What is the argument of Hills Like White Elephants?
Hemmingway uses time, place, and symbolism in “Hills like White Elephants” to intensify the central dilemma in a story about a man and a woman deciding on whether to go through with an abortion. Although a literal reading of the title may not seem to have any relation to the story, the title is rich in implications.
What is the thesis in Hills Like White Elephants?
Thesis: In “Hills Like White Elephants,” Hemingway uses Jig’s refusal to communicate as a way of highlighting the American’s powerlessness. Thesis: In “Hills Like White Elephants,” Hemingway suggests that Jig’s ambiguous communication with the American is actually an effective power play.
What is the structure of Hills Like White Elephants?
“Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway has a modernist structure, being built on the iceberg theory. The plot reveals very little about the characters, and readers have to interpret their dialogue to understand the conflict and imagine the background of the situation.
What was the stand of the man regarding the operation in Hills Like White Elephants?
The girl compares the nearby hills to white elephants. The pair indirectly discuss an “operation” that the man wants the girl to have, which is implied to be an abortion.
What literary devices are used in Hills Like White Elephants?
In “Hills Like White Elephants”, Ernest Hemingway is using personification and metaphors to paint us a picture of a troubled relationship between a couple who are trying to find a solution to a problem that can’t seem to agree on a solution.
What do the white elephants symbolize in Hills Like White Elephants?
A white elephant symbolizes something no one wants—in this story, the girl’s unborn child. Comparing the hills—and, metaphorically, the baby—to elephants also recalls the expression “the elephant in the room,” a euphemism for something painfully obvious that no one wants to discuss. …
What is unique about Hemingway’s style of writing?
Hemingway’s style was semi-revolutionary. He stripped away everything he didn’t need from a sentence or paragraph and brought it down to the bare bones. There, he was able to create a new way of writing dialogue and descriptions that got to the heart of the story much quicker.
What does the alcohol symbolize in Hills Like White Elephants?
When reading Hills Like White Elephants, it is obvious that drinking alcohol is a large part of their relationship. Alcohol is not portrayed as a good thing. The symbolic part of the alcohol is that it is the only functioning part of their relationship.
What is the symbolic meaning of white elephant?
A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost (particularly cost of upkeep) is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth. So, the white elephant is the unborn baby that the couple is discussing.
What are the symbols in Hills Like White Elephants?
Hills Like White Elephants Symbols
- Barren/Fertile Land. As the story opens, we are introduced first and foremost to the setting’s barren landscape, which is described as “brown and dry,” with “no shade” and “no trees.” Yet while the story feels as though…
- Light.
- Alcohol.
- The Train Station.
What does the river symbolize in Hills Like White Elephants?
In addition, the valley of Ebro has a river running through it, the river representing life, the life of the baby. Right now, Jig does not know if she is going to keep the unexpected pregnancy and her boyfriend wants their life as it used to be, without the pregnancy. However, the final decision is Jig’s decision.
What are two elements of Hemingway’s style?
From almost the beginning of his writing career, Hemingway’s distinctive style occasioned a great deal of comment and controversy. Basically, his style is simple, direct, and unadorned, probably as a result of his early newspaper training.
What is the main idea of hills like white elephant?
In this story, the main idea as brought out by Ernest Hemingway is about abortion. This on the other hand leads to conflicts between characters involved in the story. The essay focuses on the conflicts encountered by the characters in the story.
What did Ernest Hemingway do in hills like white elephants?
Coming back, he walked through the barroom, where people waiting for the train were drinking. He drank an Anis at the bar and looked at the people. They were all waiting reasonably for the train. He went out through the bead curtain. She was sitting at the table and smiled at him.
Which is an example of a white elephant?
One example of the man’s white elephants is his own unborn child. Since we see Jig acting with condescension and sarcasm right in the first scene when the couple talks about white elephants, we need to keep this attitude in mind when we read their subsequent conversations.