Theme Of Symbolism In A Clean Well-Lighted Place

In “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” the narrator describes the importance of the cafe compared to all the other places that are open to convey the idea of loneliness and despair. Through the use of imagery, symbolism, point of view and, allegory Ernest Hemingway establishes a connection between the older waiter and the deaf guy, as he illustrates the significance the well-lit cafe brings to their lonely night. As the waiters discuss their thoughts on being open so late, the older waiter claims to be one of those who enjoy the aura of the cafe being open so late compared to other places. “With all those who do not want to go to bed. With all those who need a light for the night.“ The role the cafe plays to diminish loneliness and despair does not go unrecognized by the older waiter and deaf guy who find their escape in that clean well-lit cafe. Loneliness screams louder at night for those who walk through it by themselves. They look to find comfort in a well-lit place with a calm and pleasant aura. The feeling displayed between the old deaf man and older waiter does not register with the younger waiter who does not understand the search of finding peace found in the cafe. The younger waiter has a wife to go home to as the older deaf man and older waiter have nothing and that is their escape from their dark loneliness, the cafe. Since it is clear that Ernest Hemingway has established that the old deaf man

Smith, Paul. A Reader’s Guide to the Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co. 1989. Print.

There is an apparent unity seen between the old man and the older waiter. Opposite from the young waiter, the older waiter and old man seem devastatingly lonely and worn out by life. While the young waiter is rude and insistently talks down to the old man, the older waiter defends him. He too understands and appreciates a clean, well-lighted café opposed to a bar or bodega. The older men understand each other without there being any communication between them. In the final line the reader is able to truly understand the older waiters view of his own morality, “He disliked bars and bodegas. A clean, well-lighted café was a very different thing. Now, without thinking further, he went home to his room. He would lie in the bed and finally,

He uses symbols effectively, which helps him to explore the theme of disillusionment and death. Death in his stories has many names; for example 'nada' or 'nothingness' – it may be assumed that it is always present. “Hemingway and the Lost Generation thereby explored more than just death, but the possibility of escape from the corruption of the old dreams – of being able to “resume again unknowing” – without returning to the past” (Currell 2009: 39). His short stories contains an excellent portraiture of society struggling with their personal waste lands. Even though they are not literally about the Great War, they display the inner significance of the Roaring Twenties; they show society's mentality and confusion. “Themes of Hemingway’s works have their roots in journalism and in topic or events that he believed were representative of the post-war world his grown-up characters and his readers alike had to confront” (Stewart 2001: 31). Further-more, in Hemingway’s fiction all the values seem to be no longer valid; a reader encounters disappearance of religion, which failed to provide emotional support for traumatised socie-ty. It also does not present valid answers. Finally, in Hemingway’s short stories appears a very important theme of anomie – the state where there are no law or norms. It can be also defined as an individual’s alienation (Idema 1990:

As the narrator goes on secretly watching him night after night he sees less of the person that he has grown to care for and just the man’s evil eye. It is almost as if the narrator had to dehumanize the old man before he could kill him.

It shows what there is. It does not search for what there might be. The old man sits in the shadow and looks down. Joyce's character carries a chalice of faith through a maelstrom of mundane chatter (228). Hemingway's sips a glass of brandy. To him, the mundane is not a distraction on the way to higher awareness, it is all there is. If one does not like it, one may numb themselves to it, or one may quit it. This old man will not listen to myths of meaning and comfort. He has gone deaf, perhaps out of not wanting to hear any more empty promises or stories that fail to hold up. Joyce's boy has had his first crushing disappointment. Hemingway's old man has had his last. There is no more looking up for him. His drink, his regular café, these are his comfort and his refuge.

In the short story “The Angel in the Alcove”, Tennessee Williams tells a story of the happenings around an apartment complex and the tenants within it. Although Williams writes this story to be seemingly simple, there is more to the story than just the surface. Through the use of simple story telling that requires readers to delve deeper within their minds, Hemingway teaches many lessons. The importance of staying true to oneself no matter the circumstances and not looking for approval are both important lessons that “The Angel in the Alcove” teaches.

In “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place,” experience characterizes the older waiter because he empathizes with those around him, thereby proving that enduring hardships encourages greater acceptance of others. By explaining how he is different from the young waiter, the older waiter clarifies why he disagrees with the young waiter’s decision to force the deaf customer to leave: “I have never had confidence and I’m not young. … I am of those who like to stay late at the cafe. … With all those who do not want to go to bed. With all those who need a light for the night” (Hemingway 9). Without the overconfidence of the young waiter, the older waiter has humility, a trait that allows him to develop empathy through his life experience. Also, the waiter is older, so he persevered through more difficult situations than the young waiter. Since he undergoes the same sleeplessness that the deaf man faces, the older waiter willingly sacrifices his time because he notices the importance of his job at the cafe to other people. Furthermore, the older waiter acknowledges the importance of the cafe to those like him when he describes that “[e]ach night [he is] reluctant to close up because there may be some one who needs the cafe. … This is a clean and pleasant cafe. It is well lighted. The light is very good and also, now, there are shadows of the leaves” (Hemingway 9). Unlike

The older waiter is much more understanding of the old man’s situation. He knows what it feels like to be lonely. He knows the desire to stay in the light that staves off the darkness, a darkness that brings thoughts of how lonely you really are. There is an emptiness in him can only be filled with the cleanliness and light of the café. He feels that this is the same for the old man.

In the short story “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” by Ernest Hemingway, two waiters in a café observe an old deaf man, and discuss how he attempted to commit suicide and failed. As the night goes on and the old man gets drunk, the two waiters debate on the topic of life and despair. The young waiter has both a wife and a job, so he is always eager to get home before three in the morning because he is doing a lot with his life. He even admits that he thinks that the old man should have killed himself so that the young waiter wouldn’t always have to leave the café so late. The old waiter on the other hand, only has a job so he sympathizes with the old man because the café is the only thing

Upon reading this internal monologue, one’s natural inclination may be to dismiss the older waiter, and perhaps by extension Hemingway, as merely depressed, or lonely, or haunted by some unspoken tragedy. However, such an interpretation of the above passage, and thus the story’s theme, would be an egregious oversimplification. Instead, it would be far more accurate to regard the older waiter’s worldview as something akin to existential nihilism, which is the belief that, essentially, life has no intrinsic meaning, that humanity’s very existence means nada. And as one comes to this realization, one truly grasps the theme of life’s meaninglessness that “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” exhibits.

The story seems to have a recurring message of nothingness. The only true details given are the setting of the café and the description of the deaf man's suicidal past. The only people in this café include a deaf man seeking to get drunk and an old and young waiter. The café brings out the idea of nothingness as it freezes time. Everything remains the same, as it is always clean and well-lit. In the short story, the old waiter has rejected all ideas and is left with a meaningless life to live. When the waiter recites the prayers in the story, he replaces most or the words with "nada", to show faith cannot help with his despair. The old waiter has nothing, feels nothing, and believes in nothing. This is the very reason why he cannot sleep, seeing that he is afraid of the very thought of nothing. The café seems to be the only thing holding the old waiter together. He appreciates a "clean, well-lit café" because it has order and is the only thing he has left to appreciate in life. Without the café, the old man would fall into a suicidal state and would end up drinking away his sorrow just life the deaf

      Hemingway's second portrayal of symbolism that a reader may distinguish is the café itself.  The café represents a sanctuary of the evilness of the world.  The namesake of the short story is a clue for the reader to see that the café would represent some form of an asylum not only from the elements of nature, but also safety from evil.  An example of the usefulness of this sanctuary is how the deaf old man uses the café as a safe-haven to be to himself after the incident where he almost succeeded in committing suicide and enjoys the comfort the café gives.  The old waiter represents in the café the kindness and caring that the café should provide; whereas the younger waiter is more of a materialistic character.  He clearly displays shallowness and selfishness.  Arthur Waldhorn writes that the older waiter helps keep the light on a little longer at the café for those, who like himself, 'do not want to go to bed.' (P 28)  The younger waiter is a protagonist in attitude of the older waiter.  The philosophy of Nihilism is brought into this theme when the older man recites the Lord's Prayer but substitutes the word "nada" for every noun in it.  Nihilism is brought onto a larger scale because it is very evident that there is nothing to believe in, even as a

This story was written by Hemingway in 1933. It details an evening's interaction between two waiters, and their differing perspectives of life. Hemingway uses an old man as a patron to demonstrate the waiter's philosophies. Hemingway is also visible in the story as the old man, someone who society says should be content, but has a significant empty feeling inside. What follows is a line-by-line analysis, putting emphasis on the philosophies of the waiters.

Furthermore, the setting contributes to the structure of the story, like cartilages in a human body. The café can be viewed as a workplace and also as a place of peaceful socialization. Each person deals with despair differently. Having the setting at a café where it was mentioned that it was quiet help structure the story that it is neither a depressing story nor, a happy story. The two waiters who were gossiping about the old man mentioned that he had committed suicide but, he was saved. Being in a café is different than rather being in a bar or anywhere else. The café signifies a place for space or time, depending on the person. The old man is not trying to cure his despair but rather subdue it. The setting could have taken place anywhere but it also could have affected the structure of the story differently. For example, when the older waiter was out trying to kill time due to insomnia, he went to a bar but, it was not soothing; therefore, he went home. This proves how the setting was able to support its main structure of having a café rather than a different place.