Hills Like White Elephants – What is the underlying meaning? Originally published as a part of a collection of short stories entitled “Men Without Women” in 1927, “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway offers a brief glimpse into the life of a couple during a tumultuous time in their relationship. Although never explicitly stated, it is obvious through the use of symbolism and context in the title, setting and dialogue, that the focus of the story is unwanted pregnancy, the controversial subject of abortion and the conflict it causes between the characters. The title of the story, “Hills Like White Elephants”, is the first sign that what you are about to read has a hidden meaning. Most readers will define hills as an area of land, usually rounded in shape, higher than the surrounding land but not as high as a mountain (Encarta Dictionary: English (North America)).
This gave him the incentive for writing Hills Like White Elephants. The story echoes Hemingway's own ordeals and could have been written as a medium to indirectly express to his then wife of his marital dilemmas. The most obvious place to start would be the title, Hills Like White Elephants, for Hemingway the use of symbolism of a white elephant for example the unborn baby, as the cause for the rift between the two lovers. In the article Hemingway's Hills Like White Elephants written by Sherlyn Abdoo, she states It is not the American who is the white elephant in this story; rather, the American perceives the fetus as a ' white elephant' a costly, burdensome possession.... surely his comments regarding the inhibiting effects that a child would
While Fromm discusses the philosophy of his argument, Hemingway puts into practice this dynamic in action through his stories. One of the thematic links that exist between Hemingway’s “In Our Time” – specifically “Big Two-Hearted River: Parts I and II” - and Fromm’s “Chains of Illusion” is the theme of transformation. In Fromm’s essay he discusses at length the transformation of the individual who lived before the First World War and the effects of this transformation. Fromm speaks of living in the pre-war era, an era that provided peace, innocence and security – concepts that were disrupted by the war. Fromm said, “Anyone who was like myself, at least fourteen years of age when the First World War broke out still experienced part of the solid, secure world of the 19th century” (328:1).
The Hills Like White Elephants is a short story of dialogue between a couple By Ernest Hemingway which uses the taboo topic of abortion to show that fear may be helpful in circumstance of danger, but it can also hinder our ability to communicate hurting those we hold closest. I believe beyond the reason of a doubt that this piece of literature is a short story because of its length and the key elements of it construction. One thing that makes this piece a short story is its length. Hills Like White Elephants is only four pages long. It was also written by Ernest Hemingway who wrote in a condensed soup kind of way.
Hemingway’s intentional vagueness and use of third person omniscient is reflective of his unique writing style. Although the story is comprised mainly of dialogue, you realize the couple’s conversation is sparse for the amount of time that passes. In the first paragraph it states “the express from Barcelona would come in forty minutes” (132). Furthermore, the characters are not identified past “The American” (132) and “Jig” (132); they are mainly referred to as the man and the girl. This technique demonstrates how their nationality and age differ, causing complications to their relationship.
Symbolism in “Hills Like White Elephants” “Hills Like White Elephants" by Ernest Hemingway is a short story about an American man and a girl named Jig who are confronted with a difficult issue of whether or not terminate a pregnancy. The main tension within this story is that Jig sees the possibility of keeping her child and having a happy life, while the man fails to see the positive possibilities and works to persuade her to go through with the abortion. Hemingway uses symbolism through alcohol, the hills, the white elephants, and the train station to develop the theme of the story. Hemingway’s writing style in this story is well crafted. His simple style and taut dialogue pull readers into the story, and he shares just enough about the couple to keep the readers interested.
Who are you? You think you’re so pretty,” is something that her mom would usually say to her. Connie’s mom wishes that she can be like her older sister June and be as responsible as her, but Connie wouldn’t ever listen to her mom and would just do what she wanted. One night, she went to the shopping strip with her best friend where she met a boy named Eddie and took off with him, leaving her best friend at the shopping plaza with other kids from their high school. While she was out with Eddie, Arnold Friend rode up next to Connie and Eddie at a stoplight and made a gesture symbolizing that Connie would soon be his, but as usual, she was completely oblivious to him.
Response to Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants” The story “Hills Like White Elephants,” by Ernest Hemingway is about a couple and the issue of abortion. Using the word abortion nowhere in the text, Hemingway successfully makes it understood that this is indeed the issue through his use of setting and symbolism. The setting is described directly at the beginning of the story. “The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white. On this side there was no shade and no trees and the station was between two lines of rails in the sun” (Hemingway 524).
On the contrary when he locks up Nelly and Cathy we see him as an evil villain attempting to fulfill his malevolent plan of revenge. What is trying to be said is that Bronte through the deep character of Heathcliff evokes ambiguity and contradiction through his intentions, the blurred lines that make him a hero or a villain and lastly the contradiction of either pity or anger the reader feels towards Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights. To begin with, Bronte effectively evokes uncertainty through the fact that Heathcliff wants to be with Catherine but at the same time wants to exact his revenge on Hindley for separating him from Catherine and making his life childhood miserable. The ambiguity is shown by Bronte is the fact that the reader does not know whether Heathcliff’s intentions have sincere or malicious intent. For instance, when Heathcliff runs away from Wuthering Heights and returns a reformed man with exceptional manners, the reader is
Maynard 1 Ernest Hemingways’s “Hills Like White Elephants” An Analytical Response by Angela Maynard Ernest Hemingway has written a highly symbolic and controversial story in “Hills Like White Elephants”. Written in 1927, the topic of abortion was not spoken of. This could be the reason Hemingway leaves the actual term out of the story and regards it as the operation. The dialogue is very detailed but still leaves much to be interpreted in the characters thoughts and their meanings. The story contains highly significant objects that represent weighty themes in the story.