Death in the Afternoon
by Ernest Hemingway
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ernest HemingwayEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1996-04-16
ISBN: 0684801450
Number of pages: 496
Publisher: Scribner
Book Reviews of Death in the Afternoon
Book Review: A lesson for today's writers
Summary: 5 Stars
I liked this book! Trying to defend "Death in the Afternoon" in these politically correct times is like trying to argue that Hitler was just a misunderstood guy with some unconventional ideas. Oh well, here goes. Let's start with the basics. The book is largely non-fiction. It deals with bullfighting. It is written by Hemingway. And it goes into considerable detail about actual bullfighters who by now must certainly be dead. What possible "relevance" can this book have today? The answer: "plenty." What I like most about "Death in the Afternoon" is Hemingway's honest (and I think genuine) attempt to explain --not defend -- the appeal that bullfighting has to its followers. Hemingway nowhere claims to be unbiased. He enjoys bullfights and doesn't pretend otherwise. Nor does he apologize for its harsh realities. His honest assessment, for example, that padding the horses has far more to do with protecting Anglo-American sensibilities than the flanks of the horses -- and that the pads, therefore, are themselves dishonest -- is refreshing and too little seen among today's writers. So too are his frank admissions that the bull doesn't have a chance, that a bullfight is not a "contest" in the usual sense, and that it is really "a drama carried out in three acts." What writer today--regardless of his views--dares speak with such honesty? Hemingway's honest comments regarding the different styles and abilities of actual bullfighters are something few, if any, of today's writers would attempt. (Admittedly, libel laws might have something to do with this.) The "anti-esthetic" and "praying-mantis" manner of Nicanor Villalta is contrasted with the "grace" of Cagancho. After ridiculing Villalta's cape work and praising Cagancho's, Hemingway points out Cagancho's cowardice and redeems Villalta with the observation that, "Villalta kills though in a way no gypsy ever killed and it would be unfair to show how silly he looks with his feet apart and not show him leaning in after the sword." Who writes like that nowadays? For a work of non-fiction, "Death in the Afternoon" is a rich source of those thoughts and phrases that have a kind of universal truth to them beyond their literal meaning and that stay with you long after the book is finished. Some of my favorites: "Ver llegar: to watch them come; the ability to watch the bull come as he charges with no thought except to calmly see what he is doing and make the moves necessary to the manouever you have in mind." (This one even found it's way into Gerry Spence's book, "How to Argue and Win Everytime.") "THE SEED BULL. At twenty-two years the horns are splintered; the eyes are slow and all the weight has gone forward and away from where eight hundred and twenty-two sons came from to the ring...." (Is this the fate of most men, too?) "And finally El Gallo in one of the seies of delicate formal compositions that the happier part of his life in the ring consisted of. The bull, as he should be, is dead. The man, as he should be, is alive and with a tendency to smile." I dont' know about you, but I like stuff like that. If you find yourself saying things like, "I just don't understand how anyone could possibly enjoy...," -- and you are in fact someone who genuinely WANTS to understand -- do yourself a favor and give this book a chance. Just as Moby Dick is about more than a whale, this book is about more than just bullfighting.
Summary of Death in the Afternoon
Hemingway's Classic Portrait Of The Pageantry Of Bullfighting.Still considered one of the best books ever written about bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon reflects Hemingway's belief that bullfighting was more than mere sport. Here he describes and explains the technical aspects of this dangerous ritual, and "the emotional and spiritual intensity and pure classic beauty that can be produced by a man, an animal, and a piece of scarlet serge draped on a stick." Seen through his eyes, bullfighting becomes an art, a richly choreographed ballet, with performers who range from awkward amateurs to masters of great grace and cunning.
A fascinating look at the history and grandeur of bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon is also a deeper contemplation on the nature of cowardice and bravery, sport and tragedy, and is enlivened throughout by Hemingway's pungent commentary on life and literature.
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