The story was published in 1927 in a collection of short stories. Im pretty sure women drank and even smoked while pregnant up until the mid 70s. I really sympathized with the woman character in this story, it really seemed as though she did not want the abortion or whatever it was that they were contimplating. In my opinion they were discussing whether or not to get an abortion, and to me it seemed as though she wanted to keep the baby and be a family. The man is pressuring her to have the operation by saying that he "knows they will be happy after, just like before." That this is "the only thing that bothers us. Its the only thing that has made us unhappy." He has a negative attitude about the situation they are in seeing the operation as the only solution while the woman is more optimistic saying, "Doesnt it mean anything to you? We could get along." To me she is saying that they could be happy or manage life with a baby. This story was really rather sad to me, because it really seems that this story is showing how many women let themselves be talked into or out of situations by the men they love, with the men using their love as collatoral, saying "we'll be happy again like before."

I just feel that even though a contentious topic in America, abortion has become far too easy and open and I believe this story showed just that. Because the conversation is so public and the thoughts of the characters are too I just find that it speaks to the ease in which abortions are had these days. My thoughts on the situation are moot in the matter but I do believe it shows the state of abortion in society and how open it has become.

While I had a good grasp on the plot and symbolism throughout the story, I still had trouble grasping the meaning of the title. I went online and did a little research and discovered the meaning of a "White Elephant". According to Wikipedia.org a White Elephant is "a supposedly valuable possession whose cost (particularly cost of upkeep) exceeds its usefulness". While at the time of reading the title seemed a bit odd, it now ties the whole story together for me. Just like the above mentioned coming of the train and differences in the quality of the soil, the White Elephant is a metaphor the child that the man does not want this woman to bear, whether it be for economic reasons or to avoid social burdens.

I did notice the symbolism between the 2 sides of the landscape. I agree that it represented two extremes, whether it be the decision to end the pregnancy, or something to do with the conflict at hand (i.e. dry land: the end of the relationship without the procedure; fertile countryside: the continuance of the relationship with the procedure). I also found there was some relevance to the fact that he was a white man and she was not white. While they never reveal her heritage, it may be that she feels pressure to go through with the abortion because he may leave her for someone else (perhaps a white woman?).

One thing I notice about this story was how almost the entire story is based on the two characters' conversation. The reader has to draw all of his/her conclusions about what is going on from clues within their conversation, and Hemingway leaves much of the plot up to reader's imagination. It became clear pretty quickly that the male was trying to pressure the female into something that she was unsure about. As I got to end of the story and realize that it was about abortion, I went back and read it again and realized all the symbolism that Hemingway uses. The arrival of the train represents whether she will get the abortion or not. Also, they constantly ask on when the train is going to come. This could symbolize how much time she actually has to get the abortion before it is too late. One other thing I noticed was the difference in the landscapes on each side of the station. One side is dry and barren, while the other side is full of trees and fields of grain along the bank of a river. The barren side could represent the boredom of their relationship now, and the other side could represent all that is possible if she does have the baby. However, the male is constantly persuading her that everything will be alright when she goes through with it. The story ends without them getting on the train and leaves the result of their conversation up in the air.