Ernest Hemingway was born on July 21st, 1899 in Cicero, Illinois. Hemingway served in World War I as an ambulance driver in the Italian army but was honorably discharged after being seriously wounded. His experiences in the war left an indelible mark upon Hemingway and influenced his life and writing for the rest of his days. The scars he bore from the war, both physically and psychologically, earned him membership into “The Lost Generation” of writers who were disillusioned with postwar society in the Twentieth Century.

Hemingway’s work was renowned for its austere quality in dealing with themes of human suffering and endurance in an unflinchingly honest style. Throughout his life he battled with depression an alcoholism and despite successes such as being awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954 he committed suicide on July 2, 1961, in Ketchum, Idaho. Many of his works were acclaimed as modern classics during his lifetime and have earned their place within literary canon.