Department
of English,
M.K.Bhavnagar
University
Name :- Mansi Upadhyay
Roll No :- 18
Year :- 2019-20
Semester :- 3
Paper no :- 10 ( The American Literature)
Assignment Topic :- Theme in The Old Man and Sea.
Submitted To :- Dr. Prof. Dilip Barad sir ( head of
English Department )
Words :- 1460
Ernest Miller Hemingway born 21 July 1899 and
2 July 1961 was an American Journalist, novelist, short – story writer, and sportsman.
His economical and understated style-which he termed the iceberg theory had a
strong influence on 20th century fiction, while his adventurous
lifestyle and his public image brought him admiration from later generations.
Three of his novels, four short story collections, and three non-fiction work
were published posthumously. Many of his works are considered classics of American
literature. Hemingway went on safari to Africa shortly after the publication of
The Old Man and Sea (1952), where he was involved in two successive near-fatal
plane crashes that left him in pain and ill-health for much of the rest of his
life.
§ Hemingway’s lifelong interest and
skill in athletic activities and physical adventures such as deep sea fishing,
bullfighting, and hunting inform much of his literary work. His idea of
virility includes strength, physical prowess, and perseverance. Many of his
heroes combine these qualities, strive toward them, or suffer from their loss.
The old man and sea tackles themes that occupied Hemingway for his entire life.
1) Perseverance
2) Pain and Suffering
3) Circle of life
4) Physical strength and skill
5) Pride, Honor, and Respect
2) Pain and Suffering
3) Circle of life
4) Physical strength and skill
5) Pride, Honor, and Respect
(1)
Perseverance :-
The old man and the sea
illustrates the theme of perseverance in different ways and on different levels.
First, although the old man has not caught a fish in 84 days, he does not
bemoan his fate or rage against his detractors. Instead, defying his streak of
bad luck, the old man keeps going out to fish, trying even harder by fishing
farther out in the open sea than anyone else. Second, like the old man himself,
the marlin does not surrender and go belly-up but uses its size and strength to
pull the old man’s skiff even farther out to sea, thus making it a formidable
adversary. Third, seemingly dwarfed by the marlin’s size and strength, Santiago
defeats the mighty fish after all because he is willing to endure exhaustion,
hunger, thirst, and pain. The same willpower that enabled the old man’s hero,
Joe DiMaggio, to play a flawless game despite painful injuries enables the old
man to wait out his opponent’s strength. Finally, when the sharks attack and
feed on the marlin until nothing is left, the old man kills or fends them off
one by one, despite losing a weapon with each confrontation until he has
nothing left but his bare fists.
Returning home with nothing but the
skeleton to bear witness to the greatest catch of his life and his skiff badly
damaged, Santiago is not defeated, nor is his spirit broken. Like Jesus bearing
his cross, Santiago will carry his mast to and from his skiff day in and day
out, doing what fisherman are meant to do: fish.
(2)
Pain and suffering :-
The theme of pain and suffering is
intricately connected to that of perseverance and appears in several ways. Pain
is the price a fisherman must pay for a bountiful catch. The old man’s hands
are marred with scars, speaking to a lifelong history of struggles with
opponents out at sea. In the course of the story, it becomes clear that while
these scars are indeed a sign of strength, willpower, and victory. No pain, no
gain: in the context of this story, the phrase means any worthwhile catch comes
with painful physical injuries cuts to the hands, arms, face, and back of a
fisherman as he tries to hold and reel in the fish. To be a fisherman means
enduring pain.
However, the theme of
pain and suffering goes deeper. The capacity to endure pain and suffering
distinguishes humans from other creatures. Although a strong opponent,
eventually the marlin gives up and allows itself to be reeled in while the old
man keeps going despite physical exhaustion, three painful wounds, a cramping
hand, and suffering distinguishes Santiago from other fisherman. Just as Joe
DiMaggio overcame painful injuries to pull off an unparalleled hitting streak,
Santiago defies odds that younger, stronger, and perhaps more successful
fishermen do not try. None of them has ever fished as far out or encountered a
fish as large, strong, and magnificent as Santiago has. The old man’s ability
to endure pain and suffering establishes him as a hero who rises above others.
(3)
Circle of Life :-
Life and death are prominent themes in old man
and the sea. The old man muses that the sea, a symbol for nature itself, is
simultaneously beautiful and cruel because it gives life and takes it away. Sea
turtles swallow jellyfish, hawks hunt warblers, sharks devour marlins, and men
catch fish. each creature has its place in the food chain that keeps the circle
of life going. The death of one creature provides life for another. The
seemingly opposing forces of life and death are in fact in perfect balance.
However, there is another aspect to this
theme. Although Santiago appreciates the circle of life and recognizes his own
place within it, he fights hard to rise above it and survive. He risks his life
sailing out father and staying longer than anyone to catch a fish large enough
to provide meat for him to eat and sell. He defends his catch against sharks,
brute creatures out to satisfy the very bloodlust that kills them. Fishing is
Santiago’s livelihood; it’s how he sustains the one life he has. While nature
as a whole holds opposing forces in perfect balance, life and death are the
poles that mark an individual life. Hemingway shows that what distinguishes
humans from other creatures is the desire to persevere as individuals. The old
man, who lives alone in his shack, illustrates the human condition: a struggle
against death that each man must fight on his own.
(4)
Physical Strength and
Skill :-
As his weather beaten
body shows, Santiago is not quite as strong as he used to be. However, in his
epic struggle with the marlin, the old man makes up for that loss of vitality
and strength with superior knowledge and skill. He knows how to read nature, he
knows how to handle the line to read nature, he knows how to handle the line to
gauge the movement of the fish, and he knows how to interpret these movements.
That’s not all he also knows himself and his own limits. He knows exactly how to
read nature, he knows how to handle the line to gauge the movement of the fish,
and he knows how to interpret these movements. That’s not all he also knows
himself and his own limits. He knows exactly how far to push himself and how to
counteract the harrowing effects of the long struggle on his physical strength.
He knows exactly when to eat and when to rest, and he uses his skill to
overcome his limitations. When he loses on weapon after another as he battles
the sharks, the old man uses the resources at his disposal to create the
makeshift weapons that keep him alive. However, throughout the story, it
becomes clear that despite the old man’s physical prowess, skill, and
willingness to take risks, he lacks luck and therefore cannot find material
success.
(5)
Pride, Honor, and
Respect :-
Although the old man is
humble and seems to care little about the other fishermen’s opinions, he is
proud of his skills and wants recognition for them. After all, he wishes
Manolin were there with him, not only to help him fish and dispel loneliness,
but also to show the boy what kind of man he is and to witness the greatest the
fish’s size, strength, and perseverance the marlin pulls the skiff for days
make it an opponent worthy of the old man’s respect. Defeating it in a struggle
that takes everything the old man has in turn demands respect from others. It
matters little that he does not meet the original objective in catching the
fish, to return with meat to eat and sell. The villagers admiration for the
magnificent skeleton tied to the old man’s skiff shows there is honor in honest
defeat. It is the struggle itself that counts, the willingness to exert all of
one’s strength, no matter what the outcome may be.
THANK YOU
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