Hemingway’s take on life’s not fair, get over it

“The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places.”

-Ernest Hemingway

I grew up reading Ernest Hemingway, and devoured most of his works in my younger years, but I couldn’t say he was ever a favorite author of mine.

Yet, in this odd age of “Words are violence!” and a quest to end so-called “Toxic masculinity”, I find myself developing a newfound respect for this blustery author and his oeuvre.

My oldest son had the unfortunate experience (one I would never wish on the children of my worst enemy) of studying high school English with a teacher who embraced all aspects of critical race/gender/Marxist theory.

As you can imagine, Ernest Hemingway was on the receiving end of the political correctness scalpel.

The irony, of course, is that my son simply became adept at writing the laughable, schlock “analysis” his woke teacher required of him, whereas at home we would have long conversations about the actual literary analysis he should have been having in his classes had he had a serious teacher.

I do feel sorry for the indoctrination too many of our kids are getting in schools in literature and history and political science, but I think it simultaneously opens up a new, underground conversation among peers and in the homes.

And many will emerge from this modern day academic abuse stronger than before.

Somehow, I think Hemingway himself may have appreciated the situation and cheered on those becoming stronger in the broken places.