Hills like White Elephants

I’d like to start out by saying that Hemingway’s way of writing is brilliant. “Hills like White Elephants” is the first Hemingway story I’ve ever read, and it left quite an impression. The story is told through an entirely objective point of view. There are several ways this really enhances the story. It allows the reader to ponder their own situations and create their own questions. There was no definite explanation to what the characters were thinking and the author’s purpose was not blatantly obvious. I honestly really appreciated this. Even though it did not necessarily make the story easy to read and understand, it added a certain aspect of mystery that i enjoyed. I like having to think about what I’m reading; it allows me to remain a more focused reader. I feel like Hemingway wanted a story that provoked readers intellectually, and he was successful. At first, i had gotten the idea that the man and woman in the story were speaking about plastic surgery, or some unnecesary cosmetic procedure. Later into the story, I realized the story was based around a very controversial subject, abortion. This surprised me because abortion was a very serious procedure when this story was written. I was not expecting it to be the topic suggested.