preview

Ernest Hemingway Influences

Decent Essays
Open Document

Ernest Hemmingway was one of the most influential authors of the early twentieth century. He wrote many of his infamous novels and stories from the 1920s to the 1950s. Hemmingway was known for his way to write simple and terse, yet he was able to hold an unseen power behind his words. He lived a life filled with adventures and exploration, but died feeling alone. His experiences in life very much influenced his writing, and in many ways, his own personal stories can be seen in his works. Ernest Miller Hemingway was the son of Dr. Clarence Edmonds Hemingway and Grace Hall Hemmingway. His father was a general practitioner and had a love of sport and outdoor life. His mother was a trained opera singer, strong-willed feminist, and a devout religious …show more content…

In 1934, Hemingway made his way to a new continent, Africa. Even though Hemingway picked up a slight case of dysentery, African safari was outstanding (American Decades). He began to write a nonfiction work that covered his experiences in Africa, called the Green Hills of Africa. This nonfiction work, built like a novel, was published in 1935.
In 1936, Hemingway returned to Spain as a newspaper reporter and raised funds for the Spanish Civil War. The following year, Hemingway published one of his weakest novels, To Have and Have Not (Encyclopedia of World Biography). One of the main reasons that this novel did not live up to standards was Hemingway's major focus on the Spanish Civil War the year before. The year of 1938 was a rather slow year for Hemingway's progress, even though he wrote a play, called The Fifth Column. He did publish the First Forty-Nine Stories, which included the acclaimed The Snows of …show more content…

In November of 1954, Hemingway received the Nobel Prize for Literature, but he could not attend because he was still recovering from his injuries. After Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba, Hemingway permanently moved to Ketchum, Idaho (St. James Encyclopedia). Only a few months later, Hemingway was admitted to the Mayo Clinic and was diagnosed with a variety of ailments.
When Hemingway returned to his home, he found himself unable to write. He was mortified that he was physically unable to do what he loved, and he felt ashamed that he could not write anything. He tried to kill himself twice, via a propeller blade and a gun, but Mary stopped him both times. Then, on July 2, 1961, Hemmingway woke up, made his favorite breakfast of steak and eggs, picked up his favorite shotgun, placed the barrel to his forehead, and fired (Trahan).
Hemingway was an incredible writer that could speak volumes in only a few powerful words. While his life was plagued with an unending depression, he was able to bring joy to many through his writing. At his best, he was a hunter, fisher, boxer, bullfighter, and soldier (Encyclopedia of World Biography). At his worst he was a depressed, heavy drinker that found joy in exposing the limitations of others while never truly acknowledging his

Get Access