Religion In The Old Man And The Sea

834 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay on study of literature

Religion has been used to give a group of like-minded individuals a sense of order and purpose. In Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, Christianity is used to justify the good morals of Santiago. The old man is compared to Christ because of his faith in the will of nature. In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, religion is used to reveal poor morals. The eyes of God watch over the sinful people and judge them. In both novels, religion is used to justify the consequences of sinful action and praise those who act otherwise.
Hemingway depicts Santiago as a tired old man with no luck of providing for himself. The allusions made to Christ do not prove the old man to be strong or wildly heroic, but to be noble and true. The boy says to Santiago, "There …show more content…

However, each novel uses this differently in that one represents Christ, and one represents the followers of Christ. Hemingway takes a character depicted as a code hero, and considers him a Christ-like figure. The purpose of doing so being that it strengthens the reader's belief in Santiago. As a plain old man, he is moderately pitiful and sad. With insight to his courage and Christ-like characteristics, he is a character that is easy to watch struggle because there is faith that he will not be conquered. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses religion to stress the immoral acts occurring in the roaring ‘20’s. The whole novel showcases wild behaviors and restless attitudes, but it is the allusion that the eyes of T. J. Eckleburg stare over the Valley of Ashes with a "watchful vigil" (Fitzgerald 7). Religion is said to be used to sugar coat things and live loudly without consideration of reality. In the Valley of Ashes, there are no parties and there is no extravagant money to be flaunted and to help distract from reality. There is only sin that is laid out plain on the table, and these Godly eyes reveal the sinful nature. Both novels use the same religion to highlight characters and plots, but Hemingway uses it to showcase a single character's most godly features, while Fitzgerald uses it to expose a large group’s

Show More
Related

  • Great Gatsby-Santiago

    1088 Words  | 3 Pages

    Santiago is an old fisherman who lives in a small coast town in Cuba. At the time that Hemingway wrote the story, he was also an elderly gentlemen and was such an avid fisherman throughout his life, that books such as "Ernest Hemingway, The Angler As Artist” were written on the sole subject of how this obsession influenced Hemingway's writing. Furthermore, he fished off the coast of Cuba so much that he decided to "buy the 'Finca Vigia' in Cuba, a substantial estate located about fifteen miles from downtown Havana . . .” For entertainment Santiago would "read the baseball." Meanwhile Hemingway often "relied on baseball analogies” in his writing, suggesting that he also loved the game. These similarities between Santiago's lifestyle and Hemingway's cannot be ignored or passed off as coincidence because they are much too precise. Already, from these prominent identical traits it is evident that Hemingway modeled the character of Santiago after his own person.

    Read More

  • Sacrifices in The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    1770 Words  | 4 Pages

    In order to understand the religious imagery in The Great Gatsby, one must first understand Fitzgerald's own ideas on religion. Fitzgerald was a troubled man much of his life, and was a victim of psychological and emotional turmoil. Fitzgerald's friend, John Peale Bishop once remarked he had "the rare faculty...

    Read More

  • Mrs.Mallards character (The story of an hour)

    2257 Words  | 5 Pages

    Hemingway refuses to romanticize his character. Being “tough” people, such as boxers, bullfighters, gangsters, and soldiers, they are depicted as leading a life more or less without thought. The world is full of such people, and it is unrealistic to put sublime thoughts into their heads.

    Read More

  • F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby

    410 Words  | 1 Pages

    Characters in books can reveal the author feeling toward the world. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald suggested the moral decline of the period in America history through the interpersonal relationships among his characters. The book indicates the worthlessness of materialism, the futile quest of Myrtle and Gatsby, and how America's moral values had diminished. Despite his newly acquired fortune, Gatsby's monitory means could not afford his only true wish, therefore he cannot buy everything which is important to Daisy. (Fitzgerald, -page 42) What you wish for is not always what you want or not all that glitters is gold.

    Read More

  • Biblical Allusions in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

    1382 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald tells the story of a world lost to superficiality and greed. Falsehood and deception are the currency which fuels the characters in the novel. Dwelling in this fallen world, Fitzgerald has placed a fallen god. Gatsby is bathed in descriptions that identify him as the Son of God. Fitzgerald makes a conscious effort to clothe this character with imagery and actions to make him the patron deity of this fallen world, but Gatsby is too much enveloped by his surroundings to save them and is consumed in the attempt. Despite the biblical allusions, strong images and explicit statements identifying Gatsby with Christ, the prevailing tone of the novel prevents him from being a Christ-figure.

    Read More

  • Overcoming Problems in The Alchemist

    617 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first two obstacles that Santiago faces are that his father tells him he can not do something that he wants to do and that he wants to pursue his personal legend, but he does not want to hurt those that he loves. For example, Santiago’s father said, “The people who come here have a lot of money to spend, so they can afford to travel. Amongst us the only ones who can travel are shepherds.” Everyone is told by their parents and friends that everything we want to do is impossible. Since Santiago did not have money to spend to travel his only choice was then to become a shepherd to fulfill his desire. T...

    Read More

  • The Alchemist Archetypes Essay

    1566 Words  | 4 Pages

    Santiago is a young boy who fits into the flawed hero archetype. His story tells of his journey to find his Personal Legend and the many new people and experiences he encounters. Santiago is flawed in the way that he does not have enough confidence in himself to complete the task set out in front of him. He is constantly putting himself off track and avoiding what he has to do. In the beginning of his journey, he faces a setback and his money gets stolen. While finding a solution and a job, he gets distracted loses sight of his dreams. A couple months into the job, he thinks, “...Egypt was now just as distant a dream as was Mecca for the merchant…” (Coelho 58) and he glorifies his new plan to “disembark at Tarifa as a winner” (Coelho 58) with his improved flock of sheep. However, he continues his journey two years later, despite his break in confidence. When Santiago reaches the Oasis during his journey across the desert, he gets sidetracked once more by a woman. This woman’s name is Fatima. The second time they meet Santiago speaks without thinking and says, “‘I came to tell you just one thing...I want you to be my wife. I love you.’” (Coelho 98). This alone demonstrates his rash actions of an inexperienced hero who causes his dreams to be postponed. However, Santiago is also a successful hero despite his flaws. He still continues his journey, no matter what, and eventually reaches his goal. Even through

    Read More

  • Religion in Moby Dick

    1207 Words  | 3 Pages

    "In the beginning when God created the heavens and the Earth, the Earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light."

    Read More

  • Examples Of Manipulation In The Great Gatsby

    874 Words  | 2 Pages

    F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, paints vivid picture of the lives of upper and lower classes together and their interactions during the Roaring 20’s. Fitzgerald does this by showing the readers the true nature and purpose behind the upper class and the manipulation they use against anyone lower than them. An example of this manipulation would be Tom Buchanan, a wealthy man married to Daisy Buchanan, lying George Wilson, a lowly poor individual running a mechanics shop, about selling a car, just to see the man’s wife. This poor man, Wilson, lives in “The Valley of Ashes”, an almost desolate area on the way to New York from West and East Egg. This valley is a representation of the manipulation and reckless behavior of the upper class. Through The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald paints a picture of the 1920’s by portraying the upper class as immoral and careless through their actions, and their opinions.

    Read More

  • Religion and Moby Dick

    3608 Words  | 8 Pages

    Job was a man of the purest faith. When the world shunned God, Job's faith never declined. Job was a wealthy, handsome man with a beautiful wife and a vast amount of property. At some point in time, Satan made a bet with God that if Job situation was changed, his faith would quickly falter. On this note, God took Job's wealth, his property, his family, and his wife. When times were at their worst, God gave Job pus welts on Job's face, taking his looks. Job's faith, however, did not falter, instead it becamestronger. Job passed the test. God then healed Job, gave him more land, greater wealth , and a better wife. Job was baffled, he wondered the purpose behind his fall and rise. When he asked God this, God replied: "...Because I'm God." That was answer enough.

    Read More

  • Corruption of the American Dream in the Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    1440 Words  | 3 Pages

    In brief, the world of The Great Gatsby can seem as sordid, loveless, commercial, and dead as the ash heaps presided over by the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg. Indeed, this atmosphere is so essential that one of the alternate titles Fitzgerald considered was Among the Ash-Heaps and Millionaires. Fitzgerald using the valley of ashes, illustrates an environment where love has lost its place, which destroys hope for a family; the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg, clearly intended to represent those of God, emphasizes that this lack of love and filial piety in a sin against themselves as well as society and God.

    Read More

  • The Old Man and the Sea

    1355 Words  | 3 Pages

    master at his art and he keeps practicing it in order to better himself. The

    Read More

  • Themes in The Old Man and the Sea

    948 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Religion in The Chronicle of a Death Foretold

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    Santiago is, undoubtedly, crafted as a Christ figure, from his innocence to his crucifixion. His innocence is derived from the narrator’s doubt and the doubt invoked in the reader, that Santiago deflowered Angela prior to her marriage; he is murdered for this reason. In the novella, Santiago attempts to flee from Pedro and Pablo Vicario once he realizes that they are out to kill him; unfortunately, he does not make it into the safety of his home. As the stabbing progresses, Santiago stops defending himself and lets the brothers continue “knifing him against the door with alternate and easy stabs” (Márquez 118). With the surrender of Santiago, the entire town became horrified “by its own crime” (Márquez 118).

    Read More

  • The Old Man and the Sea: The Parallel Between Santiago and Jesus Christ

    1511 Words  | 4 Pages

    There is never a simple key to any writer worth much attention, but in the case of Hemingway there is something that looks so like a key… that it cannot escape any informed and thoughtful reader’s notice" (O’Conner 153). Ernest Hemingway was one such author. Very rarely did he summarize statements, therefore the only way to solve his puzzle was to take it apart and examine each components. One of the hidden elements that the reader must analyzie closely is the parallel between Santiago and Jesus Christ. In the novel, The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway creates connections between Santiago and Jesus Christ that adds religious coloration to the story.

    Read More

More about Religion In The Old Man And The Sea

Open Document