As a topical collection, 1961’s The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories (Scribner, ISBN: 0684862212) by Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) serves as a good overview of the more dreary side of Hemingway’s standard subject matter: unspoken dissatisfaction, the absence of emotion in the midst of war, and decent men in the midst of bad lives.
The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Death
In the title story, protagonist-writer Harry turns into the expectation of death towards the end of his life after realizing that he, like us all, will die with stories untold. The monologue where he talks about saving the best stories for too long is surely one of the most terse and accurate statements on the creation of and co-existence with art.
The oft-anthologized “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” retrogrades and shifts the viewpoint of the people who surround misery as opposed to misery itself. Of course, in fitting with the feel of the rest of the stories, there exists the inescapable unity within the brotherhood of melancholy.
An Uneven Collection
Despite the success of both the title story and “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place,” Hemingway definitely put out an uneven collection. “A Day’s Wait” seems tossed off and pointless: Hemingway’s version of J.D. Salinger’s “Down at the Dinghy” or maybe a story Carver would site as the inspiration for “The Father” almost 20 years later. “A Day’s Wait” fails at the short form that “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” uses to its advantage.
The ridiculously-titled (and perhaps misplaced) “The Gambler, the Nun, and the Radio” is a solid story, despite the ending revealing too much with its final exchange of dialogue The heavy-handed revelation at the end is forgivable, however, and this stands as one of Hemingway’s funniest stories (and funny on purpose, which is rare for Hemingway).
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The Snows of Kilimanjaro" contains some of Hemingway's finer short stories. And like many of his works, they resemble his life. Everything from his childhood to his later years in Africa are material for these tales. The stories of Hemingway's recurrent character, Nick Adams, who some say is Hemingway himself, are contained in this book also. All the works bear his distinct imprint, even though many are under ten pages in length. "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber" is what I consider Hemingway's most potent short story of all. This collection is a great primer for those who are unacquainted with Hemingway's work and wish to discover his talent.
This very short little volume serves as the perfect introduction to the work and style of Ernest Hemmingway. It contains ten of his most popular short stories. THIS IS BY NO MEANS A COMPLETE COLLECTION OF HIS GREATEST HITS. Notably absent from this collection is "Hills Like White Elephants." However, it does contain such perennial favorites as "The Killers," "A Clean Well-Lighted Place," and "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber." Ultimately, the consumer (like myself) will be tempted to buy The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemmingway, which is not much more expensive.
Quite simply, "The Snows of Kilimajaro" is the greatest short story I have ever read. Hemingway's poignant prose powerfully touches the reader with its rather candid narration and lack of verbosity. A stirring portrait of potential wasted and talent corrupted, this story explores the classic Hemingway themes of death and corruption. As the protagonist faces death and bemoans the ruination of his talent by "betrayals of himself and what he believed in" and by "drinking so much he blunted the edge of his perception," the reader realizes the significance of living life in such a manner that when death beckons, the end will come without any regrets, could-haves, would-haves or should-haves. Perhaps no author embodied this philosophy more than Hemingway; a man who truly lived a life without regrets.
Be prepared: this story shall transform your philosophy on existence. Oh yeah, and the other stories aren't half-bad either