The Theme of Nostalgia In Hills Like White Elephants By Ernest Hemingway
Hills Like White Elephants is a short story by Ernest Hemingway written in 1927 that offers a glimpse into the lives of expatriates following the post-World War I. The story is in the form of a dialogue, between the two main protagonists, it also begins by describing the setting as rural Spain. The girl’s view of the distant hills as white elephants brings about the first nostalgic instance as it can be interpreted as her attempt to reflect on the sensuous beauty of their love relations that is on the verge of deteriorating as a result of her lover’s selfishness. Hills Like White Elephants can be described as an accurate piece of literature that has been based on the experiences that were common among expatriate of that generation that lived in the wake of WWI. This story contains many trends that were popular among expatriates who traveled to Europe during the post WWI. Through more than enough words and by letting the reader unearth the true meaning of his work, Hemingway shows the depth that can be achieved by men in their pursuit of adventure, happiness, and excitement.
The opening scene gives the reader a glimpse of the setting and where the characters are traveling. The start of the story sets the scene for the reader, “The hills across the valley of the Ebro’ were long and white. On this side, there was no shade and no trees and the station was between two lines of rails in the sun. Close against the side of the station there was the warm shadow of the building and a curtain made of strings of bamboo beads, hung across the open door into the bad to keep out files” (Hemingway, n.p). The River, Ebro is in Spain and the Northeast of Madrid. The two main characters the man referred to as the American and the girl are traveling towards Madrid, where they could find a solution to their problem (Hemingway, n.p). It is towards the end of the story that the reader realizes that the problem they are discussing is the possibility of carrying out an abortion, which was considered illegal in the 1920s. Abortion would be regarded as a religious crime in a catholic country such as Spain. To understand the life of the characters in the story, the reader needs to understand the life expatriates l ived in the 20th century. Also, Ernest Hemingway was an expatriate and this makes experiences recorded in his story accurate.
Hemingway was born in 1899 in Illinois. He was sent to France during WWI as a Red Cross driver at 18years of age. His experience during this time helped him develop his works later in life. The reason Europe had many expatriates in the 1920s is because of WWI and the exposure of many young Americans. Hills Like White Elephants arouses the curiosity of a reader. The setting of story plays an important role in showing the dilemma the girl is in (Hemingway, n.p). The American can be is realistic, and shows the typical behavior of an American expatriate.
Works Cited
Bolton, Matthew J. “An American in Paris: Hemingway and the Expatriate Life.” Critical Insights: The Sun Also Rises, edited by Keith Newlin, Salem, 2010. Salem Online.
Hemingway, Ernest. Hills Like White Elephants. The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Ed. R.V. Cassill. New York: Norton & Co
