Once, in a physical science class, my professor showed the students a diagram of the three-pronged iceberg that sank the Titanic . A peer of mine immediately said: “How did that small iceberg sink a huge ship?” My teacher let the class argue back and forth for a while before zooming in on the diagram to reveal a huge mass of ice beneath the surface of the water. He then went on to explain that less than 10% of an iceberg is above the surface of the water. Ernest Hemingway shapes his writing in the shape of an iceberg. Hemingway's writing style, called “Iceberg Theory,” divulges essential facts to understand the plot without explicitly stating the underlying structure, allowing the reader to perceive the details of the story. Hemingway demonstrates the “iceberg theory” in his memoir Moveable Feast. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In one instance in Moveable Feast, Hemingway uses the "iceberg theory" to reveal a character's disposition through symbolism. This theory prevails in Hemingway's comparison of Scott Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda, to that of a hawk. Hemingway says, “Zelda had the eyes of a hawk…” (Hemingway 154). In this reference, Hemingway helps the reader visualize Zelda's physical attributes and mental makeup without directly expressing her appearance or state of mind. Because hawks typically have small, black eyes, the eyes almost give the hawk a sense of emptiness; similarly, the reader can imagine the void in Zelda's mind by visualizing the void behind her eyes. After Zelda's peculiar statement that a celebrity named Al Jolson was greater than Jesus, Hemingway says, “It was only Zelda's secret that she shared with me, as a hawk might share something with a man. But hawks don't share” (160). In this passage, Hemingway provides the audience with vital information about Zelda's character. However, the reader must look beneath the surface of Hemingway's words to fully grasp the underlying message. The public remains in the dark about Zelda's secret, but it's clear from Zelda's unusual comparison that her sanity appears to be in question. The reader then deduces that Hemingway deduced that Zelda's secret was her lack of mental stability. Because Hemingway portrays Zelda as a hawk, audiences may interpret the line “But hawks do not share” as also being translated as “But Zelda does not share.” Analyzing the chapter, one can see that Zelda hinders Fitzgerald's work tremendously, so the text could mean that Zelda selfishly distracts Fitzgerald from his writing, preventing him from sharing his work with the world. Using the “iceberg theory,” Hemingway effortlessly communicates Zelda's character by simply comparing her to a hawk and letting the reader explore the depth of her words. Hemingway also uses the "iceberg theory" to reveal hidden tones and messages significant to the story. The theory emerges in one of Hemingway's discussions with Fitzgerald. After the conversation between Hemingway and Fitzgerald in a bar?, Hemingway notes: “Did we both knock on wood in the bar? table and the waiter came to see what we wanted. But what did he or anyone else want, neither to knock on wood nor on marble, like this cafe? the tabletop was, could have ever taken us. But we didn't know it that night and we were very happy” (Hemingway 151). The audience seems left in the dark about what Hemingway and Fitzgerald wanted, but the passage gives off a perceptible sense.