What is the use of symbolism in writing? Does it simply serve to confuse the reader or is its true intent to make the reader think about the meaning of the story? A symbol is a person, object, or event that suggests something more than its literal meaning (Meyer 220). In Ernest Hemingway's short story "Hills Like White Elephants," Hemingway uses a plethora of symbols to convey the idea that the young girl, Jig, is ambivalent about abortion and that her older American boyfriend does not want to have the baby. Although the word abortion is never used in the story, the reader understands the concept through Hemingway's symbolism. As the story begins, Jig and her boyfriend are waiting for a train in the Ebro Valley. They didn't take a car or any other usual means of transportation. So the train means choice. On a train, the tracks can only lead in one direction or go in the opposite direction, which means Jig hasn't made a decision about what he's going to do. At the end of the story we still don't know what Jig will do or which train he will take. Furthermore, the Ebro valley is crossed by a river, the river that represents life, the life of the child. Right now, Jig doesn't know if she'll keep the unexpected pregnancy and her boyfriend wants their life to be the way it was before, without the pregnancy. However, the final decision is up to Jig. The use of the words "everything" and "nothing" also has meaning throughout the story. The boy constantly tells Jig, “it's really nothing” (615). He feels that the baby growing in Jig's belly is nothing; that he doesn't even consider it as a part of himself. He doesn't want the baby and has put it out of his mind. However... middle of paper... and the power to resolve the situation, only Jig can make the decision. Words, drinks and many other objects have been used as symbols in this story. Jig must make the undesirable choice: abort the child she is carrying or let it live, and in the end we still don't know what she will do. The man tries to support Jig, but is not up to it due to his own feelings. He doesn't want the baby and will say or do almost anything to make Jig feel the same way. Then Jig will believe that if he aborts the baby "everything will be fine" (616), however, not "everything" will be fine. Work cited# Hemingway, Ernest. “Hills like white elephants”. The Norton anthology of short fiction. Ed. RV Cassill. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 1981. 613-617.# “Symbolism.” Bedford's introduction to literature. Ed. Michael Mayer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin. 2002. 220.