Green Hills of Africa - Deleted Scene

[Rubberhead]

My wife bought me a copy of Hemingway's "Green Hills of Africa" with an appendix that included early drafts of some sections of the book (kind of like deleted scenes). One of the early drafts of the "kudu" story included the following dialog where, around the fire one evening, Hemingway answers the question, "What do you think a writer's relation to the state should be?"

Hemingway's response was...

A writer, if his is any good, should be against the state no matter what it is. There will always be plenty of bad writers who will work for the state. A good writer has something that is not for sale. That he has no right to sell or to loan. Like the standard meter that is kept in Paris. He can fight for the state, or for any employer or any organization, as a man, if he chooses, but if he writes for them he is a whore.

For some reason, this struck me as extremely poignant, especially in today's world.