Critical appreciation of

The old man and the sea

  1. In the end, Santiago returns home with the Marlin Skeleton. A group of tourists who do not understand that the skeleton is of or Marlin, that was eaten by the Sharks.

  2. Santiago experiences pain and suffering his pains and sufferings remind him of De Maggio. He was his hero because Maggio also persisted through pain.

  3. The scene is pathetic when Santiago kills the fish. The blood attracts the eager sharks nearby. His hopes of taking the fish are gone.

  4. The shark attack the fish and eats it.

  5. The capacity to fight to show grace under pressure and to win no matter how big the beetle was, all his hopes were gone.

  6. Resistance to defeat, pride, friendship, youth and age. Man and nature and Christian allegory are themes that the writer points out.

  7. Santiago is the tragic hero. His strength, his pride, leads to his eventual downfall.

  8. The irony is pathetic. After days of struggling against the Marlin, Santiago is robbed of his prize.

  9. Sharks attack the dead Maelin, while Santiago is hauling it home and by the time he reaches the shore, nothing is left.

  10. Santiago had thought of Manolin about fishing Manolin now takes care of Santiago.

  11. The boat symbolises the sacredness of Santiago’s perseverance and struggle.

  12. Hemingway through this work, attempts to say about the war’s destructive impact on the innocent.

  13. Like the animals, he leaves behind, an old man has no idea what the war means, or why it is happening but it nevertheless affects his life.

  14. Hemingway’s literature analysis and examination of the meaning of life have hame his work a classic.

  15. The old man and the Sea presents a challenging question while exploring several themes, these provide insight into man’s role, suffering without complaint and humanity’s place in the world.

  16. Santiago saw Fatima filling her jug with water at one of the Oasis well. He fell in love with her. She supported his quest.

  17. She knew this quest will take him away Fatima reveals true love, selfless and unconditional.

  18. The writer says of Santiago’s dream “he was asleep in a short time and he dreamed of Africa when he was a boy… the high capes, the great mountains”.

  19. So his main goal was to find the treatment he dreamed about in his dreams, but he always woke up before he could see the direction.

  20. Santiago’s determination to keep going, even when it was too dangerous was his fatal flaw.

  21. His effort to be the greatest he could imagine, it also left him fighting for death.

  22. Manolin is a symbol of love and fidelity. His dedication to learning from the old man ensures that Santiago will live on.

  23. The old man gets a cut on his face, and the narrator describes how it trickles down but dries before reaching his chin.

  24. The Marlin is a symbol of Christ and communion. This is the ritual of the last supper.

  25. The shark is like the destruction laws of the universe that equal fight to death.

  26. The lions about which Santiago dreams at the end is a symbol of youth and strength. Santiago dreams of his youth and he gets happy dreaming it.

  27. The old man represents Christ.

  28. Santiago refers to the sea a La Mal = a feminine form and El Mar is also= a Masculine form.

  29. Fatima’s love for Santiago is unconditional and selfless.

  30. He called his boat “skiff”

  31. Santiago identifies himself with the Marlin.

  32. Marlin was born to be fish, and Santiago was a fisherman.

  33. At noon a fish takes his bait. Santiago instantly knew it was Marlin, the big fish.

  34. But he could not pull the fish.

  35. The fish pulls the boat all through the day.

  36. The fish was swimming to and fro, from northeast to east.

  37. And Santiago kept enduring the pain, from the fishing lines.

  38. Whenever the fish crossed the skiff, the chord cut Santiago badly.