Old Man and the Sea "A Man Can Be Destroyed but Not Defeated"

There is hardly any progress, determination or success without unforgiving struggle and defeat. The road to success is a never-ending battle, but the outcomes of the war are rewarding and the avails are extraordinary. It is just a matter of having endurance when the will to continue becomes impossible and unimaginable. The idea of struggle lies deep within the plot of the novel, The Old Man and the Sea and the motion picture, Life of Pi. In the novel, the old fisherman, Santiago spends a few days out at sea attempting to capture the fish of his dreams. He battles through pain, thirst and hunger in order to bring the Marlin to the shore. However, while losing his prey, he gains a priceless experience combined with pride, respect and

Clearly Santiago is not defeated because after all that he went through with his fish being eaten and his hand being badly cut when the fish tugged the string too hard, he kept going as if everything was okay. Once he was badly cut it would have been smart to stop because pain is your body telling you to stop, but in spite of Santiago's pain he kept pushing through because he is an undefeated man. In conclusion, Santiago is clearly not defeated during the book or by the end of the book because of the stuff he goes through in the book. Santiago goes through so many different obstacles and he never quits, even after a shark came and ate the marlin he worked so hard for he did not quit. So what he thinks about quitting and has bad thoughts sometimes he never quits and he makes it home at the end and that is all that matters, he also still did catch the marlin even if it did get eaten.

Using the quick tests for locating errors, find the error in each of the two questions below. Describe the type of error, explain how you discovered it, and make corrections.

This is proven throughout the book, for example Santiago experienced many trials that he successfully overcame, like when he was robbed in Tangier of all his money. Santiago learned from this and

I believe it is for this reason that I felt the need to sing for the people. I firmly believe that man must become free during the course of his life and that he must work for justice.” Because of his activism he was captured, tortured, and killed on the 11th September 1973, in the Santiago Boxing Stadium alongside thousands of

Santiago is a man who surely has shown his dedication to his craft of fishing, which also shows his persistence. Throughout the entire novel he fights the overcome the various circumstances in his life and yet uses these struggles to grow as a person. Ultimately, Santiago is a great example in literature of perseverance no matter the circumstances.

“But man is not made for defeat," he said. "A man can be destroyed but not defeated. (Hemingway 103).” This quote, written by Ernest Hemingway in the short story The Old Man and the Sea, captures the theme perseverance in numerous ways. This quote describes when the old man Santiago was struck down physically, with the injuries of his hands and the pain of staying awake for a number of days. However, he mentally kept pushing forward, leading to his ultimate survival and his arrival home. Ernest Hemingway wanted the readers of this story to learn about the rewards of perseverance because of the hardship Santiago and the marlin had to endure, rather than themes such as luck, pride, and suffering.

In the book The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway uses the flashback technique in order to characterize Santiago and develop key themes of the novel, such as Santiago’s connection with nature and what it means to be a hero. Hemingway employs several flashbacks as an effective technique that develops Santiago’s character as he recalls past occurrences in order to renew his strength of will. There are three flashbacks in particular that are critical to the development of this story. The first flashback describes a time when Santiago associated himself with the marlins. The second flashback occurs when Santiago arm-wrestled the town’s strongest

The forces of the universe have crucified both Santiago and the marlin.  We see this when Santiago carries his mast cross-like to his shack and the author's description of his exhausted repose "face down on the newspapers with his arms out straight and the palms up" (Hemingway  122).  Yet, through this struggle, through this pride that made him go far out beyond all people, Santiago learns the meaning of life in a meaningless universe is humility and love.  We see this expressed most clearly in his mentor-like relationship with Manolin.  Human solidarity and interdependence may not make a man any more capable of beating the forces of the universe, but they are sustaining as much as the courage and dignity with which Santiago faces life "the boy keeps me alive, he thought.  I must not deceive myself too much" (Hemingway  106).  Before coming to shore, Santiago recognizes he has gained humility and he is loved.  He is appreciative the other fishers will worry about him.  They bring him food and newspapers to

Through the course of finding his personal legend Santiago reveals the characteristics of perseverance that assists him in finding his personal legend. He always found a way to get through an situation that the world threw in front of him. When a

It is believable that Santiago is dead at the end of The Old Man and the Sea. This conclusion can be deduced from the various hints Hemingway used throughout the novel. The foreshadowing of Santiago’s death, his comparison to Christ, and his bad luck helps one decipher that the death of the old man took place at the end of the book.

It is ambiguous whether the old man succeeds or fails. At first, it seems that if Santiago has failed. “He sailed lightly now and he had no thoughts nor any feelings of any kind” (Hemingway 119). It is almost like he has lost everything that he has worked for. The old man accepts defeat as is, without mourning or grief Fortunately, after all the damage has been taken, he keeps fishing. He built some sort of relationship with the marlin, but was later broken. He has since moved on.

Another important aspect of Santiago’s personality is his optimism and resilience. Although not associated with all transcendentalists, the ability to view events in a positive light is very important for a Transcendentalist to possess. Thoreau describes this attribute as being the way in which we see the beauty all around us, by taking the bad and viewing it in a positive manner. Santiago does exactly this by always accepting the hand he is dealt. After days out at sea in a very painful position, he states, “He did not truly feel good because the pain from the cord across his back had almost passed pain and gone into a dullness that he mistrusted. But I have had worse things than that, he thought. My hand is only cut a little and the cramp is gone from the other. My legs are all right. Also now I have gained on him in the question of sustenance.” (Hemingway 74). Santiago feels that his injuries are not important, as he has experienced worse pain and what is more important to him at the time is catching the fish. Later in the book, after he finally catches the huge fish, it gets eaten by sharks on his way back to shore. Unlike a typical

In the novel The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway uses the literary device of metaphors. Hemingway uses the metaphor of the ocean to symbolize life, and to depict the role that individuals play in life. Hemingway uses the metaphor of the lions to signify people who live their lives as active participants. The tourists in the novel represent the individuals, who in observe their lives and are not active participants. In the novels that Ernest Hemingway writes, he uses metaphors to reflect his life experiences and opinions. The ocean in The Old Man and the Sea is a metaphor, which represents Hemingway 's personal view of life. Hemingway believes that in life everyone must find their own niche and uses the metaphor of the ocean and the

Santiago of The Old Man and the Sea is the quintessential “Hemingway Hero”-a type of fictional character created by Hemingway in all of his books whose basic response to life appealed very strongly to the readers. The Old Man begins the narrative with all the elements of such a hero despite his senescence and poverty. He shows strength, determination, and dedication to himself despite his struggles. Santiago relates back to readers as a strong failure who picks himself up repeatedly.