An Analysis of Hemingway’s Suicide

【Abstract】In the world， many people， including some outstanding literati and scholars， commit suicide at young age or middle age every year for complicated reasons. Hemingway remained one of the most famous American writers till today. His literary fame is indisputable. Unfortunately， he ended his life by suicide. This paper focuses on analyzing the reasons of his suicide from different aspects to warn the readers to love life.

【Key words】analysis； Hemingway； commit suicide； reasons

Born on July 21， 1899 at Oak Park， Ernest Hemingway lived a fairy-tale childhood and successful life. It seemed that there were no reasons for him to kill himself. It is strange that a happy life may be positive to common people， but it was the root causes of tragedy to some literati. Ill analyze the reasons of Hemingways suicide from the following aspects.

Ⅰ. Social background

Coming out of World WarⅠ， Hemingway found himself lost. Being afflicted by the local customs and beliefs， having seen the cruelty and deceptiveness of the war and experience the dispersal of the patriotism， he fell into an overall disillusionment and nihilism. He got hurt by the war and became numb， stopping thinking and believing. If he found the pains in life unbearable， he indulged himself in drinking to numb his thinking； if he realized the death of love， he turned to believing in sex； if everything collapsed and nothing left， it was still all right to him. He would begin believing in nothing.

Ⅱ. Personal experience

When Hemingway was very young， he joined a volunteer ambulance unit in France， gained transfer to the Italian front， suffered serious injuries but had survived. After World War I he reported battles in the Near East for the Toronto Star， in 1922 settled in Paris and mixed in the literary circles， especially in the expatriate group， for which Paris was famous in the 1920s. Disillusioned by the loss of faith and hope， the expatriate intellectuals group in Paris， who replaced former ideals and values only by despair or a cynical hedonism， formed the background of his first major novel. In the war-torn forties， Hemingway worked as correspondent in China and in the air over France， and on the Normandy beach， on behalf of anti-fascist causes. He came back to Cuba after the war but the decade of the forties was one of silence until the publication of his next novel. When the Cuban revolution broke out， he left Cuban in November， during the last eight months of his life， he suffered both from serious illnesses and from emotional breakdown， which made him haunted by the impression that his inspiration had deserted him and his literary talent was nearly exhausted.

Hemingways experience was very rich but he still shot himself. His experience shaped his attitudes and his works. When he was young， he pursued success and glory， only two months later he was injured and suffered painful and terrible wounds without any stance of manhood. All his feeling was sorrow and disappointment， not only for himself， but also for the war. After the war， the American society had changed a lot. He began to think more about war and life. His legendary life experience made him understand the truth of death and life. He thought that death was the most frightful fact and it couldnt be avoided. He had to face directly with death. His attitude towards death determined his tragic view about life. He chose the extreme way to end his life.

Ⅲ. Decadence of Feeling

We could see the decadence feeling from Hemingways works. His life went well， but there were some things behind the surface. In his works， the leading character had strong mind， while most things were beautiful. However， in real life， they were the weak ones. Decadence played an important role in literature， his suicide was the fate. They still felt very lonely， the mind always in struggle. The tines changed intensely.

Ⅳ. Conclusion

In a word， there are three main reasons about their suicide， social background， personal experience and decadence. From reading his works， we can feel the deep tragic flavor. The theme “death” is originated from life and is successfully presented in his works. Shall we choose life？ The God does not allow us to choose our life. Life is precious， please cherish it.

References：

[1]趙萍.A Probe into Ernest Hemingways Suicide Enigma Through His Works and Life Experiences[J].海外英语，2014.6.

[2]杨仁敬.论海明威与存在主义[J].外国文学，2015.5.

[3]章鲁生.海明威被谁推向死神怀抱[J].文学教育，2014.12.

作者简介： 冶静芳（1985.10-），女，生，宝鸡凤翔人，宝鸡文理学院外语系在读研究生，任职于宝鸡职业技术学院讲师。