Hemingway The Story Teller

One of Hemingway's famous quotes!! 

It's no secret that Hemingway could weave a masterful tale behind a typewriter, a fact that is reinforced through many of his stories such as A Clean, Well-Lighted Place. The New York Times Book Review labled him "The most important author since Shakespeare". But Hemingway was not just a good story teller on paper. The tales he spun for friends and family captivated everyone within earshot, and were frequently so grand and full of wild incidents that those who listned were often left questioning whether one man could really have expreinced so much in a single lifetime. Many of his tales seemed to stretch the truth, often more than a little. In his short stories he was famous for leaving the reader confused at some points of the book. He was also known for leaving the reader asking question in the end and wanting to do more investigating as it did with me in A Clean, Well-Lighted Place. Ernest Hemingway to me was a legend who will forever have an impact on me as a reader when I continue to read his stories and begin to understand his concepts as I move foward through his work. 

One of my favorite quotes from Hemingway!!

Hemingway The Boxer

Warming up before a match!! 

Hemingway had practiced the sweet science since childhood, and at one point, was a sucessful amateur boxer. Hemingway's love for boxing was unmatched by his other passions, and he even had a boxing ring built in the backyard of his Key West home, right next to the pool, so that he could spar with guests. Often, throughout the summer, Hemingway attended huge boxing events, and while fighitng, he had taken many hard hits to the head. There were times when Hemingway would go home, and during some nights, feel very dizzy, and often have horrible headches. In my opinion, I feel this had contributed to his suicide because of the fact that he was getting hit with hard blows to the head left and right. The trauma that his head had taken most certanitly led him to make poor descions, which led to his death. This, out of all he went through, I think impacted him the greatest. Hemingway's love of the sport carried over into the literary world as well. He was known for using his analogies in interviews, as well as for attempting to teach the poet, Ezra Pound, to box during his years in Paris. Several of his short stories reflect his love for the sport, including ones like Fifty Grand and The Battler.

 Hemingway The champion at boxing!! 

Passion For Guns and Hunting

Hemingway hunting in East Africa. 

From the 1920's to 1960's, fine guns and safari hunting were a mark of status and something everyone talked about. Ernest Hemingway's grandfather had been a soldier and Civil War veteran who fought in many infantry divisions, dealing with guns almost everyday of his life. Hemingway's father was also an active hunter as well, who went on many hunting adventures and was seen as a successful hunter. An accomplished outdoors man, Hemingway had learned how to handle a gun at a very young age, and held the title of being an accomplished hunter, so there is no doubt that Ernest grew up to follow his family's tradition of being in the outdoors and hunting. The greater influence for his passion of guns and hunting was from president Theodore Roosevelt who was also known as the hunting president. Roosevelt had worked on a ranch at youth, and after leaving office, he went on safari hunts in East Africa, just as Hemingway did with his wife. Hemingway was so impressed by Roosevelt and his lifestyle that, as time went on, it became very clear to people that president Roosevelt was the one who shaped Ernest Hemingway to be that huge hunting, conservative type of guy. Ernest Hemingway's interest in hunting sports varied between two distinct ones. It was Pheasant and Duck shooting. During Hemingway's second major hunt in 1954 is where he became quite the professional hunter and flourished. He was widely known by other popular hunters, and was seen on many newspaper covers and sports articles for catching the biggest animal and winning huge prizes. He had dedicated so much time and effort, as this was something he, proverbially speaking, died for and loved so much. This was what he did on his free time, and was really good at it.

Hemingway doing what he does best! Hunting!! 

Fatal Plane Crash!!

What the news looked like
back at home. 

During Hemingway's last safari in East Africa, he had survived, not one, but two plane crashes. News of the first crash, deep in the jungles of Uganda, set off reports of his death back home. This spawned many obituaries, which Hemingway later read daily over his morning coffee with amusement. Following the crash, he, his wife, and the pilot were forced to camp out overnight in the middle of what was known as the elephant country, which was a whole story in itself. The second crash, following just several days after the first, was much more severe, and Hemingway was injured really badly in multiple areas. The pilot, this time, had been forced to perform an emergency dive to avoid a bird strike, and the plane ground-looped, eventually crashing. The plane burst into flames upon impact, forcing Ernest to shoulder the door open and try to help his wife and the pilot to safety. When he had gotten out, there was a long list of injuries he had suffered, including first degree burns, internal bleeding, ruptured kidneys, ruptured spleen, ruptured liver, a crushed vertebra, and a fractured skull. After this huge ordeal, Hemingway still managed to put on a smile for the reporters at his evacuation point. He had to said to one reporter, "My luck, she's running very good".

Cessna 182 that had crashed in
East Africa. 

The War Hero

Ernest Hemingway 20 years old
serving in the military during
World War 1. 

Hemingway navigating through
World War 2. 

As a young man, Hemingway served in the Military with the Red Cross  during World War 1. Not long after serving in the  Army, Hemingway had gotten seriously wounded. While delivering chocolates and cigarettes to soldiers on the line, he was hit by a trench mortar fire, leaving over two hundred sharp fragments in his leg, nearly destroying his knee. Despite his gruesome injury, he had managed to drag another injured solider to safety, having stuffed the cigarettes he was carrying into his own wounds to stop the bleeding temporarily. Hemingway received the silver medal of military valor from the Italian government for his heroic actions that day. After this, he had moved back to the U.S., and then, after some time went by, he went back to Europe to see the action of World War 2 as a war correspondent. Then, Hemingway joined the Royal airforce on bombing raids and followed infantry divisions around Europe wherever fighting was the worst. Hemingway also witnessed the D-Day invasion from one of the landing crafts a couple of miles away from where the invasion had taken place, and recorded many horrors of the war. As time progressed in World War 2, he began to play a more active role in the war than he was supposed to. He would, at times, engage and help the soldiers fight, often throwing grenades on the battlefront. He would often assume the role of a soldier himself, which was an indirect violation of the Geneva Convention's guidelines for war correspondents. From other reports, Hemingway allegedly went on to form his own unit, which shockingly had twice the firepower and alcohol rations of all other units. Hemingway was also accused of keeping a virtual armory in his private room, including anti-tank grenades and German bazookas.