A great marlin can be found in many people’s lives, but not everyone realizes it until they need to confront it. In The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, an aged man named Santiago senses his setback of eighty-four days without a fish will end when he goes out far into the ocean. He encounters hardships and battles ferocious sharks only to lose the marlin he captures. Fishing is not my strong suit, but the novel’s symbols are still relative to my own experiences. At the start of the novel, the marlin is what the old man desires; and while, at first, he views it as his enemy, he later regards the monstrous fish as his own brother and regrets killing it. By the time the old man hooks the marlin, it means more to him than another catch. …show more content…
While fighting the marlin, Santiago draws out every bit of bravery and fearlessness inside of him to capture it. In my perspective, all I needed was determination and the belief I could have friends and keep up with my classes without a complication. Nothing could go wrong, Santiago and I thought, but the blood from our marlins spread through the ocean, and we both dreaded what would face us next. Sharks represent the issues one has to face in life in both the novel and my freshman year. For Santiago, the sharks meant more meat being eaten from the marlin and its splendid body being ruined. It got to where he could not admire the marlin anymore like my problems becoming worse. Both Santiago and I knew a shark attack was imminent, and we were both ready for it. In my case, the sharks were the issues that stopped me from having both a good social life and exemplary grades. Santiago protected his marlin by harpooning the first shark which attacked him while I fought off using bus time to complete homework. Still, as the shark eats the marlin in the novel, my shark, which is a thought more than a real creature, made me fork over my morning bus time to prepare for my …show more content…
When Santiago sets sail to find an enormous fish, he was also departing on a life journey. In the sea, he found a hidden gem, the marlin, and needed to fight to prevent it from getting eaten, though it was futile. In my perspective, the sea is the always-churning life of being in high school, and the many problems which lay beneath the surface. While there were sharks in the depths of the sea, there were also treasures to be found, like the marlin, closer to the surface. In the novel, Santiago goes the furthest he’s ever gone into the ocean, so far that he loses sight of Havana’s shore. Although he was trying an unfamiliar fishing spot, it’s representative of his journey through life and into isolation to find his own life’s treasure. The marlin was the biggest fish he had ever seen, and I never tried to balance two opposing elements at once. When one finds one of the sea’s treasures, one must fight life’s various problems to keep it. Santiago battles sharks like I fought my ideas and thoughts in my head. If someone is lucky enough, they may protect their treasure throughout their life’s journey out at sea, but for Santiago and I, we were not so lucky. Santiago sees the sea as both an angel and a devil, depending on the circumstance. He reflects, “She is kind and very beautiful. But she can be so cruel and it comes so suddenly,” (29). While Santiago ponders the sea and its motives, I
To begin with, the old man is determined just as the fish is. When Santiago first hooks the fish, he states, “‘Fish,’ he said softly, aloud, ‘I’ll stay with you until I am dead’” (Hemingway 52). This shows how he will risk his life to prove that he can catch this marlin. Santiago was fixed on catching this fish and ending his bad luck streak. And, as the marlin doesn’t have much of a choice, he will fight until he dies as well. They are both very
Three parallels between Santiago and the marlin are they are both decisive about what they want. Santiago refuses to stop fishing even though the people of the village are very discouraging, and the marlin will not stop fighting Santiago when he is trying to capture him. Another parallel is that Santiago and the marlin are both old and weak. The last is that there is a lack of faith. Santiago has not caught a fish a very long time and people think the marlin is a legend and it could never exist.
"You did not kill the fish only to keep alive and to sell for food, he thought. You killed him for pride and because you are a fisherman. You loved him when he was alive and you loved him after. If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him. Or is it more?" Page 105 The old man gets the marlin in his boat and sets sail home but the marlin leave a trail of blood in the water attracting sharks. The old man fights off several of the sharks but more and more keep coming. When the night came around it was useless for the old man to keep fighting off the sharks, the sharks had devoured the marlins meat leaving only the skeleton, head and tail. The next morning other fisherman gather around the boat where the fish still laid, they were all amazed by the size. The boy had been worried sick about the old man and was so happy to find him laying in his bed, the boys gets the old man coffee and the daily paper. He awaits for the old man to wake and they agree once more to fish
Sharks are unfairly depicted in the three “Shark Week” reading selections: the excerpts from the Old Man and the Sea, Unbroken, and the poem “The Shark”. In the three selections listed, I believe sharks are described as barbaric, relentless, and savage, which isn’t always true to their nature. I have done research that prove that sharks are not fairly depicted in the literature selections. In Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea”, sharks are portrayed as barbaric when the sharks are described as “well built” and “having no other enemy” (lines x to x). However, I have learned that, according to Defenders, sharks may not be as tough as we think, because there numbers are declining to the threats they face in the wild.
All in all The Old Man and the Sea, is a book that makes you think and question yourself if Santiago was defeated or took a victory in catching the Marlin. Throughout the book Santiago struggles and strives on a daily basis.An example of when Santiago was struggling would be when he fought the sharks until he had no materials left to fight with. At the point when the sharks noticed the blood and ate his fish, he battled off each and every one. Because the sharks ate his fish, Santiago carried one of them back with him to show off to the civilians. This shows that he didn't surrender and tried 100% to save the
The danger confronting Santiago in the external nature represents the troubles of existence. Heminway's, The Old Man and the Sea represents many meanings to the outside existence. The marlin, for example, represents struggle, trouble and the last challenge Santiago went through. Santiago's struggle as a fisherman with marlin also symbolizes durability by putting up such a struggle. Accomplishing or obtaining something doesn't always end one's journey.
The fish withholds a great part in this book. The Old Man and the Sea is a book that’s about a small town where the residents revolve their lives around fishing. The fish is a symbol of beauty and it is a greatly admired creature to these people. An example from the book is on page 49. Santiago has been fishing for 84 days and decides not to return home without a fish on the 85th day. On the 85th day, alone in the boat, he manages to hook an enormous marlin, the biggest fish he's ever seen in all his life. The fish is larger and stronger than Santiago. Santiago's experienced fishing skills and his will to catch and survive push him to pursue the fish for many days and many miles out to sea.
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...
”(page 111). Santiago had plans for him already but failed to accomplish them. Some will argue that he won because he gained spiritual victory. This , in a way, is true; but fishing is his job and only way of living. If the case had been different and Santiago was only fishing for his personal entertainment, which wasn’t, it could be seen as a new experience or story to tell.
Indeed, one of the most difficult trials Santiago has to face is the sharks. They tear away and demolish his prized marlin. In addition, the sharks came one after another, continuously until there was essentially nothing left. The first shark came shortly after Santiago caught the marlin, “The shark was not an accident. He had come from deep down in the water as the dark cloud of blood had settled and dispersed in the mile deep sea” (100). This exhibits how regardless
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.
After a long, hard fought battle, “Santiago eventually wears down the marlin, and on the third day, he kills it with a harpoon" (Old). At this point in the story, Santiago has finally gotten his big catch. He has finally proved to himself that he is capable fisherman, and that being patient, sometimes is one's best
Hemingway has a way of making his readers believe that the feats and strengths that his characters obtain in his novels are actually possible. Although this statement may be too critical, and maybe there is a man out there, somewhere on the coast of Cuba who at this very moment is setting out to the open sea to catch a marlin of his own. The struggle many readers have is believing the story of Santiago’s physical powers and his strength against temptation bring forward the question of whether or not The Old Man and the Sea is worthy to be called a classic. Hemingway’s Santiago brought Faulkner and millions of other readers on their knees, while to some, believed Hemingway had swung his third strike. As we look further into Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, we can analyze the criticism and complications of the character Santiago. He is portrayed as a faulty Jesus, an unrealistic and inhuman man, and again still a hero to those who cannot find happiness in their life.
Throughout The Old Man and the Sea, Hemingway portrays Santiago as a man of exceptional determination and courage. Fighting the sharks, he had lost his harpoon and his knife. By the time of the last attack, there was little left of the fish, and Santiago “knew the fight was useless”; but he fought anyway, clubbing the sharks with all the strength he had left (53). During life’s journey, every person encounters seemingly unsurmountable obstacles; and the only rationale behind human resilience in these situations is represented by the old man’s hope against all odds. This example demonstrates that the novel’s story can be applied to many aspects of human
The old man and the sea is a novella about an old Cuban fisherman, Santiago, and his three-day battle with a giant Marlin fish. Throughout the novella, Santiago is portrayed in different perspectives. He is tough and refuses to give up at any time. He withholds the will to continue and the courage to overcome what is believed to be the impossible. His persistence and confidence, his absolute determination and his unique way of accepting the reality makes him a noble hero.