The Old Man And The Sea Critical Analysis

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway follows a small portion in the life of an old man named Santiago. Santiago has lived in the same town for many years working as a fisherman. He has had great success in the past, but recently has found himself catching very few fish. He meets a young boy who helps him prepare for his journies. The young boy helps care for Santiago and is greatly inspired by him. Santiago decides one day to take a voyage and catch fish. However, when he starts fishing, he gets dragged along by a very large fish who carries him and his boat far out to sea. Throughout Santiago's journey wrestling the fish, it is revealed through his actions and thoughts that he is clearly representative of a Transcendentalist.

“He did not truly feel good because the pain from the cord across his back had almost passed pain and into dullness that he mistrusted.”(74) Once both the fish and Santiago had reached the breaking point of conflict the story seemed to slow down in time to exemplify the adverse conditions that both characters were suffering from. The old man proves himself worthy of personal suffering with the cuts and scars on his hands and back along with all of the pulling and slipping the cords had upon his fragile body. Hemmingway shows in a big way how an out of proportioned conflict with an old fisherman and an 18 foot long marlin helps to magnify the significance of Santiago searching for his rebirth to manhood. With constant abstraction describing the fish and the sea in relation to brotherhood create interesting questions for Santiago to ponder. His rationalization for his fishing is that he was born to do it. “A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” (103) Hemmingway proves that this fish represents all of Santiago’s built up tension to total the size of a gigantic marlin that is perceived as devastating but not unconquerable. The old man’s hopes and aspirations can overcome the adversity of the marlin’s size, along with the conditions of the old, hungry, and exhausted fisherman. Through outright suffering Santiago achieves a goal above his previous manhood by combating pain and

The Old Man and The Sea, is a tale of an old man named Santiago who is a fisherman. He hasn’t had any luck with fishing, resulting in the other town members viewing him as a lame old man. A boy who used to fish with him inspires to change up his usual fishing tactics resulting in him catching a great huge fish. After fighting the fish for a couple days in his tiny boat he ties it to the side, headed for shore. On the way in sharks eat his entire catch leaving a skeleton to show for his work. The reader can see a clear metaphor painted by Hemingway. The fish

The novel written by Ernest Hemingway tells the story of an old fisherman named Santiago (referred to as "the old man") and his quest of catching a fish. Unfortunately, the old man has been down on his luck and has been fish-less for eighty-four days. The next time the old man leaves for a fishing trip, he sets sail farther than any fisherman has ever gone before, and he refuses to go home until he has proven to himself and to society that he is more than an average old man. However the old man is forced to overcome many challenges on his quest. His old age hinders him drastically and when he is finally able to get a fish on his line, he is not strong enough and is unable to reel the fish in. On the third day of the fishing expedition as the old man continues to struggle with the fish (a large marlin), he begins to reflect on the nature of the universe and his low place in society. The old man begins to feel pity for the fish, however also feels an unflagging determination to kill

Santiago’s Core Characteristics Throughout their lives, every person that has ever lived will eventually run into seemingly overwhelming levels of struggle. Whether it is finding a new job, or dealing with the death of a pet, or even trying to succeed at a task they haven’t succeeded in for months on end, these struggles bring out the best and worst of these people. In Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, Santiago struggles through immensely difficult trials that bring out his core characteristics. His core characteristics, the ones that define who he is as a human being, are determination, hard-working, and self pity.

In Earnest Hemingway’s novel The Old Man and the Sea, an angler travels great distances to maintain his reputation by fishing. During his journey, he encounters a gargantuan fish that requires days of pain and suffering to catch. Through it all, he perseveres and endures until the end. While trying to catch the humongous marlin he proclaims, “’The fish is my friend too,’ he said aloud. ‘I have never seen or heard of such a fish.

Santiago struggles against powerful forces, starting with the sea. When the sea does not allow the old man to have fish for 84 days, he is labeled as salao. Santiago is ridiculed by the fisherman of his small fishing village. He goes out to sea to prove himself to them and Manolin, a young boy who cares for Santiago, that he still has the skill to catch a fish. The old man wants them to know that he is still a great fisherman.

He tries to reel it in but he can't. Instead the fish is pulling the boat! He struggles and struggles with the fish for hours. After a while fatigue takes it's toll as his hands clamp up, and his back aches from the line tied around it. The fish surfaces and Santiago realizes that it is longer than the boat he is on! An unexpected jerk leaves a gash in his hand only to add to his pain. After a very long while Santiago shortens the line to harpoon it. He latches the fish to the side of the boat and begind to tow it back to shore triumphant. Then a mako shark approaches and takes a large bite out of the marlin. Santiago kills it with a harpoon. Only later did he realize that the sharks blood would attract more sharks. As more sharks approached Santiago fought with all his might to save his fish but there was too many sharks. By the time he got to shore, he had nothing more than a skeleton. Santiago collapses from exhaustion on the shore but is found by Manolin and calls for help. The community marveled at the size of the skeleton that is still attached to the boat. Manolin takes care of the old man and vows to return to him as an apprentice. Santiago finally gets the repect from his community.

The nobility of character of the old man prevents him from feel hate and rancor toward the other fishermen. Despite the taunts of the other fishermen, Santiago is quiet and admits having a bad streak of luck. This makes him an honorable man, which avoids any conflict and is able to recognize his flaws as a fisherman. Although the sea has given him several bitter drinks, he is able to keeping on loving it. “A man is honest when he acts honestly, he is humble when he acts humbly, he loves when he is loving or being loved.” (Waldmeir 165). Perhaps, the crowning act of humility in Santiago is when he is forced to recognize that by his own forces he will not be enough to grab the fish, and decides to carry out prayers to the Almighty. At the end of the hunting of the big animal, Santiago does not become conceited. His simple and humble soul thanks with a prayer for the outcome of his effort. Although the fighting has been severe and bloody, the old man was not self-styled "hero”. Santiago humbly considers himself as one fisherman more, and the categorization as a hero depends on the readers. “It is the knowledge that a simple man is capable of such decency, dignity, and even heroism, and that his struggle can be seen in heroic terms, that largely distinguishes this book.” (Young 131). The evident relation between his humility and dignity helps to place Santiago as a perfect

No amount of pain or physical abuse can bring Santiago from being determined or persistent. Santiago is a fisherman who lives in Cuba and has gone eighty four days unable to catch a fish. The first sentence of the book states: "He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty four days now without taking a fish.” If a professional fisherman were to go eighty four days without catching a fish that would be considered shameful, especially for an old man. However, Santiago remains determined in order to earn a reputation as a “good” fisherman from the other fisherman. In addition he does this to achieve what he has always wanted: a fish. “But he thought, I keep them with precision. Only I have no luck anymore. But who knows? Maybe today. Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.” “Nothing happened. The fish just moved away slowly and the old man could not raise him an inch. His line was strong and made for heavy fish and he held it against his hack until it was so taut that beads of water were jumping from it. Then it began to make a slow hissing sound in the water and he still held it, bracing himself against the thwart and leaning back against the pull. The boat began to move slowly off toward the

Santiago’s perseverance is a clear sign that he is one of Hemingway’s code heroes. In both his everyday life and his fight with the marlin, Santiago does not give up and endures whatever pain may come. At the beginning of the book, Manolin reminds Santiago of how they “went eighty-seven days without fish and then …caught big ones every day for three weeks’” (10). Santiago has had to go through hard times, “eighty-seven days without fish,” but he still perseveres through the hardships and in the end comes back from the hard times. Even

Many of Ernest Hemingway’s stories are either literally or figuratively based on his life experiences. The Old Man and the Sea is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Bimini, Bahamas, and published in 1952. It was the last major work by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. Its writing was influenced by his life around him. This is shown through the way the novella is written and key events and parts within it. The Old Man and the Sea can be interpreted as an allegory of Hemingway’s life and career at the time he wrote it.

The Old Man and the Sea , by Ernest Hemingway, is a classic novel about a man named Santiago and his five day fishing journey to change his luck around and get the catch of a lifetime. However, this adventure quickly becomes one of pain and suffering, both physically and mentally, when his endurance and pride get tested. By carefully researching literary criticism, one can come to certain conclusions about how Hemingway’s novel was actually an autobiography about the battles within his own life.

“Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same color as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated”Hemingway develops Santiago as a hero in order to show how fragile things can be strong in the inside.Even Though santiago seemed like a weak old man, while he was alone at sea trying to catch a fish;he demonstrates how strong,positive,and undefeated he is.

The old man and the Sea is a very popular novel written by famous novelist Ernest Hemingway. Its major events take place in the 1950’s in a small Cuban fishing village. The major events of the novella are narrated to the readers by a wise narrator who has all the knowledge about the characters of the novel. The third person narrative of the narrator is mostly focused on the actions of the Santiago and his assistant Manolin. The novel is a simple piece of art with multiple meanings. Different kinds of people can easily relate to different themes narrated in this novel.