Joshua Jerome

Ryan Gallagher
Advanced Placement Literature
27 November 2010

Hills like White Elephants Hemmingway vs. Faulkner

When our train was about 40 minutes or so away from the station and a few of the passengers had
settled into the bar seats to wait, our entire counter quieted as the couple made their way down the isle- he
carrying both of their traveling bags, and she followed close behind, empty handed, but with a
contemplative look in her eyes-almost out of reverence for them; most of the people out of fatigue, yet the
bartenders, were more curious than anything else, and only wished to see what the relationship was
between the odd couple -they were always looking for good stories to share with customers, family
members, friends, or even amongst each other as they were working.

It was a small bar, dimly lit and narrow with windows and an open door covered by strings of
bamboo beads that allowed us to see the scenery of the train tracks that went unshielded from the intense
Spanish sunlight.

Together, the couple was an item of great interest, a news update, almost like a source of
entertainment for the weary travelers. From the very moment they walked in together, many began to
wonder who this American man was-which was evident from his style of dress and the way in which he
spoke to his companion-and the seemingly troubled young girl with whom he was traveling, who also
spoke English fairly well and reminded many of the men of their own loved ones, and the first encounter
that was shared in the years of their youth, which only served to increase their anticipation for the coming
train.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes. They did not discuss their reasons for being there, or
even where they were going, but rather sat there and looked out the window for a time, and listened to the
clinging of the bottles and glasses that were emitted from the bar.

Her voice was soft and melodious. “What should we drink?”

“It’s pretty hot. Let’s drink beer”, and turning away from her, the American called out
confidently into the curtain “Dos Cerveas.” His Spanish was tense and clumsy-which contrasted starkly
with the confidence with which he initially asked-making him seem more like a child who just learned
how to speak.

A large dark woman who could have passed for a Negro soon appeared in the window. “Big
ones”, she asked in a heavy Spanish accent. The American man was clearly taken aback by the fact the
woman spoke English, and responded in English, this time more humbly, “Yes. Two big ones.”

As she made her way back behind the curtains, the silence resumed. She returned within
moments, holding two beers filled to the rim, and covered in moisture as a result of the ice. Before setting
them before the waiting customers, she placed felt pads on the counter to protect the finished wood from
the beverages-even though by this point any effort to protect the wood was useless as a result of so many
beverages being spilt, that the counter appeared faded, and most of the wood was chipping off. The dark
women stood there for a moment and looked at the couple, but as she looked at the girl, who was looking
off at the line of hills, she was reminded of her youth-presently, she was well into her forties, maybe even
early fifties, and she had the face of someone that had seen too much-and the innocence that accompanied
it. The woman stared longer than she should have, and when she became aware of the fact that they knew
she was watching them, she departed for a second time behind the curtain of beads.
Joshua Jerome
Ryan Gallagher
Advanced Placement Literature
27 November 2010

The girl continued to stare off at the line of hills-paying no attention to the beverage that had been
placed before her-longingly, almost as if she wanted to capture them and bring them with her. The
country side about them was brown, dry, and dusty, but as the sun shone down on the hills, they appeared
to be white as snow. Some more time passed before she finally broke the silence. “They look like white
elephants,” she said without bothering to even look at him.

He was so enthralled with his beer, ingesting it defiantly without taking anytime to appreciate the
experience. “I’ve never seen one,” he responded, setting his drink down for a second, and then took back
up his drinking.

“No,” she said accusingly, and finally turning to him she added, “You wouldn’t have.”

As he finished his beer, it was evident that the man was taken off guard by the accusatory tone
that she took up with him-he placed his empty cup down on the counter, instead of the felt pad that had
been provided for that purpose-and finally turned to look at her. “I might have,” the man said. “Just
because you say I wouldn’t have doesn’t prove anything.” Once again, the man seemed more like a child
that was overcompensating in an attempt to prove something to peers on the schoolyard, but by this point,
it was clear that she had lost interest in the matter and turned away from him yet again, this time looking
at the bead curtain that separated them from the other side of the counter where the bar tenders worked.
“They’ve painted something on it,” she said carelessly, “what does it say?”

He was still turned toward her, taking only a moment to observe the bead curtain before turning
his attention back to her. “Anis del Toro. It’s a drink.” At this point, the American man was trying to
demonstrate his knowledge, in an attempt to show her that she had his full attention, while he struggled to
get hers.

She-still not bothering to look at him-asked “could we try it?” Though she asked the question
casually, she was actually thinking about a lot; the idea of trying a new drink eased her stress, and some
of the anxiety that surrounded her current situation. After a brief moment of silence, he finally called out
through the curtain “listen.”

As the large dark skinned bartender emerged, she immediately noticed his empty glass on the
countertop. It was for this reason that she disliked American customers more so than any other
nationality: they always addressed her in a disrespectful manner, and made a mess of the once pristine
countertop-she was well aware of the current condition of the counter, and realized that there was nothing
that she could do to restore it to its former condition, but she could not allow herself to simply let it go-by
spilling drinks, breaking glasses, or forgetting to use the coaster. His request for two Anis del Toro only
served to further aggravate her. “With water” she asked with annoyance in her voice.

The man, not even bothering to notice her tone, turned to the girl. “Do you want it with water?”

“I don’t know” came her reply. She finally looked back at him, “Is it good with water?”

Finally able to reclaim her attention, the man felt a sense of pride as he sat up, more confidently now and
responded coolly “It’s all right.”
Joshua Jerome
Ryan Gallagher
Advanced Placement Literature
27 November 2010

The bartender who was still waiting on a response from the man was growing increasingly
impatient,-she only wanted to hear what he wanted so she could be done with him, and move onto her
other customers-“You want them with water?” asked the woman.

“Yes,” he responded, then turning to the bartender, “with water” and watched her as she
disappeared behind the bead curtain. The man had an idea of what went on behind the curtain, as the
various bartenders prepared and served out drinks, but he had no way of knowing exactly what went on as
he sat there waiting for their drinks.

It took her longer to return this time, but when she finally did, she was holding the two, milky
white beverages in her hand, this time placing the felt pads directly in front of the couple, and placed the
glasses on them with such force that some of the anisette spilt over and ran down the sides of the glass.
This time she did not bother to stop and watch them, but rather departed more quickly in an attempt to
leave their presence before she said or did anything uncouth.

More interested in this drink than she had been with the beer, the girl proceeded to sip the Anis
del Toro, only to put it down. As she placed it down, she pushed it away and obviously dissatisfied with
the new drink she said, “It tastes like liquorice.”As a child, she had come to hate liqourice everything
about it, especially how sharp it tasted, and the fact that it stained everything black. He was yet again too
enthralled with his drink to pay her much attention. “That’s the way with everything,” he said
commenting more on her attitude than the actual flavor of the drink. By this point, he had grown fed up
with her constant complaining, and only wished to enjoy his anisette.

“Yes,” she said keeping her gaze fixed on him this time, “everything tastes of liqourice.
Especially all the things you've waited so long for, like absinthe.”

The Sarcastic nature of her response only served to irritate him as he was caught off guard for a
second time. “Oh, cut it out,” he responded drily, dismissing her sarcasm as nothing more than an attempt
to annoy him, but she wouldn’t let up. “You started it,” she said now “I was being amused.” Looking
away, she continued, “I was having a fine time.” Her response had struck a cord, and soon he began to
feel pity for her, almost as an older brother would for his younger sister. The man reached out his arm and
turned her head back in his direction by gently placing his hand under her chin. “Well, let’s try to have
and have a fine time.” For a moment, the two softened toward each other, and everything seemed to be
going well. “All right. I was trying.” As she spoke, she looked into his eyes, hoping that it could remain
this way, just as it had been before everything that occurred between them: just like in the beginning. “I
said the mountains looked like elephants. Wasn’t that bright?” However, though he too wished that the
moment would last, his mind was elsewhere-with many questions about what was to come, and what they
would do-and so he responded dully, “That was bright.” He was not amused by her inquiry.

She sensing his thoughts looked away and stared as her anisette, “I wanted to try this new drink.”
Pausing for a moment, she began to reflect on all of their travels together and all the places they visited
and what they had done together. As the cycle played itself back in her mind, she asked already knowing
the answer, “That’s all we do isn’t it-look at things and try new drinks?” At that point, her greatest fear
was realized, the fear that despite how many new places they visited, or new drinks they tried, she was
doomed to continue down the same fate. He too was realizing what she had just a moment earlier and
looked away. “I guess so” was his only response, because up to that point, nothing had changed, and he
also understood that nothing would.
Joshua Jerome
Ryan Gallagher
Advanced Placement Literature
27 November 2010

The two then sat in silence together for a time. The train was due in about twenty minutes now,
and the once calm and composed passengers at our counter began to grow restless and uncomfortable as
the hot sun moved higher into the afternoon sky, and increased the Earth’s temperature by what felt like
twenty degree intervals.

The girl was once again looking off at the line of hills. Fascinated by their appearance, she said
“They’re really lovely hills. They don’t really look like white elephants,” she said, refuting her earlier
statement regarding the hills, “I just meant the coloring of their skin through the trees.”

Without acknowledging a word she said, the man continued to look away as he asked “Should we
have another drink?” By this point, he had given up on talking and imagining things, he only wanted to
drink their source of unhappiness, away, even if it was only a temporary respite. She looked at him
briefly, then back to her unfinished anis, “All right” she said.

After he had ordered the beers and the dark skinned woman emerged to put them on the counter
in front of them, a warm wind blew through the air, and caused the beads from the curtain to dance upon
the countertop.

This time, they both drank-partially because of the heat, and partially because of the situation that
was on both their minds. When they were nearly done, said “the beers are nice and cool.”

She took a few more sips before answering, “It’s lovely.” Again, silence. The train was due in
about fifteen minutes, and some of the passengers at our counter began getting together their belongings,
but the couple just sat their.

Finally, the man spoke up, nervously at first, but then gaining confidence as he proceeded. “It’s
really an awfully simple operation.” The subject that he had presented clearly disturbed, to the point
where she zoned out pretending that he was not talking to her. “Jig,” he called. At the sound of her name-
or her nickname for that matter-, she snapped up, as if awoken from a trance and looked at him as he
continued speaking, “It’s not really an operation at all.” He said this as though he was trying to convince
himself of the limited significance of the operation, but it was clear that he understood both the
seriousness and difficulty of such a procedure.

Once again, she averted her eyes, almost out of shame and embarrassment, but more pressingly
was the presence of fear in her eyes. She understood full well what this meant, in addition to the fact that
whatever choice she made both her life and her happiness where at stake.

The man gave her a moment, but when she did not respond, he persisted, “I know you wouldn’t
mind it, Jig.” Once again, the man was convincing himself more than anyone else-he would never
understand the emotion and the thoughts associated with them that were running through her head-“It’s
really not anything. It’s just to let the air in.” Her inability to respond encouraged him to speak more
boldly, this time clasping her hands in between his own, “I’ll go with you and I’ll stay with you all the
time. They just let the air in and then it’s all perfectly natural.” But she understood full well that there was
nothing natural about it, she knew that there were many complications that could result during, and even
after the procedure was over, she understood that if she decided to go against his admonition and give
birth to the child in her womb, then he would leave, and with him her happiness, but more than anything
else, she knew the feelings of confusion and fear that once resided deep within the crevices of her heart
and mind as an innocent child, were now at the forefront of all her decisions and actions.
Joshua Jerome
Ryan Gallagher
Advanced Placement Literature
27 November 2010

The train was due to arrive in five minutes.