Ernest Hemingway Gender

Ernest Hemingway uses a range of techniques within language and linguistics to distinguish distinct roles of gender in A Very Short Story. The characters conform to early twentieth century archetypal positions of masculine and feminine stereotypes. The author provides insightful issues towards women for both the original generation the story was intended and the modern reader. Hemingway uses the tools of language for a more progressive stance on the sexes than the content of the narrative itself. In contrast to the narrative (aside from the ending), the stylistic elements in the language within Hemingway’s work are actually not chauvinistic in regards to the linguistic composition. As Fenton comments: ‘...while Hemingway is often remembered, and indeed revered, for a kind of machismo, in his best writing he is far more sophisticated about human nature than the machismo ethic would allow.’

This is first noticeable in the method of the author’s use of pronouns: ‘He and Luz could hear them below on the balcony’ Hemingway never makes use of gender neutral pronouns throughout the text. The writer is intent on calling Luz by her name or the third person subjective lexis ‘she’, or objective ‘her’. This gives respect to the female character by referring to her in the feminine role. In opposition the man is never named. This is significant because with this perspective the interpreter feels empathy for Luz. The reader does not form an emotional connection to this mysterious gentleman. This also coincides with Lacan’s theory that ‘women do not exist’, men’s perceived image of women is a fantasy. The implied reader is for this text is male. The dark comical elements are emblematic to cater for a masculine audience, such as: ‘...he contracted gonorrhoea from a sales girl in a Loop department store while riding in a taxicab through Lincoln