1. Who is the protagonist of the story? What are the conflicts? Are they physical, intellectual, moral, or emotional? - The protagonist of this story is the American and Jig. The conflict throughout the story is that the American wants Jig to have an operation (abortion) but, Jig doesn’t know if that’s right for her or not. These conflicts are both moral and emotional. 2. Is the ending happy, unhappy, or indeterminate? (Explain) - The ending is indeterminate because it doesn’t tell you whether Jig had the operation or not, it leaves the readers in a cliff hanger wondering what happened with the whole situation. 3. How is suspense created in the story? Is the interest confined to “What happens next?” or are larger concerns involved? Can you find examples of mystery? of dilemma? - The suspense is created in the story at the end because it leaves us with an inconclusive …show more content…
“Hill” is a symbolism for the pregnancy of Jig, the belly and “white elephants” represent the baby that Jig is carrying in her womb which is considered as an unwanted gift. The “Ebro river” symbolizes the life that is being created and the “train” symbolizes that once she makes a wise decision on aborting there is no turning back therefore she needs to take time to decide. 8. Does the story anywhere use irony of situation? dramatic irony? Verbal irony? What function(s) do the ironies serve? - There is irony in this story, for example, “white elephant” because they are considered as something unwanted and it’s not a gift that is expected. This is ironic because the Jig view the pregnancy as special and wants to keep it, not abort it but she’s having trouble figuring that out. These are dramatic irony because it creates the whole conflict in the story as for the American that doesn’t want the baby. 9. What contribution to the story is made by the setting? Is the setting essential, or could the story have happened