Analysis of Hemingway’s Indian Camp

This essay analyzes Ernest Hemingway's short story 'Indian Camp,' arguing that Uncle George is the biological father of the newborn. It examines the story's figurative language, symbolism, and Hemingway's views on primitivism, while referencing various academic interpretations. The analysis highlights the complexities of the characters and the narrative's deeper meanings, particularly in relation to Nick Adams' coming of age.

Running Head: HEMINGWAY’S INDIAN CAMP 1
Hemingway’s Indian Camp
Student
Institution

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For my final essay I will be focusing on Ernest Hemingway’s (1987) “Indian Camp”. I
will argue that the main conception of the scenario is mistaken. I will explain how the biological
father of the new born is actually Uncle George. I will be looking at figurative language from
inside the story and will also be focusing on Hemingway’s primitivism to prove my thesis. I will
be using academic information by Scott Donaldson (1995) and Jeffrey Meyers (2010) to provide
a new concept of the short story. The story has attracted various interpretations according to the
events that unfold in it.
The story was authored in 1924. “Indian Camp” story contains two outrageous incidents;
the doctor performing a caesarian operation on a woman using a jackknife without aesthetic and
the silent suicide committed by the husband. The suicide action seems gratuitous in the context
of the given situation; it is too extreme but it does not attempt to explain the behavior of the
Indian. With regard to the attitude of Hemingway towards primitive people and his knowledge
on anthropology, I would interpret that he explains the most challenging feature of the story; the
reason why the husband remains in the bunk of the shanty in all the two days when his wife has
been screaming of the labor pains and why he does not attempt to leave the room if he cannot
stomach her shrieks and agonizing pain (Meyers, 1988). Despite his deeply cut leg, he could
have either limped or even screamed to alert other people on the condition of his wife if he had
wished to and join other men. The story reflects on the ambiguous attitude of Hemingway
towards primitivism and noted his success in describing the primitiveness. The interpretation of
the story show the limitations of new critical readings and Hemingway criticism in the last thirty
five years. The obvious explanation justifying the reason why the Indian committed suicide is
provided in the story as “He couldn’t stand things, I guess” this statement has been used dutiful
by more than twenty critics from 1951 to 1983.

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Uncle George character timeline appearance in the “Indian Story” contain some evident
that he is actually the biological father of the new born baby. For example, Uncle George in the
company of Nick Adams and father of Nick arrive at the lake’s shore where “two Indians” were
waiting with rowboats, when Nick’s father begun a Caesarian section to deliver the baby, three
Native American men and Uncle George hold the Indian woman down and the woman bit Uncle
George on the arm (Donaldson, 1995). Finally, he proudly congratulates Nick’s father for
performing a C-section with a jack knife and sewing it up with nine-foot, tapered gut leaders.
The role of Uncle George in the “Indian Camp” story is mysterious. Based on the mentioned
activities, there is no clear purpose why he accompanied Nick and his father to the camp to
deliver the baby. Also, some of the behaviors portrayed by Uncle George show some familiarity
of the place (Wyatt, 2015). For example, he is smoking cigar on the way to the camp and on his
arrival, he hands the cigar to two Indian men. The biting of the woman may be taken to be a
gesture indication of an expression of blame and anger to the father of the baby who is about to
be born or release of pressure of a woman who is experiencing intense pain.
In a nutshell, the “Indian Camp” story was written with symbolism and other figurative
language that are important in narrating Hemingway stories. His stories are simple and with full
and rich of hidden meanings. For instance, it is seen that Nick is being introduced into adulthood.
This is portrayed from the beginning of the story when “they got into the stern of the boat” and
“crossed over” from one region to another. In this case, the water is not only used to describe the
means of travel but also the cycle of life from birth to death (Raleigh, 2016). After visiting the
Indian Camp, on their way back, the author uses “The sun was coming up over the hills”. This is
symbolic as it may mean the new start for Nick after the initiation to adulthood. Furthermore,

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when they arrived in the camp, the lantern was blew out to indicate the change to darkness and a
figurative separation for Nick. This means that he is not positioned to comfort anymore.

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References
Donaldson, S. (1995). Hemingway and Suicide. The Sewanee Review, 103(2), 287-295.
Meyers, J. (1988). Hemingway's Primitivism and "Indian Camp". Twentieth Century Literature,
34(2), 211-222.
Raleigh, B. M. (2016). Selected Nick Adams Stories: Ernest Hemingway’s Sense of Place.
Wyatt, D. (2015). Hemingway, Style, and the Art of Emotion. Cambridge University Press.