Ela Dworzecki ENG 101 September 19, 2011 Facing Death Knowing you are dying is a scary thought. If you were to die today, how would you want people to remember you and your life? This is what both characters had to face with in the stories. Living your life every day like it’s your last, is the conclusion after reading “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” by Earnest Hemingway and “Maryanne Clouds Today” by Ivan Gabriel Rehorek. Ernest Hemingway being born on July 21, 1899, in Oak Park, Illinois and become a great writer after many years.
He had four different wives throughout his life with many years of experience and regret with different stories to write about. Ernest lived such a full life that he didn’t have a chance to write down all the stories he wanted. Many of his writings are based on life experiences, therefore some of his stories were never written because he was living in the moment. Ivan Rehorek (aka Avalanche) is a former editor for Adelaide’s famous Friendly Street Poetry collective and the first poet from there to make the transition into digital publishing.
Ivan, former teacher, he was active in community theatre movements in the 1970s and is one of Adelaide’s most accomplished and distinguished solo spoken word performers, his recitals often accompanied by his trustworthy saxophone. With his distinctive style, Rehorek brings to contemporary Australian poetry the distinctiveness of the “beat” generation while maintaining his individuality and uniqueness. He wrote “Maryanne Clouds Today”. Both ” are about being able to live your life and create memories.
In the stories, both main characters are facing death shortly. As Hemingway writes, his character has a major consequence for being irresponsible and forgetting to put iodine on his infected scrapped leg. For not putting it on, he now deals with a major infection and is awaiting death shortly if not rescued fast enough. As the character portrays as a writer, he regrets not writing down all his ideas and experiences on paper. Once on paper, he could reminisce about memories that happened long ago and share them with others.
Maryanne also is experiencing similarities to Harry, as a long time dialysis user. In “Snows of Kilimanjaro”, he enjoys writing, and Maryanne enjoys painting. Leaving stories and paintings behind is a great way of leaving a bit if you on earth while you leave as death comes. As death gets closer, both characters lapse in and out of consciousness. Once you are close to death, what would you want to remember about your life? I relate to both characters in not caring what is good and bad for you in the end and they did with their drink preferences. Gimme some of that Pepsi, dear”- as her daughter replies, “Not too much now Mum…Oh, what am I saying? ” in “Maryanne Clouds Today”. Maryanne decides to do whatever at the end of life, just trying to live it to the fullest, just like Harry as he wants the drink whiskey-soda. Both characters are experiencing similar situations. As the story “Maryanne Clouds Today” is about Maryanne dying, “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” has the dying character writing the story. Also as both stories portray the ending of life, they take place in different continents.
Maryanne is in Australia and Harry is on Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa and still both lived a great life. As Maryanne doesn’t regret anything and is happy with her life to fullest, Harry regrets not writing down all his stories he wanted to write about. Noticing that everyone goes through similar experiences, situations and dilemmas just in different parts of the world helps you not feel so alone at times. While others have loving family around, and others have a single friend, were not alone in any situation.
I believe that as life ends, you will remember all the good and bad in life. Going in and out of consciousness, I would like to know that I will be remembered by something and someone. Either stories or painting, I want to leave behind a legend. If you were to die at any moment, what would you want to leave behind? Works Cited Hemingway, Earnest. The Snows of Kilimanjaro. New York: Hearnst Corporation, 1936. Rehorek, Ivan. Maryanne Clouds Today. Oxford: New Internationalist Publications Ltd, 2009.
