Hills Like White Elephants Essay

not a big deal at all. He even states that it really isn’t even an operation. The boyfriend keeps insisting that they will be happy after it is done and that the baby is making them unhappy. He states, “That’s the only thing that bothers us. It’s the only thing that’s made us unhappy.” (Hemingway 924) He was referring to the baby. The girl questions him asking if he thinks they will be happy afterward to which his reply is “I know we will.” (Hemingway 925) The girl is clearly torn on what to do, but the man has his mind made up that he does not want the baby or care about it. He does not even understand that when she

“Perfectly simple” is restated a couple of times in the conversation which tells us that out of the two only one wants the child and the other doesn’t want the child (Hemingway). The American man thoughts are not more important than Jig’s. Even if the American man is supporting her to get an abortion it’s still Jigs decision. His opinion does matter to her because she wants his thoughts about what’s best for them and their unborn child. Jig is torn between remaining reckless and carefree and making a family with the man she loves. “‘Because I don’t care about me’” states that she is willing to do almost anything for the American man but is blocked by her mother instinct to protect her child (Hemingway). Jig is indecisive in what she wants because she questions herself and the American man what if questions. “‘I realize…can’t we maybe stop talking’” this tells us Jig finally realizes that by asking a lot of rhetorical questions to the American man she has the answer she needs even if it’s not the answer that she wants (Hemingway).

The girl has her doubts, but wants to do whatever the man wants her to do. She wants the man to be happy and love her, and for things to go back

Every time the man or the woman try to change the subject and avoid talking about the abortion, they end up saying something that refers to or alludes to the baby or the abortion. The woman suggests that the hills look like white elephants (324), which the man fails to acknowledge. The lack of clear communication between the two causes tension and arguments at every turn. When the woman agrees sarcastically that the man has never seen white elephants, he says, "Just because you say I wouldn't have doesn't prove anything" (324). The woman is clearly annoyed at the insensitivity of the man's negative feelings toward her pregnancy. For her, the baby is a priceless treasure, but for him it is a worthless fetus.

He wondered why she had not consulted with the pastor and hoped she would so that she would be convinced carrying the baby was not in her best interest. However, she does not. Sheri knew exactly what she wanted to do even though she hadn’t spoke of it yet. She also knew that their relationship would not continue with the decision she had made just as she knew he did not love her evidently with his continuous push for her to go through with the procedure even if they had to pray about it or postpone it. Sheri comes forward with her feelings stating she knows he no longer loves her or has a love for her, but she also knows that she will go through with the pregnancy and it doesn’t feel right not to. She did not care that I was not what he wanted or that it may bother her family. She did not know if it was something she could bear on her own, but she knew it was what she wanted, what was right, and what she needed to do therefore she would go through with it.

abort the baby. He is still uncertain as to whether she will in fact go through with the abortion,

Women and men have rarely ever been able to wholeheartedly agree upon something, especially something as significant as an unwanted pregnancy. “Hills Like White Elephants” centers around an unwanted pregnancy and how a young couple is talking about it and handing it. While the mention of pregnancy or abortion is never actually said, it can be inferred through their conversations and simple clues Hemingway includes such as, “It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig” (Hemingway) (Link). The man in this relationship, the American, continues to reassure the woman, Jig, that the “operation” is simple and tons of people have it done. He also continues to repeat “how simple” it is. Jig

“Hills Like White Elephants”, by Ernest Hemingway, is a short story published in 1927 that takes place in a train station in Spain with a man and a woman discussing an operation. Most of the story is simply dialogue between the two characters, the American and Jig. This couple is at a critical point in their lives when they must decide whether or not to have an abortion. Certain themes arise from this story such as choices and consequences, doubt and ambiguity, and how men and women relate. Hemingway also uses many examples of symbolism in “Hills Like White Elephants”, including descriptions of the surrounding scenery, the hills themselves, and the station where the action takes place.

Never in anybody’s time should you ever put someone else first before over yourself. Doing that just leads down a road of destruction, and then the fact that this whole conversation is about abortion they probably should just get rid of it because she could just end up alone. Jig sounds as if she has no will or fight in her so she probably shouldn’t take care of a child. The baby in this story played a huge role for its future possible parents. The couple had to make a decision that if it were the wrong one could have broken them up, or made their relationship a happy one.

Earnest Hemingway provides a different way to reveal his characters without going into great detail about the characters in “Hills Like White Elephants”. Hemingway does not describe the characters appearances or their body language. Hemingway though decided to reveal the characters by their dialogue. By giving more details within the dialogue it reveals the character of the man and the girl in the story. It is revealed in the dialogue the dynamics of the relationship of the man and the girl. It is shown that they care for each other, even though they have some struggles. You can tell they care about each other, because in the story it is said “I’d do anything for you” and “I don’t want anybody but you”. While also revealing the strife between

Her boyfriend, also the father of the baby, provides false feedback on the whole situation. “I’ll go with you and I’ll stay with you all the time. They just let the air in and then it’s all perfectly natural” (642) claims the boyfriend. The boyfriends makes the procedure seem like it is no big deal, it happens all the time. These words fight against what the woman might actually want. She knows it is not right to kill an unborn child but is still worried about her boyfriend’s thoughts. She asks her boyfriend, “If I do it you won’t every worry?” (643) Obviously, her decision is influenced by her boyfriend but she still doesn’t feel right about what he says. She knows it will change their or her life forever and contemplates if the boy will still be around if she decides to keep the baby. These choices will affect their life completely but what the girl decides in the end will hopefully turn out for the best. The woman replies to her boyfriend after he asks if she felt better after their long conversation “I feel fine,” she said. There’s nothing wrong with me. I feel fine.” (644). This shows she is tired of talking about the whole situation as she realizes her boyfriend is not really listening to what she says. No one knows the outcome of the choice the couple was faced with, but just like any major decision in life, the final decision will ultimately determine how the rest of their life will

She is just trying to do what he wants to do, to please him, even though she does not like it. He says that, "It's really an awfully simple operation…not really an operation at all.'; He does not know the feelings and pressure that the girl is under, and not being the person who has to have the operation, he could say that easily. However, if he really cared about her, he should listen to her inner thoughts. There should be a more serious and honest conversation between these people. The girl should not compromise if it bothers her, and she should clearly state what she thinks. What the girl wants is not the sweet words such as, "I love you now,'; or "I care about you,'; but real action where he shows his caring and loving by truly understanding her.

The ending of the story is rather ambiguous as it is not completely obvious what decision the two end up making. The man could have talked the girl into undergoing the procedure, or not. At one point toward the end, Jig tells him to “please please please please please please please stop talking”, and when he doesn’t she threatens to scream. This probably means that she had made up her mind, but it could be in either direction. In the end, she smiles at him, and he asks her if she feels better; she says that she feels fine. That could mean that she had made peace with the decision to abort their child or that she was proud of herself for finally standing up to him and making her choice not to abort final. Either way, making this choice is harder on her as she would be the one to undergo the operation, and she very well knows that he most likely will not stay with her if she decides to keep the child. No matter what she chooses, however, their relationship will never be the same.

The man, however, is not the sole contributor to the communication breakdown. Right away the girl begins to show her weakness and inability to express herself. When the man initially directs the conversation to the operation (abortion), her reaction is described: "The girl looked at the ground the table legs rested on [and] . . . did not say anything" (275). Failure to state her conviction is illustrated in this example, and is further indicated by frail hints of her desire to keep the baby: "Once they take it away, you never get it back" (276). An obvious hint, yet she never clearly voices her hunger to have the baby. She continues to desire his will over hers in lines such as this one: "Then I?ll do it [have an abortion]. Because I don?t care about me" (275).

between her mind and her heart. Her mind is telling her to keep the baby, but