The Oldman and The Sea

The Oldman and The Sea is a novella written by Earnest Hemingway an American writer. The novella is with single action, single thought and single plot. Hemingway has used very limited characters to express the grand importance of struggle in life and an individual’s strength and capacity of fight against the odds of life.

The Oldman, Santiago goes for fishing and comes back with nothing for eighty-four days. He still continues to go without losing courage. Though he has faced failure in life for many times, he is still hopeful in his eyes about skill and luck. He feels that he is still capable of bearing the weight of great fish. On the eighty-fifth the oldman goes for fishing. He goes deep into the sea to catch a big fish. A huge fish is stuck in his fishing bait but he has not seen his pray. He can just feel the weight. The fish starts pulling the boat and it continues for 2-3 days. Finally it appears on the surface then starts circling the boat. The oldman respects the fish’s strength and mightiness and calls the fish his brother and gathering all his courage he kills the marlin. The oldman is victorious but the victory is short lived. The sharks come to eat the marlin. The oldman tries to save is price but cannot do anything. The body is marlin is mutilated. When the oldman comes back only the head of the great fish was left. He was tired and goes to sleep.

In the critical journey of life the oldman tries to get inspiration. Manolin is as such character in the oldman’s life. The readers look at the oldman from the boy’s eyes. When the oldman was alone in the sea he desperately wishes for the boy’s company. In the critical time of life the oldman’s frequently visits his past. The scene of young lions playing at seashore is his pleasant memory. Every time he dreams lions. Yeats: “ Some one scene, some one adventure, some one picture that is the image of his secret life, and this one image, if he would buts brood over it his lifelong, would lead his soul.” The dream of lions has a special space in the oldman’s life. These particular person and scene helps him to be positive in his life. So the oldman fails but he never loses.

Here are some questions: Enjoy thinking

1.      Can you mark a critical phase of your life?

2.      Do you have any such person whom you recall in the crisis?

3.      What is the importance of that person? Why?

4.      What is the importance of dream of lions in the novel?

5.      Do you have any such scene or image you frequently like to visit?

6.      What is the reason of your obsession for that scene?

7.      Replace the oldman with yourself. How would be the approach if you fail like the oldman in life?