Hills Like White Elephants

A detailed Summary of Hills Like White Elephants

"Hills Like White Elephants", by Ernest Hemingway, is a short story published in 1927 that takes place in a train station in Spain with a man and a woman discussing an operation. Most of the story is simply dialogue between the two characters, the American and Jig. This couple is at a critical point in their lives when they must decide whether or not to have an abortion. Certain themes arise from this story such as choices and consequences, doubt and ambiguity, and how men and women relate. Hemingway also uses many examples of symbolism in "Hills Like White Elephants", including descriptions of the surrounding scenery, the hills themselves, and the station where the action takes place. Clearly, this short story crosses timelines to become relevant to both the early twentieth century and modern times.

The most obvious theme recognized early in this short story is that of choices and consequences. The couple is unmarried and the girl has become pregnant, but the man wants her to have an abortion. The American obviously believes that the abortion will free the couple from any responsibilities, which is what they have been experiencing before this turn of events (Short Stories for Students 158). The man also feels that the p

This short story by Hemingway is a very powerful one that confronts a controversial issue without ever actually naming it. This proves that recognizing his use of symbolism and theme in simple dialogue is crucial to the reader understanding the underlying issues of the two characters. Clearly, Hemingway allowed this story to be open for discussion for many years to follow, allowing it to not only reflect the ideas of pre-World War II Europe, but to be adapted to the thoughts of modern societies.

The final example of symbolism used by Hemingway is in the different parts of the station. For example, the station divides sets of parallel tracks, and the river divides the sterile from the fertile land. Both of these instances describe the couple as being at a crucial juncture in their lives (Beacham 6). The beads are also very symbolic in the short story. One interpretation is that Jig is Catholic and the curtain is like the beads of a rosary, which she holds on to for some moral and religious support (Johnston 167). Also, the beads could just simply represent a dividing structure, such as the pregnancy is dividing the couple (Beacham 6). All of these uses of symbolism reinforce the thoughts and feelings of the American and Jig in the story.

The final theme derived from this story is how men and women relate to each other. Most of Hemingway's stories are masculine in nature, but "Hills Like White Elephants" shows

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Approximate Word count = 965
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English