A Clean Well Lighted Place

908 Words4 Pages
In a small pueblo in the country of Spain, a café exists to act as a refuge to those who need a break from the hardships of reality. In the midst of a late night at work at the café, two waiters discuss over whether or not to close up early. At first glance, the debate seems like a mundane conversation, but upon further examination, it reveals much more. Furthermore, in “A Clean Well-Lighted Place,” Hemingway channels the separation between the social lifestyles of the young and the loneliness that comes with age through his characters and their conversations. A great deal of the story’s depth comes out of the results of conversations between the characters. Take for instance, the conversation between the waiters: the young one grows impatient with a normal drunk customer, while the older one finds common ground. Now, the situation is that the young waiter longs for the night to end so he can go home to his wife, while the old waiter seeks to comfort the old man. The statement above is demonstrated by the young waiter stating, “He’s lonely. I’m not lonely. I have a wife waiting in bed for me,” (Hemingway 153), followed by the old waiter retorting, “He had wife once too,” (Hemingway 153). The quotes mentioned previously, juxtaposes the differences in ideologies between young and old cultures. These differences being that the young are more social, and that as people age, people also grow lonelier due to progressions of life such as friendships ending or people moving away. These two differing lifestyle views expand the generation gap, that Hemingway sculpts in the story. Furthermore, Hemingway not only demonstrates the generation gap of interests between dialogues, but also voices his own opinion. It is shown in the argument of the waiters, and the differences in their values. For example, the old waiter exclaims, “You have everything,” (Hemingway 154), to which
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