the older waiters conversation with the younger waiter as well as his version of the Lords Prayer, the waiter also explains the need for a clean, well-lighted place, immediately symbolizing the caf. The meaning of the title A Clean Well-Lighted Place is explained by the older waiter once his stream of consciousness takes over after he closes the caf.. . . Turning off the electric light he continued the conversation with himself. It is the light of course but it is necessary that the place be clean and pleasant. You do not want music. Certainly you do not want music. Nor can you stand before a bar with dignity although that is all that is provided for these hours. (p.144, Gioia and Kennedy)With this explanation, the older waiter allows the reader to understand why a place like the caf is necessary for those that live as dismal as he does. By using the title A Clean Well-Lighted Place to refer to the caf and allowing the older waiter to explain why the caf deserves such a title, Ernest Hemmingway symbolizes the caf. Through this explanation, the older waiter leads the reader to conclude that this is not just a caf, it is an island of refuge from night, chaos, loneliness, and old age (p.218, Gioia and Kennedy) as well as the theme that age brings loneliness.Although the message conveyed by A Clean Well-Lighted Place is age causes loneliness or age brings about loneliness, that message is not constantly true (there are too many people in the world for anyone to pass that type of judgment). However, in this particular story, age brings about loneliness is a theme that may be true to many people. Nevertheless the fact remains that in A Clean Well-Lighted Place the older waiters actions and his personal thoughts as well as the symbol of the caf leads to the overall message that with age comes loneliness....
