Ernest Hemingway
...a prosperous
real estate business. His father, Dr. Hemingway, imparted to
Ernest the importance of appearances, especially in public.
Dr. Hemingway invented surgical forceps for which he
would not accept money. He believed that one should not
profit from something important for the good of mankind.
Ernest's father, a man of high ideals, was very strict and
censored the books he allowed his children to read. He
forbade
Ernest's sister from studying ballet for it was
coeducational, and dancing together led to "hell and
damnation". Grace Hall Hemingway, Ernest's mother,
considered herself pure and proper. She was a dreamer
who was upset at anything which disturbed her perception of
the world as beautiful. She hated dirty diapers, upset
stomachs, and cleaning house; they were not fit for a lady.
She taught her children to always act with decorum. She
adored the singing of the birds and the smell of flowers. Her
children were expected to behave properly and to please
her, always. Mrs. Hemingway treated Ernest, when he was
a small boy, as if he were a female baby doll and she
dressed him accordingly. This arrangement was alright until
Ernest got to the age when he wanted to be a "gun-toting
Pawnee Bill". He began, at that time, to pull away from his
mother, and never forgave her for his humiliation. The town
of Oak Park, where Ernest grew up, was very old fashioned
and quite religious. The townspeople forbade
the word
"virgin" from appearing in school books, and the word
"breast" was questioned, though it appeared in the Bible.
Ernest loved to fish, canoe and explore the woods. When he
couldn't get outside, he escaped to his room and read
books. He loved to tell stories to his classmates, often
insisting that a friend listen to one of his stories. In spite of his
mother's desire, he played on the football team at Oak Park
High School....
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