"The Killers" by Ernest Hemingway

Summary

Ernest Hemingway's Twentieth Century short story "The Killers" takes place in the small town of Summit. The story begins with two characters named Al and Max who enter into a restaurant called Henry's lunch-room. George, the waiter, greeted them and gave them each a menu. The men wanted to order food that was not available and were becoming angry with George. A man named Nick Adams sat there watching and eating quietly.

Trouble Can Follow a Man. . .

It is apparent that Al and Max are out for trouble when they begin to start insulting the waiter calling him 'bright boy,' and start making fun of the town. As soon as Al and Max realize there is someone cooking, they ask who the man was, using a very racist word. Al and Max eventually show their guns, and start asking questions, and demanding answers. They tell everyone in the restaurant that they are going to kill a 'Swede' named Ole Anderson. George said that Ole comes in sometimes, and asked why they wanted to kill Ole.

Nick Adams. . .

The Hit men's response is key to the story, they said: "He never had a chance to do anything to us. He never even seen us." This quote is very important because it tells the reader that these men are indeed hired assassins, and that there is something about Ole Anderson's past that we do not yet know about. Right after this Max stated: "We're killing them for a friend. Just to oblige a friend, bright boy?" Eventually Max and Al realized that Ole was not showing up, and decided to leave. Afterwards they leave, Nick Adams speaks for the first time, and he agreed to go visit Ole and warn him about the imminent danger he is in.

Ole Anderson...

Nick goes to Ole's rooming house, and warns Ole about the danger he is facing. As Nick walked into Ole's room, he saw Ole in his bed that was too small for his prize-fighting heavyweight boxer build. Ole was a known boxer, which probably had something to do with the reason he was being hunted. Nick immediately warned Ole about the trouble that he was in, and Ole simply looked at the wall, and did not respond at first. After a moment's pause Ole says: "There isn't anything I can do about it." Nick and Ole discussed his options, and Ole simply did not want to do anything about it, and stated: "I'm through with all that running around." Ole stayed in bed, and accepted his fate.

Themes and Meanings

A very important theme in the story is 'one's past.' Ole Anderson's past obviously came back to haunt him, and he could not escape his past. Ole clearly ran from his troubles in the past, and than came to the realization at the end of the story that he simply cannot keep on running away from his past: "I'm through with all that running around."

The Human Condition plays a key role in Nick Adams gaining experience, and becoming more mature. Nick Adams was the only man who actually got involved in the situation, by going to Ole's house and warning him about the trouble he is facing. The reason Nick probably did this was because he was naive, and very young.

The artwork on the right is a piece by an amateur artist, and it is called "The Human Condition." "The Human Condition" fits in perfectly with Hemmingway's theme, which has to do with Nick Adams' maturity and growth.

The video below is to represent Ole Anderson, because he to was a boxer. I thought that the clip below would fit in well with the story because of Ole's profession.