In the minds of many, Martha Gellhorn will forever remain Ernest Hemingway's third wife . It is in this quality that she is represented by reference books and encyclopedias, despite the fact that she was one of the few women involved in covering military events.
With all her heart devoted to the journalistic profession, she devoted sixty years to writing reports. This woman was officially awarded the title of one of the five journalists who had the greatest influence on the formation and development of society in America throughout the 20th century. This significant event was marked by the release of a special series of stamps for postal envelopes.
Biographical data
Martha Gellhorn was born in St. Louis (America) in 1908. Her parents were George Gellhorn (doctor) and Edna Fishell, who is active in protecting women's rights.
Young Marta began to write poems and short stories in her childhood, so no one was surprised when she announced her intention to achieve heights in the craft of writing. After graduating from college, she went to work in a small publishing house and wrote reports on the news of the criminal world. True, Marta did not stay here and went to Europe in search of adventure and new topics.
Quick Start in Journalism
The amazing ability of the young journalist was the ability to find ways to meet influential people. Being in the capital of France, Martha Gellhorn almost a few days got a job in the editorial office of the popular magazine Vogue. Already as a correspondent of this publication, the girl attracted the attention of the writer Bertrand de Jouvenel, whose father was the famous French politician and diplomat.
According to unofficial data, they got married, but this is not documented. At that time, Bertrand was married, and there is no evidence that there was a divorce proceedings. In any case, these relations did not last long, since Martha Gellhorn was already fed up with French society and became interested in the war brewing in Europe. She left Paris, leaving Bertrand.
Homecoming
After arriving in America, the girl began to be active as a reporter for one of the major newspapers. Her reports were so impressive that a powerful person like Harry Hopkins became interested in who Martha Gellhorn was. The biography of the journalist contains facts indicating her collaboration with the government of Franklin Roosevelt, for whom Hopkins worked. On behalf of the presidential administration, the girl traveled to key cities in America and wrote a series of essays about the consequences of the Great Depression for different segments of the population. The results of the observations were presented by the journalist not only in the articles, but also in the book “The trouble I saw”. This storybook was the first literary work written by Martha Gellhorn. Her books, like most publications, are written in a peculiar style, abruptly and without pathos ("Lost battle", "Traveling alone and with companions").
In the process, Marta became a close friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, the president’s wife. In addition to common interests, they found out that the first lady knew Martha's mother well in college.
The location of influential people and their patronage promised the journalist an excellent career in administration with a subsequent political career. But all privileges faded in comparison with the upcoming adventures and travels, so Martha's choice was obvious.
Relations with Wells
Visiting the presidential house, Marta got acquainted with the famous writer who worked in the genre of science fiction, with Herbert Wells. He was also a welcome guest in the president’s family.
At that time, Herbert was married and, in addition, contained several lovers, but could not resist the pressure of Martha. Under her influence, he decides to go with her to Europe, right in the crucible of a war.
Strictly speaking, thanks to Wells and his guardianship, the girl began to spin in the highest journalistic circles. The warmth did not disappear from their relationship even after many years, when both were family people.
Meet Hemingway
The demand and popularity of a journalist in the mid-30s reached impressive proportions: her trips to European countries and articles revealing the harsh truth about people's lives in the American outback were revealing. Martha’s fateful acquaintance with the famous writer Ernest Hemingway took place in the Florida bar “Slut Joe”. According to Ernest, he was shocked by Martha's slender legs and first fell in love with them, and then already in her.
Staying in Florida, the journalist made friends with Pauline Pfeiffer, the wife of the writer at that time. Despite the fact that Pauline also wrote for Vogue magazine and was a rather interesting person, Hemingway was already carried away by Marta. Among their common interests was a passionate love for Spain, so it is not surprising that they both left for this country, embraced by a civil war.
Joint reporting
Hemingway and Gellhorn arrived in Spain lightly: they had one suitcase and no more than fifty dollars for two. Their passion was the coverage of events taking place in the country, and, according to some experts, Martha was much better at writing reports than her illustrious lover.
Both of them had sympathy for the social party that was then in power, and their articles were written from that position.
The year 1940 was marked by the official marriage of the couple. Together they conducted their reporting activities, having visited Finland, France, Indonesia and China. As a result, Martha and Ernest have gained a reputation for brilliant war correspondents.
The journalist was the muse of a writer in love, since the novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls", which brought Ernest worldwide fame, was dedicated to her. After several years of wandering life, the couple acquired the estate and settled in it.
Hemingway and Gellhorn: The Struggle of the Characters
The family happiness of the famous couple was not destined to last long. Passions were heating up due to Martha’s reluctance to cave in to her husband’s demands: she did not change her last name, housekeeping and follow in the footsteps of Ernest’s previous wives and mistresses.
The meaning of life for a journalist was professional activity, and her decisive actions did not find support from her husband. She completely immersed herself in work when the war broke out: she was in the cockpit during the bombing, participated in the Allied landings in Normandy, and observed and covered the release of the Dachau concentration camp.
Unable to withstand the constant absence of his wife and her tough stance on journalism, Hemingway delivered her an ultimatum. Martha's choice was not in favor of marriage - she preferred freedom and adventure. However, forever remained in the shadow of a famous writer.
Martha Gellhorn's Further Career
After the end of World War II, the journalist set about covering other military conflicts. In the second half of the 20th century, readers of newspapers and magazines perceived many events precisely through the eyes of Martha.
The horrors that the Nazis created led to the writer defending the rights of the Jewish people to her own state, as well as writing about the trial of the Nazis.
The writer’s third marriage, with The Times editor-in-chief T. Matthews, was lengthy, but was torn apart by Martha after exposing her husband’s lengthy romance on the side. Martha Gellhorn, whose personal life was intense, but rather unsuccessful, finally became disillusioned with the institution of marriage and never married again. The life of a journalist was interrupted by her will in 1998: suffering from cancer and being completely blind, she took a large dose of drugs.
The writer and journalist Martha Gellhorn, whose quotes are widely circulated and rephrased many times, has become a kind of idol for all feminists and independent women. Her statement about her ex-husband is best known: "I was a writer before I met him, and I was a writer for 45 years after that. Why should I be just a footnote to someone's life?"