In the short story, "A Clean Well Lighted Place", Hemingway explores his existential beliefs concerning the reasons for human existence. He sets the story during the Spanish civil war and employs three characters to communicate his views. In the story Hemingway espouses his belief that human beings should not deny their desires, arguing that true happiness lies in the individual's ability to live their life with a sense of personal dignity. He proposes that religion is a lie and offers human beings false hope.
             He constructs three characters who are identified by their age and occupation. These three men are symbolic representations of human beings at different stages of their lives. The old man is retired and nearing the end of his life, the young waiter's career is only just beginning and the middle-aged waiter is represents the transitory phase between youth and senescence. Hemingway's representation of the three men draws, the reader's attention to these key aspects of age and profession. The old man has lived his life and although he is wealthy, he has realised that this world has nothing more to offer him and the next world doesn't exist. His wife has died and he is an inconvenience to the rest of his family:
             "He hung himself with a rope."
             His niece saves him because she feared for his soul. This suggests that if there had not been a religious concern, there would have been little concern for the welfare of the old man. As a result, the old man is content to stay late in the café and drink. However, although he is inebriated, the old man still conducts himself with dignity: "The waiter watched him go down the street, a very old man walking unsteadily but with dignity."
             The younger waiter is disgusted by the old man's presence, failing to acknowledge the inevitable nature
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