A Clean Well-Lighted Place – Literary Analysis

Setting

There seems to be some confusion on the Internet as to when A Clean Well-Lighted Place was first published. Some sources say 1926, others 1933. We can identify that it was published in the March, 1933 edition of Scribners magazine and, later that year, included in Hemingway’s short story collection Winner Take Nothing. We haven’t been able to locate a publication source for 1926. Moreover, if the story had indeed been published in 1926, we would have expected it to have been included in Hemingway’s 1927 short story collection Men Without Women.

The story takes place in Spain, and the only date indicator in the text is reference to a soldier: A girl and a soldier went by in the street. The street light shone on the brass number on his collar. “The guard will pick him up,” one waiter said. This suggests that the soldier is on active duty and that the story takes place during a period of war or civil unrest. If so, it is likely that the time-frame for the story is the early stages of the Second Spanish Republic, which was proclaimed in April, 1931.

The events occur in an unnamed city over a single night night. Most of the action involves two waiters working in a clean, brightly lit cafe who observe and discuss an old man who is their only remaining customer. The fact that the cafe is clean and well-lit is critical to the story. The cleanliness indicates that it is a place in which the old man can sit and drink with dignity. The brightness provides a barrier against the feelings of emptiness and despair that he experiences in the dark. Toward the end of the story there is a brief interaction as one of the waiters stops for a drink in a bodega on his way home. Although well-lit, the bodega is not clean and he must stand at the bar. In contrast to the cafe, this is not a dignified place to drink.

The night-time setting is important because this is often a time of reflection where thoughts and feelings about one’s life can become amplified in the darkness. Although we only experience one night in the lives of the three main characters, we are left with the thought that this same scene will be replayed night after night into the future.

Point of View and Tone

In common with many Hemingway short stories, A Clean Well-Lighted Place is told in the third person by a combination of an omniscient narrator and the dramatic method. In the dramatic method, we only see what characters say and not what may be behind their words. This leaves many aspects of the story open to the reader’s interpretation.

For the most part the tone is objective and non-judgmental; the narrator is reporting the facts and conversation as he/she observes them. There are two exceptions towards the end of the story as the narrator relates the thoughts and feelings of the older waiter. The first is after the two waiters say goodnight. Here the tone becomes philosophical as the narrator discusses the old man’s feelings of “nothingness”: It was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too… and then goes on to dismiss the value of religion: Our nada who art in nada…. The second exception comes in the last paragraph where the tone becomes sympathetic as the older waiter rationalizes his sleeping problems as a common medical disorder: After all, he said to himself, it’s probably only insomnia. Many must have it.

Themes

The major themes of the story are:

Attitudes towards the aged: The lack of understanding, empathy and respect shown by some younger people for those much older. I wouldn’t want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing.
The “nothingness”: The emptiness and despair experienced by people for whom life has little meaning or purpose.
Aging and death: The young waiter and soldier live for the moment; the older waiter can’t find a meaning and purpose in his life; the old man is tired of life and ready to die.

Minor themes of the story are:

Gender stereotyping: It is suggested that the girl with the soldier is a prostitute, and that he walks as if he doesn’t want people to think they are together. The girl wore no head covering and hurried beside him. “The guard will pick him up,” one waiter said. “What does it matter if he gets what he’s after?” Later, the young waiter tells us that he is not lonely because he has a wife waiting in bed (as opposed to waiting at home). He continues the implication that women are sex objects by saying that a wife would be no good to the old man.
Money doesn’t necessarily bring happiness: The old man is said to have plenty of money. However, despite this, he has tried to kill himself and sits alone until late most nights drinking in the cafe.

Characters and Conflict

The Protagonist: The older waiter. A lonely, middle aged man for whom dignity is important. He shows empathy towards other people such as the old man (and himself) who fear the darkness. He sees little meaning or purpose in life and rejects Christian beliefs.
The Antagonist: The young waiter. Confident and aggressive in an unpleasant way. He is selfish, putting what he wants to do above others, and shows little respect or compassion for the aged. He is also sexist, regarding women primarily as sex objects.
Minor characters: 1. The old man, a heavy drinker who values his dignity but is tired of life and suicidal. He provides the older waiter with an insight into what his life may be like in old age. 2. The soldier, young, rebellious and out to enjoy life’s pleasures. 3. The old man’s niece and carer, who saves him from hanging because of her Christian beliefs “Why did they (she) do it?” … “Fear for his soul.” 4. The barman in the bodega, whose words Otro loco mas (another crazy person) emphasize the fact that a bodega is not a dignified place to drink.
Internal Conflict: 1. The old man’s struggle against the despair that led to his attempted suicide. 2. The older waiter’s struggle against the “nothingness”.
External Conflicts: The young waiter’s desire for the old man to go home and the older waiter to close the cafe early. (Man vs. Man)

Dramatic Structure and Mood

Exposition: Description of the setting and the waiters’ discussions about the old man, the soldier and the girl. Mood – expectant.
Rising Action: The young waiter’s rudeness in serving the old man his last drink, his refusal to serve the old man a further drink, and the discussions leading up to closure of the cafe. Mood – annoyed.
Climax: When the old waiter reveals that he, too, experiences the “nothingness” and has lost faith in religion. Mood – unsettled.
Falling Action: The short time that the old waiter spent in the bodega, hoping to find another clean, well-lighted place. Mood – disappointed.
Denouement: The old waiter returns home and tries to convince himself that his real problem is insomnia. Mood – sad.

Examples of Literary Techniques

Imagery: The picture of an old man who sat in the shadow (of) the leaves of the tree is repeated several times during the story. He doesn’t sit in the bright light, but rather hides in the shadows half way between darkness and light, looking out at the rest of the world. The old waiter sees the existence of shadows as being a positive thing: This is a clean and pleasant cafe. It is well-lighted. The light is very good and also, now, there are shadows of the leaves.
Metaphor: The old man’s deafness is a metaphor for isolation; he is deaf to the world. He wasn’t born deaf (as he can speak) and, although he may be hard of hearing because of age, he is likely to be able to hear some words but chooses to ignore them.
Satire: The old waiter’s parody of the Lord’s Prayer and Hail Mary makes fun of religion because it no longer provides a meaning for his life: Our nada who art in nada, nada be thy name… Hail nothing full of nothing, nothing is with thee.
Symbolism: 1) The darkness represents emptiness and despair (“nothingness”). 2) The cafe (a clean well-lighted place) is a temporary sanctuary against the darkness. 3. Cleanness represents dignity. Light alone cannot fight off the darkness. It can only be fought off if one lives with dignity: light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order.