source
Hills across the valley are long and white
like white elephants
a couple sitting outside a bar
besides those white hills
discussing something couples usually do
not the usual ones
but those in strained relationships.
What else we got
nothing but some witnesses
absinthe, beads of bamboos, valley, rails, liquorice
and of course, hills like white elephants.
where is the plot
well, there is none
reader has to made the one
he has to actively fill in the gaps
he gets author’s intentions, perhaps.
Hemingway provides a reader, the stimulation
to draw his own portrait
through his eyes of imagination
and he has with himself
all those witnesses as symbols.
Well, this is minimalist approach
where though the words are absent
but underlying emotions are evidently felt.
So, what we have here
a sketch of human emotions
through some dialogues
interspersed among symbols
open to multiple interpretations.
source
4/5
Hills Like White Elephants I wanted to try this new drink. That's all we do, isn't it—look at things and try new drinks?
Hills Like White Elephants ~~ Ernest Hemingway
Hills Like White Elephants may be the best example of Hemingway's Iceberg Theory. Hemingway contends that the words on the page should be merely a small part of the whole story. The words on the page are the proverbial tip of the iceberg, and a writer should use as few words as possible in order to indicate the larger, unwritten story that resides below the surface. Hemingway uses his theory to full effect here, and the results are dazzling. Hemingway wrote in Death in the Afternoon, A writer who omits things because he does not know them only makes hollow places in his writing. It is obvious here that Hemingway knows these people, the underlying emotions and what is about to take place.
Noticeable is the absence of the word abortion, even though that is clearly the main subject of the story. There are also several indications that this isn't the first time the characters have discussed the issue, and i believe, it will not be the last.
Hills Like White Elephants A conversation takes place, between an American man and a young woman called Jig. They’re having a few drinks whilst waiting for a train, and it’s clear that a procedure may be about to take place once they reach their destination, and that this procedure will have life changing results. A short story from Ernest Hemingway.
https://www.gvsd.org/cms/lib/PA010010... Hills Like White Elephants Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway is a short story about abortion, feminism and relationship. The story is set on a bar section of a train set to Madrid. Simple as they can appear, an American man (who is not named) and a girl named Jig are sitting and having an intense and enduring discussion over whether or not Jig will get an abortion. The American man, however, tries to convince Jig that undergoing abortion is just easy as pie which is completely insulting. At the end of the story, the train is about to arrive to its destination and the outcome of their discussion is still unclear because the last words she said were: I feel fine. We are now left wondering if she went through with the operation or not.
Significance of the Title:
Hills like White Elephants
Hills: Hills are curved land formation. If we draw a hill vertically (position it on a portrait vision) it will look like a pregnant woman (the hill acting as the womb of a woman). Take for example the letter 'b'. :)
White Elephants: White elephants signifies a precious item. In the story it describes the hill (The baby inside the womb). A white elephant is very rare and a beautiful gift to some culture but its cost perhaps surpasses its usefulness. Suppose, you give someone a gift like White Elephant, it will become totally useless to the recipient. And that is exactly the reality of what Jig is going through. She has received a gift (the baby on her womb) which is, at that time in her life, useless to her because it was unexpected. It is also a gift that could be priceless to another.
Hills Like White Elephants A couple. A bar. A health condition of some sort. And some modest research done by a reader to understand what was going on exactly. Mere descriptions of actions and dialogue were not enough. But the reader doesn't blame the author for her lack of perception. A detached author that seems to barely know them.
A foreign in their lands.
The economy of the words. Emotions, all over the place. In silence. They have lost their names yet their presence is still felt.
Something breaks.
We can have the whole world.
No, we can't.
Oct 21, 2015
* Also on my blog.
P.S. Given the comments I keep receiving: yes, I know what the story is about, I just didn't want to write a review full of spoilers. But thank you.
June 4, 2021 Hills Like White Elephants
A conversation in a Spanish cafe between a man and a woman that is not as simple as it seems.
Hills Like White Elephants is a short story by Ernest Hemingway, which was first published in the 1927 collection Men Without Women. Here, a man and his girlfriend wait for a train to Madrid at station in rural Spain, the almost casual nature of their conversation evading the true emotional depth of what’s happening between the two of them.
This story is considered to be among Ernest Hemingway’s best short fiction, showcasing the author’s powerful ability to strip writing down to its bare bones and allow the reader’s imagination to fill in the subtext.
Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) was an American author and journalist. His economical and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the mid-1950s, and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. He published seven novels, six short story collections, and two non-fiction works. Three novels, four collections of short stories and three non-fiction works were published posthumously. Many of these are considered classics of American literature. Hills Like White Elephants
One of Hemingway's best short stories. Hills Like White Elephants Hemingway's dumb ass short story about a woman about to get Lasik surgery. The man informs her he cares enough about her to stay with her even if she doesn't want to do it, and would rather keep her glasses. But with her glasses she's like someone else. She doesn't look like the woman he fell in love with. He doesn't want someone else, he wants her.
Since there's nothing in the story that proves it can't be about Lasik surgery, or that it's about something stupid like abortion, it's absolutely about Lasik surgery. When you write a fucking Iceberg story with vagueness and allusions, you lazily create something that is meaningless. You give rise to Fan Theories and stupid speculation that never solidifies into reality, always remains a foggy blur of ideation. If you want readers to interpret your story the right way it's your job to put the proper content in there to make it unambiguous. Scattering the shitty puzzle pieces in a shitty layer of shitty writing doesn't do anyone any good, especially when they don't fit together into a reliable picture. Hills Like White Elephants 3.5 stars
A memorable and well-written short story about a man pressuring a woman into getting an abortion. Hills Like White Elephants showcases Hemingway's writing at its best: clipped, elusive, yet packed with clues that make you want to discover more. Hemingway's characters say a lot without saying much at all, which makes some of his works bland and unbearable, but that style of dialogue works well in this short story. He captures the conflict inherent within difficult conversations and how we oftentimes fail to listen and to assert ourselves when appropriate. Yes, as in quite a few Hemingway stories, the male character comes across as annoying and passive-aggressive, and yes, this story does not have enough space to make a deep emotional impact. But Hills Like White Elephants serves as a good study in how to write dialogue well, and it moves fast enough to keep your attention. Overall, one of Hemingway's better short stories. Hills Like White Elephants Takes five minutes to read and says so much. Especially relevant now for reasons that anyone who has read it (and follows politics) will understand. Hills Like White Elephants داستان گفتگوی دو زوج در یک ایستگاه قطار که در مورد سقط جنین صحبت میکنند. پر از حرفهای غیر مستقیم و تشبیه های زیباست.
با اینکه کتاب کوتاهه ولی مجبور شدم چند بار کتاب رو بخونم و تفسیر های کتاب رو بخونم تا کامل متوجه بشم پشت پرده حرف های ساده زن و مرد چه چیزهایی پنهانه و چه میگذره. Hills Like White Elephants
Download Hills Like White Elephants
