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I watched it all.

I went into it believing the “man’s man” stuff about Hemmingway. I had recently read the autobiography of Robert Capa, one of the photographers who had gone into Paris with him during WWII. The image he painted was of a rugged, drunk, man who was bigger than life.

What the Ken Burns program showed was that he was a big a-hole. He hit women. He did not know what fidelity meant. And he was a prolific liar.

What I found humorous about the program was the “shock” from the current crop of writers about the language and racism he used in private correspondence. They simply “couldn’t fathom” how such a great writer could use that language.

In reality, this guy used language as a weapon. He knew EXACTLY what he was writing—he understood that when he wrote to someone he could convey an emotion directly and succinctly.

Today’s writers—at least the ones shown on the show—came across as morons because they couldn’t comprehend the context of the man and his times.

But yeah...in the end the guy was a good writer, but a bully and egomaniac who was generally an a-hole to everyone he knew and “loved.”