Ernest Hemingway Influences

Ernest Hemingway was a writer whose life experiences shaped the stories that he wrote about. Hemingway was born July 21, 1899, in Oak Park, Illinois, as the second of six children to Clarence and Grace Hemingway. His mother was a strict woman and his father was a physician who hoped his son might one day work alongside him. As a young man Hemingway wrote for a student newspaper, the Trapeze, and after leaving high school reported for the Kansas City Star. He was married four times, drank heavily, and his last years were plagued by medical problems. Hemingway died July 2, 1961, in Ketchum, Idaho, as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot. To conclude, he was an accomplished writer who was influenced and scarred by his own decisions and experiences.

He was an accomplished writer but also was talented in other areas other than literature. In the book Critical Survey of Long Fiction, Fourth Edition, Magnum Bryant acknowledged Hemingway’s talents as an outdoorsman. Bryant suggested that “the general reader has often been more intrigued by Hemingway’s exploits – hunting, fishing, and living dangerously – than by his virtues as an artist” (3). One interesting fact about Hemingway is that he served as an ambulance driver for the Red Cross in Italy. In the book Career, Life, and Influence: Biography of Ernest Hemingway, R. Baird Shuman pointed out the fact that Hemingway had been awarded for heroism. Shuman stated “despite his wounds, he dragged an injured solder from the front line to safety. for this act of heroism, he was decorated” (8). He was also awarded the 1952 Pulitzer Prize for The Old Man and the Sea as well as the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. In conclusion, Hemingway’s bold way of life brought him accolades in more than just his

His most well known types of literature throughout his career included included novels and short stories. Hemingway was also known to write newspaper articles as well as popular magazine essays. The techniques he used in his writing involved narration and dialogue. He covered topics such as personal struggles, death, and the effects of war with most stories taking place in Africa. In the book Critical Survey of Short Fiction, Second Revised Edition, Laurence W. Mazzeno pointed out Hemingway’s influence; he noted “his spare style has become a model for authors, especially short-story writers” (3). Mazzeno also went on to say about Hemingway’s influence: “his tough, macho attitude toward life and his treatment of women have been the subjects of hostile reviews by feminist critics during the 1970’s and 1980’s” (3). Hemingway’s most well known works are A Farewell to Arms and The Old Man and the Sea. In conclusion, his literary works were often dark but were influential to writers who came after