The Old Man and the Sea - Themes

Old Man Jan Hrebicek (binary/octet-stream)

The Old Man and the Sea - Themes

Nature

The Old Man is a character on intimate terms with the natural world. In his home life, we see the simplicity in which he lives. While on the ocean, we see that he has everything he needs to survive. More than that, he has built up a long understanding of the relationships within nature itself.  He knows the birds may show him the way to a catch; that jellyfish will keep away the fish; the flying fish - who are his best friends - are a favorite food of the dolphin. He has respect and love for the ocean and the marlin. He has contempt for the Galanos that take his catch.  He knows the weather that brings the storms and, when he closes his eyes, he dreams of power as manifested by the African lions of his youth. 

Old Man Nature (binary/octet-stream)

Friendship

At the beginning and the end of the story, Santiago and his friendship with the young Manolin is made explicit. 'The boy keeps me alive', he thinks, but this is more than a labor for Manolin. He chastises himself for not doing more for the Old Man. He cries when sees the condition he returns in. He feels guilt for not being with him. He vows to accompany him on the next trip.  Santiago also feels friendship for the natural world. He feels empathy for the small bird that rests on his boat. He is grateful to the gull for showing him the way. Most of all, he feels a deep connection with the marlin, who he refers to many times as a friend. He even weighs up the actions of a fisherman -'If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him' 

Hemingway Marlin (binary/octet-stream)

Endurance

At one point, Santiago thinks back to an arm wrestle he once had with a man in Casablanca. 'The match had started on a Sunday morning and ended on a Monday morning'. This, by his account, was the greatest arm wrestle in history and ended with Santiago's victory. As an Old Man at sea, Santiago battles age, fatigue, sleep deprivation, loneliness, malnourishment, dehydration, cramp, discomfort, pain, loss of faith, sunstroke, sharks and, of course, the largest marlin anyone has ever seen.  'Pain is nothing to a man', he says. Perhaps the greatest adversity is the eventual loss of his prize, but the carcass remains to tell the story. The final actions of the boy and his neighbors indicate that Santiago can retain his pride. 

Maxresdefault (binary/octet-stream)

Luck

At the beginning of the novella, it is suggested that the Old Man is unlucky. That is the reason he has gone 84 days without a good catch and that is the reason the boy fishes on another boat. But Santiago does not believe he is cursed. He remains confident in his own abilities and the time to come. On the waves, he makes his own luck. He uses his wits and his experience to succeed, even if he ultimately fails. Unlike say, 'The Rime of The Ancient Mariner', or 'Moby Dick', there is no suggestion that the Old Man has committed a crime against nature. As he says himself, 'It is better to be lucky, but I would rather be exact'.

Lucky (binary/octet-stream)

Dream

'He no longer dreamed of storms, nor of women, nor of great occurrences, nor of great fish, nor of fights, nor contests of strength, nor of his wife. He only dreamed of places now and of the lions on the beach...He loved them as he loved the boy. He never dreamed about the boy.'  It is important to note that Santiago dreams of lions, and that that may be as he views himself. Equally important are all the things Hemingway tells us that he no longer dreams about. This means that he once did dream of them, frequently. Perhaps the biggest revelation is that he no longer dreams of his wife, who is mentioned at no other point in the novel. 

Dream Image (binary/octet-stream)

Memory

The Old Man's memories are a reminder to both him and the reader that his strongest days are behind him. Yet, his memory of the impossibly long arm wrestle resonate with the impossibly long struggle with the marlin.  The evidence suggests that the Old Man's memory is in perfect working order which, considering his age, is fair to say about the rest of him.  His memory is also a store of knowledge. It is the repository of experience that he draws upon in both his battle with the marlin and his battle with the sharks.  His memory of the lions is the last image of the story - an image of strength and nobility. 

African Lion Running On Beach U L Pzrba70 (binary/octet-stream)