Ernest Hemingway Hills Like White Elephant
The Elephant in the Room
Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway is a very interesting story that can difficult for a reader to understand at first glance. The title plays a major role in this style of writing by Hemmingway. When a reader comes across this title, one most likely can notice that it is a simile as hills are being compared to white elephants. The young woman in the story, called Jig, is having drinks with an American man while waiting for a train at a station. The two discuss what the American man calls an “operation.” This operation being discussed by the American man and Jig is an abortion.
It is important to understand the two main characters, Jig and the American man. It doesn’t state the relationship between the …show more content…
(Hemingway 475) Although this is a rather interesting simile, the man kind of blows it off by saying that he has never seen one before. After some more drinks, perhaps while intoxicated, Jig brings up the white elephants again in manner that demonstrates that there is some tension between the two and something important needs to be discussed. This can be viewed as her hinting to the man that she really wants to keep this baby. The man later states “It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig. It’s not really an operation at all.” (Hemingway 476) The girl realizes immediately that what she desires in this situation is not the same thing that the man wants. The man then states “I know you wouldn’t mind it, Jig. It’s really not anything. It’s just to let the air in.” (Hemingway 476) This is where we realize that this operation being talked about is an abortion. The way the man describes this operation can make it difficult for a reader who doesn’t know that inserting air inside a woman’s uterus was a common way to abort a pregnancy during the time that this story takes place. This is where the man really uses manipulation as he states to Jig that the pregnancy is “the only thing that bothers us. It's the only thing that's made us unhappy,” (Hemingway 476) Jig then responds “And afterward they were all so happy,” which then leads into back and forth bickering between what they should and shouldn’t
Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway is a very interesting story that can difficult for a reader to understand at first glance. The title plays a major role in this style of writing by Hemmingway. When a reader comes across this title, one most likely can notice that it is a simile as hills are being compared to white elephants. The young woman in the story, called Jig, is having drinks with an American man while waiting for a train at a station. The two discuss what the American man calls an “operation.” This operation being discussed by the American man and Jig is an abortion.
It is important to understand the two main characters, Jig and the American man. It doesn’t state the relationship between the …show more content…
(Hemingway 475) Although this is a rather interesting simile, the man kind of blows it off by saying that he has never seen one before. After some more drinks, perhaps while intoxicated, Jig brings up the white elephants again in manner that demonstrates that there is some tension between the two and something important needs to be discussed. This can be viewed as her hinting to the man that she really wants to keep this baby. The man later states “It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig. It’s not really an operation at all.” (Hemingway 476) The girl realizes immediately that what she desires in this situation is not the same thing that the man wants. The man then states “I know you wouldn’t mind it, Jig. It’s really not anything. It’s just to let the air in.” (Hemingway 476) This is where we realize that this operation being talked about is an abortion. The way the man describes this operation can make it difficult for a reader who doesn’t know that inserting air inside a woman’s uterus was a common way to abort a pregnancy during the time that this story takes place. This is where the man really uses manipulation as he states to Jig that the pregnancy is “the only thing that bothers us. It's the only thing that's made us unhappy,” (Hemingway 476) Jig then responds “And afterward they were all so happy,” which then leads into back and forth bickering between what they should and shouldn’t