Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Themes in hemingway's writing
Themes in hemingway's writing
Hemingway's literary writing
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Biblical Influence and Symbolism in The Old Man and the Sea
Many times, stories by Ernest Hemingway have much religious influence and symbolism. In The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway, numerous occurrences in the life of Santiago the fisherman are similar to the incidents recorded in the life of Jesus of Nazareth. The names of the characters translated from Spanish to English are just one of those many similarities.
The characters in The Old Man and the Sea are in actuality, major figures in the New Testament. Santiago is an old man, yet he had young eyes. No matter how defeated he was, he would never show it and he would look on the brighter side of things. In my mind, these traits make Santiago a god-like figure. Manolin, which translates into Messiah, is Jesus (Stoltzfus qtd in CLC 13:280). Santiago is the "father" who teaches his symbolic son and disciple, Manolin. After catching the largest marlin, Manolin will leave his parents in order to follow the teachings of Santiago, his master, just as Jesus did (Stoltzfus qtd in CLC 13:280). Pedrico is actually Saint Peter, Jesus' closest apostle and a great fisherman (Wilson 50). Peter helped Jesus fish for souls as Pedrico helped Manolin fish for food. Santiago gives Pedrico the head of the mutilated marlin which symbolizes Saint Peter as head of the Christian church and the first Pope (Stoltzfus CLC 280).
In the story, there are many references to the crucifixion of Jesus. Santiago's badly injured hands evoke the hands of the crucified Jesus and three other situations reinforce this theory (Brenner, The Old Man and the Sea, Story of a Common Man 37). First, Santiago's marlin is approached by a pair of shovel nosed sharks. "Ay', he said out loud." (Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea 107) There is no meaning of "Ay", but perhaps it is the sound a man makes as his hands are nailed to wood (Brenner, The Old Man and the Sea, Story of a Common Man 38).
Next, once back on shore, Santiago climbs the hill to his shack, with the mast on his shoulder, falling several times (Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea 121). This is an obvious reference to Christ's struggle to carry the cross up the hill Cavalry (Crossan, The Historical Jesus 163).
This may be true in all cases, but it is clearly predominant in Ernest Hemingway's Old Man and the Sea. It is evident that Hemingway modeled the main character, Santiago after his own person, and that the desires, the mentality, and the lifestyle of the old man are identical to Hemingway's.
...truly is. "I have to be politically-and-socially-aware-Latina-with-a-chip-on-my-shoulder-because-of-how-repressed-i-am-in-this-country…I am a quintessential imperfect Latina." (Raya 1041) Ultimately Raya later becomes true to herself when she realizes that she is herself and no one else. And she should not seek the approval from no one but herself.
In conclusion, the trend for women to delay parenting is on the rise. More and more babies are being born to women over the age of 35. Although there are risks associated with postponing childbirth, the advantages outweigh for the most part outweigh the risks. Children born to older parents are generally better off both economically and socially as their parents have waited to advance their careers. Therefore they are more financial stable and also tend to have more stable relationships than children who have younger parents.
...ds yearn to learn and sadly sometimes their conditions don’t allow them too. Kids without shoes are seen at school all in order to succeed and perhaps have a chance to go further in life. The excitement of school exhibited by the children captured my attention the most. Many are excited to learn even if it means they have to go through much trouble just to get to school.
In the literary fiction book The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, Santiago is very alike to the marlin. They are both strong, determined, and great fighters. Even though they share these similarities, they are different, as they have different motivations to win the battle they are fighting.
Santiago displayed a great deal of grace while under the pressure of catching his great adversary. While battling the marlin he always keeps his eye on the goal, and figures out new ways to get through the tight spots. Even when it seem that all hope is lost, he continues to persevere, so he may achieve his goal. When he is out at sea his hands cramp, and it looks as if he has to give up the fish, but he decides to stick with it in a hope that he may strive through the area of difficulty. His hands finally free up and he continues on his mission, just glad that he did not give up. Sharks attack the marlin on his voyage back to his small town, he works his hardest to keep them away. Santiago finds unique ways to keep them away.
...ed. When he returns home, every muscle is weak. But Santiago’s honor and dignity are more intact than ever before. While being taunted and disrespected by the other fisherman, Santiago keeps his dignity and does not retaliate. Although in a slump, he honors fishing and doesn’t sit around and complain. He respects the ocean, the fish and the birds even though they don’t repeat him back. Hope is never lost when the sharks attack and eat the carcass. He perseveres when he finally ends his fishing drought and at last restores his honor and dignity in the village. Even when the fish is dying, he calls it a worthy opponent and praises its endurance. The marlin’s carcass is destroyed by the sharks, much like Santiago’s body. But the skeleton of the marlin is intact just like Santiago’s honor. The honor and dignity that Santiago has truly makes him the ultimate fisherman.
“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles” (Reeve). Throughout the story, The Old Man and the Sea, it is evident to readers that Santiago exemplifies Christ. Both men have a disciple, show courage and even have scars on their hands by the end of their story. Every hero has an accomplice better known as a disciple, that helps the protagonist accomplish his mission or quest. While Christ has twelve disciples, that supported him throughout his journey of spreading Christianity, Santiago only had one disciple.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is a disease that a lot of people suffer with in society especially young adults. While it is not a disease that is deadly, it does affect the victim in every day aspects of their life and can ultimately control their lives. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is defined by the National Institute of Mental Health as, “… a common, chronic and long-lasting disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, reoccurring thoughts (obsessions) and behaviors (compulsions) that he or she feels the urge to repeat over and over”. The thoughts that individuals have when suffering through Obsessive Compulsive Disorder cannot be restrained and really can disturb the individual. Thoughts or actions that people may have can range from worrying about daily occurrences, such as washing their hands, to having thoughts of harming people that are close to them. People tend to have these reoccurring compulsions because they believe by doing them or thinking them, they will either prevent something bad from happening or because it eliminates stress that they have. This disease can last a lifetime and can be very detrimental and disabling to how one lives their lives. Individuals can start to see signs of OCD in either late adolescence or even early adulthood and everyone is susceptible. When it comes to classifying this incurable disease, there is much debate on whether or not it a type of anxiety (Abramowitz, Taylor, & McKay, 2009). It is important to be able to understand this mental disorder since so many people are diagnosed with it. While there are treatments for OCD, there are no cures yet. Treatments could range anywhere from taking prescribed medication to just going to therapy and counseling fo...
While trying to kill the Marlin, the Marlin puts up a fight and stays underwater. Santiago also puts up a fight and perseveres, no matter the pain. Hemmingway says that “Then the fish came alive, with his death in him, and rose high out of the water showing all his great length and width and all his power and his beauty”(Hemingway,p104). The Marlin transformed Santiago back into the man he once was, he no longer felt the pain of catching the fish and instead felt jubilant and refreshed, “I am a tired old man. But I have killed this fish which is my brother”(Martel,p105).
For the workers who were not one of her favorites, they were expected to work harder to not get criticized. Even if they did a great job, they were not rewarded any recognition for a job well done. However, for those who were the favorites, they could get away with doing substantially less. These employees were allowed to do a poor job. This favoritism did not earn my supervisor any respect from me. I basically saw her as a teenager in high school wanting to be the leader of the cool clique.
In the story, Santiago’s bravery is unsurpassed, but it is not until he hooks the “great fish” that we truly see his valor and perseverance. Through Santiago’s actions, Hemingway teaches the reader about bravery and perseverance in the face of adversity. He demonstrates that even when all is lost and seems hopeless, a willful heart and faith will overcome anything. Santiago had lost his “luckiness” and therefore the respect of his village. Through the description of his cabin, we also suspect that Santiago is a widower.
In The Old Man and the Sea, Santiago, an old Cuban fisherman, pits his strength against forces he cannot control. We learn from Santiago's struggles how to face insurmountable odds with bravery and courage. Though we find an indifferent and hostile universe as Santiago's stage, his unwillingness to give in to these forces demonstrate a reverence for life's struggles. Santiago's struggle is for dignity and meaning in the face of insurmountable odds. His warrior-like spirit fights off the sharks full-well knowing the fate of his marlin. Santiago loses his marlin in the end, but his struggle to keep it represent a victory because of the dignity and heroism with which he carries out his mission. However, as Santiago acknowledges, he is almost sorry he caught the marlin because he knows the animal and he have a great deal in common as fellow beings in nature. However, he only caught the marlin "through trickery" (Hemingway 99). Santi...
Not being able to fight for her country as a girl, she decides to make herself look like a boy in order to go and fight in the place of her dad, as her dads “son”. Mulan goes out and shows that it doesn't matter what gender, everyone can accomplish what they want to accomplish. If there is something that someone has the mind set on doing, they should do it. Everyone has to sh...
The Old Man and the Sea, was written by Ernest Hemingway. In the novella, the old man, Santigo and the young boy Manolin has a relationship that goes dar beyond friendship. They have a soul bonding relationship. The boy needs the old man as a teacher and the old man needs the boy was family. Hemingway creates a very powerful, poignant relationship between the old man and the young boy throughout his novella using dialogues.