Hills Like White Elephants, By Ernest Hemingway

When touching the subject of abortion, one must consider that there are two sides battling for control. That is right, abortion has literally turned into a war zone where even the unlikely of individuals do the unthinkable. Each side has their motives and methods for contradicting the other. For instance, there are cases and events that support both sides of this issue.

From a sociological perspective, the conflict theory focuses on opposing interests of groups and the struggle to agree on norms and over the control of scarce resources. It is very well known that people have their own definitions for things, different cultures, religions and values all come into account. Certain behaviors are defined as deviant or acceptable by powerful groups and because of failure of consensus with the other groups, conflict arises. When people in a position try to enforce conformity, this creates resistance and resentment; the result is a constant struggle throughout society to determine who has authority over what. The choice to abort or to choose life is either a life-saver to some or a crime to others. The conflict perspective

Ernest Hemingway was a groundbreaking author during the 20th century and he left behind many famous pieces of work. He used his own life experiences to contribute ideas and inspiration for his stories whether they involve his military career or his family life (“Ernest Hemingway). Hemingway also uses language in such ways that can convey feelings and ideas throughout his pieces. His use of language and dialogue in some of his short stories really paint a picture for the reader on the situations presented (Link). In the short story, “Hills Like White Elephants,” Hemingway uses Jig’s ambivalence towards the whole situation with herself and the American to convey the idea that Jig holds all the power in the decision although the American, who is powerless, believes he has a say in the matter.

Abortion, the termination of pregnancy before the fetus is capable of independent life, has been practiced since ancient times. With records dating to 1550 BC, it’s no question that abortion techniques have been used throughout the ages as an effective form of birth control. Pregnancies were terminated through a number of methods, including the use of herbs, sharpened instruments, the application of abdominal pressure, and other techniques. In the 19th century, the English Parliament and the American state legislatures prohibited induced abortion to protect women from surgical procedures that were deemed unsafe. However, in 1973, abortion was legalized as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court rule in Roe v. Wade. This ruling made it possible

Consider for a moment a society in which there are no rules or laws. A society in which everyone is allowed to do what they please whenever they feel like it without any consequences. The world would be in a state of chaos. In order to maintain order and implement laws we use a set of morals to judge what actions are permissible and which are not. Through evaluating their actions and the outcomes of these actions, humans begin to develop morals. However, to fully understand the consequences one must first claim responsibility for her actions. The moral validity of abortion does not depend on the status of the unborn as a person, when life begins-whether it is conception, birth, or sometime between-or religious beliefs. The permission

Choice, what is choice? Choice is the right, power, or opportunity to choose. Everybody in society has a choice and these choices have many outcomes. A woman’s right to choose to have an abortion or not, is her fundamental right. If society outlaws abortion, society is interfering with the woman’s right to make decisions related to her own body. Many theorists believe that sexuality is what divides women from men and makes women less valuable than men; keeping this concept in mind it can be said that gender plays an immense role in social inequality. In one of Thomas Jefferson’s speeches, he explains how we should never put at risk our rights because our freedom can be next. (lp. org 2007) Roe.V .Wade is believed to have been the

Every year, as many as a million lives are aborted; lives that could potentially have been your neighbor, your friend, or even your son or daughter. Abortion is the surgical process of killing a baby by various means; and has been in effect since the Supreme Court ruling on Roe V. Wade in 1973 which legalized it nationwide. It was, at first, endorsed as being a woman’s right, but has more recently been viewed by most as the murder of an innocent child. Besides this shift in views, abortion has caused diverse effects on our culture and nation, as well as the death of upwards of 56 million children according to Life News. Our society has been deeply impacted by the effects of abortion and the loss of millions of innocent lives, and Christian

Abortion is one of the most controversial issues in America that is centered between advocates that are pro-choice and pro-life. Intentional miscarriages occur when a women induces the termination of a human during pregnancy, the procedure happens during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy. Pro-life and pro-choice advocates differ in many of their opinions, over the years the government has been trying to deal with the problem/issue, and now there are possible solutions to the issue.

Sometimes it is due to religious beliefs and other times it is more personal. Some individuals believe that abortion is considered murder because it involves the killing of a living being. Others believe that abortion is not murder as the baby is assumed to not be developed enough to have working organs to be classified as alive. This is one reason why there are contrasting views on abortion. Another reason group of people that oppose abortion area number of men who feel that they have a right to control women’s bodies and tell them what they should do. I do not agree with this at all, not only because I myself as a woman. I feel that, to an extent, the person in charge of the body should decide what they wish to do with their selves. Women should be able to choose what to do with their bodies and men should be allowed to do what they want with their bodies. Of course, it is not all men that agree they should take control of their women and instead there are a lot of men who actually agree with women when it comes down to abortion

Ernest Hemingway was a prolific writer. His short story, “Hills Like White Elephants” shows the tense situation between a man and a woman on vacation. Hemingway chooses to be vague in many ways. He never gives real names to his characters, nor explicitly states where they are besides hinting that they are in Spain. Additionally, he leaves it entirely to the reader to discover what the couple is discussing. By only providing information to the reader through only the dialogue of the two central characters, he creates a unique --and often advised against -- way of telling a story that engages his audience by challenging them to discover what he means.

Ellen Willis’s “Putting Women Back into the Abortion Debate” (2005) is an argument that supports women’s rights and feminism in terms of allowing all abortions to occur. She discusses abortion with the perspective that women’s rights are the issue, not human life. This argument is not accurate. Abortion is almost completely about the rights of every human being. People who are for abortion need to know a fertilized egg is just as important as someone already living, that an unborn child cannot control its need for someone to rely on for survival, and that they must accept the gender they were given without thinking it eliminates rights. Excluding rape and incest, abortion should not be allowed.

The morality of induced abortion is one of the most controversial moral issues of our time. Abortion has grown to be one, if no the most, debated argument of modern times. In the following web-page, we will be discussing abortion in three of its major aspects: Public Opinion, Congress and Courts, and Interest groups.

In literature, authors use a certain image or collection of images in order to produce a particular effect, eliciting a response from the reader’s senses. Ernest Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants” utilizes the imagery of the train station in order to produce the effect of transition between the characters, both in terms of physical location and emotional mindset. Much like Hemingway, James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues” takes a similar approach, using Sonny’s passion for music to expose his deepest insecurities. Though their approaches are different, both authors use imagery to create a pathway to the character’s internal thoughts.

In the 1920s women around the world strove to establish their position in the society. Women were being taught that they are not equal to men physically, emotionally, and even mentally. Women were not given the rights to make their own decision and depended on a man in their life. In the short story, ”Hills like White Elephants” written by Ernest Hemmingway, takes place at a station at Ebro River valley in Spain. The two main characters are a man who is identified as “the American” and a woman whose name is Jig, they drink beer and are discussing what the American man says will be "a simple operation" for the girl.

Another relationship coming to an end… Throughout the story “Hills Like White Elephants” written in 1927 by Ernest Hemingway, he used the train station setting, the desired operation, and obviously the relationship between the American and the girl to symbolize a crumbling relationship and unwanted gift between them. The American and the girl find themselves wound up in a rough, unplanned situation that they are trying to fix. Many bread crumbs are dropped throughout the story to symbolize a collapsing relationship and a much wanted operation.