In Ernest Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-lighted Place," many different stylistic elements are used. The most prominent, however, is his use of dialogue. He uses dialogue to develop the characters and to differentiate between their mentalities of living. He does this, however, in a way that can be somewhat baffling at times to the reader.
             Ambiguity- that is what causes the reader confusion. By definition, it means doubtfulness or uncertainty; this is what Hemingway creates with his dialogue. He, on many occasions, does not convey to the reader which waiter is speaking when. He leaves the reader to infer as to who is speaking where. His intentions through this "technique", although unknown, have been speculated by many and some answers have been extracted.
             Hemingway also, at one point, changes speakers to where the dialogue, instead of going back and forth, alternating with each line, the same speaker has two lines of dialogue in a row. This further confuses the reader, but also makes a point: if it doesn't really matter what order the speakers are in, are the speakers really two different people? Hemingway, in using ambiguity of speakers, leaves the door open for the prospect of one person actually having conflicting views with himself- that there are two sides that he believes but they greatly contrast each other.
             So, although the dialogue may seem confusing, there is a point and a purpose to Hemingway's use of this ambiguity. Whether to convey a certain point or to just make the reader think and infer more into the story, this stylistic technique is definitely the main technique used in the story.
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