Hemingway's short story Indian Camp introduces the theme of masculinity. A theme often refers outward from the fictional world to the world of real-life experience. He takes a typical female situation, in a female space, and turns it into a male-dominated situation. Although this short story is about a childbirth, it focuses on the experience of the doctor and his son, rather than the woman. The woman doesn't seem to even have a role in the operation/birth.
The story begins with Nick and his father getting into a rowboat, and an Indian shoving them off the edge and getting in to row them. Uncle George follows closely behind in another rowboat. Nick asks his father, "Where are we going, Dad?" His father replies telling him that they are going over to the Indian camp that a women is very sick. This woman had been trying to have her baby for two days now. All the old women in the camp had been trying to help her. Here is where we begin to see the masculine atmosphere the men had "moved off up the road to sit in the dark and smoke out of range of the noise she made." (293) This shows how the men don't want to partake in the childbirth. Even the husband keeps to himself he was located in the upper bunk above her smoking a pipe. Once Nick and his father arrive, Nick's father ordered that some water be put on the stove. The father talks to Nick throughout the entire operation telling Nick things such as, "Nick this lady is going to have a baby," "What she is going through is something called being in labor," "See, it's a boy Nick, how do you like being an interne?" (293) The entire birth scene becomes all about Nick, and his father educating him on his work, and making sure Nick's okay. Nothing is mentioned about the woman's state. After the birth Uncle George and Nick's father have a exuberant celebration over the "job well done" being that once again the birth begins to focus on the doctors experience. The doctor makes the comment that they should check on the "proud father" being that they're usually the worst sufferers in these little affairs. He says "I must say he took it all pretty quietly." We quickly learn this is because the father committed suicide. This could possibly be an example of the man acting in a feminine manner. Nick's father could not think much of this man's courage because he brought his young son to see what the father could not stand. We see male behavior from the doctor when he does not hesitate to examine the state of the man's body, and Uncle George we assume disturbed from the situation simply withdraws himself from the scene. This endurance of pain or hardship without a display of feelings or complaint, is what Nick's father seems to want to teach Nick. He doesn't give long explanations to Nick's questions, he seems to treat the situation with silence himself (strong silent masculinity).
Also we see the tie in of Nick beginning to take a step toward maturity. Initially when he gets in the rowboat he is laying back with his fathers arms wrapped around him. The author makes note that it was "cold on the water." By the time they leave Nick is in the stern, while his father rows. Nick "trails his hand in the water...it felt warm in the sharp chill of the morning." (295) This shows how Nick has matured through this situation. While the operation was occurring and his father tells him he may look, the author emphasizes how Nick was "looking away," "Nick didn't look at it," and "Nick did not watch." His curiosity had been gone for a long time. As they are leaving Nick asks his father, "Is dying hard?" His father tells him he thinks it's pretty easy it just all depends. This situation has allowed Nick to mature and the authors leaves us with Nick feeling quite sure that he would never die.
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