Setting
Hemingway sets “Hills Like White Elephants” at a train station
to highlight the fact that the relationship between the American man and the
girl is at a crossroads. Planted in the middle of a desolate valley, the
station isn’t a final destination but merely a stopping point between Barcelona
and Madrid. Travellers, including the main characters, must therefore decide
where to go and, in this case, whether to go with each other and continue their
relationship. Moreover, the contrast between the white hills and barren valley
possibly highlights the dichotomy between life and death, fertility and sterility,
and mirrors the choice the girl faces between having the baby or having the
abortion. The girl seems torn between the two landscapes, not only commenting
on the beauty of the hills but also physically walking to the end of the
platform and gazing out at the brown emptiness around the station.
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