Gabriela Buraglia

A.B.E #5 and #6
Hemingway, Ernest. “The End of Something.” Repeat After Us. Ellie Wen, n.d. Web. 28 October.
2010.

In this short story, two young lovers fall out of step and realize that love doesn’t always last
forever. The boyfriend Nick and the girlfriend Marjorie seem to have once shared a deep connection,
but as the story unravels it is evident that the spark they use to share has died out. The ending to Ernest
Hemingway’s story conveys the message that all things in life have a beginning and an end. This
generalization includes love, especially when it’s young and naive, as it was in the story. Hemingway
argues that although love may seem everlasting and powerful it too has the vulnerability to cease. He
writes, “They sat on a blanket without touching each other and watched the moon rise.” The author
suggests that sometimes the end of love is inevitable. This concludes that love may be powerful, yet not
powerful enough to surpass the natural cycle of endings and beginnings. The simplistic nature yet deep
moral makes this story noticeable among others. In addition, the meaningful analogy between the end
of the relationship and the end of the small town’s lumber factory also helps this story stand out.
Hemingway asserts, “There was nothing of the mill left except the broken white limestone of its
foundations.” This relates to the end of the relationship and the broken hearts it left behind. These
characteristics and the author’s creative way of explaining the story make “The End of Something” an
enduring classic that will be enjoyed for decades to come.

“Helen Fisher studies the brain in love.”Ted Talks. The Sapling Foundation. Jul. 2008. Web. 1
November. 2010.

Helen Fisher is an experienced scientist who studies the brain. She explains the direct toll love
takes on the brain. Illustrating that people both in love or recently dumped have activity in their A10
cells, furthermore asserting that this creates an addiction type feeling within the brain. Helen Fisher
defends that love is still mystical and romantic as it has been since the beginning of human nature, yet
science also is involved in the process. Fisher’s research illustrates that love is really an uncontrollable
feeling, and that you can’t help who your brain becomes attached to. This speech indicates that love is
something that you feel with every part of you, you can’t prevent it, and you can’t choose it. It’s a part
of life that just happens without warning or instructions. Although the speech uses many technical
terms and statics that make it seem like a scientific discourse. It manages to obtain a balance between
the scientific and romantic sides of love. This is accomplished by the moving love quotes sprinkled
throughout the speech, such as, “Fire runs through my body with the pain of loving you, pain runs
through my body with the fires of my love for you.” –anonymous Kwakutl Indian of southern Alaska to a
missionary. This interesting balance of two controversial aspects of the topic classifies this speech as an
influential classic.