Ernest Hemingway uses word choice when Nick and his father talk about the pregnant Indian woman’s screams, when the doctor talks about how the father has it the worst in these type of situations, and what Nick’s Uncle George calls the woman when she bites him to create a ‘white man’s’ superiority throughout “Indian Camp”. When talking about how Nick and the doctor feel about the woman’s screams, the words chosen help to show male superiority. A boy, Nick, travels to an Indian camp with his father, a doctor, and his Uncle, George. They are there so they can help deliver an Indian woman’s baby. The woman is crying out because she is in labor, and experiencing extreme pain. This causes Nick to say to his father, “’Oh, Daddy, can’t you give her something to make her stop screaming?’” …show more content…
Not only is male superiority demonstrated here, but reinforced with when the father says, “’her screams are not important. I don’t hear them because they are not important’” (Hemingway 92). The screams of the woman are a result of the pain and represent her feelings and emotions. ‘Important’ generally has a positive relation; it describes something that has great significance. By saying that the Indian woman’s screams are not important, but Nick’s feelings about her screams are, it is showing that men are superior, more important, and of higher value than women. Not only can this idea of male superiority be seen with what Nick and his father say about the woman and her screams, but when his father talks about the father of the new born baby. After the baby is born via caesarian, the doctor, Nick’s father, decides to check on the father of the new born baby, saying “’They’re [new fathers] usually the worst sufferers in these little affairs’” (Hemingway 94). ‘Suffering’ has a negative relation, and is used to describe when someone is going through intense pain or
The first passage reveals the parallel suffering occurring in the lives of different members of the family, which emphasizes the echoes between the sufferings of the father and the narrator. The narrator’s father’s despair over having watched
After a few of these vain attempts to convince the man to consider having the baby, she implores him to "Please. please please please please please please stop talking" (272). The author uses her avoidance of confrontation and denial of self-expression to assure the reader that the girl?s weak and dependent nature prevents her from verbally expressing her point of view. Even the use of character terms?the man and the girl?reinforces this effect.
The short story presents women as aware but misunderstood by men through use of narrative point of view. In society women are usually seen as inferior to men, and therefore often don’t get the acknowledgement they deserve. “The women held their secrets because when they mentioned it to their husbands or brothers they were laughed at….Instead of sympathy, the husbands and brothers now had a secret weapon”. This shows that women did not share their fears as it gave others ideas to torment them further. Women in the short story are also shown to be fully aware of the boy’s behaviour early on in the story. “The men of his home town said, but how
n the book In Our Time, by Ernest Hemingway, rather than him describing the setting and characters, Hemingway uses vivid stories to give a series of impressions and memories that may at first confuse the reader, but eventually adds a deeper understanding of what Hemingway is trying to convey through the repetition of birth and death . The author uses repetition of the cycle of life [beginning and end] to convey masculinity as it relates to empathy and hope through Nick’s character development throughout the book. Nick’s father often demonstrates masculinity and empathy which is unlike the other male characters. As Nick matures throughout the book, he witnesses traditional male roles being challenged by his father which ultimately provides a deeper understanding of human nature.
As a woman, the narrator must be protected and controlled and kept away from harm. This seemed to be the natural mindset in the 19th century, that women need to have guidance in what they do, what decisions they make, and what they say. John calls her a “little goose”(95) and his “little girl”(236), referring her to a child, someone who needs special attention and control. His need for control over her is proven when she admits that her husband is “careful and loving and hardly lets me stir without special direction”(49). John has mentally restrained the speaker’s mind, she is forced to hide her anxieties, fears and be submissive, to preserve the happiness of their marriage. When the narrator attempts to speak up, she is bogged down and made guilty of her actions. Her husband makes her feel guilty for asking, he says, “‘I beg of you, for my sake and for our child’s sake, as well as your own, that you will never for one instant let that idea enter your mind!’”(225-226). By making her feel guilty for her illness, John has trapped her mentally from speaking up about it, convincing her that she must be more careful about her actions. Men often impose the hardships placed upon women during this era. They are often the people reassuring them of their “womanly” duties, and guiding them
Gilman’s use of pathos, makes the reader feel angry that the narrator is tied and bound to a society that thought confinement was the best cure for post-partum depression. She knows what is best for her, yet no one will listen, “I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less, opposition, and more society and stimulus- but John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad” (Gilman, P.462). It made me feel bad that there was nothing that the narrator could do, but succumb to the norms of society, and try to recover without being around people, working, and living a normal
Readers tend to look closely at the chapter structure and interpret them as individual pieces without stepping back to see them as a whole; yet, Hemingway notes that there is, in fact, a sense of unity between the chapters and vignettes. An obvious unifying thread is the presence of the Nick Adams stories. “Indian Camp” introduces the reader to a young, impressionable Nick. What follows are several interspersed stories that trace his coming of age in pieces such as “The Three Day Blow” and “The Battler.” The book concludes as the post-war Nick Adams provides an account of a fly-fishing adventure, bringing a sense closure to this central character. What complicates the book are the vignettes that are interspersed within the story sequence. This structure works to juxtapose thoughts and ideas, perhaps even disorient the reader, thus challenging the reader to find new interpretative strategies, much like a perspective one might need to look at modern art. Hemingway carefully chose this structure (just as he so mindfully chose his prose) as a way of framing Modernism through the written
American Literature has always been about men and for men. In this essay, we are going to analyze the women’s role in the book, as inferior and weaker gender.
To mirror the couple’s confusion of life verses death through abortion, Hemingway arranges words and phrases to establish the story indirectly. While most who visit Europe enjoy it, literature and movies
screams, "But her screams are not important. I don't hear them because they are not important? (Hemingway). As in the above story the female comes in as the main point of distress. In the obvious sense given the story line of the laboring Indian they must service in the early morning ours but also in a secondary sense when the Indian woman bites George and he proclaims, "Damn squaw bitch!? (Hemingway).
One of the most important themes, masculinity, is portrayed directly at the start of Hemingway's short story collection starting with "Indian Camp." In the first short story the reader sees the novels protagonist, Nick Adams', "response to violence and suffering inflicted on others will ultimately define his own sense of masculinity" (Frazier). Witnessing this dramatic event at such a young age will define Nick's life and change the way he views certain aspects of life just from watching a woman give birth. Nick's maturity and responsibility are also themes that are greatly exploited just as well as his masculinity.
Hemingway's "Indian Camp" concerns Nick Adams' journey into the unknown to ultimately experience and witness the full cycle of birth and death. Although Nick's experience is a major theme in the story, cultural inequality also is an issue that adds to the the story's narrative range. Throughout this short story, there are many examples of racial domination between Nick's family and the Indians. Dr. Adams' and Uncle George's racist behavior toward the Native Americans are based on the history of competition between Caucasians and America's indigenous peoples.
Soldier’s Home is a story about the experiences of a soldier returning from war. The narrative starts with a description of an image or photograph of Harold Krebs. Krebs is the main character of this story. He was a young man who was attending the Methodist College in Kansas before he had to enlist in the Marines to find in the war (Hemingway 111-116). The opening picture is an increasingly significant source of contrast between the young man who went to war and the one who comes back who has become silent and alienated after coming home. Krebs comes back in 1919 even though the war ended in 1918. His return is not marked by celebrations and parades that were often given to the young soldiers who had managed to come home early. Rather, Krebs finds out that the people are not overly excited about his news of the war unless he lies and exaggerates about his role during the war (Hemingway 111-116).
Through the precise use of diction between the woman (“jig”) and the man, Hemingway reveals how a lack of knowing someone can lead to emotional dismay. Concise diction in a relationship means, conversation only scratches the surface and the two “lovers” don’t truly know about the other person’s emotions. The story is full of short, one-line phrases of conversation between the couple about trivial things. They converse about the “lovely hills” and the “simple operation,” yet they never ask each other about their feelings. The lack of in depth communication of opinions creates a tension filled atmosphere that just keeps building up and up as the story continues. The “simple operation,” an abortion, is seen by the couple as the issue they need to resolve, however, the man, who can’t handle the responsibility, instead of talking it through with his “lover” chooses to manipulate her. He tries to convince jig, who is easily pushed-over as she is stuck by lust and will do anything to keep the relationship together. She doesn’t care to sacrifice her happiness for his, rather she fears that if she doesn’t go through with the operation, he will leave her, she is indecisive and relies on the man to make many decisions. The man deceives
With every single experience we go through we grow. We develop opinions based on what we witness through life, and we learn to see the world from different perspectives. What we learn in our upbringing is vital to how we act and think for the rest of our lives. In the short story “Indian Camp” from 1921, writer Ernest Hemmingway shows us, how one single experience can change a little boy’s perception of the world and make him grow.