Hills Like White Elephants Symbolism Essay

In the story, “Hills Like White Elephants” written by Ernest Hemingway tells a dialogue story of a woman named Jig and the American man who is waiting at the train station for their ride to Madrid. Jig and the American man are having a casual conversation about the scenery that the nearby hills look like white elephants. Then, there conversation turns serious as they talk about their relationship and their future unborn child. In Ernest Hemingway’s story the character’s conversation is important because it represents the lifestyle of a carefree life of an adult, the decisions of their actions, and their unplan future.

During the course of the story “Hills Like White Elephants” the author Ernest Hemingway uses symbolism to describe the main idea of the girl having the “operation.” Hemingway uses the landscape, the white elephant, and the term “elephant in the room” to represent different aspects of the pregnancy and abortion.

The negative connotation of a white elephant is expressed in this explanation. It is this negative meaning that is describing the hills, or her pregnant stomach and the unborn child. Further on in their conversation regarding the decision to be made, Jig says to the man, “I know. But if I do it then it will be nice again if I say things are like white elephants and you’ll like it?” (Hemingway). The girl deliberately asks the man whether the decision of aborting the child will better their lives, or continue moving them down the path of unhappiness. The decision that Jig is faced with ties back to the main theme that Hemingway portrays throughout the short story, decision and indecision. The constant uncertainty that is revealed through the girl’s character is seen in other instances as well.

“Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway, is a short story that tells of an account much larger than the story itself. An American man and young girl stand at a crossroads, when facing a major decision. Like most short stories the characters are developed through action and discussion, rather than lengthy and detailed reports. Ernest Hemingway is famous for symbolism, which is used extensively in “Hills Like White Elephants”. Small details and light conversations may share a tremendous amount of information with readers of this short story, by standing for a “bigger picture”. These small details and light conversations can tell of a story that many may never figure out until they dig deeper into the story itself.

Ernest Hemingway’s short story “Hills Like White Elephants” is written about a man and a woman who have a big decision to make. Jig is an unmarried pregnant woman trying to decide what to do with the baby; while the man subtly hints for her to have an abortion. Because abortion is currently illegal, the couple must move to another country to terminate the pregnancy. In “Hills Like White Elephants,” the author uses symbolism in many aspects including the train station, the land surrounding the station, the talk about white elephants, and even in the alcohol they drink.

In his short story it has many symbolism throughout the text. The two major symbolism are the white elephant and the railway junction. The white elephant represent the unborn baby because it means something unwanted. The man tells Jig, “‘That’s the only thing that bother us. It’s the only thing that’s made us unhappy’”

The short story “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway is about a young couple who is trying to make a decision in their life. The woman is named Jig and the man is referred to as The American. Hemingway uses many symbols to convey the message of undecidedness between the character over a problem, though it is not written the reader can conclude that the tension in the story is based around Jig being pregnant and the American wanting her to have an abortion. In addition, the story is set on a train station in Spain between Barcelona and Madrid, which also conveys the decision the couple has to make on the abortion. One train will take the couple to the hospital where they will have the abortion, while the other leads them back home to start their new family. Hemingway uses symbolism, such as objects and numbers, in his short story “Hills Like White Elephants” to express the decisions that Jig and the American have to make, which will ultimately alter the future relationship of the couple

In 1927, Ernest Hemingway penned a short story titled, “Hills Like White Elephants.” The story takes place at a train station in Spain and depicts a troublesome dilemma for the two main characters. The story begins with the characters casually discussing what kind of beer to partake in; the tone quickly shifts when the man mentions a surgery to his female friend, Jig. The reader is left to infer that the two characters are discussing an abortion. Ernest Hemingway uses symbolism throughout the story so the reader can delve into a deeper meaning without the ensnarement of excessive emotion. Throughout the story, Hemingway uses several examples of symbolism to depict Jigs inner struggle with the decision she is faced to make.

Mr. Hemingway, in his article “Hills like White Elephants” consisted a series of dialogues among an American man and a girl named Jig while they are waiting for train coming to Madrid. The man and Jig are having a beer in the bar and start the conversation. The two characters have different view of operation and then engage in the seriously dialogue. The dialogues is simple in the surface, but as I read deeply I found out something hid in it.

In “Hills Like White Elephant” we see how life can be surprising and difficult, especially in relationships. In this essay, a brief commentary on these issues and how I think the story continues is provided.

If I had to pick one story that had a strong setting to tell the theme, I would pick Ernest Hemingway “Hills Like White Elephants”. The story takes place in the Spain, and there are two main characters an American man and a girl names “Jig”. We learn that the story is based on this couple talking about if they should or should not have an abortion.

Hemingway also writes about Jig’s connection of hills and elephants, by writing “They look like white elephants” (221). The hidden meaning behind this quote is that white

Not a whole lot happens in Ernest Hemingway’s short story “Hills Like White Elephants.”  When I started reading the story, I didn’t fully understand why the story was called this and what the story was really about.  The story is narrated in the third person, which allows the reader to see everything that is going on while the main characters are talking to each other.  The setting of the story takes place in a bar in the middle of a train station that has “no shade and no trees and the station was between two lines of rails in the sun” (par. 1).  Throughout the story there are a few symbols that you can pick out, others are a little harder to see them as symbols.

As seen in the title, symbolism is used throughout the short story, Hills like White Elephants. Such symbols are often placed in the surrounding scenery of a story to give it more than just a visual effect but also an indirect reference to a deeper meaning that can be interpreted. Ernest Hemingway’s use of symbolism along with the description of the setting helps to give a visual reprentation of the conflict between the American and the girl as their converstation continues on the subject of abortion.

In 1927, Ernest Hemingway wrote and published a short story titled “Hills like White Elephants”. This story became an instant classic, as it talks about the tail of The American and the girl, Jig, and their journey on a train that will take them to Madrid. The story focuses on a conversation between an American man and a woman ,Jig, at a Spanish train station while waiting for a train to Madrid. The woman compares the nearby hills to white elephants. The pair indirectly discuss an "operation" that the man apparently wants the woman to have, which is implied to be an abortion. This story contain imagery and symbolism about the hills, beads, Alcohol and the abortion which makes the story so popular and relevant to us today. With it being so important and popular, a lot people have written critical many review over the story comparing, describing and forming theories about the meaning for the story. This essay compares critical reviews with each others discussion the symbolism and imagery with the “Hills like White Elephants.”