What if you had to make a decision that would affect you for the rest of your life? Could you decide between keeping your significant other and losing your unborn child or losing your significant other and keeping your child? In Ernest Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants”, an American man and his girlfriend, who he calls “Jig”, argue about whether she should have an abortion or not. The couple tries to discuss the “elephant in the room”, but fail to ever really understand and accept each other’s point of views as they wait for the train to come. Although the ending results of Jig’s unborn baby are unknown, her decision to have an abortion can be supported by the persuasion from the man, her care for the man, and the unwanted child. Throughout …show more content…
Because I don’t care about me.” (Pg. 3) This quote proves that Jig is leaning towards the decision of doing the operation. Jig shows that she only cares about the American being happy. If aborting her unborn baby will make the American happy, then she will do it. Jig continuously questions the American man with the hopes that he might change his mind about the baby, but she is unsuccessful. As they continue to drink while they wait for the train, the man claims that any decision she makes will be okay with him. “Well,” the man said, “if you don’t want to you don’t have to. I wouldn’t have you do it if you didn’t want to. But I know it’s perfectly simple.” “And you really want to?” “I think it’s the best thing to do. But I don’t want you to do it if you don’t really want to.” (Pg. 3) It seems that the abortion is not up to Jig to decide, but up to the American. Although Jig may want the baby, she can’t persuade the man to want the baby too. Any pregnant mother would realize that their relationship would not work out without the father’s want for the baby. Jig is too dependent on the American to be able to survive with the baby on her own as a single
The character of Jig is also very indecisive. After The American Man is persuading her to have an abortion, she states that she is willing to have the operation if it will make The American Man happy, and insures he will no longer worry. She also states that since she doesn’t care about herself, she will have the procedure because it will please The American Man. Later during the story, while they are outside looking at the hills, the two have the conversation of:
This short story is about a couple arguing about abortion. The girl, Jig, does not want to, but the American man says that it is the only thing between them. The girl wants to continue on with her life of exploring the world with the addition of the baby, but the man says that it would take the world away from them. The man has experience in this, but the woman seems not to. She is reluctant, and does not want to talk about it any more after a point. There are many elements in the story, such as disconnection, manipulation, dominance, innocence, and irresponsibility.
The communication going on between the man and girl in the story, "Hills Like White Elephants,'; are not an honest one. The man seems to lead the conversation where as the girl is quiet. He brings up the subject of 'operation' which suggested abortion, but never mentions the word 'abortion' in the story to understate it. He tries to convince the girl to get the operation, but the girl seems bothered by this subject. However, he does not stop. Their relationship seems to be fine when the baby has not came in between them. We could see this where the guy says, "We'll be fine afterward. Just like we were before.'; The girl wants the relationship to become as before, but is in a huge dilemma whether to give birth to the baby or not. The man does not want the baby and has the choice of abortion in mind, not thinking of the other problems that would occur through operation such as the girl's health. Later on, the girl makes a melancholy remark that the hills look like white elephants. Probably the hills being a round shape reminded her of the baby. She walks toward the end of the station, and sees the beautiful nature. When she looks more toward the nature, one could see her small desire wanting the baby and thinks what may have been happened if she had the baby. The guy does not pay attention to that remark, because he is just concerned about making his point that he wants the operation done, not considering her side.
Hence, it implies her disbelief and realization that things would not change much whether or not she got the abortion. Jig’s desire to keep the child is further evident when she tells him “[they] can get along” (593). She sees the possibility of a happy life with the child; the American sees it as an obstacle. Therefore, he continues in his effort to persuade her otherwise because “[he knows] lots of people that have done it” (592).... ...
Mainly from the dialogue between America and Jig, it seems that the two are an unmarried couple. Their discussion suggests that they are facing some kind of problem. With further analysis, we can begin to discern that the couple was actually talking about having an abortion. It was not explicitly stated, but with their words, "this is really not an operation at any" one can perceive that they were in fact talking about having an abortion.
The theme of physical and emotional burdens has a strong connection to Hemingway 's life. Hemingways alcoholism was more of a physical burden as it caused him to have liver disease whereas his fight with depression was more so of an emotional burden. However, the physical and emotional burdens in “Hills Like White Elephants” is focused around a completely different topic than depression or alcoholism. “Hills Like White Elephants” main focus is on a woman named Jig and her lover whose name is never told. All the readers know it that he is an American man. Jig is currently pregnant with what seems to be an unplanned and unwanted child, at least from the point of view of Jigs boyfriend. The couple begins to talk about the pregnancy and, at first, it seems that they have both agreed that the child should be aborted. However, as Jig and her boyfriend continue their conversation about the baby it becomes painfully clear that Jig does not want to have an abortion. Instead, the only reason that she is even considering the abortion is because her American lover does not want the baby and continuously tries to persuade her into having the abortion by emphasizing how simple the procedure will be. Jig’s boyfriend notices how apprehensive she is and tells her that if she truly doesn’t want to do it he’ll support her decision but also tells her that her having the abortion will make their relationship happy once again. Once again insinuating that it is the best decision. Jigg agrees to the abortion but only because she says she “does not care about herself”. Jiggs agreement to the abortion while also saying that the reason she is agreeing is due to her not caring about herself shows just how heavy of an emotional burden she is carrying. Jig loves her boyfriend and wants him to be happy, however, she wants to keep her baby. This causes
The subtle manipulative control that the American has over Jig’s thoughts and actions transforms itself into a complete control over her decision. After finding out that she is pregnant, Jig has a difficult time weighing her options because of her dependence o...
...ogy by saying to her that she doesn't have to go through the operation if she doesn't want to, but convinces her to do so. Their lack of dialogue makes it easy for him to get his way all the time. He never approaches the real issue, like the emotional part of the abortion. Instead, he talks about how simple the operation really is. "I know you wouldn't mind it, Jig. It's really not anything. It's just to let the air in," he says. The man is not in love with her and only loves to please himself.
Through his endless amounts of pestering he never finds a way to get his desire and true feelings across to the young lady and becomes increasingly bothersome because of his inability to convey his feelings. “‘We can have the whole world,’ the American declares. ‘No we [cannot],’ Jig retorts. ‘ We can go everywhere.’ No, we [cannot]. It [is not] ours any more.’ ‘[It is] ours.’ ‘No, it [is not].’” (3) The American is insistent on continuing the nomadic lifestyle that the couple lives by aborting this baby, and pesters Jig continually hoping to sway her with the thought of living their same lifestyle that they currently live. However he never directly tells her his desires and instead attempts to manipulate her as he feels his desire is in their best interest regardless of how he achieves his desire. However he does not realize that in his examples he is strengthening Jig’s resolve and conviction in her own wishes. Earlier on in the narrative the American is quick to turn and begin attempting to conform Jig, without any warning or inkling of a change in topic he quickly turns it into what he wants: “‘Should we have another drink?’ ‘All right.’ ‘The [beer is] nice and cool,’ the man says. ‘[It is] lovely,’ Jig agrees. ‘[It is] really a simple operation, Jig… I know you [would not] mind it.’ [Jig] did not say anything.” (2) Without transition or a telling sign, the American quickly turns an agreement about how lovely the cool beer is on a warm day, into pressuring Jig to conform to his desires. All because of his selfish need and lack of responsibility to settle down and lead a life where they can raise the child, and his desire to continue living a life of excess and materialism, yet he cannot convey these desires of him
A baby is precious and life changing, which makes Jig desire to keep the baby and progress with her companion. Jig does not want to travel and repeat her everyday adventures for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, her companion will try anything to convince Jig to have an abortion. "We'll be fine afterward. Just like we were before." "What makes you think so?" "That's the only thing that bothers us. It'...
There is a common theme in “Hill’s like White Elephants” and “The Birthmark” of a life altering decision. Both women are thinking about having an operation that will affect them for the rest of their lives. In “Hill’s like White Elephants”, Jig and the American are debating whether or not they should have an abortion. This decision is something that will affect both of them deeply throughout their lives together. By the way the two characters interact with each other the reader can deduce how important they feel the operation is. There seems to be a tension in their sentences with each other. Jig says things like “Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you've waited so long for” and “That's all we do, isn't it-look at things and try new drinks” (Hemingway 841)? These responses to the American show that Jig is in a distasteful state of mind which would most likely stem from her thoughts about the operation and what they will do in regard to it. Because these thoughts of the operation are affecting her socially, it shows just how important the operation is to her. How Jig interprets the scenery around them while they are discussing the operation also suggests the importance ...
The story "Hills Like White Elephants" is a conversation between a young woman `Jig' and an American man waiting for a train at a station in Spain. The author never names the topic of their discussion but as their dialogue progresses; it becomes evident that Jig is pregnant. The man wants Jig to abort the unborn child but she is unconvinced and wants to become a mother. Hemingway has brilliantly written the story's dialogue which "captures the feel of a private conversation while at the same time communicating the necessary narrative background" (O'Brien 19). At the end of the story, it is unclear as to what decision has been made; however, Hemingway gives the reader several clues regarding what Jig feels, and what she wants to do. Jig's private thoughts are illuminated by Hemingway's description of the setting, the character, and the conflict. Stanley Renner suggests that, as a result of the couple's discussion, "Jig has become able to make a more clear-sighted estimation, and perhaps a better choice, of men" Wyche(59). The couple's inability to communicate effectively their true thoughts and emotions makes their dialogue very appealing. The story examines the gender differences and miscommunications as they influence the decision whether to abort the unborn child or not (Smiley). In his book on Hemingway, published in 1999, Carl P. Eby points out that "[f]or the past two decades, Hemingway criticism has been dominated by a reconsideration of the role of gender in his work" (Bauer 125).
When a woman gets pregnant, she and her partner make a serious decision whether they should give birth to the unborn child or abort it. However, sometimes every couple can have a different outlook about giving birth or aborting because every male and female has his or her ways of thinking. In “Hills Like White Elephants,” the author, Ernest Hemingway tells a story of an American man and his girlfriend, Jig, who have a disagreement in the train station on the subject of whether to keep the unborn child or to abort. However, the author uses binary opposition of life and death to portray the polemic argument a couple encounters regarding abortion. As a symbol for the binary opposition of life and death, he represents the couple’s expressions, feelings, and the description of nature.
Hills Like White Elephants, written by Ernest Hemingway, is a story that takes place in Spain while a man and woman wait for a train. The story is set up as a dialogue between the two, in which the man is trying to convince the woman to do something she is hesitant in doing. Through out the story, Hemingway uses metaphors to express the characters’ opinions and feelings.
On average, around 15 million abortions occurred among younger, unmarried women ranging within the childbearing ages of 15-44. In which case, the reader could infer that Jig was among that age range in the text because she was bearing a child. It does not state if the man and Jig were married, but one could infer that they were not married due to the way they were described as young and were traveling instead of settled while Jig was pregnant. This could also infer that Jig became pregnant unexpectedly and very sudden. Becoming pregnant unexpectedly leaves a woman at a higher risk for considering an abortion. The higher risk could be due to her or her partner unready for a child or have an unmet need for contraception. Which could explain why the young couple was highly considering the abortion. Allowing the reader to know this information, it could enlighten them to realize why the man is encouraging Jig to have the abortion at a subtly aggressive extent. He is unready to have the responsibility of a child or a family. In Spain, where the story occurs, abortion is a legal option for women in the first 14 weeks of their pregnancy. This implies that Jig would receive a safe abortion, meaning after receiving the