John Steinbeck and Ernest Hemingway were drawn to different aspect of life, which was shown in their writing as naturalistic and realistic, respectively.
The similarities of these two writers were primarily surface similarities- not only did they live and write in the same time period, but both also won the Pulitzer Prize for literature ten years apart from each other.
Although alike in many ways, Steinbeck and Hemingway had completely different approaches to their writing. John Steinbeck had youth on his side - the passion, the child eyes, and the heart of what a true writer looks for in his writing. Hemingway had the wisdom of mind. Though Hemingway was only three years older, Steinbeck did not begin writing until at least nine years after Hemingway published his first major novel, A Farewell to Arms (1929).
Throughout Steinbeck?s life he looked at the world for his inspiration. During Steinbeck?s early adult years, the world was an ugly place for a writer.
Ernest Hemingway in Milan, 1918
Ernest Hemingway in Milan.
English: John SteinbeckWhat good would a writer be in a Great Depression if no one could afford to buy his books? College was not an option for his future. Getting a job, and then keeping it, was something to be worked at. Even Ernest Hemingway knew this fact of life; and soon after high school he, too, began to search for a career. Hemingway?s immediate future, during World War I, Happened to include being an ambulance driver for the Red Cross and fighting for his county. After the war he continued to write and publish till his death of self-inflicted wounds.
Personal experience was the basis for the writing of both Steinbeck and Hemingway. Writing was not for love or heroes, but for capturing the story of life on paper. Appealing to the people is what made John Steinbeck and Ernest Hemingway the role models set forth today, and what made them the pacesetters for writing.
English: Hemingway posing for a dust jacket photo ...
Ernest Hemingway's Salt water pool
The house of Ernest Hemingway