The café in “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” is just that: a space that is pleasant and orderly. It symbolizes how community can counteract the modern era’s alienation. It is more than a gathering place and offers a brief escape from the harsh realities of the modern world and the feelings of despair that plague it. The older narrator speaks highly of the café and is hesitant to close it early because, at night, it offers a place for himself and others like him. It is a place where the old man stays “because he likes it” (289).

The café is clean, it is bright, and it is pleasant, which stands in stark contrast to the despair that plagues both the older men. As such, they are hesitant to leave each night. As a symbol, the café contrasts against the bars and bodegas in the story; all three are places where one can drink alcohol, but a café generally serves food as well, giving it nourishing connotations. The older waiter does not find the same solace in the bar he visits after his shift, remarking that the bar is “unpolished.” His

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