The Killers by Ernest Hemingway
"The Killers" is a short story by Ernest Hemingway that presents a tense scenario involving two gangsters, Al and Max, who enter a diner in Summit, Illinois. Their objective is to kill Ole Andreson, a man they believe has wronged someone in Chicago. The narrative begins with the gangsters attempting to order dinner, but the plot quickly escalates as they take the diner’s only other customer, Nick Adams, and the cook, Sam, hostage.
As the gangsters wait for Ole, who never arrives, the story explores themes of fate, inevitability, and moral complicity. When Nick learns of the impending danger, he rushes to warn Ole, who, however, resignedly acknowledges his fate and refuses to seek help. This encounter highlights the psychological tension and despair surrounding Ole's situation, as well as Nick's internal struggle with the reality of violence and helplessness. Ultimately, the story concludes on a somber note, with Nick feeling overwhelmed by the weight of the situation and contemplating his own escape from the grim atmosphere of the diner. "The Killers" thus serves as a poignant reflection on human vulnerability and the harsh realities of life.
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The Killers by Ernest Hemingway
First published: 1927
Type of plot: Social realism
Time of work: The Prohibition era
Locale: Summit, Illinois
Principal Characters:
Nick Adams , a young boy traveling on his ownOle Andreson , a former prizefighter who has incurred the enmity of the mobGeorge , a counterman in a small dinerSam , a black cook in the dinerAl , a gangsterMax , another gangster
The Story
The story begins abruptly with two gangsters, Al and Max, entering a small diner in the town of Summit, Illinois, near Chicago. They try to order dinner, but George, the counterman, tells them that the dinner menu will not be available until six o'clock. After asking for eggs with ham and bacon, the two gangsters order the only other customer in the place, Nick Adams, to go behind the counter with George. Next they ask who is in the kitchen, and they are told that the only other person there is Sam, the black cook. They tell George to have him come out. Al takes Nick and Sam into the kitchen, where he ties and gags them; then he props up the slit where dishes are passed through from the kitchen and positions himself with a sawed-off shotgun aimed at the counter, while Max remains at the counter talking to George. He tells George that they are going to kill Ole Andreson, a Swede who usually comes into the diner at six.
They wait until after seven for Ole Andreson, who never comes in, and they finally leave, with Al concealing the shotgun under his coat. George goes into the kitchen and unties the other two. He tells Nick where Andreson lives and advises him to go and warn him. Nick goes to Andreson's boardinghouse, and, after speaking to the woman who looks after the place, he goes to Ole's room, where he finds Ole lying in bed. When Nick asks Ole if he should go and tell the police, Ole tells him not to, that it would not do any good, and he rolls over in the bed toward the wall, saying he "got in wrong," and that there is nothing he can do to save himself.
Nick then returns to the diner, where he tells George and Sam what Ole said. Sam says that he does not want to hear it and shuts the kitchen door. George says that Ole must have double-crossed someone from Chicago, and Nick says that he "can't stand to think about him waiting in the room and knowing he's going to get it," and that he is going to get out of town. George tells him that that is a good thing to do, and that he had better not think about Ole's dilemma.
Bibliography
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