Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story
NAME
ENG 125 Introduction to Literature
INSTRUCTOR
DATE
This story revolves around the theme of a girl named ‘Jig’, who gets in a conversation between her husband/boyfriend in a place that symbolises the theme of the story and conversation that is being held. The genre of this short story is very much similar to the genre of a how simple short stories are told and it has managed to create a real conversation which is set in a fairly realistic place, although the entire scenario is fictional.
The “Hills Like White Elephants” is about a frustrating talk between the two couple in which the American man is trying to convince her girlfriend on not having a baby as it may ruin their happy life. By the highlighting the symbols, it is clarified that the girl is pregnant and wants to have a baby for their better future. The American tries to talk her out of it and says he loves her, for example, “and everything between them will go back to the way it used to be”. In the end, she finally begs him while saying, “Please, please, please, please, please, please stop talking” (Clugston, 2010). Jig realises that even if she has to abort her child, she will do it, if there is a chance where they can be happy again and stop arguing over matters. In the story we see that the girl’s inability to speak Spanish with the bartender, not only proves the fact that she is dependent on his boyfriend but also tells how difficult it is for her to express herself to others
In our story we see two major symbolizations that have been used, the white elephants that Jig called the hills and the rail road station. The author has used these three elements to develop a theme to this story in which the girl has identified her problems in a scenario mixed with a complex argument that is going on in between them. The white elephants develop into a different meaning and change the tone
References: Clugston, R. W. (2010). Journey into literature. San Diego, California: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books Milhauser, S. (2008, October 3). The ambition of the short story. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/05/books/review/Millhauser-t.html