nows of Kilamanjaro, which was also written based on hisexperiences in Africa, begins to change that self serving (as some would call it) style ofwriting. It is in this piece that we see Hemingway as an old man, who is on the verge ofdeath, looking back on his life and having regrets. This is one of his most famous andacclaimed short stories (Sands, 72).After Africa, Ernest moved to Cuba, where he would spend most of the remainderof his life. Hemingway left an indelible mark on the city of Havana which can still beseen today. It was there, after reporting on World War II, that he completed Over theRiver and Into the Trees, in which the main character is antagonized by a pretentious,journalist ex-wife, not unlike Hemingways ex-wife Martha Gilhorn. Again we seeHemingways own life right on the pages of a book of fiction. In Cuba, Hemingwaysdepression began to severely affect his life, and his marriage. He began drinking more,sometimes up to a quart of liquor a day, and he began gaining more weight (at one pointhe weighed as much as 270 pounds). He threatened suicide on several occasions, but hispersonality was the kind that very few people would stand up and say something to. Foras kind and loving as he was, he could be equally angry and violent. At this point, mostpeople considered Hemingways career to be over, and he knew that he had to publishsomething that could re-establish him as champion (Hemingway liked to speak inboxing terms). It was then that he published his most famous short novel (Miller, 171).It was a fish story. A fish story that Hemingway had been kicking around in hishead for years. And when it was finally written (some say that the first draft was thefinal, because the words fit so right that there was no need for a re-write), The Old Manand the Sea was considered his masterpiece. It won him a Pulitzer prize in 1953, andgave him enough money to travel back to Africa for one last safari. However, on this tr...
