Ernest Hemingway

His Life Born in Oak Park, IL July 21, 1899 Acquired an interest in the arts from his mother, an amateur singer Inherited a passionate interest in the outdoors from his father, a physician Graduated from college and worked as a cub reporter for the Kansas City Star Volunteered to drive an ambulance in WWI in Italy-heroism, pain, and survival reflected in his books

Army Career World War I –Joined volunteer ambulance unit in Italy –Suffered severe leg wound (1918) Had affair with American nurse during his recovery (basis for A Farewell to Arms) –Decorated twice by the Italian government for his service

His Life Con’t Married and moved to Paris, France, where he was influenced by a literary group disillusioned by war and traditional institutions Achieved extraordinary personal fame which lasted his entire life characterized by exotic travels, stormy marriages, popular magazine articles, and serious novels

In Europe… The center of the modernist movement –Modernism - a style or movement in the arts that aims to break with classical and traditional forms Associated himself with writers such as Gertude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald

Awards Ernest Hemingway received both the Pulitzer Prize and, in 1954, the Nobel Prize for literature in Literature for his novel The Old Man and the Sea (1952) Covered the European front during WWII and later wrote his most famous novel The Old Man and the Sea, which he received both a Pulitzer and Nobel Prize in 1953 and 1954.

Style of Writing The Old Man and the Sea is a novella A novella is a short novel that teaches a moral lesson Shaped by his newspaper writing Clear simple prose without ornamentation Few characters Streamlined plot / Realistic Atmosphere Sparse language Parable of men of nature

A Warning About Alcohol Hemingway started drinking when he was a reporter –Built up tolerance Downward spiral (1940s) –Heard voices in his head –Became overweight –Had high blood pressure –Cirrhosis of the liver –Taught 12-year-old son to drink (son later became an alcoholic)

Tidbits Went on hunting expeditions in Africa and Wyoming Went deep-sea fishing off Cuba, Key West, and Bahamas Bought house in Cuba - a paradise for his many cats! –Lived there until Fidel Castro’s revolution in then moved back to America Childhood nickname: Champ Nickname in his older years: Papa

The Later Years Depression - hospitalized at the Mayo Clinic ( released in 1961) –Two months of electroshock therapy July 2, 1961 –Committed suicide with his favorite shotgun in his Idaho home Posthumous publication - True at First Light –Considered one of the worst books by a Nobel Prize winning author

Structure The story can be divided into three main parts of Santiago’s trip The preparation The voyage out The return Within this basic structure…the careful reader can detect a substructure that imitates an organic principle of nature: -----Expansion (activity) followed by -----contraction (repose) Very similar to the movement of the tide at sea.

Hemingway Hero Courageous Close to nature Independent Unemotional, but sensitive Stoic endurance Can be defeated, but never morally or spiritually Never pathetic Sense of rightness and fair play Self-disciplined Never feels self pity