renner hills like white elephants outline

She, on the other hand, seems hesitant, although she does appear to agree with him on the surface. The first speaker, the American man, clearly has an opinion- he wants his female companion to have an abortion. In this quote, it is clear that the two speakers are talking past each other, and are not communicating effectively at all. But if I do it, then it will be nice again?’” (Hemingway, n.d.) But I don't want you to do it if you don't really want to.’ ‘And if I do it you'll be happy and things will be like they were and you'll love me?’ The pair is sitting at a restaurant having a seemingly normal conversation, when they have this exchange: ‘Wellif you don't want to you don't have to’ It is a perfect example of Hemingway’s concept of the iceberg-style of short story construction. The dialogue in the text is deceptively simple. This contrast echoes the problems that the couple is having with communication- throughout the story, a lot of talking goes on, but very little communication is had. The hills could very well be symbolic of the woman’s fertility and pregnancy, while the barren ground is representative of the abortion the man wants her to perform. This functions to create a sense of contrast for the reader the land is parched, dry, and barren, while the hills are smooth and white. There is very little description in the story, which makes the description of the hills- “like white elephants”- and the land- brown and dry- stand out much more clearly to the reader (Rankin). There is very little description of the actions taking place, or of the location of the story at all indeed, there is only a very vague sense of the landscape, location, and periphery characters in the story. One of the most interesting literary devices that Hemingway uses in his text is the nearly-continuous dialogue.

In the short story “Hills Like White Elephants,” all the literary elements that Hemingway carefully utilizes work towards revealing the differences between talking and communicating. When one person talks, the person they are trying to communicate with must be listening and comprehending, without an outright dismissal of what the original speaker was saying. Anyone who has the capacity for language can talk, but truly communicating has other components- listening and understanding. There is a huge difference between talking and communicating. Hemingway’s use of a variety of literary elements to create dramatic tension and to really underscore the thematic idea of the problems of talking versus communication, particularly between individuals of different genders. Hemingway took and developed a concept that would come to be known as the “Iceberg” style of short-story writing and created what amounted to an entirely new stylistic type of short story. It is a story that contains timeless themes and deals with a timeless issue: the interaction between men and women. “Hills Like White Elephants” is one of Ernest Hemingway’s most famous short stories, and for good reason.

Renner hills like white elephants outline