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Compare And Contrast Selfishness In 'Hills Like White Elephants'

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The two stories chosen are “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway written in 1927 and “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” by D.H. Lawrence written in 1922. I decided to compare selfishness in both of these stories. The “Hills Like White Elephants” main characters are the American and girlfriend Jig, deals with an unwanted pregnancy and an operation. The story takes place at a train station, the two characters over a couple of beer strike up a conversation regarding Jig condition. The American suggests that their single, carefree lifestyle doesn’t include a child and he was indifferent to the situation. Furthermore, the American suggests the operation only if she was in agreement; however, never insisting on the operation, leaving the situation …show more content…

“I want you, I want to marry you, we’re going to be married, quickly, quickly=to-morrow if I can.” (Lawrence 846) In conclusion, The American and Mabel play on the emotional state of the other characters. The American, pushing for an operation, suggesting this being the best course for their future together; he would love her despite her decision. However, the feeling remains that their relationship wasn’t going to survive. Mabel, due to her financial situation and having no prospects of a home or family shows desperation to find someone to give her a stable way of life. Dr. Jack was that individual; he was an easy target and manipulated into thinking that he was in love with Mabel. Both of these characters captured my interest, the comparison between the male and female character laying out the vast differences in how the sexes portray selfishness. The American and Mabel consequently mastered the art of selfishness. The American and Mabel acted accordingly, one wanted to remain free without the obligations of fatherhood, while the other was looking for stability and a way out of foreseen

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Jack also engages in fights with his best friend, which at first is truly disheartening and unfair from the reader’s perspective, is later sympathized with the knowledge and understanding that it is Jacks true best shot at gaining the approval of his abusive stepfather Dwight and protecting himself. Jacks life is driven with emotional neglect and constant abuse; Dwight being the largest cause. Jack is desperate to transform himself into the masculine and happy person he wants to be, a deluded image and way of thinking that he believes will solve all his problems and hardships. Readers eventually gain the knowledge that his lies and deceit are his way of achieving this and providing him with comfort and hope as well as relief and escpae from his currently tortuous youth. ‘I couldn’t help but try to introduce new versions of myself as my interests changed, and as other versions of myself failed to persuade.’

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I am reminded of two sisters who found themselves in a similar situations to Jig and Sheri, with an unwanted pregnancy. The eldest of the two, in a relationship with man with the attributes of the American and the youngest with a man with the attribute of Lane Jr. The youngest decided not to have the baby because of her desire to follow her career path, as I believe Sheri did in "Good People". The Eldest chose to carry and have the baby despite the odds stacked against her, as I believe Jig did in "Hills Like White Elephants", they both were faced with a decision that would affect the remainder of their lives. The younger would wonder what it would have been like to raise and see the progression on the child she so willingly aborted and the eldest knowing that she made not only the right decision but also the best decision, to allow life to come forth because of love, which may be rocky but it is still

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Throughout the short story (1), “Hills Like White Elephants,” Ernest Hemingway is speaking about a seemingly unwanted pregnancy and a woman’s uneasiness with going through an abortion. However, Hemingway never explicitly says in this work of fiction (2) that it is about abortion or that the woman, Jig, is uncomfortable with it, but uses symbolism (3) to present this to the audience. At the time “Hills like White Elephants” was published, in 1927, abortion was illegal in most places and a very taboo subject that wasn’t to be openly discussed in public. Thus, Hemingway relied greatly upon the use of symbolism to get his message across for this reason as well as the third person narrator (4) that did not give insight into the character’s thoughts within this piece of literature (5) . He uses symbols such as the train station, white hills, the baggage, and the drinks to point towards the underlying internal conflict (6) of Jig’s decision that is being heavily influenced by the American man, who wants Jig to get the abortion.

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“Avoiding the White Elephant” In the short story “Hills Like White Elephants”, by Ernest Hemmingway, a girl and an American man in a romantic relationship are at a crossroads, both as the setting, and in their romantic relationship. The American man and girl have been nomadic together as a romantic couple, but at the current moment the two are stagnate arguing. When the two start downing alcohol, it becomes clearer that the girl is pregnant and the man is inclined in favor of her to get an abortion, though neither ever directly speaks the issue. The two remain to argue around the obvious issue at hand, the girl remarks on the barren but beautiful white hills around them and the alcohol they are drinking, the man is persistent to reach agreement

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The story titled, “Hills Like White Elephants,” by Ernest Hemingway is about a young American man and a woman, who is waiting at a railway station for a train that will take them to Madrid. They are drinking liquor as they wait and discusses what the American man says will be "a simple operation" for the girl. The man, while urging the girl to have the operation, says again and again that he really doesn 't want her to do it if she really doesn 't want to. However, he clearly is insisting that she do so. The girl is trying to decline to have the operation but the couple keeps arguing.

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