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Ernest hemingway topics, themes, and motifs
Ernest hemingway topics, themes, and motifs
Ernest hemingway topics, themes, and motifs
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Ernest Hemingway's short story “Hills like White Elephants contains symbolism of the future of the couple due to the pregnancy. The couple is sitting outside of a train station in Spain waiting to go to Madrid. Many people go through what they did during this time period. A young couple is struggling about their futures and can't decide what it is that is best for them. Throughout the story jig is constantly debating whether or not she is going to have an abortion. In her mind she knows that she is most likely going to get an abortion because of her boyfriend the American. She does not show her feelings externally. She shows opposition to her boyfriend to hide her true feelings. Abortion is meant to “keep women from seeking timely treatment.”(Katha, Pollitt) The time isn’t …show more content…
Through the story the light of the sun is gradually spread all around. Light can be seen as harsh such like the truth and honesty. Neither Jig or the American are willing to face that. Instead, the two rather avoid discussing the problem. Neither have the strength to face the issue of the abortion head on. As a result, they discuss everything except the reality of their problem which crumbles their relationship. Avoiding the light as the man and girl do is portrayed as destructive. Jig comments on the curtain with an ad on it that Hemingway mentions, bars curtain “made of strings of bamboo beads."(Hemingway) While the American and Jig speak she reaches out to go touch the beads. The girl reaching out to the beads symbolizes emotional support and comfort. In Roman Catholicism a “rosary is a string of beads used during prayers in some religions” The girl may be asking for forgiveness from
“Hills like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway is about a couple, the American and Jig, who contemplate whether or not to have an abortion. The premise of the story seems simple enough, but the outcome is highly debated. Critics argue that the baby was kept by the couple ( Renner ) and others claim the baby was aborted.( Fletcher ) Others have even simplified the story, claiming that the issue was not resolved because the couple was drunk by the end of the story. ( Sipiora ) Although the conclusion is in questions many have agreed with the idea that the couples relationship would be changed and would end prematurely. ( Wyche ) Dialogue is the main technique in conveying this argument but we can only understand the complexity of Hemingway’s work by looking at the story as a whole. By looking at the many symbols, intrinsically and
Jig’s sarcastic tone in her dialogues following the Americans’ is indicative of her decision to not get the abortion. After the American assures her that they will be happy like before and it is a “simple operation” (Hemingway 592) Jig retorts, “What makes you think so?” (592). Hence, it implies her disbelief and realization that things would not change much whether or not she got the abortion. Jig’s desire to keep the child is further evident when she tells him “[they] could get along” (593). She sees the possibility of a happy life with the child; the American sees it as an obstacle. Therefore, he continues in his effort to persuade her otherwise because “[he...
Through his endless amounts of pestering he never finds a way to get his desire and true feelings across to the young lady and becomes increasingly bothersome because of his inability to convey his feelings. “‘We can have the whole world,’ the American declares. ‘No we [cannot],’ Jig retorts. ‘ We can go everywhere.’ No, we [cannot]. It [is not] ours any more.’ ‘[It is] ours.’ ‘No, it [is not].’” (3) The American is insistent on continuing the nomadic lifestyle that the couple lives by aborting this baby, and pesters Jig continually hoping to sway her with the thought of living their same lifestyle that they currently live. However he never directly tells her his desires and instead attempts to manipulate her as he feels his desire is in their best interest regardless of how he achieves his desire. However he does not realize that in his examples he is strengthening Jig’s resolve and conviction in her own wishes. Earlier on in the narrative the American is quick to turn and begin attempting to conform Jig, without any warning or inkling of a change in topic he quickly turns it into what he wants: “‘Should we have another drink?’ ‘All right.’ ‘The [beer is] nice and cool,’ the man says. ‘[It is] lovely,’ Jig agrees. ‘[It is] really a simple operation, Jig… I know you [would not] mind it.’ [Jig] did not say anything.” (2) Without transition or a telling sign, the American quickly turns an agreement about how lovely the cool beer is on a warm day, into pressuring Jig to conform to his desires. All because of his selfish need and lack of responsibility to settle down and lead a life where they can raise the child, and his desire to continue living a life of excess and materialism, yet he cannot convey these desires of him
There is a common theme in “Hill’s like White Elephants” and “The Birthmark” of a life altering decision. Both women are thinking about having an operation that will affect them for the rest of their lives. In “Hill’s like White Elephants”, Jig and the American are debating whether or not they should have an abortion. This decision is something that will affect both of them deeply throughout their lives together. By the way the two characters interact with each other the reader can deduce how important they feel the operation is. There seems to be a tension in their sentences with each other. Jig says things like “Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you've waited so long for” and “That's all we do, isn't it-look at things and try new drinks” (Hemingway 841)? These responses to the American show that Jig is in a distasteful state of mind which would most likely stem from her thoughts about the operation and what they will do in regard to it. Because these thoughts of the operation are affecting her socially, it shows just how important the operation is to her. How Jig interprets the scenery around them while they are discussing the operation also suggests the importance ...
“The Hills Like White Elephants” is a short story that is about an American man and a girl called Jig. They are sitting at a table outside a train station, waiting for a train to Madrid. While they wait they order drinks and have a heated ongoing conversation over whether or not Jig will have an operation that would be of great significance to their relationship. “The Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway has two important symbols in the story, the hills and the drinks both of which help to give us a better understanding of what is going on between the American and his girl.
In a well-written short story, different literary elements and terms are incorporated into the story by the author. Ernest Hemingway frequently uses various literary elements in his writing to entice the reader and enhance each piece that he writes. In Hills Like White Elephants, Hemingway uses symbols to teach the reader certain things that one may encounter during daily life. Symbolism may be defined as relating to, using, or proceeding by means of symbols (Princeton). The use of symbols in Hills Like White Elephants is utterly important to the plot line and to the fundamental meaning of the story. Through this use of symbolism, the reader can begin to reveal the hidden themes in this short story.
There is a never ending list of what makes some people amazing story tellers. Some writers have vast imaginations, other writers use the lives of others in their stories and other writers use their lived experiences in order to write moving works of art. Most books, works of poetry and short stories that revolve around lived experiences share a common theme of love, hate or both. As these are emotions that all humans share, However, there are some stories that have far more unique. Stories like “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien and “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway. Both O’Brien and Hemingway come from two completely separate walks of life but were both able to write stories using the same theme of emotional and physical
‘Hills Like White Elephants’ is a short story authored by Ernest Hemingway about an American and a girl named Jig. In the story, the two are sitting in a train station waiting for the train to Madrid. While they wait, they have an intense ongoing debate on whether or not to abort Jig. At the end of the story, the train is about to arrive and the man carries luggage on the tracks as they prepare to leave. The end of the story does not clearly define the outcome of its decision. She said I feel good at the end of the story - happiness is a central theme of the story, but we wonder if she went through with the operation. The paper discusses the manner in which symbolism has been employed in the story to communicate about an abortion, the couple is considering to go through.
Ernest Hemingway was born and grew up in Oak Park, Illinois. By the time he wrote this story he had been wounded in Italy during World War I; had traveled extensively in Europe as a newspaper correspondent and writer; had married, fathered a son, been divorced, and remarried (Hemingway 236). Planted in the midst of a forsaken canyon, the station isn’t a final destination but merely a stage between Barcelona and Madrid. Hemingway sets “Hills like White Elephants” at a train depot to play up the reality that the relationship between the man and the Jig is at a crossroads. The author is showing the couple is at a pivotal point on whether to go with each other and endure their relationship or end things and start new lives. However, the contrast between the white hills and sterile basin perhaps highlights the division between fertility and sterility, between having the baby or having the abortion, between life or death. The girl seems broken between the two landscapes, not only commenting on the beauty of the hills but also walking to the end of the platform and looking out at the desolate dessert around the station. Throughout the story the author uses objective point of view, symbolism, and irony to illustrate the theme that life and death decisions may negatively affect relationships.
Jig can be perceived as sarcastic, which does not express how she is feeling inside about the idea of abortion. "Yes", said the girl. "Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you've waited so long for, like absinthe"(188). The conversation with her companion conveys Jig as being uninterested with her life. Jig wants to start a new life. "That's all we do, isn't it--look at things and try new drinks?"(189). Jigs traits reveal everything she is feeling, especially her desires. "The girl looked at the ground the table legs rested on"(191). Jig wants to be grounded in life and her characteristics and emotions express her mood.
The character of Jig is also very indecisive. After The American Man is persuading her to have an abortion, she states that she is willing to have the operation if it will make The American Man happy, and insures he will no longer worry. She also states that since she doesn’t care about herself, she will have the procedure because it will please The American Man. Later during the story, while they are outside looking at the hills, the two have the conversation of:
The subtle manipulative control that the American has over Jig’s thoughts and actions transforms itself into a complete control over her decision. After finding out that she is pregnant, Jig has a difficult time weighing her options because of her dependence o...
In the short story by Ernest Hemingway, "Hills Like White Elephants," a couple is delayed at a train station en route to Madrid and is observed in conflict over the girl's impending abortion. In his writing, Hemingway does not offer any commentary through a specific character's point of view, nor, in the storytelling, does he offer his explicit opinions on how to feel or think about the issues that emerge. The narrative seems to be purely objective, somewhat like a newspaper or journal article, and in true Hemingway form the story ends abruptly, without the couple's conflict clearly being resolved. The ambiguity of the ending has been a subject of much debate; however, the impact of what is not said in words can be gleaned through the symbolism of their surroundings. Upon examination of the setting, the couple's final choice becomes instantly apparent.
This short story is filled with symbolism, some of which the reader may never find. The title itself can be analyzed a lot deeper. The “hills” refers to the shape of the female body during pregnancy and the “white elephants” symbolize a property requiring much care and expense and yielding little profit (merriam-webster.com). The story is about a man and a woman taking a train to get an abortion. The train is supposed to show change and movement, something this couple appears to need because their life is very routine.
On average, around 15 million abortions occurred among younger, unmarried women ranging within the childbearing ages of 15-44. In which case, the reader could infer that Jig was among that age range in the text because she was bearing a child. It does not state if the man and Jig were married, but one could infer that they were not married due to the way they were described as young and were traveling instead of settled while Jig was pregnant. This could also infer that Jig became pregnant unexpectedly and very sudden. Becoming pregnant unexpectedly leaves a woman at a higher risk for considering an abortion. The higher risk could be due to her or her partner unready for a child or have an unmet need for contraception. Which could explain why the young couple was highly considering the abortion. Allowing the reader to know this information, it could enlighten them to realize why the man is encouraging Jig to have the abortion at a subtly aggressive extent. He is unready to have the responsibility of a child or a family. In Spain, where the story occurs, abortion is a legal option for women in the first 14 weeks of their pregnancy. This implies that Jig would receive a safe abortion, meaning after receiving the