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Almost everyone loves Hemingway’s stories – they are full of adventures and surprises! The gifted writer was nicknamed “master of the pen No. 1.” During Soviet times, Hemingway was one of those foreign authors who was translated into Russian the most.
Ernest Hemingway is a man who never sat still, what he just did not do: hunt, fly planes, get into accidents, fight …
The American writer had a very busy life, so it is not surprising that his stories are exactly like his life.
In this collection you can learn interesting facts about your favorite writer.
10 Women
The writer never missed women’s society, women always surrounded him.
The writer maintained his macho image, telling friends and acquaintances about how many mistresses he had, some of them had a high social status. For example, Mata Hari, the Greek princess…
He married 4 times and dedicated a book to each of his wives: “The Sun Rises” was dedicated to his wife Elizabeth Hadley Richardson (first wife), “Death in the Afternoon” by Pauline Pfeiffer, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Martha Gellhorn, “Across the River, in the shade of trees” by Mary Welch.
9. Education
Ernest Hemingway’s mother, Grace, was an unusually stubborn woman, and her stubbornness was manifested in strange things. She dreamed of the birth of the 2nd daughter, but a boy was born. Until the age of 4, Ernest wore his sisters’ clothes and walked with long hair.
Years later, Grace decided that her son should become a musician, and in order for Ernest to have free time to play the double bass, she took him out of school for a year. But this was the desire of the mother, and not the writer himself – according to him, he does not know anyone who would play worse on the double bass than he does.
The writer grew up surrounded by women, among whom were: his mother, 4 sisters, a cook, a nanny. No wonder he was most comfortable among women as he grew up.
8. War
Hemingway was interested in the war, and he wanted to participate in it, but due to vision problems (his left eye was damaged), he was not taken.
But the writer was able to get to the front of the First World War in Italy. There he drove a Red Cross car. The events taking place in the war prompted Hemingway to write the book Farewell to Arms!
In 1918, the writer came under fire while rescuing an Italian sniper who was wounded but miraculously survived. In the hospital, 26 fragments were removed from Ernest, and in Milan, doctors replaced his kneecap with an aluminum prosthesis.
7. Cocktails
Ernest Hemingway had rather specific tastes. He loved “feminine” cocktails, which are called: “Mojito” and “Daiquiri”. According to psychologists, men who choose these types of cocktails for themselves are still children at heart.
Despite the fact that the writer could easily fill up the bull in the arena, win the fight and experience the admiration of the war, he could not become a shoulder of protection for a woman.
He liked strong women who did not need protection: those who drove on the freeway, drove a yacht, participated in a safari.
6. Russian classics
After reading some of Hemingway’s works, one can understand how much he appreciated classical Russian literature. For example, in his work “A Holiday That Is Always with You,” the writer describes his youth spent in Paris, where he was fond of Russian classics, and for a long time he read only them. First of all, these are: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Gogol, Turgenev, Pushkin. Most of all, Hemingway valued the works of Tolstoy, namely the way the author described the war.
Hemingway advised those who are just starting their writing career to read as many Russian classics as possible!
5. Sweater and beard
The writer always wore a beard and wore a knitted sweater. The intellectuals of the 60s admired and imitated him. He was an idol, he was considered a romantic hero, and they wanted to be like him.
In a sweater, Hemingway saw not just a piece of clothing that fits a certain season, but an important detail in his image. In addition, the writer was a fashionista and also loved to wear loafers.
Soviet writer Sergei Dovlatov has repeatedly said that he wants to be like Hemingway and learn to write like him.
4. Cats
Cats have always lived in Ernest Hemingway’s house – there were more than 30 of them and they had amazing names: Stray Cat, Crazy Christian, Ecstasy, Fat, etc.
Hemingway’s most famous cat is Snowball, who had 6 toes on each paw due to a genetic mutation. This cat was given to Hemingway by a friend – the captain of the ship.
Now the house of the famous writer has turned into a museum, but more than 10 cats still live in it, which is interesting – among them there are descendants of Snowball! The museum attracts tourists from all over the world, not so much because of the heritage, but because of the cats.
3. Aphorisms
Even those people who have never read the works of Ernest Hemingway have probably heard his aphorisms from books more than once: “In life it is not so difficult to get settled when there is nothing to lose”, “Travel only with those you love”, “If in life you can do at least one good service – do not shy away from it”, “You must always carry a holiday with you” and many others that are best replicated. In the words of the author, people find themselves and agree with him.
2. Travels
Hemingway has a huge number of places he visited! And, one might say, he was not always a simple tourist. For example, in Africa, the writer was engaged in hunting, in the Caribbean he followed the boats of the Nazis, he fought in the First World War, participated in combat flights over France and Germany, and in his free time he was engaged in fishing.
In 1956, Hemingway wrote the book A Holiday to Take with You because he forgot his luggage. In 1930, at the Ritz Hotel, he forgot it, and when he returned for luggage and opened it, the writer found his old notebooks, letters that reminded him of his youth. The events of that time formed the basis of the story.
1. Works
Ernest Hemingway liked to eat peanut butter and sandwiches garnished with onions when he wrote his works.
Writers usually have their own working area, but Hemingway wrote his stories in completely different places, sometimes it happened spontaneously.
He always fed his creative impulses with external stimuli: women, alcoholic drinks, adrenaline, risk …
In 2000, a domestic cartoon created by Alexander Petrov was filmed based on the writer’s story. It’s called “The Old Man and the Sea” – everyone should see it!