Themes and message

Change

In the short story “The End of Something”, Ernest Hemingway explores the theme of change. The theme is hinted at in the title, which suggests that the story will present an important and permanent change. While the title is vague, the choice of words hints that something will come to an end and suggests that anything can be subjected to change. 

First, the theme of change is illustrated in the way Hortons Bay has transformed after the collapse of the lumber industry. From a town where nobody “was out of sound of the big saws in the mill by the lake” (l. 2), Hortons Bay has become deserted after the collapse of the mill. The story shows that the community has changed and was forced to adapt, as everything “stood deserted in the acres of sawdust that covered the swampy meadow by the shore of the bay” (ll. 17-18).

Then, the theme of change is illustrated by Nick an...