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Important events in the old man and the sea
Manifestations of the conflict in the old man and the sea novel
Important events in the old man and the sea
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One of the most common mistakes we make in our everyday speech is the error of using entirely different words as ones which mean the exact same thing. One of the many examples of this would be the words destroyed and defeated. I know I am definitely guilty of using these two words as meaning the same thing. However, they both have entirely different definitions. But what are the differences between these words? In the book The Old Man and The Sea, Santiago states that “a man can be destroyed but not defeated.” By the end of the story had Santiago been defeated or destroyed? And if so, by who, or what? These are the things which will be covered in this essay. First, let’s go over the definitions of the words destroyed and defeated. According …show more content…
Whereas to be defeated is to be beaten, but not without future hope. When one is defeated in a battle, they lost, but they can still win the war. Similarly, when one is beaten, they still have hope to be a conqueror and not to be destroyed. So just like a war is a large scale event comprising of many battles, destruction is composed of many defeats. So, at the end of the story had Santiago been defeated or destroyed? Let's look at this one part at a time. First, has Santiago been destroyed? The book ends with Santiago resting on his bed. While sleeping, he is dreaming about lions on the coast of South Africa. Now, you may be wondering why this is significant. The reason for its significance is that when Santiago was a young man he spent a few years sailing just off the coast of South Africa. This represents a time when Santiago was strong. So his dreaming of this time represents that he is returning to that state. Thus, the answer is no. Santiago was not destroyed. But was he defeated? What do you think? He spent three whole days fighting with a fish which would, in the end, be entirely devoured by sharks. The answer is clearly yes. So in the end, we see that Santiago was never destroyed, but was instead defeated. Another way of putting this would be that Santiago lost the battle, but he could still win the
He doesn’t speak the language or know how the people in Africa act; he just knows that his treasure is in Egypt. His innocence and lack of awareness causes him to trust a young Arab boy, who ends up stealing all the money Santiago had, “The boy wanted to believe that his friend had simply become separated from him by accident.” (41) As a result, this causes Santiago to feel helpless and incapable of continuing his personal legend. He sees no point in continuing his journey and decides that he wants to go back to being a shepherd in Spain. However, Santiago remembers the Old King of Salem and his advice on following one's journey. He decides that he wants to continue in order to complete his Journey and not end up like the Baker, who awaits for a chance to accomplish his own journey. For this reason, Santiago is a hero because when tough obstacles come his way, he continues in hopes of finishing his journey and returning back home to his ordinary life and to the Merchant’s
In the end, Santiago realizes that his heart really lied at Andalusia, his one true home. Santiago’s journey really outlined the idea of following your dreams, and to always persevere and never give up. It is important that you follow your heart and succeed, but at the same time, never forget where you
“You must understand that love never keeps a man from pursuing his personal legend.” (Coelho, 124) This is a turning point in the story because Santiago is willing to give up everything he has worked for in order to stay with Fatima. The Alchemist explains that love comes with pursuing personal legends and it won’t stand in the way. Next, Santiago must face the fear of failure. “There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.” (Coelho, 141). There may be tough times and tests along the way but he must remain focused on his dream. Finally, the last obstacle Santiago goes through is the guilt of success. Once Santiago arrives at the pyramids and begins to dig for his treasure, two men approached him and beat him up. Once they were finished, one of the men told him that he shouldn’t believe in dreams. “You'll learn that a man shouldn't be so stupid. Two years ago, right here on this spot, I had a recurrent dream, too. I dreamed that I should travel the fields of Spain and look for a ruined church where shepherds and their sheep slept. In my dream, there was a sycamore growing out of the ruins
Nothing has been taken from him, he has not been forced into a situation. Instead, he voluntarily goes on a quest to achieve his Personal Legend. He wishes to be a shepherd. This gives him the opportunity to travel and learn new things, which he both enjoyed. Although, his contented mindset changes after a single dream. His new goal is to find the hidden treasure from his dreams. When Santiago thinks to himself, “It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting,.. (Coelho, page 11).” Santiago goes on this journey out of fear he will end of like most people: unhappy and useless. If he had never gone on the adventure, he would have never been satisfied with life. Unlike Edmond, Santiago never loses faith. In fact, one of his principal motivations is God. God never leaves his side, He guides Santiago through his journey by the use of omens. These omens give Santiago hope, as well as warn him for future
, he is pleased. Santiago continuously strives to see the best in people and not fear them. Finally, throughout the story, Santiago must also conquer the fears of failure, progression, and other situational worries. Santiago faces the possibility of failure to reach his goal many times (enotes.com). Despite the robbery, Santiago decides to continue his journey to Egypt instead of turning back.
The first significant moment that was important on Santiago’s journey was his meeting with the king. On page 19, Santiago meets an old man that sat next to him and turned out to be the king of Salem. This event was important because on page 26 the king explains Personal Legends to Santiago “ Because you are trying to realize your Personal Legend. And you are at the point where you’re about to give it all up.” Said the king. This set Santiago to search for his own Personal Legend.
When santiago was tested to turn into wind, he began to reach into the sandstorm and communicate with all the naturistic attributes.This represented his death. Santiago getting robbed for his gold & finding a solution to where his treasure was represented his rebirth in my opinion. “Tents being blown from their ties to the earth and animals were free from their tethers. The boy stood up shakily and looked once more at the pyramids. They seemed to laugh at him and he laughed back, his heart blasting with joy. This stage in santiago’s life represented resilience in its finest form, causing santiago to glide across this stage so profoundly. Santiago’s victory was a long time that was in deserving of coming. He deserved his treasure for believing in
After Santiago has had his dream interpreted, he sets out on a journey with the guidance of many people such as a king and a new friend. Firstly, Santiago meets a king who tells him that he can help him find his treasure if he gives him a tenth of his sheep. Santiago then sold all but one tenth of his sheep, which left him with a lot of money and a treasure he sought (Coelho 31). Now that he has no sheep left, he has nothing left to go back to, and has to start his journey. During the crossing of the first threshold stage, Santiago has to decide to take a step in which he gives everything up to pursue his personal legend. Now that Santiago has a lot of money, he is able to make the voyage to his treasure, but first he must get guidance. A boy he meets in a bar serves as a guide who holds his money for him, until when Santiago is not looking, the boy runs off with all of his money (Coelho 41). Santiago now has no money left and no sheep left. During the belly of the whale stage, Santiago faces a very impactful hindrance in which he is left with nothing but hope for finding. Lastly, Santiago faces many external struggles while on his journey across the desert towards the treasure in his dream. After traveling with a caravan during the hot days and very cold nights, Santiago learns that it is unsafe because there are tribal wars
In conclusion, Santiago’s journey had different stages that got him closer to achieving his personal legend. Overall the Hero’s Journey of santiago was about him going through challenges and for him to trust in his heart. This can also be compared someone when wanting to accomplish something but then you would think you won’t be able to accomplish it. Clearly, he has been able to complete his journey through stages which had also got him closer to the end every time he has accomplished one of the stages, so the stages are also there so when passing a stage you will be able to keep going without any
At the start of the novel, Santiago is summoned to embark on his adventure several times. He states that he continually has a dream that is quite strange and unfamiliar. In these dreams he meets a boy who tells him, “if you come here, you will find a hidden treasure”(13). The story later reveals that this dream is in fact a hint of his upcoming journey to find a hidden treasure. The second call is when Santiago strikes a conversation with a fortune teller. He asks the fortune teller to interpret his strange recurring dream. The fortune teller reveals to him that a grand treasure is waiting for him in the Egyptian Pyramids. While these news are not new for Santiago, this ultimately lead him one step closer to answering his call. The next and final call, is when Santiago met the King of Salem. The king gives Santiago the final push by explaining to him all about personal legends. The king gives him a sense of reassurance by telling him that, “in order to find the treasure, [Santiago] will have to follow the omens”(29). All of these examples tie in with Santiago beginning his hero journey.
Secondly, Santiago experiences material success because of the augmented physical strength he attains from the obstacles that he is forced to face. The old man is walking home to his shack after he returns from his strenuous journey, “He had to sit down five times before he reached his shack” (121). The old man is exhausted from his trip because he had spent so much energy catching the fish. Plenty of strength must have been gained from the exertion of this much energy. During the shark attacks, Santiago is optimistic about what good the bleeding from his hands will bring. “The bleeding may keep the left from cramping” (111). The old man is so strong that he uses the bleeding pain to suffocate a different source of pain. Not only that, but just the fact of keeping a positive attitude about a situation like this is a great accomplishment which can only be obtained from strength.
Santiago is portrayed as Jesus throughout the novel, including when Santiago dies. Márquez describes Santiago’s death, saying, “Pedro Vicario pulled out his knife with his slaughterer’s iron wrist and dealt him a second thrust almost in the same place. ‘The strange thing is that the knife kept coming out clean’” (Márquez 117-118). Just as Jesus endured extraordinary acts of cruelty that would have killed a normal person quickly, Santiago endured a great deal until dying.
In the story, Santiago’s bravery is unsurpassed, but it is not until he hooks the “great fish” that we truly see his valor and perseverance. Through Santiago’s actions, Hemingway teaches the reader about bravery and perseverance in the face of adversity. He demonstrates that even when all is lost and seems hopeless, a willful heart and faith will overcome anything. Santiago had lost his “luckiness” and therefore the respect of his village. Through the description of his cabin, we also suspect that Santiago is a widower.
Some argued that the novel’s theme was Santiago’s struggle, the friendship with the fish and other characters; Santiago’s perseverance and that he really ended up as a triumphant man. But to argue that those were also the main themes of the book is also a difficult thing to do. Even though Santiago fought and kept on with his struggle to catch the fish, he was defeated because he lost it at the end. Defeat, according to the Larousse Chambers English Dictionary, is when you are overthrown in a battle, you lose a game and therefore you don’t win: you don’t gain or reach your goal. As we can see Santiago, in spite of the fact that he persevered and struggled, starving, for three days lost the battle.
His persistence and confidence was clearly demonstrated at the beginning of the novella. At the beginning of the novella, Santiago seems to run out of luck: he has been unable to catch a fish for eighty four days. As a professional fisherman, eight four days without catching a single fish would be shameful, especially for an old man. However, he never once ga...