Hills Like White Elephants Rhetorical Analysis

Communication is a crucial aspect of any relationship. Ernest Hemingway’s short story, “Hills Like White Elephants”, illustrates a man and a woman experiencing communication issues. They are in a bar waiting for the express to bring them to Madrid, Spain. The man and the woman order drinks and begin to have a conversation. It starts out with pleasant small talk, until the man brings up an operation the woman is scheduled to have once they get to Madrid. The conversation turns into strained lies on both of their parts. Hemingway’s, “Hills Like White Elephants,” argues that communication in a relationship is crucial in order to be successful.

The story begins at a bar, the man and woman are deciding what they should drink. The tone is very awkward and forced. There is obviously unspoken problems that they are dealing with. In the text, the woman mentions the hills looking like white elephants, the man then states he’s never seen one. The woman replies with, “No, you wouldn’t have” (pg. 330). The man seems to get angry due to the already present tensions between them. “I might have. Just because you say I wouldn’t have doesn’t prove anything” (pg. 330). This statement is aggressive and demonstrates that their communication is already strained.

The story progresses and the small talk continues. The conversation is lacking substance and is

shallow. “That’s all we do, isn’t it—look at things and try new drinks?” (pg. 330) She sounds weary here. This shows that the woman wants to settle down, she’s tired of constantly traveling and not having a permanent place. However, the man is content with moving around and not settling. This is proven when he gives an unconcerned response, “I guess so” (pg. 330). The man and girl are lying to each other about how they truly feel and therefore causing further strain on their relationship.
Eventually, the man brings up the operation. “It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig” (pg. 331). The operation he eludes to is an abortion. He repeatedly states that the “operation” is very simple and natural. The girl, however, does not say anything and “. . . looks at the ground the table legs rested on . . .” (pg. 331). Her looking at the ground means she deliberately bent her head down to look at the ground. This reveals that she is ashamed and scared of him. This allows the reader to infer that the girl does not want the abortion. The man states that they will go back to how they were before after the operation. He believes this will happen because, “It’s the only thing that’s made us unhappy” (pg. 331). The girl is not expressing her discontent with the situation, therefore allowing herself to be pressured into having the operation.
The man is extremely persistent and drones on about how simple the operation is and why it is more beneficial to do it, “I think it’s the best thing to do” (pg.331).

He then continues to say, “You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to” (pg. 331). He repeatedly tells her this, however, he does not really mean it. It is very clear, due to his contradictory statements of persistence, that he wants the girl to go through with the abortion. Although, she is also not telling him how she feels about the abortion. A baby is a big decision and can change their life, therefore it is crucial for them to be honest with each

other.
There are several instances that show that the girl is merely going through with the operation to please the man. She states, “Then I’ll do it because I don’t care about me” (pg.331). Here she blatantly states she will only do it to please him, not because she truly wants it. As the story progresses she mentions keeping the baby. But, the man replies with, “But I don’t want anyone but you” (pg.331). Therefore, gently letting her know that he really does not want the baby. They continue back and forth until the girl grows tired of the lies they are feeding each other. She requests for him to stop talking and shortly after, the train arrives. Right before they board the train the man asks the girl if she’s feeling better. She replies with, “I feel fine”. She is being dishonest yet again with him, just as he has throughout the story. Due to this their relationship seems like it is doomed either way.
Ultimately, the man and the girl are not honest with each other, they do not tell each other how they really feel. Communication is a major key in successful relationships. Without it there is no trust and the partners cannot truly be happy. Hemingway portrays this idea throughout his short story, “Hills Like White Elephants.”