What is the style of the story Hills Like White Elephants?
In terms of style and technique, “Hills Like White Elephants” is a quintessential early Hemingway story. The use of the language of speech as the basis for the story, the insistence on presentation rather than commentary, the condensation, and the intensity are all basic elements of his theory of fiction.
What was Hemingway’s writing style?
From almost the beginning of his writing career, Hemingway’s distinctive style occasioned a great deal of comment and controversy. Basically, his style is simple, direct, and unadorned, probably as a result of his early newspaper training.
What are the symbols in Hills Like White Elephants?
Hills Like White Elephants Symbols
- Barren/Fertile Land. As the story opens, we are introduced first and foremost to the setting’s barren landscape, which is described as “brown and dry,” with “no shade” and “no trees.” Yet while the story feels as though…
- Light.
- Alcohol.
- The Train Station.
What does the White Elephant represent in Hills Like White Elephants?
A white elephant symbolizes something no one wants—in this story, the girl’s unborn child. Comparing the hills—and, metaphorically, the baby—to elephants also recalls the expression “the elephant in the room,” a euphemism for something painfully obvious that no one wants to discuss. …
What does the woman in Hills Like White Elephants drink while they are talking?
Both the American man and the girl drink alcohol throughout their conversation to avoid each other and the problems with their relationship. They start drinking large beers the moment they arrive at the station as if hoping to fill their free time with anything but discussion.
What does the train station symbolize in Hills Like White Elephants?
Hemingway sets “Hills Like White Elephants” at a train station to highlight the fact that the relationship between the American man and the girl is at a crossroads. Planted in the middle of a desolate valley, the station isn’t a final destination but merely a stopping point between Barcelona and Madrid.
What are white elephants a symbol of?
The white elephant—which was more often than not stricken with albinism, and thus more a ruddy-pink color—was, and remains to this day, a symbol of success. To possess a white elephant connoted political power, wealth and prosperity, great wisdom, and the love of one’s people.
Why does the girl compare the Hills to white elephants?
The hills represent the couple’s relationship. The point of the girls’ comparison of the hills to white elephants indirectly represents her wanting of keeping the baby. White elephants are something that no one wants. She first compares them to the hills because she doesn’t want to keep the baby.