Exploring Moral and Ethical Themes in Hills Like White Elephants by Hemingway

Table of Contents

Introduction
Main body
Conclusion
Work Cited

Introduction

The stories of Ernest Hemingway can rightly be called the valuable heritage of humanity, bearing in itself moral and spiritual purity. The work, Hills Like White Elephants, is no exception and is a complex work with deep meaning that covers various moral and ethical themes. The author talks about communication difficulties that periodically arise between people for multiple reasons, which makes it impossible for them to maintain complete contact. Hemingway considers abortion, power-sharing between men and women, and the importance of communication in human relationships, focusing on how misunderstanding can lead to confusion and frustration.

Main body

The first and one of the central themes of the story is abortion. When Hemingway wrote his novel, abortion was strictly forbidden by law in Spain, so the problem was particularly acute for women (Hemingway 1927). Throughout the womans life, the man, as the hero of the work, pushes the woman to take a dangerous step and have an abortion. At this time, the thoughts, and inner feelings of the girl, who is in a posthumous struggle, weigh the positive and negative sides. From the personal to the public, this conflict raises a broad global debate on this. The authors approach to this problem is that the reader should reflect on the topic and make his conclusions about the problem and the right decisions.

The second problem is the division of the petticoat between a woman and a man, which at the time of writing was highly relevant. In those days, a man incredibly controlled his woman, forbidding him to do what he did not like. These prohibitions could be both verbal and physical. In the story, the man manipulates the woman, forcing her to think about abortion and forgetting her fears (Hemingway 1927). The problem of women is revealed in the uncertainty of claiming their rights, which indicates that men had a more significant influence on the partner in the relationship.

Finally, the third theme flows smoothly from the second and is the importance of communication in human relations. Throughout Hemingways story, the man and woman try to communicate actively but cannot talk about their feelings and experiences (Hemingway 1927). Abortion is almost the only topic of discussion, but even here, partners are confused and do not understand each other. This problem again emphasizes the importance of sincere and honest communication between people.

Speaking about the style of writing that Ernest Hemingway uses, it is necessary to note how the author skillfully pushes the reader to the development of the topic. The author is quite minimalist in his statements, but his prose is laconic and transparent. This technique creates even more tension during reading and an atmosphere in which the reader can feel the conflict between the characters. The work does not use poetic, descriptive language to create long sentences. Statements are often snarky, but these short phrases convey a massive palette of emotions. This technique is also interesting in that the reader can come up with several moves of events based on what has been read. For the most part, because of the fragmentation of sentences, a person will have to draw his conclusions about what is involved in the story, but this allows him to develop his script of the work.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Ernest Hemingways Hills Like White Elephants raises essential moral and ethical themes that are always relevant. This applies both to the issue of abortion and general communication and respect in the loving couple. Describing the interaction of women and men, the author focuses the readers attention on what can lead to backsliding and secrecy during communication. Although the narrative is scarce, Hemingway manages to create a tense environment and make a man think about the meaning of the work and his or her life.