The Old Man and the Sea

Well, I can't sleep and I'm thinking about The Old Man and the Sea. This is a really beautiful book, but it's definitely not an action packed book, it's a very calm story, but probably one of the most emotionally charged books I've ever read. For me, stories become more meaningful when I know the context. So, to that end, here is a little info about The Old Man and the Sea.

The Old Man and the Sea was Hemmingway's first successful novel after For Whom the Bell Tolls. It was the last novel he published in his lifetime. When he wrote the novel, he was pretty sure it would be his last....and he was a bit hesitant/nervous because his last few novels weren't very good.

The novel centers around an aged fisherman named Santiago. Santiago is a good and seasoned fisherman, but he hasn't caught anything in 84 days. He's in Cuba and the people are a bit superstitious, so they take his failure to catch anything as some sort of dark omen. What is interesting is that this directly parallels Hemmingway's life. Hemmingway is the wise old fisherman....Santiago hadn't caught a fish in 84 days...Hemmingway hadn't published a successful book in years, Santiago was wise, old and ready to die, Hemmingway was old, tired and ready to retire...Santiago catches the biggest fish of his life but it is destroyed by sharks....Hemmingway writes his greatest story, but it's attacked by critics (who eventually come around and recommended he receive the Nobel Prize in literature (which he does)).

The story is really about growing up, passing on knowledge, respecting but facing opposition...it's about fearlessly facing loss and holding to what you value most.

Here's a few quotations that show what I mean

"Anyone can be a fisherman in May."

"Now is the time to think of only one thing: that which I was born for."

"But a man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated."

"Then he rested against the bow. He rested sitting on the un-stepped mast and sail and tried not to think but only to endure."

Aren't those great? Great writing packed with wisdom...resting just below the surface.

Probably the best part of the book is the relationship between the old man and the boy. It's a true mentoring relationship. There is so much loyalty and love between the two characters. The boy is willing to sacrifice everything to be with the man who taught him how to fish, even if that means failure as a fisherman. And the old man returns that devotion by making sure the boy fishes without him if it means the boy will have success (even though he constantly says (as he's alone at sea) "I wish the boy was with me").

One other interesting part of the novella is the Christian symbolism. The old man is definitely a Christ figure. Here are a few examples.

When the old man fights with the fish he faces his mortality, but he faces his trial stoically. The old man stands alone while everything surrounding him wells up against him, but he perseveres because of the tremendous value he saw in his task and because he felt it was what he was "born for." As he's fighting with the fish the palms of his hands are lacerated paralleling the nails in Christ's hands. As the old man docks his boat and carries the corpse of the Marlin home he straps it onto his back and walks up the hill in a reference to Christ carrying the cross up to Calvary. When the old man collapses on his bed in exhaustion he lies on his bed with his arms extended and palms up as Christ was thought to have hung on the cross.

Anyway, there is just so much to this novel. It really is a beautiful story. It covers so many themes...ranging from devotion, mentorship, loyalty, faith, determination, transcendence, and love.

It certainly isn't a fast paced novel...but it shouldn't be, because fast past isn't the proper speed for this kind of story. The Old Man and the Sea is a reflective novel that covers some of the most sensitive subjects imaginable. So, appropriately, it moves slowly, carefully, and methodically. The Old Man and the Sea is a wonderful story/allegory..and it's really short....so read it!

Anyway, that's my soapbox for the day. Hope you all have a good one.