The Old Man and the Sea

By Ernest Hemingway

Cameron Beatty

This book is one of the best stories that I have read. It is about a man that goes out to sea to go fishing every day, even after not catching a fish for eighty-five days. On the eighty-fifth day, he hooks the biggest fish that he had ever seen or heard of. He fights this fish for two days and two nights before he even knows what it looks like. When this fish jumps, it is the most beautiful fish that the old man has ever seen. The fish sports purple stripes along the body, a gorgeous silver, and the monstrous scythe like tail. The old man in the end catches the fish. On the way back into the harbour, the old man has to lash the fish to the side of the boat. He feels that he and the fish are almost one in the same, old and tired, but fighters. On the way back into the harbour, sharks attack the majestic fish. Even though the old man manages to kill off at least half a dozen sharks, in the end the fish is left with nothing but its head, its backbone and its magnificent tail.

The main theme in this book is that experience, hard work and perseverance don’t always pay off. This is a big part of the book, because when the old man is fighting the fish, all that he is thinking about is catching it. He is thinking about how good it is going to be once he has caught it, and how everything will be better; but in actuality he is just fishing for shark bait. I think that the sharks are one of the motifs that support this theme because even though the old man had worked for 3 days on this one big fish, and put his life and soul into the fish, the shark took that away in a matter of a few hours. You can work really long and really hard for something, and in a split second, success can escape you.

Another theme in this book is the relationship between the hunter and the hunted. The motif here is the parallel between the old man and the fish. The old man and the fish are essentially the same. They are both big old and strong, even though they may not be as strong as the younger fish, or the younger men, they both fight for their lives, and never give up till the end. They are both smart and use their instincts to survive the fight with the other.

I thought that the language that was used in this book was very good. The writing has a lot of detail in it, and this helped me feel what the old man was feeling, and see what the old man was seeing. When the old man sees the fish and explains it, I could see a vivid picture of it in my mind. In my opinion I think that the writing was very well done in this book.

I think that in this book there are a lot of things that today’s adolescents and I should pay very close attention to. No matter what the situation, you should never give up. The old man never gives up; even when he is bleeding and all hope is lost, he continues to fight. Another thing that I think I should pick up on is the fact that you should never get down on yourself, and always believe that you can do it, no matter how unlikely. I got this from the old man in the book because he hadn’t caught a fish in eighty-five days, but still he tried, and never gave up. I think that I should take this into skiing, because no matter how bad the day is; there is still the possibility that something spectacular will happen. Good luck is important, the old man keeps his lines with precision. He says ‘It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.’” (32) I think that this quote tells us that we always have to be prepared for luck, because you may miss your chance at something lucky if you are not prepared to harness it.

I think that Ernest Hemingway could have changed some of the language in the book. I felt almost as if he changed his audience part way through the book. He began describing things in much more depth. I think that if he had kept the style constant through the entire book, it would be a better read.

I would recommend this book to people who like books that are about the relationship between man and nature. I don’t think that this would be a good book for people who are into high-paced or action filled books, because one of the major parts of this book is how the man has patience, and waits for the perfect moment to make his move. I would also recommend this book to anyone who loves to fish, because it is very descriptive of both the sea and the life in it.

One of the major rhetorical devices that Ernest Hemingway uses in this book is the metaphor. The old man thinks of the sea as La Mar. He describes it as feminine and beautiful. This shows how he is respectful to everything around him, and shows how he is a good caring person. He uses the metaphor again when he describes the old man’s patched and worn out sail as ‘the flag of permanent defeat’. Also he uses symbolism. The old mans dreams of lions on the beach in Africa. This symbolizes the connection that the man has with nature and his long life. All of these devices contribute in some way or another to enhance the story, be it helping nature, or proving that nothing can hold you back.