5.1 Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway revolutionized American literature with his minimalist style and raw portrayal of human experience. His novels and short stories captured the disillusionment of the Lost Generation, exploring themes of war, masculinity, and existential struggle.

Hemingway's life and work embodied the spirit of modernism, from his time as an expatriate in Paris to his adventures as a war correspondent. His iconic prose style and complex characters continue to influence writers and spark debates about gender, race, and authorial persona.

Life and career

Early years and influences

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• Born in 1899 in Oak Park, Illinois to a physician father and a musically-inclined mother
• Enjoyed outdoor activities like hunting and fishing during family vacations in Michigan which shaped his lifelong interests
• Began writing as a teenager for his high school newspaper and yearbook developing an early passion for journalism
• Volunteered as an ambulance driver in World War I where he was seriously injured by mortar fire an experience that profoundly affected his worldview and later writing

Paris in the 1920s

• Moved to Paris in 1921 as a foreign correspondent for the Toronto Star immersing himself in the vibrant expatriate literary scene
• Befriended other modernist writers like Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and F. Scott Fitzgerald who influenced his spare writing style
• Frequented cafes, bars and salons popular with artists engaging in heavy drinking and carousing that became hallmarks of the "Lost Generation"
• Began experimenting with minimalist techniques in his early short story collections (In Our Time) and novels (The Sun Also Rises)

Key friendships and marriages

• Formed a close friendship and rivalry with F. Scott Fitzgerald who both admired and envied Hemingway's writing talent and macho persona
• Married four times first to Hadley Richardson, then Pauline Pfeiffer, Martha Gellhorn and Mary Welsh with each relationship inspiring his fiction
• Maintained long-term friendships with fellow writers like John Dos Passos and A.E. Hotchner despite his mercurial personality and fallings out
• Mentored younger writers he met in his travels including the Italian novelist Curzio Malaparte and the Cuban journalist José Luis Castillo-Puche

Later years and decline

• Settled in Cuba in the late 1930s where he wrote some of his most famous works (For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Old Man and the Sea)
• Worked as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War and World War II drawing on his experiences for his novels and short stories
• Suffered from increasing physical ailments, alcoholism and mental health issues in the 1950s affecting his ability to write
• Died by suicide in 1961 after struggling with depression and paranoia leaving behind an influential but complicated literary legacy

Major works

The Sun Also Rises

• Published in 1926, Hemingway's debut novel portrays a group of American and British expatriates traveling from Paris to Pamplona for the running of the bulls
• Captures the aimless, hedonistic lifestyle of the "Lost Generation" scarred by World War I and struggling to find meaning in the modern world
• Introduces the Hemingway code hero embodied by the stoic protagonist Jake Barnes who maintains grace under pressure despite a war injury that left him impotent
• Showcases Hemingway's innovative style with its simple declarative sentences, realistic dialogue, and use of understatement to convey complex emotions

A Farewell to Arms

• Semi-autobiographical novel published in 1929 based on Hemingway's experiences as an ambulance driver in the Italian front during World War I
• Tells the story of the doomed romance between Frederic Henry, an American lieutenant in the Italian army, and Catherine Barkley, a British nurse
• Offers a stark, unsentimental portrayal of the brutality and futility of war contrasted with the fleeting moments of love and tenderness between the two lovers
• Experiments with a more lyrical, impressionistic style in some passages (the famous rain scene) while still maintaining Hemingway's signature economy of language

For Whom the Bell Tolls

• Sweeping war epic published in 1940 set during the Spanish Civil War which Hemingway covered as a journalist in the late 1930s
• Follows Robert Jordan, an American volunteer fighting for the Republican side, as he embarks on a mission to blow up a strategic bridge behind enemy lines
• Explores themes of courage, sacrifice, and the inescapable toll of warfare on both soldiers and civilians caught in the crossfire
• Employs a more expansive, almost Tolstoyan narrative style with lengthy descriptions of the Spanish landscape and people along with philosophical meditations on death and politics

The Old Man and the Sea

• Novella published in 1952 that became Hemingway's most popular and critically acclaimed work winning the Pulitzer Prize and cementing his Nobel Prize
• Relates the epic struggle between an aging Cuban fisherman Santiago and a giant marlin he hooks far out in the Gulf Stream
• Functions as a parable about man's battle against nature, the inevitability of defeat, and the importance of resilience and determination in the face of adversity
• Returns to the spare, elemental style of Hemingway's early writings with its tight focus, symbolic characters, and use of repetition to build tension

Short stories

• Produced several landmark collections of short fiction throughout his career that expanded the possibilities of the form
• "In Our Time" (1925) introduces the Nick Adams character, a semi-autobiographical figure who appears in many of Hemingway's stories as he grapples with childhood trauma, initiation into adulthood, and the aftershocks of war
• "Men Without Women" (1927) and "Winner Take Nothing" (1933) further showcase Hemingway's talent for compression, oblique narration, and submerged meaning in stories like "The Killers," "Hills Like White Elephants," and "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place"
• Later stories collected in "The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories" (1938) and "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" (1961) demonstrate Hemingway's range from the gritty realism of "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber" to the mythical symbolism of "The Snows of Kilimanjaro"

Writing style and themes

Minimalism and iceberg theory

• Pioneered a lean, muscular prose style characterized by short declarative sentences, concrete language, and a lack of abstract or ornamental phrasing
• Aimed to strip away unnecessary verbiage and limit descriptions to the essential facts and images needed to convey a scene or emotion
• Developed the "iceberg theory" or "theory of omission" which held that the true meaning of a story should be implied rather than explicitly stated
• Believed that by leaving things unsaid and forcing readers to read between the lines, a writer could achieve a greater emotional impact and sense of authenticity

Code of masculinity

• Created a distinctive type of protagonist known as the "Hemingway code hero" who embodied a stoic, laconic ideal of manhood
• Valorized physical courage, self-control, and grace under pressure as the cardinal virtues of this code
• Portrayed bullfighters, soldiers, boxers, and hunters as exemplars of this heroic masculinity who adhere to a strict set of personal and professional ethics
• Suggested that by following this code and mastering one's fears and weaknesses, a man could achieve a sense of honor and dignity even in a chaotic, violent world

War and its aftermath

• Drew on his firsthand experiences in World War I and the Spanish Civil War to depict the physical and psychological devastation wrought by modern warfare
• Highlighted the absurdity, futility, and dehumanizing effects of battle on soldiers and civilians alike
• Explored the challenges faced by veterans struggling to readjust to civilian life and find meaning in a postwar world that seemed hollow and directionless
• Used war as a backdrop to examine larger existential questions about death, sacrifice, and the human condition

Nature vs civilization

• Juxtaposed the natural world of oceans, mountains, and wilderness with the corrupting influence of modern urban society
• Celebrated the primal, regenerative power of nature and its ability to strip away social masks and pretensions
• Portrayed characters who seek solace or redemption in the outdoors through activities like fishing, hunting, and camping
• Suggested that immersion in nature could offer a temporary escape from the decadence and disillusionment of civilization but also reinforced the ultimate indifference of the universe to human affairs

American expatriates

• Chronicled the lives of the "Lost Generation" of American writers, artists, and bohemians who settled in Paris and other European cities after World War I
• Captured the restless, rootless, and often aimless existence of these expatriates as they grappled with disillusionment, creative stagnation, and moral decay
• Used expatriate characters to comment on the decline of traditional values, the failures of capitalism, and the search for authenticity in a rapidly changing world
• Drew on his own experiences as an expatriate in Paris and Spain to lend his portrayals a sense of realism and immediacy

Sense of loss

• Permeated his works with a pervasive sense of loss, whether of innocence, love, faith, or purpose
• Portrayed characters haunted by past traumas, missed opportunities, and the inescapable passage of time
• Explored the ways in which war, death, and personal betrayals could shatter one's ideals and leave a lasting sense of emptiness or despair
• Suggested that the only way to cope with this loss was through stoic endurance, the cultivation of small pleasures, and the acceptance of life's inherent tragedy

Literary and cultural impact

Influence on American literature

• Helped define the style and sensibility of modernist fiction with his innovative techniques, tough-guy persona, and unflinching look at the human condition
• Inspired generations of writers to adopt his spare, hard-boiled aesthetic and to explore themes of disillusionment, masculinity, and the search for meaning in a chaotic world
• Paved the way for the gritty social realism of the 1930s, the existentialist literature of the postwar era, and the minimalist fiction of the 1970s and 80s
• Continues to be widely taught, imitated, and debated as a canonical figure in American literature whose influence can be seen in everything from pulp fiction to avant-garde poetry

Portrayal in popular culture

• Became a larger-than-life celebrity in his own time, cultivating a macho image as a globetrotting adventurer, war hero, and big-game hunter
• Has been depicted in countless biographies, documentaries, and fictional works that alternately celebrate and critique his outsize personality and tumultuous personal life
• Played by actors like Clive Owen, Corey Stoll, and Dominic West in films that focus on his early years in Paris, his stormy marriage to war reporter Martha Gellhorn, and his final days in Idaho
• Remains a pop culture icon whose distinct style and worldview have been referenced, parodied, and merchandised in everything from fashion to home decor

Nobel Prize controversy

• Won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954 "for his mastery of the art of narrative, most recently demonstrated in The Old Man and the Sea, and for the influence that he has exerted on style in modern fiction"
• Sparked controversy among some critics who felt that Hemingway's best work was behind him and that the prize was more a recognition of his celebrity than his literary merit
• Reignited debates about the politics of the Nobel committee and the tendency to award the prize to established, male writers from Europe and America at the expense of more diverse, avant-garde voices
• Nonetheless helped cement Hemingway's reputation as a giant of world literature and introduced his work to a new generation of readers around the globe

Legacy and enduring relevance

• Continues to be read, studied, and debated by scholars and general readers alike as a key figure in the American literary canon
• Offers enduring insights into the human condition, the nature of masculinity, and the effects of war and trauma on the individual psyche
• Speaks to contemporary concerns about gender roles, toxic masculinity, and the search for meaning in an increasingly fragmented and uncertain world
• Inspires new generations of writers to experiment with language, voice, and form in an effort to capture the complexity and ambiguity of modern life

Criticism and analysis

Gender roles and misogyny

• Has been criticized by feminist scholars for his often reductive, stereotypical portrayals of women as either submissive objects of male desire or emasculating threats to masculine identity
• Depicted female characters who lack agency, complexity, or interiority and whose primary function is to reflect the needs and anxieties of the male protagonists
• Glamorized a narrow, hypermasculine ideal of manhood based on physical prowess, emotional repression, and the subordination of women
• Nonetheless, some critics argue that Hemingway's later works like "The Garden of Eden" and "The Sea Change" offer more nuanced, sympathetic portraits of women and challenge traditional gender binaries

Racial and ethnic stereotypes

• Has been accused of trafficking in racist and colonialist stereotypes, particularly in his depictions of African and Native American characters as primitive, childlike, or sexually depraved
• Reproduced the paternalistic attitudes of his time in his portrayal of non-white characters as either subservient allies or exotic adversaries of his white protagonists
• Used racial slurs and caricatured dialects in his dialogue that, while perhaps reflecting the speech patterns of his era, nonetheless contribute to a sense of othering and dehumanization
• At the same time, some scholars argue that Hemingway's depictions of cross-cultural encounters and interracial friendships hint at a more progressive, cosmopolitan sensibility that challenges the prejudices of his day

Hemingway's "true gen" myth

• Cultivated a public persona as a rugged, hypermasculine adventurer that blurred the lines between his life and his art
• Encouraged the myth of the "true gen" or authentic experience that prioritized firsthand knowledge, physical courage, and a rejection of intellectual pretensions
• Used this persona to market himself and his works, creating a feedback loop between his celebrity image and his literary reputation
• Has been criticized for perpetuating a narrow, exclusionary ideal of authorship that privileges a certain type of white, male, upper-class experience at the expense of other voices and perspectives

Reassessment by scholars

• Has undergone a critical reassessment in recent years as scholars have sought to move beyond the hagiography and mythmaking surrounding his life and work
• New approaches like gender studies, postcolonial theory, and ecocriticism have offered fresh perspectives on the complexities and contradictions of his writing
• Scholars have also explored Hemingway's lesser-known works, like his poetry, journalism, and posthumously published novels, to gain a fuller understanding of his creative process and evolution as a writer
• While acknowledging his flaws and limitations, many critics still regard Hemingway as a pivotal figure in the development of modern literature whose innovations in style, form, and theme continue to resonate with readers today