Primeval time: selective memory of the self
Primeval time: selective memory of the self

Summary/Abstract: The place where the rush of adrenaline is at home is transferred in Hemingway onto the ancient African continent, the cradle of mankind and manhood, a place which is still untouched by the vicissitudes of over-developed societies. It is, most likely, the last geographical space within which men can still surrender themselves to their primitive instincts and prove their bravery. Nonetheless, human nature is unchangeable, and thus its flaws arise in any background and any context. In Hemingway’s stories, the ancient continent triggers so high an emotional intensity inside the self, that it becomes impossible for these primeval instincts not to be revived within: as the memories of the self become the more powerful, the struggle that ensues is for the assertion of these primeval instincts. The African savagery epitomizes the merging of the inner afflictions and the external menaces surrounding the hunter.

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