Gender Roles In Hills Like White Elephants And Story Of An Hour

Today we are comparing two stories that are like each other. In both stories, women are treated as though they are fragile or have no seniority. Women were not allowed to live a life themselves because there was no such thing as a woman living by herself. A women’s role was to perform tasks, and daily routines in a relationship as men tell them to do so. In many stories, women discover their identity to live a free life. Hemingway’s “Hills like White Elephants” and Chopin’s “Story of an Hour” is a perfect illustration of gender roles.
In the story "Hills like White Elephants," to be arguing over a beer about whether the girl (his girlfriend) should have an abortion. The American man wants his girlfriend to have the abortion, but on the other hand, the girl wants to keep the baby. While waiting for the train the American man pretends to care about her by giving her options, but he feels that having a baby would tie him down. He says it will consume too much of his time. With his self-centered and heartless attitude, he tries doing everything he can to manipulate her into an abortion sweetly. The girl, on the other hand, is aware that her boyfriend wants her to terminate the pregnancy because of his selfish reasons. She feels powerless against him because she loves him. However, she is weaker than the narrator in the “Story of an Hour” …show more content…
In the “Hills of White Elephants,” the women continue to want to live a free life even after her husband returns. Her husband could not change her mind about wanting to be free from him. In “Story of an Hour” the girl continues to change her mind throughout the story. In the beginning, she continuously argues with her man, but as the story progresses, she begins to open to the idea of abortion due to the convincing words of her boyfriend. Toward the end of the story, the girl changes her mind about getting an abortion because she is aware that the man is trying to convince