The Old Man and the Sea

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The Old Man and the Sea


By Ernest Hemingway


First journal response page -1


The novel The old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, comes out to the public in 15. The novel experiences exceptional success, consequently Hemingway wins the Pulitzer Prize in 15 and the Nobel Prize for literature in 154. Ernest Hemingway is famous for writing about way of life, and way of dying.


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At the beginning of the novel the author uses comprehensible language, and his style is very direct and classical. The narration is mainly in third person narrative, and at times in first person narrative. The author attracts the reader by presenting real life events, and emphasizing life difficulties in an old mans life. Even though he wants us to feel empathy towards the protagonist, he successfully presents hope and faith through the main protagonist. Also, he presents the quality of friendship through a boy and an old man. The first twenty pages are about an old man, Santiago, who can not catch fish as he use to. The old fisherman is at the twilight of his physical powers. The old fisherman has a friend, Manolin, who cares about him, and tries to help him in any way possible. Manolin acts like Santiago’s adopted son. Santiago is a very poor man, and for him fishing is his livelihood. Despite his age, Santiago is man with hope and faith in his fishing abilities. He goes on talking about baseball, and how great baseball players are heroes because their sacrifice them self for the team. He believes the great fish come in the month of September, which foreshadows future events. Also, Santiago mentions that eighty five is a lucky number, and I think the author is telling the reader that Santiago will get lucky with a fish on the eighty fifth day. The old man gets sardine-baits of his friend Manolin, and it seems like he is getting ready for a great catch...


• Second journal response page -


… I feel the speed of narration is picking up, and the narrator is ready to finish the introduction and give us the core of the novel. In addition, the use of foreshadowing and similes is increasing, which probably will lead us to some action in the novel. Also, the narrator is emphasizing the relationship between the old man and the boy. It seems to me that the boy plays a role of a father, and the old man plays a role of a boy.


Consequently, a wild guess of mine, the author symbolizes the significance and strength of youth in the boy. At the other hand, the author shows the seniority as painful in the old man.


The old man and the boy talk about baseball, and Santiago resembles him self into his baseball hero DiMaggio, whose father was a fisherman. Santiago tells the boy that he is ready for a great fish (foreshadowing), and if he is not ready physically, he will defeat the big fish with the tricks and resolutions of his experience. Santiago does not dream about his dead wife anymore, but he dreams when he is young and he looks at the white lions on the coast of Africa. The novel starts with Santiago dreaming about the lions, and I expect some kind of symbolism behind them. Also, Santiago mentions the lions in parallel with the boy, so there must be some connection between them. The old man gets up and wakes up the boy. The old man feels very confident before they sail off fishing (foreshadowing). During his rows into the depth of the sea, the old man talks to himself how much he loves the sea and its nature.


He also resembles him self with the birds who hunt for existence, and have troubles getting fish. As he rows, he sets up his baits, and he does it in very captious and professional manner, not allowing any space for mistakes. He sees a bird circling on top, which tells him there must be a big fish or dolphin in the water…


• Third journal response page 4-45


... In the following ten pages the author is preparing the reader for the main setting, the setting of The Old Man and Sea. The author describes the nature of the sea and its environment, and he describes it through Santiagos fishing experience. Doing so, he emphasizes Santiagos relationship with the sea, and Santiagos livelihood in general. Also, I really enjoy Santiagos monologues, which to me give a great image of a man all alone in the sea. We can imagine an old man in a boat in the middle of the sea. The other part that arouses my attention is the authors description of fishs behavior after they bite the bait. In fact, the description is so well done that you actually swim, move, and you feel the pain with the fish. Furthermore, the old man follows a school of tuna fish, hoping it will lead him to a great fish. Also, he witnesses a small competition between a dolphin and a bird. The bird and the dolphin are after the same fish, and Santiago explains how the dolphin has advantage over the bird, and he is likely to capture the fish. As he floats with the current, the old man admires the turtles for their courage to eat the seas most poisonous fish. After he catches a ten pounder tuna, his line starts dangling, and warns him for possible great catch. Well, the dangling turns out to be something serious as the fishing line slides through the old mans hand. Soon, the sliding prospers into aggressive pull, and the old man already imagines a great marlin eating his bait deep in the sea. The fish in the sea turns out to be enormous in size, as it pulls the whole boat north-west for couple of hours without stopping. The amazing part is the ability of the fish to pull the old man into the open-sea with tremendous strength, which foreshadows a long lasting combat of survival...


• Fourth journal response page 46-57


… In this part the author emphasizes the importance of friendship between two individuals. In the novel whenever Santiago feels desperate of feels back pain, he calls the name of the young boy and he wishes for his help. Santiago believes that no one should be alone in their old age, because people need one another. The theme of friendship in the novel we see through the pair of marlins Santiago separates by killing the female, and the two wails that swim close to Santiago’s boat. Also, the author compares the hardship of the old man with the hardship of the big fish. When Santiago is fighting with the fish, he realizes that as much it is hard for him, it must be equally hard for the wish. Therefore, he decides to stay with the fish until he dies, the same way the wish will stay with the hunter. With Santiago’s conclusion the author presents the strength and the endurance of an old man. After a long time of solitude, Santiago has a visitor on his boat. The visitor is a young bird, who is tires from the flying, and finds rest on the old man’s boat. Santiago notices and despises the lack of strength in the bird, and warns the bird that it will have to be stronger in its life. Through the bird the author symbolizes a young boy who leaves the childhood and enters a life with responsibilities, the life of a grown up man. The old man cuts himself accidentally when the fish pulls the line, and Santiago blames him self for not focusing on the fish…


• Fifth journal response page 58-68


…I find this part of the novel very interesting, since the main character attempts to overcome his physical difficulties, as well as his psychological difficulties. The author illustrates the endurance, faith and one’s ability to overcome difficulties. The old man eats raw tuna to keep strong and healthy, and also he reduces all movements to minimum to preserve strength. Furthermore his right hand cramps, however the old man’s faith keeps him stabile and with the fish. The cramp is humiliating for the old man, as the fish is wounded as well, yet it has the power to pull a whole boat to survive. The part that catches my attention and my emotional side is when the old man says that he looks at the fish as a brother, yet he has to kill it. With this statement Santiago claims that he loves the fish for its resemblance, nonetheless he has to kill it to survive. And then the fish comes out of the water, and the reader once again experiences Ernest Hemingway’s ability to describe a situation with great success. The fish is beautiful, two feet longer than the old man’s boat. The old man remembers how he catches two fish with great magnitude when he is younger, except at the time and he does it with assistance of other fishermen. Furthermore, Santiago thinks of baseball, and compares his endurance with the endurance of the great DiMaggio, who plays baseball with back pain. Also, he admires the endurance of all animals in the wild life…


• Sixth journal response page 6-80


… Imagery is the first thought that occurs to me after reading this part of the novel. The author describes Santiago’s previous great adventures that associate with endurance and strength. For instance, Santiago’s hand-wrestling adventure with the Negro from Casablanca, in which he beats the Negro after a whole day of wrestling. The author makes a parallel between Santiago’s adventure with the Negro, and the adventure with the fish. The walls of the room where Santiago wrestles the Negro are bright blue colour, which are parallel to the sea water. Also, during the wrestling game blood comes out of the wrestler’s fingernails, which is parallel to the fish’s bleeding mouth and Santiago’s bleeding cuts. The author mention’s that the size of the Negro’s shadow is huge, parallel to the enormous size of the fish. At the end Santiago defeats the Negro, and in terms of parallelism to the fish it might be a foreshadowing to its defeat. After the fight with the Negro, Santiago realizes that he can beat anybody if he strongly believes in it, which again I suppose its foreshadowing to the fish’s end. In addition, Santiago physical condition is improving. Santiago keeps up with the fish’s activity, and he sleeps from time to time to rest. To preserve strength for the final battle, he eats fillets of the dolphin he catches…

• Seventh journal response page 81-


This part of the novel illustrates the hardship and the suffering of the old man on the sea. The author captures successfully every moment of difficulty of the old man. We see the old man wanting to sleep, however if he feels a sleep the fish might pull the line and set it self free. Santiago falls asleep and he dreams about fish, and then in the deepness of his dream he dreams about the lions when he was a young man. Dreaming about the white lions makes him happy, because it reminds him on his youth and strength. To create the mood the author wakes up Santiago with activating the fish and pulling the line. In addition, Santiago must feed himself with raw fish, which is rather disgusting to him, yet he eats it to remain strong for the final battle. This action reminds me when people are in war, and they drink their primary urine when there is no food in order to survive. And then the fish pulls, nevertheless Santiago feels that the fish is slowing down, and soon it will be their moment of battle. The author builds up the suspense by making the fish jump on the surface again, showing its magnitude and power. Santiago’s observes that the fish is fearless and confident; therefore he needs to be fearless and confident to kill it. Santiago knows the fish is hurting, so he proclaims that pain does not matter to a man, which shows his determinism and his will to kill the fish. It is the third day of Santiago’s adventure, and he stays with the fish in spite of all difficulties. Even though he proves him self many times in the past, he pursues the fish as his last prize in his fishing livelihood. Santiago is on his last quest in which he has to win, even at the price of his life. The fish is circling around the old man’s boat, and it is getting closer each turn. The old man fights with the fishing line, and he asks God’s help to kill the fish. As in real life situation, people in impediment always ask for supernatural solutions, even though they don not believe in it. This is it; the main character faces the fish. This is the moment where Santiago is to be or not to be. Will the old man kill the fish and fulfill his quest? Is he strong enough to conquer the fish…? Is his experience and resolution a match for the grand fish…?


• Eighth journal response page -104


… This part of the novel is very interesting for its triumph and its tragedy. The author clearly shows the ups and downs of life through the character of Santiago. In this part we see Santiago’s happiness in the moments of his triumph, and we see Santiago’s sadness in the moments of tragedy. Furthermore, Santiago kills the fish in a glorious way by piercing its heart with his harpoon. The old man astonishes himself by killing the fish, and he can not believe he finally kills the fish. He straps the fish to his boat and sails with the fish, rather than towing it. Santiago and the fish are one, and he feels invincible once again, same as he feels after he beats the Negro in the wrestling game. Santiago proves his manhood by beating the fish; however he admits he succeeds only for his trickery and resolution. He respects the fish for its dignity and beauty, and he calls it a brother. Later on, after all the happiness he goes through his head is dizzy; which foreshadows that his quest is not over yet. The quest of the old man continues as soon as the first shark attacks the fish and rips forty pounds of meat. Santiago describes the shark’s teeth metaphorically as a human hand. With this metaphor the author points out the in real life people are the ones who create good and bad deeds. When the shark attacks the Marlin, it seems like it is attacking the old man itself. Santiago picks up the harpoon and he kills the shark with passion and vengeance. He kills the shark as if the shark attacks himself, because the fish and he are one. The old man feels miserable for the marlin’s fortune, as the shark strips its dignity and beauty. The old man foresees future presence of more sharks, because sharks sense the marlin by its blood. He kills the first predator; though he looses the harpoon. How will he face the sharks without the harpoon? He is a strange old man, his faith is strong and his resolution is clear. He ties his knife to rod, and he is ready to take on the next shark that attempts to take his dignity; the great fish…


• Ninth journal response page 105-116


… In this part we see the death of the fish as Santiago’s crucifixion. During the long fight with the marlin, Santiago units with the fish physically and emotionally. Santiago wins the quest by killing the fish; however his fault lies in going too far out. The sea is a common symbol of life and mysteries of life. He goes into the depth of the sea where no other fisherman has been before. Santiago’s departure in the depth of the sea feels just as a kid eating the forbidden candy, or as Adam and Eve eating the forbidden apple. Santiago succeeds in his quest by entering the forbidden world, except he suffers defeat on his way back. The author allows him to take the Adam’s apple, and right after as god himself he punishes Santiago with the sharks. When the second attack occurs, Santiago kills a pair of shovel-nose sharks with his knife after they eat a quarter of the fish. Later on, another shovel-head shark attacks, and again after it chops the fish the old man kills it and looses his last cold weapon in the process. The old man looses his breath and his strength, yet he continues to fight off the sharks with a club. He fights till there is nothing left of the fish, and the sharks abandon him. After the sharks leave everything is silent, and the only thing that the old man can do is to go back home. He steers with ease, because the boat does not have the load of the spectacular fish…



• Tenth journal response page 117-17


…In the last ten pages of the novel we experience Santiago’s return from his quest. The reader can clearly see he is beaten, and he is at the edge of collapsing from exhaustion. He is all alone at the end, and by him self he anchors the boat with the leftover strength he has. Furthermore, he climbs the road with the mast on his back, but he must stop frequently to recover strength. This image creates pathos for the old man, and I believe it can soften every man’s heart. In my eyes Santiago is a hero who comes back from a war without his buddies. With great difficulty he reaches his shack and passes out. The next morning the young boy Manolin visits the man, and when he sees the cuts on his hands he starts crying. The young boy just by looking at the old man wounds feels the pain Santiago undergoes in the days he is missing. At the beach all the fishermen are looking at the enormous fish, and they realize Santiago’s greatness as man and a fisherman. In their eyes he does something that no other fisherman has done before. For the people of the village Santiago is not the thin and gaunt old man, he is the old man who catches eighteen foot monster of a fish. When Santiago wakes up the boy gets him coffee, and tells him that he will sail with him in spite of his parent’s desires. At this point the boy is maturing, and makes life decision to stay and learn from the great fisherman Santiago. Manolin comforts the old man by telling him that the he beats the fish, and that he is the winner at the end of the battle. That afternoon, at the beach couple of tourists stares at the spine of the fish and they wonder what happens to it. They get a brief explanation form a local fisherman that it is sharks. The tourist without interest in Santiago’s story understands that the spine of the fish belongs to a shark, and they indifferently comment on its beauty. The tourists are symbolic, and they represent the people who are passive towards life. The tourists look at the fish without understanding, and they are not aware of the magnitude of its significance. They are now aware of the suffering and endurance Santiago undergoes. At the end, Santiago again dreams about the lions in Africa. And this is the part I love and it electrifies my body. At the beginning of the novel the old man goes without catching a fish for eighty-four day and he dreams of the lions. Similarly, at the end of the novel after the old man returns with a defeat from his adventure, he dreams of the lions once again. The white lions on the coast of Africa represent the undying hope and confidence within a man.

And there we have it, after hours of hard work, the novel is completed and this is my journal response. I must say I enjoyed the novel, and surprisingly I learned from the old man about motivation, hope and courage. I learned about traits which are essential for my educational future. After all, I will be an engineering student and I will need the old man traits to go trough the four years of cool-hell.



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