Hills Like White Elephant By Ernest Hemingway
Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story
Terrah Bicondova
ENG 125 Introduction to Literature
Instructor Emily Brandon
May 20, 2013
Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story The theme of a story can sometimes be hard to figure out. It takes looking at what the story is about to figure it out. After reading “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway, I started to really think about what the theme of the story was. The author was very indirect about the theme. I think the theme was about love and loss. The story Ernest Hemingway told was about a couple that was struggling with the decision to have an abortion. The male character is reassuring the female that everything is going to be ok after the abortion. The male character in the story is not honest and is obviously pushing the female to make a decision that she does not want to …show more content…
make. The female is morning the loss of the baby and is unsure how she will go on. Although the man is persuading her have the abortion he is also clearly in love with her. The point of view of the story is in third-person.
The narrator, or author, is not part of the story and is telling the story about other characters. It is also an omniscient point of view because the characters feelings are being told throughout the whole story. The setting of this short story takes place in a local bar. The bar has a beaded curtain and windows that face a mountain range. The woman in the story seems to be staring out the window as if she is deep in thought. She makes comment on how beautiful the mountain range is more than once in the story. There are two main characters in this story. The narrator is not one of the characters. One of the main characters is in conflict with herself. She is struggling to find the answer to what is right and what is wrong. I picture the male character as a little rough around the edges. He obviously likes to drink and is rather pushy. He is really trying to push the woman in the story to make a huge decision. The woman seems like someone that wants to do the right thing. She does not want to make a wrong choice and regret it
later. The different literary elements of this story really help to tell the story. You cannot get a full view of what is going on without the author giving detail to the setting and character. It helps to build the plot and drama of the whole story. Although I enjoyed reading “Hills Like White Elephants” I found it hard at first to find the theme. The author was indirect about the theme of the story.
References
Hemingway, E. (1927). Hills Like White Elephants. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books
Clugston, R. W. (2010). Journey into literature. San Diego, California: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books
Terrah Bicondova
ENG 125 Introduction to Literature
Instructor Emily Brandon
May 20, 2013
Theme and Narrative Elements in the Short Story The theme of a story can sometimes be hard to figure out. It takes looking at what the story is about to figure it out. After reading “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway, I started to really think about what the theme of the story was. The author was very indirect about the theme. I think the theme was about love and loss. The story Ernest Hemingway told was about a couple that was struggling with the decision to have an abortion. The male character is reassuring the female that everything is going to be ok after the abortion. The male character in the story is not honest and is obviously pushing the female to make a decision that she does not want to …show more content…
make. The female is morning the loss of the baby and is unsure how she will go on. Although the man is persuading her have the abortion he is also clearly in love with her. The point of view of the story is in third-person.
The narrator, or author, is not part of the story and is telling the story about other characters. It is also an omniscient point of view because the characters feelings are being told throughout the whole story. The setting of this short story takes place in a local bar. The bar has a beaded curtain and windows that face a mountain range. The woman in the story seems to be staring out the window as if she is deep in thought. She makes comment on how beautiful the mountain range is more than once in the story. There are two main characters in this story. The narrator is not one of the characters. One of the main characters is in conflict with herself. She is struggling to find the answer to what is right and what is wrong. I picture the male character as a little rough around the edges. He obviously likes to drink and is rather pushy. He is really trying to push the woman in the story to make a huge decision. The woman seems like someone that wants to do the right thing. She does not want to make a wrong choice and regret it
later. The different literary elements of this story really help to tell the story. You cannot get a full view of what is going on without the author giving detail to the setting and character. It helps to build the plot and drama of the whole story. Although I enjoyed reading “Hills Like White Elephants” I found it hard at first to find the theme. The author was indirect about the theme of the story.
References
Hemingway, E. (1927). Hills Like White Elephants. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books
Clugston, R. W. (2010). Journey into literature. San Diego, California: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books