Ernest Hemingway, an American writer, lived an eccentric, war-filled and unrestricted life, which largely influenced his work. Considered one of the greatest American writers of the twentieth century, Hemingway was influenced by many great writers of his time and by the upheavals in the political world around him. To the eye, Hemingway's writings are brash and simple, but they show his view of the world and his relationship with it. Ernest Hemingway was born in July 1899 in Oak Park, Illinois. Hemingway's mother was a former opera singer and his father was a doctor. His family owned a summer home in northern Michigan, where Hemingway developed a passion for the outdoors. His passion for the outdoors influenced many of his stories. Hemingway played many sports in high school and wrote for his school newspaper. After high school, he continued to write for The Kansas City Star, where he reported various stories from the city. (egs.edu)At the beginning of World War I, Hemingway tried to enlist in the U.S. Army but was denied due to poor eyesight. Instead, he became an ambulance driver for the Red Cross in Italy. Hemingway was wounded by mortar fragments in July 1918. While wounded, he carried a wounded Italian soldier to safety, for which he was awarded the Italian Silver Medal for Military Valor. While recovering from his injuries in hospital, he fell in love with a nurse. After World War I, Hemingway returned to the United States and received a letter from the nurse telling him that she was engaged. Hemingway was very hurt by the news and the situation inspired him to write A Farewell to Arms. (egs.edu) After Hemingway returned home from the war, he went summer fishing and camping in Michigan. That... half of the paper... the last to be published. In 1954 he traveled to Africa to indulge in one of the things he loved most, outdoor hunting, and was involved in two serious plane crashes that contributed to the deterioration of his health. Also in 1954, Hemingway received the Nobel Prize for Literature for The Old Man and the Sea. (Stoppard) In 1960, Hemingway left Cuba after the political changes that occurred with the rise to power of Fidel Castro, he never returned. After returning to the United States, he was admitted to the Mayo Clinic where he received electroconvulsive therapy more than 10 times. On the morning of July 2, 1961, Hemingway committed suicide by shooting himself with his favorite rifle that he often used for hunting. It was discovered that he was suffering from hemochromatosis, a disease in which the body absorbs too much iron from food causing the person to suffer from iron poisoning and eventually death. (pbs.org)