The Old Man and the Sea Essay

The Old Man and the Sea Essay

Today in our society there are many situations that someone has to deal with or make a decision about that is important for them. Sometimes making an important decision or in a situation the person struggles against someone or something. While the Old Man is trying to pull in and catch the Marlin he faces many obstacles that he has to go against. Often in literature, a character struggles against powerful forces or obstacles that have a significant effect on that character. In the Old Man and the Sea, Santiago is lonely and struggles during the time he is trying to catch and bring in the marlin, his left hand cramps up while trying to pull in the fish, the sharks get most of the marlin when it is tied up against the skiff, and not being able to have the marlin in the end for everything he did to get the fish.

Santiago struggles with the obstacle of his hand cramping up while trying to fight against the fish. The fish is so strong it is making a line burn on his hands. "He took hold of the line so that it did nor fit into any of the flesh line cuts and shifted his weight so that he could put his left hand into the sea on the other side of the skiff (84-85)." Santiago deals with this obstacle by putting his hands in the salt water to try to get rid of the pain from the marlin. It didn’t do much. He was happy and he kept the line in his hands. He put the line back in his hands but not in the line cuts from the marlin’s strength. Even though his hands were cut up, Santiago was determined to catch the fish so he kept on holding on the line. Even though his hand was cramped and cut up he held on the line because didn’t want to lose the marlin.

One of Santiago’s biggest obstacle and challenge was fighting off the aggressive sharks to save the marlin from being eaten. When he caught the marlin it was too big to put in the skiff so Santiago tied it up against the side. The marlin had been bleeding from the sharp harpoon and a shark got the scent and tracked it. He was confident he could fight them off. "He hit it without hope but with resolution and complete malignancy (102). It started to bite and tear the marlin’s flesh. "They must have taken a quarter of him and of the best meat," he said aloud (110). Santiago stayed calm and tried to fight them off. More sharks came and in a pack to get some of the marlin. The old man tried to stop the sharks from taking the fish but every time the old man tried to stop the sharks from tearing the flesh he would be too late and they would’ve already taking a bite. Santiago was worried that his marlin was going to be eaten. This was a hard obstacle for Santiago because he worked so hard to bring in and catch the marlin and all his work was for nothing because the fish was getting eaten by the sharks.

Another obstacle for Santiago was that he was not able to have the marlin in the end for everything he did to get the fish and to show everyone. He is sad that he didn't get the marlin. He did so much work to get the marlin and catch him and then he had to fight off all the sharks that were trying to get the marlin and in the end he was upset and didn’t get to have the whole marlin. When he got into the town he was very tired. "He started to climb again and at the top he fell and lay for some time with the mast across his shoulder" (121). He went to his shack to sleep. Santiago deals with this obstacle and he is so tired. He was disappointed and did so much work and he doesn’t get to have the whole marlin in the end.

Often in literature, a character struggles against powerful forces or obstacles that have a significant effect on that character. The old man has many obstacles that he has to face and many decisions he has to make while out at sea. He is proud that he caught the marlin. Santiago struggles during the time he is trying to catch and bring in the marlin, his left hand cramps up while trying to pull in the fish, the sharks get most of the marlin when it is tied up against the skiff, and not being able to have the marlin in the end for everything he did to get the fish. Santiago struggles against the marlin and trying to catch it and bring it in and trying to fight against the sharks trying to eat the marlin’s flesh on the side of the skiff.