Hemingway Question?
One character in "Che Ti Dice la Patria" is a "property sailor." What is that?
BTW, "I don't know" doesn't count as an answer.
One character in "Che Ti Dice la Patria" is a "property sailor." What is that?
BTW, "I don't know" doesn't count as an answer.
rowanwagner
Favorite Answer
Pimp - he owns the three girls in restaurant - its slang as during that time Mussolini abolished brothels and outlawed prostitution - and it was a crime to use even the words associated with sex trade - so an underground language was developed
Rex
A Sailor is also known as an explorer, discoverer, or wandering searcher. He was searching for certain property. The "property" Hemingway was referring to were women. The "property sailor" is our latter day version of a modern pimp. They were everywhere in those days (as they are today), even in the best parts of town. They were constantly trying to turn a few bucks by promising women lots of money to sexually please men. Hemingway despised them. Hemingway himself had a reputation as a womanizer, but he was also a helpless romantic. He met women on his own terms and fell in love with most of them. He was a great man. He died too young. Outrageous success simply overwhelmed him and he killed himself. Very sad.
Hope this helps,
Rex
doc_up72
I wasn't too sure of that one either and tried to find it in books of nautical terminology. No luck. So, I simply took it to mean Property Master, or a sailor that ferrys a passengers and or their belongings to and from ship to shore. As a stretch it could be one who is indebted to the ship owner and therefore acts as an indentured slave but I doubt it. Probably the former. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. Good luck.