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Hills Like White Elephant Symbolism Essay

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In his short story “Hills like White Elephant” Ernest Hemingway utilizes symbolism to convey the theme of abortion, and the conflict that arises during an unplanned pregnancy. Although Hemingway never uses the terminology “abortion” in his short story, it is unquestionably implied with Hemingway’s prevailing use of dialogue and setting. The use of symbolic characters, along with symbolic material objects assists the reader’s understanding of the underlying theme. The story begins with the description of a station “between two lines of rails in the sun.” Hemingway strategically uses this station to symbolize the situation the characters, the American and the girl, face. The station separated by two lines of rails directly corresponds to the two choices the girl is presented with, to have an abortion, or keep the child. The stationary nature of the station could be said to represent the standing conflict they face, where no decision has been made. As the story progresses, it is revealed that the couple awaits the express from “Barcelona to Madrid that would come in forty minutes.” Hemingway’s description of time is an illustration of the average weeks a pregnancy last; forty weeks. The first dialogue between the American and the girl discusses which drink they should order. The American orders beer which leads to the …show more content…

While the girl leans towards keeping the child, the dialogue that follows indicates that the American is in favor of this operation. This analysis is developed when the American describe the arduous and complex procedures of an abortion as “perfectly simple.” Accepting or moving forward with this pregnancy would cause the American to forfeit his vivacious spirit. Hemingway conveys that the American would not like to settle down and start a

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Hemingway’s symbolism in Hills Like White Elephants Ernest Hemingway among the best of authors of his time, uses a quite different approach to his writings. His style to of writing is often vague and unclear. Hemmingway only gives a bit of content about the story, and the rest is hidden or missing entirely. The audiences are therefore forced to read more carefully and piece together the story. The style of writing he uses is known as the iceberg theory.

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Throughout their conversation, you can decipher a tone where the conversation sheds light on his feelings towards the procedure and her feelings. He says “It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig. It’s not really an operation at all” (Hemingway 124), in an effort to persuade her to in fact have the abortion. She, on the other hand, seems silent at first, but then questions how their life will be better after this procedure. Her uncertainty shows in her responses, and in other findings “… the sensuous beauty of a love relation that is quickly deteriorating, now that she has become conscious of her lover’s selfishness” (Maynard 273).

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In “The mmm Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Dr. Jekyll should be held responsible for the crimes that his evil side have committed. Even though Dr. Jekyll is not truly guilty because he didn’t commit Hyde’s crimes, he still knew about his other side which he created, and the dangers but still chose to let it fester. Regardless Dr. Jekyll is guilty by association and should take responsibility for not being able to resist dark urges while others suffered. Dr. Jekyll create a mental and physical persona from his evil urges from the potion he used to suppress it. For example, Hyde created the potion to separate his two personalities which he did freely and had no problems with reverting back to Dr. Jekyll.

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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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The relationship between the American and the girl in “Hills Like White Elephants.” In the 1900s, there was a distinct relationship between a man and a woman, with each having their own traits. During this time, Ernest Hemingway also had his own idea of this relationship which he portrays in his story, “Hills Like White Elephants”. Within this story, the relationship between the two characters, the American and the girl, is portrayed as strained and distanced by their constant avoidance of the “elephant in the room”.

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she finally has an answer. There is never a true defining moment where Jig agrees to not have the abortion, there is only factors that lead up to the defining moment of the train to arrive. In conclusion, Hemingway uses many themes and symbolisms to show the decision that has to be made.

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“Everything tastes like licorice. Especially all the things you’ve waited so long for, like absinthe” (Hemingway). The readers can see how their relationship is full of problems and deciding to have the baby or not is just one of the many problems they seem to have. The readers can see how alcohol has become the perfect symbol of this story when the she mentioned “That’s all we do isn’t it – look at things and try new drinks” (Hemingway). Their relationship and way of living has become a routine to them to avoid problems the go and try new drinks the readers can see this because although they never said anything about abortion the Hemingway gives you clues that the conversation is about deciding to have the baby or not.

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The conflict between the two characters is the issue of abortion and whether or not the girl will go through it. Hemingway does not tell us that the girl is pregnant but hints it throughout the story referring to “the operation” as having an abortion. From the start, you can take

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The dialogue in Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants” reveals a man’s and a woman’s incongruent conflict on abortion, and the author’s fundamentally feminist position is visible in the portrayal of the woman’s independent choice of whether or not to keep the baby she is carrying. The plot is very simple in the story which is less than 1500 words long. A woman and a man spend less than an hour on a hot summers day at a Spanish train station in the valley of Ebro as they are waiting for a train heading for Madrid. Their dialogue takes up most of the space and only few major actions take place.

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If analyzed in a more generic view, the short story can be used to show how a male and female stereotypically understand a subject. The American speaks more literal and materialistic as Jig is seen to speak in a more figurative and abstract manner. Ernest Hemingway’s use of symbolism gives the reader a more visual effect to the conflict between the man and the girl as well as the idea of their inner thoughts. The white rounded hills, the beads on the curtain hanging from the bar’s doorframe, and the cool shade and blazing light all represent different aspects of the two choices that the American and the girl have to decide on, just like the railroad tracks on either side of the

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They begin to not understand what it is that they both want to do. During that part of the conversation it is very clear that the American man wants the girl to have this operation, which is an abortion “’I think it’s the best thing to do. But I don’t want you to do it if you don’t really want to’” (Hemingway p.402). The man clearly wants to do what is in his best interest and not the girl’s and the life forming inside of

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“They don’t really look like white elephants. I just meant the coloring of their skin through the trees.” Comparing the hills to the unborn baby, is a perfect symbol for a topic that is painfully obvious that no one wants to discuss. Overall the story, “Hills Like White Elephants,” by Ernest Hemingway is a difficult story to understand at first glance. However, reading the story a few times becomes easier to understand the story’s true purpose, which Hemingway illustrates wonderfully with symbolism and

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Symbolism plays a fundamental role in Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants”. The different symbols used throughout the story are capable of subtly conveying intricate concepts to the readers of this recognized literary work. It then becomes essential for them to detect all these symbols, and discern the deep meanings which they hold in order to truly grasp the story’s message which the author intended to transmit. Without this insight, many first-time readers may view the story as a simple and casual dialog between two people, a man and a woman, waiting for a train from Barcelona to Madrid. Thus, they become unaware of the intense conflict the two main characters are actually facing, haunted by the difficult decision of terminating a pregnancy

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In the short story "Hills Like White Elephants" by Ernest Hemingway the central idea is people sometimes don't appreciate something special when it's in front them. This story can put in the category of Drama because at the end the reader is left with a open ending unlike other dramas that have a closing. The story is about a couple who is waiting for a train at a railroad junction in Spain they decide to have a beer then have a conversation of whether to go through the abortion of their child. Next, the bartender tells the couple that the train arrives in 5 minutes so the American moves their bags onto the other side of the train station and gets a drink at the bar while Jig sits by herself. The theme of the story is people sometimes don't appreciate what's in front of them and is shown through characterization, point of view and symbolism.

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In his story “Hills Like White Elephants”, Ernest Hemingway points out the couple's inability to make the decision: whether to abort the unborn child or not. The reader finds that the story deals with couple's miscommunication through the conversation and the emotions that they express. One can observe that no descriptions are given to the characters, thus, Hemingway creates universal dilemma to focus on the crucial issue. In this way, Hemingway leads the reader to identify with his female character that undergoes a struggle.

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