[1] The latter was adapted as a romantic comedy film Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction, directed by Bille August and in association with Netflix, which released it on streaming in late 2023.

Longing for the freedom she had enjoyed when her father was alive, she found some satisfaction in telling her younger sister Ellen hair-raising good-night stories, partly inspired by Danish folk tales and Icelandic sagas.

She decided to accept the favours of his twin brother, Baron Bror Blixen-Finecke, and they announced their engagement on 23 December 1912, to the family's surprise.

During her early years, Karen spent part of her time at her mother's family home, the Mattrup seat farm near Horsens.

During First World War fighting between the Germans and the British in East Africa, Bror served in Lord Delamere's patrols along Kenya's border with German-Tanganyika and Karen helped transport supplies.

[6] About the couple's early life in the African Great Lakes region, Karen Blixen later wrote,Here at long last one was in a position not to give a damn for all conventions, here was a new kind of freedom which until then one had only found in dreams!

Capstick goes on to say, "His forays into town and his often wild socializing at the Muthaiga Club, coupled with a legendary indiscipline when it came to money and honoring his debts, soon gave the charming Swede a notorious reputation."

On 5 April 1918, Bror and Karen were introduced at the Muthaiga Club to the English big game hunter Denys Finch Hatton (1887–1931).

[18] Finch Hatton moved into her house, made Blixen's farmhouse his home base between 1926 and 1931 and began leading safaris for wealthy sportsmen.

Danish scholars have not typically made judgments about her morality,[25] perhaps understanding that while colonial prejudices and elements of racism are inherent in the work, given the context and era, nevertheless her position as an outsider, a Dane and a woman makes evaluating her more complex.

[28] Five years after the publication of Out of Africa, Blixen published a collection of short stories called Winter's Tales (1942; Danish: Vinter-eventyr).

[29] A departure from her previous Gothic works, the stories reflect the starkness of the times, occupation tinged with courage and pride, and hope for the future.

[34] Almost all of Blixen's tales from the 1940s and 1950s follow a traditional style of storytelling,[20] weaving Gothic themes such as incest and murder with myth and bewitchment as a means of exploring identity, morality and philosophy.

[37] Concerning her deliberately old-fashioned style, Blixen mentioned in several interviews that she wanted to express a spirit that no longer existed in modern times, one of being rather than doing.

[41] During World War II, when Denmark was occupied by the Germans, Blixen started her only full-length novel, the introspective tale The Angelic Avengers, under a French pseudonym, Pierre Andrezel, for the first and last time.

[43][33] Dorothy Canfield described "The Angelic Avengers" in her Book-of-the-Month Club News review as "of superlatively fine literary quality, written with distinction in an exquisite style".

Her writing was not just a retelling of tales, however; it was a complex layering[36] of clues and double entendres which force the reader to deduce Blixen's intent and draw conclusions.

[35] The most famous tale from Anecdotes is "Babette's Feast", about a chef who spends her entire 10,000-franc lottery prize to prepare a final spectacular gourmet meal.

[49][50] The story evaluates relationships and examines whether the austere but charitable life led by the sisters, in adherence to an ideal, is less true to faith[51][50] than the passionate gift from the heart of their housekeeper.

It was an extended trip spanning from January to April,[55] and while the purpose was to complete a series of educational films and discussions for the Ford Foundation and Encyclopædia Britannica,[56] Blixen intended to enjoy herself.

She was photographed by Richard Avedon and Cecil Beaton, hosted by John Steinbeck at a cocktail party in her honor, and serenaded by Maria Callas.

[64] Throughout the trip, Blixen played upon her crafted persona as a reclusive aristocrat and an outsider, but also that of an eccentric, who would eat only oysters and grapes, and drink only champagne.

[58][65] It was clear that she was ill, as it was reported that she was "frail" and "weighed 63 pounds [28 kg]"[59] and she spent part of her time receiving "intravenous infusions".

[70] Mogens Fog, who was Blixen's neurologist, thought that her gastric problems were attributable to syphilis, in spite of the fact that blood and spinal fluid tests were negative.

In 1956 when she was diagnosed with the stomach ulcer, Professor Torben Knudtzon performed surgery at Copenhagen University Hospital,[69][70] but by that time, she was in her seventies, and already in poor health.

A 1995 report published by the Danish physician, Kaare Weismann, concluded that the cause of her chronic pain and ailment was likely heavy metal poisoning.

[20] In the late 1960s, Orson Welles planned an anthology of Dinesen's films, in which he intended to release "The Heroine", "The Deluge at Norderney", "A Country Tale", and "Full Moon".

[78] In 1982, Emidio Greco directed an Italian film, Ehrengard, based upon Blixen's work of the same name, which was not released until 2002 due to financial complications.

[91] When Blixen returned to Denmark in 1931, she sold her property to a developer, Remi Martin, who divided the land into 20 acres (8.1 ha) parcels.

[100] The family corporation that owned Blixen's farm was incorporated as the "Karen Coffee Company" and the house she lived in was built by the chairman of the board, Aage Westenholz, her uncle.