Expert: Josh Silverstein - 2/4/2005

Question
how do the stories "old man on the sea" and "farewell to arms" connect with hemmingways life  

Answer
Hello,

Many parallels have been drawn between Hemingway's life and fiction. Scholars generally agree that Nick Adams is the character who most closely represents Hemingway the man. There is some dissension, however, regarding whether it is in fact Hemingway's personality or simply his experiences which are being personified by his characters. Most of Hemingway's fiction is based on his own personal experience. When creating the fiction, he invents from this experience.

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The Old Man and the Sea and Hemingway's Life
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Gregorio Fuentes, Hemingway's long time fishing companion and first mate of the Pilar, had this to say about his friend's possible inspiration for "The Old Man and the Sea":

"When we went to sea, we found the old man and the sea. We found him adrift on a little boat with a big fish tied there and when Hemingway went to write he wanted to give it a name and I said why don't you name it the old man and the sea."

So if we take Fuentes at his word, this was Hemingway's inspiration and the old man he saw that day became a model for the old man in the book. Everything else that occurs in the story was likely invented by Hemingway.

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A Farewell to Arms and Hemingway's Life
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In 1918, Hemingway began service as an ambulance driver for the Italian army. On July 8, he was wounded at Fossalta on the Italian Piave while delivering chocolates, cigarettes, and postcards to soldiers. This event is recreated in "A Farewell to Arms."

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