Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway

Introduction

Hills like White Elephants is a short story by Ernest Hemingway. The story opens with a long description of the story's setting in train station surrounded by trees, hills, and fields in the valley in Spain. The story is based on the dialogues between a man and a young women waiting for the train in Spain (Ernest, 203). At the beginning of the story as they both start talking, it becomes clear that the woman is pregnant and the man wants her to abort her baby. In the entire story he tried to connivance her for abortion, but from her replies it seems that she does not want to have it. The author through dialogue has tried to show that women in past society were considered nothing but sex symbols. In past society men have been dominant to women in a relationship. The end of the story does not make clear the outcome of the issue. In this paper we are going to focus on the main quotes from the text which will help readers understand the story more clearly.

Thesis Statement

The author through his dialogue has tried to show that women in past society were considered nothing but sex symbols. Men have been dominant to women in a relationship.

Quotation One This quote was told by author after having some dialogues with the women. The writer states “it is really an awfully simple operation, Jig. It is really nothing; it is just to let the air in” (David, 369). This quote is an example of dialogue between man and woman in which man tried to convince woman that she must go for an abortion. The use of word “operation” shows readers that the operation is related to abortion. The man wants the lady to give up with her child. In this quote he tried to convince her that the operation is simple and doctors will do it by just puting the air in. By this we can figure out that the man is selfish and he does not care about the feelings and health of the woman, he only wants his own happiness. It shows selfish behavior of man of that time. The story was written in 1939 in Spain, at that time the abortion was very dangerous and illegal though the man knew it but still wanted the lady to have an abortion. ...