VCCS Litonline Introduction to Literature
English 112 (English Composition II)                                                              

       The rhythmic sway of the train was accentuated by the syncopated click of the wheels on the track.  The countryside was a blur as the fast moving train turned the window into a kaleidoscope of colors.  “Il biglieto, Per favore” (“Ticket, Please”)--I was jolted from the peaceful solitude of my thoughts by the train conductor.  The year was 2001 and I was traveling with my fiancé in Italy by the Ferrovia dello stato (Italian train system).  I realized then, as now, that the train is the life blood of Europe.   -- Belinda Southern

     Many critics, such as George Plimpton, have written that Ernest Hemingway used actual life experiences in his writing of the short story “Hills Like White Elephants.”  W. Keith Kraus wrote, “Hemingway mentioned in an interview by George Plimpton that he saw a woman he knew had an abortion and skipped lunch to write the story.”  It is ironic that my own life experience in Europe helped me to identify the key to the story’s end, the oncoming train.  In his subtle way, Hemingway uses the train as the vehicle to carry the story, both figuratively and literally.

     The train station is the launch pad for this short story, which features two main characters that are immersed in a subtle, yet intense dialogue.  In a diversely picturesque setting in Spain, Jig and her American lover sip cool drinks, as the heat seems to sap their cool initially.  The topic of their verbal sparring is about whether Jig should have an abortion.  Superficially, the subject of this story may appear as male versus female or good against bad.  In fact, Jeffrey Meyers echoes this opinion and sees the story as “a welter of oppositions.”  In reality, however, it is a merging of various symbols, which serve as the indicators that foreshadow the story.  This is due to the sparse use of words, as well as Hemingway’s omission of definitive words like abortion, marriage, and relationship.

    There have been critics that have deciphered the symbols and determined, as I have, that there is indeed a happy outcome for the couple.  James Barbour writes, “Both the hills and the river are screened by trees, so the river could represent ‘continuity’ or ‘the possibility of life going on after a decision’ or ‘negotiation of some obstacle.’”  Mary Dell Fletcher puts forth the idea that by the American’s moving the bags to the fertile side and Jig’s smile may allow for “a positive ending.”  Hillary Justice had access to the actual manuscript and felt that there were several crossed out “overly obvious” inferences that suggested that the American would support Jig and the child.  Student Christine Altman wrote that the symbols point to the fact that “the story went from being at a train junction to being a junction in the man and the girl’s lives.”  Nancy Hemond Brown analyzed the story and found that the word “smiling” was used 3 times in the last 13 lines.  I noted that train was used 4 times in the last 14 lines.  I agree with Ms. Altman that the train junction is a focal point, but it is the train that becomes the embodiment of the story.

     As stated earlier, it has been established that Hemingway used his life experiences, his surroundings, and current events as inspiration when writing his stories.  This may have been one of the reasons that he has been called “the spokesperson for his generation.” One must remember that Hemingway lived in Europe and it is obvious that this experience influenced his writing of “Hills Like White Elephants.”  Europe in the 1920s is often referred to as the “Age of Anxiety.”  The grotesque Great War (WWI) was epitomized by the horrors of the trench warfare.  The technological advances of the Second Industrial Revolution were supposed to be a servant of mankind.  Instead, the rules of warfare had changed and the 20th Century was plunged into the age of total war.  The romance of warfare was gone, and literary giants such as Paul Valery, Marcel Proust, D. H. Lawrence, and Thomas Mann were just some of the writers who rebelled against the senseless slaughter of the Great War (WWI). 

     In his decidedly understated style, it would stand to reason that Hemingway would use the product of the First Industrial Revolution (the train) to relay the story’s outcome.   It is important to note that in the 1920s the train itself was in a period of transition as steam was replaced by diesel.  The word “train” offers a myriad of meanings, which Hemingway could have used to shed light on the story.  According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word train comes from French roots that mean “to drag or draw.”  An example of the American trying to drag Jig into his way of thinking is especially illustrated towards the middle of the story.  “ ‘I know you wouldn’t mind it, Jig.  It’s really not anything.  It’s just to let the air in.’ The girl did not say anything.”  That one-sided exchange is just one example of the American trying to drag Jig to the abortion table, something she clearly does not want to do.  He has slated the oncoming train to transport Jig to the operation site, but can he carry her over into seeing his point of view?  This question is answered by the alternate meaning (French root) of train, which is “draw.”  As the minutes wind down until the train arrives, it is the American that seems to be drawn over to Jig’s side.  “He did not say anything but looked at the bags against the walls of the station.  There were labels on them from all of the hotels where they had spent nights.”  While other critics may view this interlude as a selfish moment that the American thought about sex (as I initially did), I now view this as time that he reminisced about the longevity and fullness of their relationship.  At this point he is at the junction (Altman), but the junction is about whether there will be one or two people in his life.

     The trailing part of a bride’s dress is also referred to as a train.  This could be another subtle hint by Hemingway as he uses symbolism to reflect the highest form of a committed relationship, marriage.  The verb to train, means to educate.  Jig has been educating the American with references to the landscape that surrounded them.  When the American took the baggage to the other side of the tracks, he looked up the tracks for the oncoming train.  Hemingway uses this climactic moment to implement the technique that he learned from Cézanne (Theodore L. Gaillard).  “Cezanne left some areas of canvas blank, guessing that the onlooker would mentally fill in the omissions.”  What is not mentioned in the story, is that the American had to have seen the same landscape that Jig saw as he looked for the train. Hemingway painted the canvas (story) by having the character, Jig, plant the seeds which enabled the American to realize the scope of their relationship.  Instead of the oncoming train leading to an “ominous crescendo,” it is the train that brings calm and resolution.  With the train of events Hemingway, like Cézanne, has trained his audience to understand that “The American is Right on Track!”

Resources from “Critics Commentaries” located at http://vccslitonline.vccs.edu/copy_of_hills/criticism.htm

·        W. Keith Kraus, “Ernest Hemingway’s ‘Hills Like White Elephants’: A Note on a ‘Reasonable Source.” English Record, 21:2 (1970),pp. 23 – 26

·        James Barbour, “Fugue State as a Literary Device in ‘Cat in the Rain’ and ‘Hills Like White Elephants.” Arizona Quarterly 44.2 (1988): 98 –106

·         Mary Dell Fletcher, “Hemingway’s ‘Hills Like White Elephants” (Explicator, 35:4[1980]: 16 – 18)

·        Jeffrey Meyers, Hemingway: A Biography (Harper & Row)

·        Theodore L. Gaillard, Jr. (Hemingway’s Debt to Cezanne:  New Perspectives)

·        Christine Altman, “A Junction in Life”

Photos and essay by Belinda Southern.  Posted with permission in February, 2004.

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