At a glance
- Age
- 61
- Born
- July 21, 1899
- From
- Oak Park
- Lives in
- Key West
- Nationality
- United States
Biography
The pared-back sentence is what most people take from him. Short words, few adjectives, meaning left sitting under the surface rather than spelled out — an economical, understated way of writing that shaped a great deal of the fiction that followed him through the twentieth century. Writers who never read a page of his novels still work in a manner he made ordinary.
He was an American novelist and short-story writer who also worked as a journalist. Across his career he produced seven novels, six short-story collections and two works of non-fiction; a number of these are now treated as classics of American literature. In 1954 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The other half of his reputation is the man rather than the work. An adventurous life and a blunt, outspoken public image made him a figure people romanticised, and that persona has stayed attached to his name as firmly as the prose has. He was born in Oak Park in 1899 and died in 1961.
He was an American novelist and short-story writer who also worked as a journalist. Across his career he produced seven novels, six short-story collections and two works of non-fiction; a number of these are now treated as classics of American literature. In 1954 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The other half of his reputation is the man rather than the work. An adventurous life and a blunt, outspoken public image made him a figure people romanticised, and that persona has stayed attached to his name as firmly as the prose has. He was born in Oak Park in 1899 and died in 1961.
Quotes 5
“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.”
“Never confuse movement with action.”
“Never mistake motion for action.”
“Courage is grace under pressure.”
“The world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are strong at the broken places.”
