Hills Like White Elephants A Feminist Perspective By Liane Dinapoli COMP & LIT 2 Ernest Hemingway's short story "Hills Like White Elephants" is set in Spain sometime in the early 1900’s. The story revolves around social issues for men and women at the time. Even though they do not openly discuss it, Hemmingway gives the impression of a couple arguing over what to do about a pregnancy. Their problems, which are never openly acknowledged by Hemmingway, only imply that they are talking about abortion. Because of society’s opinions during this time, the right of women to make such decisions had to conform to what society viewed as a whole.
But I don’t care about me. And I’ll do it and then everything will be fine.”(Hemingway, 2001, p. 447) Here Jig is trying to tell the man that she does not want to go through with the abortion, but if it is what he really wants and is sure that they will be happy together
Hills Like White Elephants In Ernest Hemingway's "Hills Like White Elephants”, the story illustrates a young woman named Jig and an American man challenged with the decision of abortion. Throughout the sequence of the story it is apparent that the man is persuading Jig to undergo the procedure. The apprehensive discussion the two are having suggests that they are avoiding the underlying issue at hand. In addition, the setting of the story establishes the stigma involved with the procedure, as Jig left her town and traveled to Spain. Hemingway’s use of symbolism in the dialogue and setting helps reveal the difficult matter through suggestion without the actual term abortion being mentioned.
The American is talking about abortion and he is trying to convince Jig that an abortion is perfectly natural, however Jig feels unsure about getting an abortion. The couple has a difficult time communicating about this subject and as tension levels grow, Jig says that she feels fine and that everything is fine, leaving the reader to believe that she is going to go through with the operation. The story is told from a moral perspective, which can be seen from the way the landscape is worked into the dialogue and the narration. The language used at the beginning of the story is simple and straightforward, telling the reader that the place is the Valley of Ebro in Spain, and at a train station. The impression presented is that the characters are at a train station in the middle of a dry barren place, under the sun, with no shade or trees, which gives the reader the idea of the lack of life.
The man in this story patronizes the girl and does not provide sympathy and understanding she needs during this vulnerable time, instead he tries to appease her with thoughts of better times, like a child, “Then what will we do afterward? We’ll be fine afterward. Just like we were before. What makes you think so? That’s the only thing that bothers us.
Hemingway also mentions fertility, another hint towards pregnancy, when he mentions the picturesque field and mountains that exist outside the station. The American makes his convictions about the baby’s fate quite clear in the first page of the story. The American is committed to ensuring the baby’s removal to preserve the the American’s current state of existence regardless of how shameless and morally negligent his method of operations are. He disguises his motive as an act of preserving the relationship when he mentions to Jig that the baby is the only thing that has made their relationship an unhappy one. The narrator gives the American a slight tone if malice, apparent in the way he gives the couple the informal titles: “the man” and “the girl”.
Even when vexed or confused he pretends to be indifferent and in control. He is oversimplifying the operation he suggests her to undergo. The man wants to lead a pleasurable life that they had before. Although he never specifies what kind of operation he has in mind, the underlying message in the story suggests that the girl is pregnant and hesitates whether to undergo abortion or not. He thinks of himself as a more reasonable one, claims not to force her to take this step but at the same time implies what he thinks is the right decision.
Because I don't care about me" (554). It may seem like she has consented to the operation, but is clearly communicating her unhappiness. It would only be possible if she stopped caring about herself in the same way that the man would feel if he had to settle down and get married. Hemingway characterizes Jig not as passive, but sympathetic as she considers the impact that the operation would have on her relationship with the man, the life of the child, and also their financial means claiming, “We could get along” (555). The man only downplays the abortion and conveys his desire to continue his traveling lifestyle.
RPrejudice First impressions aren't everything. However, most people judge others by their looks and behaviors. The basic conflict in the novel "Pride and Prejudice" written by Jane Austen was cause by the early judge toward others. This story is about a man named Mr. Darcy who refuses to dance with a girl named Elizabeth in a party, which causes her have prejudice toward Mr. Darcy and assumes that he has excessive pride. However, later on, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth eventually fall in love with each other.
doctors shouldn't treat abortion simply because each patient has a particular case; sometimes the fetus or embryo is a result of incest, rape, fetal defects or puts the mother’s health at risk. In these cases the doctor should encourage or normalize abortion, but I other cases he should remind them of the side effects and the morality while respecting the woman’s decision without traumatizing her in order to make the memory a good one, as the author suggests. Prine focuses on the positive impact that abortion has on relationships between mother/daughter or within a couple because of the support they give each other during this experience. But this is nothing to compare to the relationship the woman will have with her own child. They say a mother’s love is unconditional, which is a love she won’t experience if she aborts.