Characters

The short story “The End of Something” by Ernest Hemingway focuses on the relationship between Nick and Marjorie, the main characters. At the beginning of the story, Nick and Marjorie are a couple, but they break up before the story ends. The relationship is tense from the start, and the story offers the readers hints that the two might break up. Nick is distant, commanding, and sarcastic, while Marjorie is the romantic one. The two seem to be having communication problems.

Bill, Nick’s friend, appears towards the end of the story, after Nick and Marjorie’s breakup. Bill is not an active character in the story but only functions as a hint that the breakup was previously planned.

You can read a full characterization of Nick and Marjorie in the following pages.