Psychological Criticism of "Hills Like White Elephants" by Ernest
Hemingway
"Hills Like White Elephants" is a short story about an American and his young
girlfriend, Jig. The couple is sitting in a train station, waiting for the next train to Madrid.
The majority of the story focuses on an unclear conversation about an operation that the
American is trying to convince Jig to have. After reading further, we realize that Jig is
pregnant, and the operation is an abortion. To look at this story through the lens of a
psychological Freudian critic, we must analyze the unconscious motives of the
characters. The text should be approached with the goal of uncovering the “real”, deeper
meaning. Along with analyzing the characters throughout the text we will also uncover
the psyche of the author, Hemingway himself.
At the end of story, after the ambiguous argument about whether or not to go
through with the abortion, the American says, "I'd better take the bags over to the other
side of the station" (Heath, 1676). Immediately after this exchange, the American goes
back into the bar and buys himself a drink. It is implied that the American finally
convinced Jig to undergo the operation, and although she is not want to, the American
does not care. It is due to his desire for pleasure that his feelings of remorse are
suppressed and he goes to the bar to continue the fulfillment of his personal pleasure by
having another drink.
According to Kenneth Lynn's biography of Hemingway, he had the same capacity
for alcohol that his characters did, and in The Sun Also Rises Jake Barnes and Brett
Ashley drank three martinis apiece before lunch, which was accompanied by five or six
bottles of red wine. In 1939, his doctor told him to cut down on alcohol but he had a very
hard time doing so. He "tried to hold himself to three Scotches before dinner but he
couldn't do it and, in 1940, he began breakfasting on tea and gin and swigging absinthe,
whiskey, vodka and wine at various times during the day. He even let his boys drink hard
liquor when one of them was only 10" (Unhooked). His alcoholism brought on many
physical ailments and eventually led to his suicide at 62.
The American sees the baby as an obstacle to his personal freedom. He says, "We
could have all this… we can have the whole world... We can go everywhere... They
haven't taken it away." To each of these statements, Jig replies, "No we can't" (Heath,
1675). Freud believed that "the id is always trying to satisfy its hunger for pleasure"
(Theory 53). It is clear that the American's pleasure is in freedom, which is very
stereotypical of an American, and he sees the baby as an obstacle to their personal
freedom. It is trying to place the baby as the object of their relational problems. Freud
goes on to say that the id "operates without any thought of consequences, anxiety, ethics,
logic, precaution, or morality" (53). The topic of abortion, especially in the 1920's, was a
major issue of morality, but this issue is never acknowledged. The id can be a very
destructive force. In this situation, if the American were to be unrestrained, it would
result in the loss of life.
The use of the third person narrative in this story works as a great tool to look at
both characters objectively. The thoughts of the characters are unknown and must be read
into carefully through their dialogue and actions. The use of third-person reveals few
facts about either character. The dialogue creates a feeling of awkwardness from the very
beginning. The dialogue can be interpreted as a stereotypical conversation between male
and female. There is a point in the story when Jig compares the hills to white elephants,
but the American denies her poetic observation with his very rational response, "I've
never seen one." This rational response suppresses Jig’s poetic observation and, once
more, takes his place as the dominant male enforcing his dominance over the
conversation.
The symbol of the white elephant is obviously important because it is the title
Hemingway chose for his story. Jig uses the metaphor of the hills across the valley
looking like white elephants. The elephant could refer to the proverbial "elephant in the
room," which is the baby. The baby is an obstacle that needs to be addressed and it is
clear that they are in disagreement upon the way it should be addressed. Other physical
surroundings are also metaphorical. The train tracks divide a barren area and a fertile
valley. When the man moves the luggage to the "opposite side of the tracks" it
symbolizes his dominance in convincing her to go through with the abortion.
Another important symbol is the girl's name, Jig. The word jig is an outdated
slang term for intercourse. The man using this word as her name represents the purely
physical and sexual side of their relationship. He views her as a sexual object, or as he
says "a fine time". At one point in the story, Jig asks the American for permission to
order a drink. This could be insight into the inner workings of their relationship and show
his dominance over her. The word 'jig' is also a tool used to measure whiskey. This goes
back to how deeply rooted alcohol is into this story.
Freud believed that "The artist... is an unstable personality who writes out of his
own neuroses" (Theory 51). He believed that the artist's "work provides therapeutic
insights into the nature of life not only for himself but also for those who read" (51).
Hemingway is known for leaving character details out to allow the characters to speak for
themselves. He leaves many details of his stories ambiguous to allow for readers to use
their interpretation.
This story reflects much of Hemingway's own personal character. He was married
four different times, having three notable affairs, all of which led to new marriages.
Hemingway had a clear problem with fidelity in his life, and this may be due to his
unrestrained id. The American in this story has a lack or a fear of commitment much like
Hemingway has shown that he has through his actions in his personal life. Using
Hemingway’s literature and biography, Christopher D. Martin, a psychiatrist at Baylor
College, believes that, "significant evidence exists to support the diagnoses of bipolar
disorder, alcohol dependence, traumatic brain injury, and probable borderline symptoms
and narcissistic personality traits" (Martin). Sexual misadventure is common in patients
with bipolar type 1, so common in fact, that it would be rare for Hemingway to have not
been suffering from sexual problems. The American idealizes the life of partying,
drinking, and freedom, all of which proved to be priorities in Hemingway’s life.
Many feminist critics would say that Hemingway is known for “othering” women,
much like he does in this short story. It is unknown whether or not Hemingway was a
misogynist, but many of his stories show slight evidence for this. This could be the
reason he creates a dominant, American, male character who gets his way over his
passive, innocent, naive girlfriend. His own personal male dominance could be shining
through the character of the American.
If we were to dive even further into Freud’s theories we could even apply his
Oedipal complex into the framework of the story. The American could be displaying a
fear of childbirth because of his subconscious fear of fatherhood. The American could
have suppressed, subconscious feelings of envy toward his own father, much like
Oedipus did, and this may be a reason why he is advocating the termination of the baby.
His subconscious self-preservation is taking over and trying to prevent his child from
“murdering” him.
The story is also centered on alcohol. Alcohol is one of the focal points of "Hills
like White Elephants". The story begins and ends with alcohol. The very first line of
dialogue is "What should we drink?" (Heath, 1673). Throughout the story the couple is
drinking and talking about drinking. This reflects Hemingway's struggle to get away from
the bottle. Even when he tried, he could not limit his alcohol consumption. The story ends
with the American going into the bar alone and buying himself a drink, and alcohol,
among other causes, is what eventually led Hemingway’s end.
Works
Cited
Curnutt, Kirk et.al. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Belmont: Wadsworth
Publishing, 2009.
Dobie, Ann B. Theory into Practice An Introduction to Literacy Criticism. Boston: Heinle,
2008. Print.
Martin, Christopher. "Ernest Hemingway: A Psychological Autopsy of a
Suicide." Psychiatry: Interpersonal & Biological Processes 69.4 (2006): 351-61.
Print.
Waldron, Ann. "WRITERS AND ALCOHOL." Home page of LifeRing Secular Recovery.
Web. 25 Feb. 2010. <http://www.unhooked.com/sep/writers.htm>.