Women’s Characterization in Hemingway Erica Jong once said, “Women are the only exploited group in history to have been idealized into powerlessness.” Throughout history, women have been pushed around, their voices silenced, their opinions challenged; women had to fight for their rights. Similarly, in Hemingway’s short stories, “Cat in the Rain” and “Hills Like White Elephants,” women are often in relationships in which they do not have an equal say, they are sad and longing for more than they have. Hemingway undermines the significance and value of the women in his stories. The women are in unaffectionate, unfulfilling relationships with men who do not encourage their independence, choices, and opinions, therefore they are miserable. In the …show more content…
The American man enjoys traveling with Jig, but he not want to be tied down because of a baby. He tries to talk Jig into the operation by referring to the abortion as a “simple” operation multiple times throughout this story. He lacks an sympathetic view of Jig’s situation and while he does state numerous times, “ …I don’t want you to do it if you don’t want to” is followed with, “ …it [the operation] is perfectly simple” (Hemingway). The man did not bother to question Jig on how she truly felt about the pregnancy. He states that the pregnancy is, “ … the only thing that bothers us. It’s the only thing that’s made us unhappy” (Hemingway). She asks her partner multiple times if the abortion will make him happy and if the operation would end their fighting. He persuades Jig by stating he knows numerous people who have do the operation and he says he thinks it is the best thing to do. It seems as though Jig has been conditioned to listen to the man’s wants because she states, “Then I’ll do it [the operation]. Because I don’t care about me” (Hemingway). She merely wishes to please the man and does not even consider her own feelings on the issue. He is the only importance and obligation to Jig, which is why she became very passive and accepted his demands. Hemingway shows the readers that what Jig wanted did not matter because the most important thing she needed to do was to please the