This story centers on the controversy of abortion in an ambiguous writing style by Ernest Hemingway. First of all, the perspective is not third person omnipresent. The author could not describe the characters thoughts. Most of the information in the story was relayed through the dialogue. The characters would say little things that would give away hints about their relationship. The man was pointed out as an experienced mature male figure ,he discussed an abortion that he wanted the girl to have after a train ride. He kept trying to reassure her, that it was just "letting a little air in" and it was perfectly simple. The man's discussion was simply to say for himself that he would not have any responsibility for her. He felt very distant from her and the world. He reassured her that things would be like they were "in old times." His point of view was that it was good to get past the "trouble" he and the girl caused.

The girl in the story was labeled as a girl, which is interesting to note because the bar-worker was labeled as a woman. The impression that is given is that she is an immature character. Her point of view is that she will do what it takes to please the man. She is nervous but is in denial; she tries to reassure herself. She feels the man s distance from her and tries to draw him back in to her world.

The setting was very important in "Hills like White Elephants" and contained a lot of symbolism. One of the first comments the girl made was that the hills were "lovely", and "looked like white elephants". The hills symbolized the big obstacle the couple had to overcome in their relationship. Hemingway often mentioned the bead curtain between the couple and the workers in the bar. This was the separation between the couple and the rest of the world. The woman who worked on the bar would enter in once and a while, but always in a fleeting moment and never stayed for long. Later in the story, the girl again mentioned the hills, but this time, described them as mountains. The obstacle she described had became larger and difficult to resolve the difference in their relationship. They also were drinking beer and other liquors, and mentioned that they often did. The couple were consuming mass quantities of alcohol to escape reality.

The summary is to inform the reader that there is no love in this relationship, and promises they made were empty. The man and the girl are a contradiction to each other. First, the man saw the girl's pregnancy as a disease that had to be cured, the girl saw pregnancy as a blessing to bring her closer to him. Second, he does not want her at all except for sex, the girl saw a strong possibility of commitment, romantic ideals, and marriage. The sadness is that these couple will not see the consequence until it too late. In this writing, love is like licorice, which it is bitter. "Hills like White Elephants" must not simply be read, it must be read thoroughly to understand the clue that Ernest Hemingway conveyed to the reader.