Ernest Hemingway Three Day Blow

314 Words2 Pages
The societal expectations of masculinity are a product of different standards at different eras in time. With 1920’s masculinity encouraging stoicism and obdurate independence, it also provokes an unhealthy suppression of emotions. “Three Day Blow” by Ernest Hemingway sends a message about this through Nick, who recently ended a long-term relationship, and Bill, who believes the break-up was long overdue. In this short story, Hemingway criticizes the societal expectations of men during the 1920’s by exposing the external conflict between Nick and Bill. Primarily, Nick’s emotions are blatantly repressed by Bill, who represents the expectations of society. In this conflict, Nick is anguished, showing the downside, and a subsequent critique,