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Hemmingway and Faulkner Essay

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As it pertains to literature, prose refers to arrangement and format. Literary works written in prose style mirror everyday speaking. Prose medium differentiates itself from poetry in the use of unmetered, unrhymed language consisting of logically related sentences (Gale). Although the meaning, message or point of the work may be obscure and hidden, the format is one easily read and understood by the audience. Ernest Hemmingway and William Faulkner are but two success stories utilizing this simple and yet complex literary layout. Ernest Hemmingway was born in Oak Park, Illinois in 1899 to a physician who initiated him into the world of hunting and fishing (Perkins). This initiation would set the stage for the man he would turn …show more content…

Hemmingway’s works focus more on the journey and less on the destination. Robert Jordan, in For Whom the Bell Tolls, loses his life for cause already lost which gives prime example to Hemmingway’s desire to focus not so much on the kill, but the thrill of the chase (Perkins). Oddly enough, Hemmingway, a staunch hunter and outdoorsman, perished not from natural causes, but from a self inflicted gun shot wound. While living through the same period, Ernest Hemmingway and William Faulkner, another prominent figure in literature of the period, were vastly different. William Faulkner had the creative ability to portray reality, in words, in a more realistic manner than reality itself. He did this in stark contrast to Hemmingway’s short simple sentences by employing long sentences and many words to weave an intricate picture of what is going on (Associated). In order to fully process what Faulkner is saying, a person of less than average intelligence may do well to have a dictionary standing by, while Hemmingway can be read by the vast majority. This is not saying that Faulkner is any less successful at getting the reader to understand the point of the work, but it may appeal to a smaller audience. While Faulkner and Hemmingway may differ on the avenues they utilize, they are similar in that their works center on conflict. Hemmingway captures the audience with external conflicts, wars and confrontational situations. Faulkner, on the other

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