Hills Like White Elephants

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

“The Lost Generation” is a name given to the group of people who came of age around the time of World War I (1917). Why might this generation be called “lost”? Which authors are considered part of this group? How is their writing generally characterized?

Teaching Suggestion: Many students may be unfamiliar with “The Lost Generation.” It may be helpful to explain that the story takes place in the wake of devastating global conflict that cost millions of lives and left a shattered sense of meaning for many disoriented souls who survived it. If students are unfamiliar with the group of artists and writers living in Paris during the 1920s who are most closely associated with “The Lost Generation,” it might be helpful to first brainstorm a list of familiar novels, poems, or short stories by  Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Stein, Eliot, Miller, or other Lost Generation writers.

• Biography of Hemingway - This 3.5-minute video provides a brief overview of Hemingway’s life and career.
• “Write Like Hemingway” This 6-minute video explores the minimalist style of writing characterized by Hemingway.

Short Activity

Write a truly minimalist short story—in 15 words or fewer.

Teaching Suggestion: It might be helpful to break down a few examples of minimalist stories  first through a series of questions: What is happening at the beginning? The middle? The end? What details will you let your readers know for sure? What details will you let them fill in for themselves? After discussion, give students about 5 minutes to formulate their stories, then ask students to share their stories with the class.

• You might reference “Your 13-Word Love Stories” and share a few for inspiration. (Subscription may be needed for access.)
• “Can You Tell Your Life Story in Exactly Six Words?” from NPR uses Ernest Hemingway’s famous six-word story as an example for others to follow as they write their six-word memoirs. After reading several of the entries from submitters from all walks of life, students may feel more empowered to tackle their own 15-word challenge.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students who benefit from strategies toward improving writing competence, writing skills, and motivation may question where to begin. It might be helpful to remind them that all stories have a beginning, a middle, an end, and some sort of problem. Offering a number of pre-determined categories, such as a favorite memory, a great achievement, or a disappointment, might be helpful as well. If further scaffolding is required, they may also choose to work with a partner to retell a famous story, such as that of Cinderella or a recent story from class.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the story.

Think of a time when you had to make a decision that could potentially impact the rest of your life. How did you go about making the decision? Write a brief description of your decision-making process.

Teaching Suggestion: If students are struggling to find a topic about which to write, consider having a list of decisions most young adults are faced with available for them to peruse. Some topics might include going to college, working, dating, military service, and money management.