frédéric that are not filled with contentment towards him. Embodying what we today call an old-fashioned wife, she refuses to drink brandy when offered it and feels uncomfortable with the atmosphere of the horse races (132, 141). She was raised to believe that women should be seen and not heard, and she can't bring herself to break out of her little box of being perfect for her man. Catherine lives her life with love as one of the main guiding influences. After her fiancé's death, she is reluctant to love, but once time allows her to recover, she realizes that her life is empty without that love. She thirsts for love like little children thirst for candy, and she repeatedly asks Frédéric if he loves her. Catherine is still wary, because her loss is somewhat fresh in her mind, and wants...... middle of paper ...... Frédéric describes the pains of childbirth like this: "When the pains were intense , she called them the good ones. When they started to fall, she was disappointed and ashamed. (314) Before the intense pain sets in, she repeatedly tells Frederick to go eat and come back later because she does not want to become a burden. Even though Catherine is lying on her deathbed, she remains calm and positive. She assures Frederick that she was not afraid and that it was all just a dirty trick (331). She takes advantage of her last breath to tell Frédéric that everything would be fine. She shows courage in her actions as well as her words. Catherine transforms over the course of the novel and, although she no longer holds coded hero status, she still exemplifies the characteristics of a hero. Her actions hold pure grace and she remains true to all her beliefs. His life is full of love, loyalty and respect.