Conflict Between Two Characters Hills Like White Elephants

Cause of Conflict Between Two Characters: Hills Like White Elephants In Hills Like White Elephants, Ernest Hemingway tells a vague yet concentrated story about a crisis in a couple’s relationship that is left open for the reader’s interpretation. The story opens at a Spanish train station, with a brief description of the scenery at the river Ebro and the white hills that lay behind it. An American couple have drinks at the bar while awaiting their train, bickering about seemingly nothing. The two characters never actually say what they are arguing about, forcing the reader to infer what is taking place. It seems as if neither of them are really saying what they want to each other. Jig, the American girl, makes the seemingly innocent statement that the hills â€Å"look like white elephants,† which starts a small argument that turns into an even bigger complication. Hemingway actually uses the white hills as a metaphor for a pregnancy, both figuratively and somewhat evidently. Simply the color (or absence of color perhaps) white is a common symbol for purity as well as innocence, which could very well be connected to the presence of a child. Also note that a pregnant woman’s stomach is often referred to as a hill. Figuratively, the hills could represent an obstacle that must be overcome (the decision of whether or not to abort a child). I also believe that the According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a white elephant is also referred to as â€Å"a possession that is useless orShow MoreRelatedâ€Å"the Lottery† and â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† Essay881 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† and â€Å"Hills like White Elephants† Regardless of the type of society people live in controversial topics and cowardly individuals can create conflict. The stories â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson and â€Å"Hills like White Elephants† by Ernest Hemingway implement this concept. â€Å"The Lottery† is about a small town that holds an annual lottery in which the winner will be killed. â€Å"Hills like White Elephants† is the story of a couple’s discussion over the decision they must make of whether orRead MoreHills Like White Elephants By Ernest Hemingway1446 Words   |  6 PagesErnest Hemingway’s short story â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† explores the topics of abortion, sex before marriage, and feelings of separation. There are many different points of view one can take on Hemingway’s work. The main literary analysis that will be explained is the significance of the title and how it is layered into the story in various places. In addition to this, the narrator’s point of view will also be discussed since it plays a role in bringing the characters together. Lastly, it will beRead More Comparing Hills Like White Elephans by Ernest Hemingway and Babylon Revisited by F. Scott Fitzgerald1562 Words   |  7 PagesComparing Hills Like White Elephans by Ernest Hemingway and Babylon Revisited by F. Scott Fitzgerald At first glance it seems that the two short stories â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† by Ernest Hemingway and â€Å"Babylon Revisited† by F. Scott Fitzgerald have absolutely nothing in common other than beingRead MoreCritical Analysis of the Short Story ‘Hills Like White Elephants’ by Ernest Hemingway.1497 Words   |  6 PagesAnalysis of the short story ‘Hills like White Elephants’ by Ernest Hemingway. Word Count: 1367 Hills like White Elephants – Ernest Hemingway â€Å"Will Jig have the abortion and stay with the man; will Jig have the abortion and leave the man; or will Jig not have the abortion and win the man over to her point of view?† (Hashmi, N, 2003). These are the three different scenarios that have been seriously considered in Ernest Hemingway’s short story, â€Å"Hills like White Elephants†. Ernest Hemingway is aRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea885 Words   |  4 Pagesstories. Ernest Hemingway author of â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† and other works, such as, â€Å"A Farewell to Arms† and â€Å"The Old Man and the Sea† has made many accomplishments throughout his writing career. His novel â€Å"The Old Man and the Sea† won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953. Hemingway also received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. Hemingway’s works are great examples of stories that displays the five stages of fiction. â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† was published in 1927 in Hemingway’sRead MoreHills Like White Elephants, by Ernest Hemingway Essay example937 Words   |  4 PagesHills Like White Elephants â€Å"The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white. On this side there was no shade and no trees and the station was between two lines of rails in the sun. [†¦] The American and the girl with him sat at a table in the shade, outside the building. It was very hot and the express from Barcelona would come in forty minutes. It stopped at this junction for two minutes and went to Madrid† (290 paragraph 1). Ernest Hemingway crafts a well written dialogue in thisRead More Symbolism in Hills Like White Elephants, by Ernest Hemingway1687 Words   |  7 Pagesfrequently uses various literary elements in his writing to entice the reader and enhance each piece that he writes. In Hills Like White Elephants, Hemingway uses symbols to teach the reader certain things that one may encounter during daily life. Symbolism may be defined as relating to, using, or proceeding by means of symbols (Princeton). The use of symbols in Hills Like White Elephants is utterly important to the plot line and to the fundamental meaning of the story. Through this use of symbolism, theRead MoreAnalysis of Hills Like White Elephants, by Ernest Hemingway Essay978 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† by Earnest Hemingway is a short story from 1927 that describes a couple drinking at a train station in Spain, and the story is relayed by an outside narrator. The third person narrator in this story gives the reader the events pieced together, told afterward, and translated to English. It is clear throughout the story that the girl (who is never named) does not speak Spanish, while her boyfriend does. When he first orders two beers, he does so in Spanish through statingRead MoreCritical Analysis Of Hills Like White Elephants1437 Words   |  6 Pagesthe underlying tension between the two through the short and snarky (and emotionally-driven) remarks that are made. For instance, when it is first mentioned that the girl stares off into the hills, she states that the hills look like white elephants, to which the man replies, almost indifferently, â€Å"I’ve never seen one,† to which the girl replies, â€Å"No, you wouldn’t have.† (804) The man then replies that what she says about him never (seeing a hill that looks like white elephants) doesn’t prove anythingRead MoreAn Analysis Of Ernest Hemingway s Hills Like White Elephants 1012 Words   |  5 PagesThe â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† is a short story written by Ernest Hemingway and published in August 1927 for a literary magazine. The short story was later published as a collections of short stories called â€Å"Men Without Women†. Ernest Hemingway had strict concept of masculinity and femininity. This is evident in the personalities, demeanor and portrayal of the two main characters, the American man and his girlfriend â€Å"Jig†. The portrayal of the male character as well travelled, well-educated, and