Q.

1 Discuss the elements of horror in the story The Killers by Ernest

Hemingway. OR The Killers is full of suspense and horror. Elaborate
The Killers is a story that deals with the familiar Hemingway themes of courage,
disillusionment, death, and futility. This was the landscape of the American psyche at the time. I
think much of the suspense comes through language. "The Killers" uses language that is simple
and repetitive, emphasizing both the intellectual simplicity of the characters and the suspense of
the situation. The exchange of short, sharp phrases between the killers and the three occupants of
Henrys diner has been likened to the exchange of machine-gun fire, and the atmosphere of the
story is much akin to that of the hard-boiled genre that was popularized both in print and in film
during the 1940s.
The story The Killers is full of elements of horror. When we read the story, we find that the
elements of horror are very dominant and the suspense in the story is at peak.
Firstly, we find horror when the killers make the members of the staff of hostages. Al takes Nick
and Sam to the kitchen at the gunpoint. He ties them back-to-back. He gags them with towels.
Max stays with George at the counter. Al threatens George indirectly that he would blow his
head off.
Secondly, when the killers go back, Al asks Max, What about the two bright boys and the
nigger? Actually, he wants to kill the members of the staff of the restaurant, but Max does not
agree.
Thirdly, the helpless condition of Ole is very fearful. He looks so much helpless that the reader
takes pity on him. Oles condition is very horrible. He is waiting for his death.
Fourthly, the talk between George and Nick also creates horror. Nick is so much afraid that he
wants to leave the town. He says, Im going out of this town. At this George says, Thats
good thing to do. Sam is so afraid that he does not want to listen to anything relating to Ole and
the killers.