Jig and the Stream of Life in Hemingway’s “Hills Like...
I see many people as I wander through the streets, yet I can only hear silence. I see couples getting
into a restaurant, order, check their smartphones, eat, and I wonder why they do not look up, face each
other and genuinely communicate. What I perceive, are men and women living not with, but next to
each other. This is exactly what I imagined when I read Hemingway s Hills Like White Elephants . A
couple waiting to catch a train and as they sit and drink some beers, they start talking about Jig s
pregnancy and the option of abortion. However, all I can hear is silence because they simply do not
speak the same language. They are both living in different worlds filled with divergent ideologies and
opinions. As a result, the words do not ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
While the American, a practical man, looks at things in the function of their practicality and possesses
little imagination. Furthermore, he is dominant, a know all and a manipulator to the bone. He takes
care of the luggage, speaks Spanish and orders the drinks, not Jig. When sitting in the bar drinking
some beers, she looks off at the lines of hills and remarks: They look like white elephants, she said. I
ve never seen one, the man drank his beer. (251). I think Jig is referring to a concept, using figurative
language for a white elephant is, in fact, an idiom for a rare thing of which the cost exceeds its value.
In this perspective, it is an intertextual reference to the yet unborn baby. For the practical American,
the baby is just a costly thing, but Jig does not share his view. She values life and nature. In contrast,
her lover is talking about a real white, albino elephant. He cannot comprehend what Jig is referring to.
When Jig utters her disappointment about the poor taste of the Anis del Toro, they have a quarrel that
ends with him saying that they should try and have a fine time (252). Yet the way he puts it sounds
more like a demand, an imposition. As the discussion goes on whether or not to abort the child, the
American even appears to know that Jig wouldn t mind to do it. A matter that is clearly linked to
women, nonetheless, he knows: it s all perfectly natural (253). When, in fact, you could question
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...