Santiago A Hero

In The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemmingway’s main character Santiago is an old, cuban fisherman who goes on a quest to catch a substantial fish to feed himself and others in his community. In the beginning of the book, Santiago and his young apprentice had gone eighty-four days without catching any fish. Later the young boy’s parents forced him to leave the old man and find a boat with more luck. The old man believed that on the eighty-fifth day his prolonged period of misfortune would end. Santiago decided that he was going to go farther out than any other fishermen. Several hours after he left a massive fish called a marlin takes the old fisherman’s bait. Unfortunately for Santiago, the marlin was so large when he tried to escape, he pulled

As a result, some people can't decide if Santiago is or isn't a hero. According to a mythologist named Joseph Campbell, there is a hero sequence of actions: departure, fulfillment, and a return. In most hero stories there is a recurring idea of death and resurrection. The hero usually also has a transformation of consciousness. They change the way they think about something or act, because of a significant event in their quest. A hero can be described as: brave, strong, wise, generous, loyal, caring, and

Santiago did go through the sequence of actions. The departure was when he first set out to go catch a fish. The fulfillment occurred when the old fisherman caught the fish and was able to bring it in to the docks . Finally, the return was when he pulled in to the dock and walked home. Some people will argue that he did not have a true fulfillment. On page 120 it says, “It is easy when you are beaten, he thought. I never knew how easy it was. And what beat you, he thought”. The sharks had eaten all of the fish and all that he brought in was the skeleton. No, it was not the fulfillment that he had hoped for, but it was better than bringing in nothing at all. The fact that Santiago survived the four day journey and brought in the skeleton is astonishing. He was able to inspire the people of his community and the young boy. The old man feels defeated in the last few pages of the book, but the boy encourages him: “‘Now we will fish together again’ ‘No I am not lucky. I am not lucky anymore’ ‘The hell with luck,’ the boy said. ‘I’ll bring the luck with me.’ ‘What will your family say?’ ‘I do not care. I caught two yesterday. But we will fish together now for I still have much to learn’”