The Killers

I denne study guide kan du få hjælp til at analysere novellen "The Killers" af Ernest Hemingway. Udover analysehjælpen kan du finde et summary af teksten samt idéer til fortolkning og perspektivering.

Præsentation af teksten

Titel: “The Killers” (1927)
Forfatter: Ernest Hemingway
Genre: Short story

Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) var amerikansk forfatter og journalist, som både er kendt for sine romaner og noveller. Mange af hans værker betragtes som amerikanske klassikere, og i 1954 vandt han Nobelprisen i litteratur.

Hemingway er kendt for sin minimalistiske skrivestil, som han kaldte for 'the Iceberg Theory'. Denne stilart var inspireret af hans journalistiske arbejde og byggede på en tanke om at beskrive overfladeelementerne i en historie i simpelt sprog, mens de dybere lag blev gemt væk og krævede fortolkning fra læserenes side.

Novellen "The Killers" blev udgivet første gang i 1927 i tidsskriftet Scribner's Magazine. Den er en af Hemingways såkaldte Nick Adams fortællinger, som alle involverer samme hovedperson.

Uddrag

Nedenfor kan du se et kort uddrag fra vores study guide til novellen:

Title

The title of the short story “The Killers” is straightforward, as it suggests that the story revolves around killers. Readers learn that the killers are a pair of men called Al and Max, who come to the town of Summit and wait for a Swedish man named Ole Andreson in Henry’s lunchroom. The two plan to kill Andreson on behalf of a friend. Several details in the story, such as Andreson being a former heavyweight prize-fighter (l. 221), and the assumption that he double-crossed someone in Chicago (l. 283), suggest that Al and Max are involved in the organised crime scene in Chicago.

However, the meaning of the title is also symbolic. This is subtly indicated by several details in the story. For example, although readers can assume that they are hit men who have probably killed before, Al and Max do not kill anyone in the story. Ole Andreson does not show up at Henry’s lunchroom, so Al and Max decide to let their hostages (George, Sam, and Nick Adams) go and leave the lunchroom without harming anyone.