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This book was penned in remembrance of Hemingway's Safari expedition to East Africa. It is rife with numerous stereotypical and colonizer accounts of Africa. However, to be just, during the era when he composed it, this was the prevalent mindset regarding the continent.
What truly irked me while reading it was that at times it was excruciatingly dull. The protagonist, who is also the author himself, has an intense fixation on killing animals. This book presents Africa, or more specifically East Africa in the 1930s, from a highly dominant male perspective. At times, I winced a great deal when he described their competition to see who could slay the largest animal and the jealousy among the men when someone had killed a bigger one, as it vividly reminded me of men comparing their genital size.
But generally speaking, I'm not a huge enthusiast of Hemingway either because his machismo constantly protrudes in his writing. Perhaps this biases my judgment.
Nonetheless, despite these flaws, the book still offers some insights into the mindset and experiences of that particular time and place. It serves as a reminder of the complex and often problematic history of colonialism and its impact on the perception of other cultures.
Overall, while I may not have entirely enjoyed reading this book, it does have its merits and can be a valuable resource for those interested in exploring Hemingway's works and the historical context in which they were written.
What truly irked me while reading it was that at times it was excruciatingly dull. The protagonist, who is also the author himself, has an intense fixation on killing animals. This book presents Africa, or more specifically East Africa in the 1930s, from a highly dominant male perspective. At times, I winced a great deal when he described their competition to see who could slay the largest animal and the jealousy among the men when someone had killed a bigger one, as it vividly reminded me of men comparing their genital size.
But generally speaking, I'm not a huge enthusiast of Hemingway either because his machismo constantly protrudes in his writing. Perhaps this biases my judgment.
Nonetheless, despite these flaws, the book still offers some insights into the mindset and experiences of that particular time and place. It serves as a reminder of the complex and often problematic history of colonialism and its impact on the perception of other cultures.
Overall, while I may not have entirely enjoyed reading this book, it does have its merits and can be a valuable resource for those interested in exploring Hemingway's works and the historical context in which they were written.
