Novellas are like an old piece of jewelry. They might look unappealing and old at first but once you polish them and look under the surface they sparkle like new. This is like a novella because, once you look a little harder at one you find so many interesting ideas and conflicts within the story. In the Nobel Peace Prize winning novella, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway there are many obvious conflicts but also many that you might not notice until you think about them. Like Santiago the Man who must keep his strength when his body is failing him in order to keep his amazing catch. Then the viscous sharks that Santiago must fend off the save his catch he worked so hard to capture. And Manolin, the boy, who wanted desperately to go fish with Santiago but his parents, would not allow it. The struggles that we endure every life make us more independent and stronger as individuals whether the outcome is a win or a loss.
Perhaps the most detectable of Santiago’s struggles was fatigue. He is an old man that is easily forgotten by the way he struggled so long with the gargantuan fish. He battles the beast for three days and nights. Throughout the struggle he deals with cramped hands, sleep deprivation, thirst, hunger and many wounds created by the sharp fishing line he has been gripping for days. He must almost convince himself to keep going and win the struggle with the marlin. This can easily be shown in the quote: “This will kill him, the old man thought. He cannot do this forever”. (45) During this impossible struggle Santiago knows he must capture the fish to get money for him that could keep him well fed for months. It shows how greatly he struggled and how valuable the fish really was to him. "He settled comfortably against the wood and took his suffering as it came and the fish swam steadily and the boat moved slowly through the dark water." [64]This quote shows that this man is so determined no matter how his body fails him he is determined to capture this fish no matter what harm comes to him.
The Next struggle was the that Manolin wanted dearly to join the old man out in sea but his parents would not allow it. If he had gone things might t have turned out differently for Santiago. “It was Papa made me leave. I am a boy and I must obey him”. (10) He wanted to continue fishing with Santiago but after 40 days without a single fish his parent are convinced and put him on a more prosperous fishing boat. After switching to a more prosperous boat Manolin wants to come back to fish with Santiago. He says to Santiago, “I could go with you again. we’ve made some money”. (10) He wants to continue on with the old man that he cares so deeply about but Santiago disagrees and wants Manolin to remain with a boat that is prosperous.
Another conflict that occurs in the story is Santiago having to fight off aggressive sharks. Santiago is plagued with great fatigue from finally capturing the marlin. Even so, the violent animals continue to attack. The only thing Santiago can do is fight back. He has nothing to fight the beasts off and must use anything he can find to protect his prize. Santiago finds a club and a harpoon and uses them in attempts to protect the marlin. This plan is successful until one shark is able to sneak up and grab a piece of the marlin. The recently killed fish begins to hemorrhage into the water. The blood attracts more sharks. Santiago tries as hard as he can to fight off the vicious animals with anything he has. When he finally returns back to shore all that is left of the magnificent marlin is the skeleton. “‘They beat me, Manolin,’ he said. ‘They truly beat me” (25) Santiago feels that the sharks have beaten him and he is able to admit his defeat.
Ernest Hemingway added many obstacles that changed the course of the book. Every obstacle was important and made each of the characters stronger. Many things could have changed the outcome like if, Santiago had the boy or if the Marlin had given up earlier he could have avoided fatigue. The decisions either big or small affected the story. But if decisions weren't made nothing would change. So decisions are important for not only literature but also for life. Soif you look hard there are many conflicts and the decisions in the novella The Old Man and the Sea waiting to be uncovered.
Perhaps the most detectable of Santiago’s struggles was fatigue. He is an old man that is easily forgotten by the way he struggled so long with the gargantuan fish. He battles the beast for three days and nights. Throughout the struggle he deals with cramped hands, sleep deprivation, thirst, hunger and many wounds created by the sharp fishing line he has been gripping for days. He must almost convince himself to keep going and win the struggle with the marlin. This can easily be shown in the quote: “This will kill him, the old man thought. He cannot do this forever”. (45) During this impossible struggle Santiago knows he must capture the fish to get money for him that could keep him well fed for months. It shows how greatly he struggled and how valuable the fish really was to him. "He settled comfortably against the wood and took his suffering as it came and the fish swam steadily and the boat moved slowly through the dark water." [64]This quote shows that this man is so determined no matter how his body fails him he is determined to capture this fish no matter what harm comes to him.
The Next struggle was the that Manolin wanted dearly to join the old man out in sea but his parents would not allow it. If he had gone things might t have turned out differently for Santiago. “It was Papa made me leave. I am a boy and I must obey him”. (10) He wanted to continue fishing with Santiago but after 40 days without a single fish his parent are convinced and put him on a more prosperous fishing boat. After switching to a more prosperous boat Manolin wants to come back to fish with Santiago. He says to Santiago, “I could go with you again. we’ve made some money”. (10) He wants to continue on with the old man that he cares so deeply about but Santiago disagrees and wants Manolin to remain with a boat that is prosperous.
Another conflict that occurs in the story is Santiago having to fight off aggressive sharks. Santiago is plagued with great fatigue from finally capturing the marlin. Even so, the violent animals continue to attack. The only thing Santiago can do is fight back. He has nothing to fight the beasts off and must use anything he can find to protect his prize. Santiago finds a club and a harpoon and uses them in attempts to protect the marlin. This plan is successful until one shark is able to sneak up and grab a piece of the marlin. The recently killed fish begins to hemorrhage into the water. The blood attracts more sharks. Santiago tries as hard as he can to fight off the vicious animals with anything he has. When he finally returns back to shore all that is left of the magnificent marlin is the skeleton. “‘They beat me, Manolin,’ he said. ‘They truly beat me” (25) Santiago feels that the sharks have beaten him and he is able to admit his defeat.
Ernest Hemingway added many obstacles that changed the course of the book. Every obstacle was important and made each of the characters stronger. Many things could have changed the outcome like if, Santiago had the boy or if the Marlin had given up earlier he could have avoided fatigue. The decisions either big or small affected the story. But if decisions weren't made nothing would change. So decisions are important for not only literature but also for life. Soif you look hard there are many conflicts and the decisions in the novella The Old Man and the Sea waiting to be uncovered.
