Topic-Struggle for the survival/existence in the Old man & the Sea by Hemingway paper-10

                       Assignment

Name: Maheta Arati R.

Class: M.A.-2

     Semester -3

Roll No. -2

Paper: - 10(The American Literature)

Topic: The Old man and the struggle for the survival

Submitted to: Department of English

             (MK Bhavnagar University)

Guided by: HeenaBa Zala

Batch: 2013-15

Year: 2014-15

Words:

                                            The Old Man and the Sea is novel written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 and published in 1952. It was most famous work of his life. It centers upon Santiago, an aging fisherman who struggles with a giant Marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. The Old Man and the Sea was awarded  the Pulitzer Prize For Fiction  in 1953 and was cited by the  Noble  Committee as Committee as  contributing the awarding of the Noble Prize in Literature to Hemingway in  1954.

                     The meaning

Struggle means to fight, hard task, great effort to overcome difficulties. And survival means staying alive after facing life threatening danger. When these two words get together so it becomes struggle for the existence. In this novel the main protagonist   Santiago in whole novel struggles for to keep himself alive. The front page of the novel itself represents the picture of the struggle of the old Santiago who fight with big sharks and other creatures of the sea. In the whole novel Santiago faces many struggles in the story. One major difficulty that he faced everyday it was that how he get food to eat to keep him alive. He did not any money and he had luck with fishing.

‘’But he thought, I keep them with precision. Only I have no luck any more. But who knows? May be today. Every day is new day. It is better to lucky. But I would rather be next. Then when comes you are ready’’

‘’There was no cast net and the boy remembered when they had sold it. But they went through this fiction every day. There was no pot of yellow rice and fish and boy knew this too’’

Santiago faced such things as lying to his friend just so isn’t embarrassed to say cannot afford it.

The biggest struggle that he faced in the whole novel was about his fighting with big and huge fish Marlin. Which he caught all by himself. He never quit catching the huge fish, even though the fish was bigger than him and much greater than his own boat he still never let it go.

‘’ The fish is my friend too… I have never seen or heard of such a fish. But I must kill him. I am glad we do not have to try to kill the stars .imagine if each day a man must try to kill the moon, his tine if thought. The moon runs away. But imagine a man each day should have to try to kill the sun? We were born lucky he thought’’

Ø Old Man ( pg-20)s

When the sharks ate it and all there was left only skeleton he still brought it back. He knew in his heart that he had accomplished something bigger than any one has ever seen. He believed he could do it and that is all.

Santiago an old fisherman has gone 84 days without catching a fish .For the first 40 days, a boy named Manolin had fished with him, but manolin’s parents who all Santiago ‘salao or ‘’the worst form of unlucky’’ forced Manolin to leave him in order to work in a more prosperous oat. The old man is wrinkled, splotched and scarred from handling heavy fish on cords but his eyes which are the color of the sea remain ‘’cheerful and undefeated.

Having made some money with the successful angler, the boy offers to return to Santiago’s skiff, remaining him of their previous eighty-seven day run of bad luck, which culminated in their catching big fish every day for three weeks. He talks with the old man as they haul in Santiago’s fishing gear and laments that he was forced to obey his father, who lacks faith and as a result made him switch boats. The pair stops for a beer at terrace cafe where angler makes fun of Santiago. The old man does not mind. Santiago and Manolin reminisce about the many years the two of them fished together and the boy begs to old man to let him provide fresh bait fish for him. The old man accepts the gift with humanity. Santiago announces his plans to go ‘’far out’’ in the sea the following day. Then Santiago went for fishing and on the next day when the projecting stick that marks the top of the hundred fathom line dips sharply. Santiago is sure that the fish tugging on the line is of a considerable size and he prays that it will take the bait. The marlin plays with the bait for a while and when it does finally take the bait, it starts to move with it pulling the boat. The old man gives a mighty pull then another but he gains nothing. The fish drags the skiff farther into the sea. No land at all is visible to Santiago now.

All day the fish pulls the boat as the old man braces the line with his back and holds it taut in his hand ready to give more line if necessary. The struggle goes on all night as the fish continue to pull the boat. The glow given off by the lights of Havana gradually fades signifying that the boat is farthest from shore it has been so far. Repeatedly the old man wishes he had the boy with him. When he sees two porpoises playing in the water. Santiago begins to pity his quarry to consider it a brother. He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could do if he made his run. If I were him I would put in everything now and go until something broke. But, thank God, they are not as intelligent as we who kill them; although they are nobler and more able. The old man had seen many great fish. He had seen many that weighed more than a thousand pounds and he had caught two of that size in his life, but never alone. Now alone, and out of sight of land, he was fast to the biggest fish that he had ever seen and bigger than he had ever heard of, and his left hand was still as tight as the gripped claws of an eagle.

Ø ‘’ I have never seen or heard of such a fish. However, I must kill him. I am glad we do not have to try to kill stars. Imagine if each day a man must try to kill the moon he thought. The moon runs away...then he was sorry for the great fish that had nothing to eat and his determination to kill him never relaxed in his sorrow for him... There is no one worthy of eating him from the manner of his behaviour and his great dignity. I do not understand some things he thought but it is good that we do not have to try to kill the sun, the moon, or the stars. It is enough to live on the sea and kill our true brothers.’’

Ø The old man

                     He thinks back to the time that he caught one of a pair of Marlin: the male fish let the female take the bait then he stayed by the boat as though in mourning. Although the memory makes him sad, Santiago’s determination is unchecked: as the marlin swims out the old man goes ‘’beyond all people in the world’’ to find him.

‘’the male fish always let the female fish feed first and the hooked fish the female mad a wild panic-stricken despairing fight that soon exhausted her and all the time male had stayed with her crossing the line and crossing the line and circling with her on the surface . He had stayed so close that and the old man was afraid he would cut the line with his tail, which was sharp as a scythe and almost of that size and shape. When the old man had gaffed her and clubbed her, holding the rapier bill with its sand paper edge and clubbing her across the top of her head until her color turned to a color almost like the backing of mirrors and with the boy’s aid hoisted her abroad the male fish stayed by the side of the boat. Then while the old man was clearing the lines and preparing the harpoon the male fish jumped high into the air beside the boat to see where the female was and then went down deep his lavender wings that were his pectoral fins spread wide and all his wide lavender stripes showing. He was beautiful the old man remembered and he had stayed’’

Ø Old man (pg-13 The old man and the sea by Ernest Hemingway

The sun rises and the fish has not tired though it is now swimming in the shallower waters. The old man cannot increase the tension on the lines because if it is too taught it will break and the fish will get away. Also if the hook makes too big a cut in the fish the fish may get away from it. Santiago hopes that the fish will jump because its air sacs would fill and prevent the fish from going too deep into the water, which would make it easier to pull out. A yellow weed   the attaches to the line, helping to slow the fish. Santiago   can do nothing but hold on. He pledges his love and respect to the fish, but nevertheless promises that he will kill his opponent before the day ends.

‘’ Fish ,’’ he said ‘’ I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you before this day ends’’

Ø The old man (pg-14)

The old man pulls the skiff up alongside the fish and fastens the fish to the side of the boat. He thinks about how much money he will be able to make from such a big fish, and he imagines that DiMaggio would be proud of him. Santiago’s hands are so cut up that they resemble raw meat. With the mast up and the sail drawn, man, fish, and boat head for land. In his light-headed state, the old man finds himself wondering for a moment if he is bringing the fish in or vice versa. He shakes some shrimp from a patch of gulf weed and eats them raw. He watches the marlin carefully as the ship sails on. The old man’s wounds remind him that his battle with the marlin was real and not a dream. An hour later, a mako shark arrives, having smelled the marlin’s blood. Except for its jaws full of talon like teeth, the shark is a beautiful fish. When the shark hits the marlin, the old man sinks his harpoon into the shark’s head. The shark lashes on the water and, eventually, sinks, taking the harpoon and the old man’s rope with it. The macho has taken nearly forty pounds of meat, so fresh blood from the marlin spills into the water, inevitably drawing more sharks to attack. Santiago realizes that his struggle with the marlin was for nothing; all will soon be lost.

               But, he muses, “a man can be destroyed but not defeated.

He wonders if it is a sin to kill something you love. The shark, on the other hand, he does not feel guilty about killing, because he did it in self-defense. He decides that “everything kills everything else in some way. The sun was hot now although the breeze was rising gently.” I had better re-bait that little line out over the stern,” he said. “If the fish decides to stay another night I will need to eat again and the water is low in the bottle. I don’t think I can get anything but a dolphin [65] here. But if I eat him fresh enough he won’t be bad. I wish a flying fish would come on board tonight. But I have no light to attract them. A flying fish is excellent to eat raw and I would not have to cut him up. I must save all my strength now. Christ, I did not know he was so big.”

             “I’ll kill him though,” he said. “In all his greatness and his glory.”

                             Although it is unjust, he thought. But I will show him what a                                              man can do and what a man endures

Ø The old man (pg-18)s

vSome lines and paragraph of the text  by which this can be clear that how the Santiago struggled for the survival

“You better be fearless and confident yourself, old man,” he said. “You’re holding him again but you cannot get line. But soon he has to circle. “The old man held him with his left hand and his shoulders now and stooped down and scooped up water in his right hand to get the crushed dolphin flesh off of his face. He was afraid that it might nauseate him and he would vomit and lose his strength. When his face was cleaned he washed his right hand in the water over the side and then let it stay in the salt water while he watched the first light come before the sunrise. He’s headed almost east, he thought. That means he is tired and going with the current. Soon he will have to circle. Then our true work begins. After he judged that his right hand had been in the water long enough he took it out and looked at it.

“It is not bad,” he said. “And pain does not matter to a man.”

Ø  Old man (pg-23)

“He is making the far part of his circle now,” he said. I must hold all I can, he thought. The strain will [86] shorten his circle each time. Perhaps in an hour I will see him. Now I must convince him and then I must kill him.

“I could not fail myself and die on a fish like this,” he said. “Now that I have him coming so beautifully, God help me endure. I’ll say a hundred Our Fathers and a hundred Hail Mary's. But I cannot say them now.

Ø Santiago ( pg.-24)

I’m tiered than I have ever been, he thought, and now the trade wind is rising. But that will be good to take him in with. I need that badly.

“I’ll rest on the next turn as he goes out,” he said. “I feel much better. Then in two or three turns more I will have him.”

His straw hat was far on the back of his head and he sank down into the bow with the pull of the line as he felt the fish turn. You work now, fish, he thought. I’ll take you at the turn.

The sea had risen considerably. But it was a fair-weather breeze and he had to have it to get home.

“I’ll just steer south and west,” he said. “A man is never lost at sea and it is a long island.”

Ø Santiago (pg.-25)

“Fish,” the old man said. “Fish, you are going to have to die anyway. Do you have to kill me-too?”

That way nothing is accomplished, he thought. His mouth was too dry to speak but he could not reach for the water now. I must get him alongside this time, he thought. I am not good for many more turns. Yes you are, he told himself. You’re good for ever.

“Keep my head dear,” he said against the wood of the bow. “I am a tired old man. But I have killed this fish which is my brother and now I must do the slave work.”

Ø Santiago ( pg.-26)

“Get to work, old man,” he said. He took a very [95] small drink of the water. “There is very much slave work to be done now that the fight is over.”

“But man is not made for defeat,” he said. “A man can be destroyed but not defeated.”

I am sorry that I killed the fish though, he thought. Now the bad time is coming and I do not even have the harpoon. The dent so is cruel and able and strong and intelligent. But I was more intelligent than he was. Perhaps not, he thought. Perhaps I was only better armed.

Ø Santiago ( pg.28 -29)

“I killed him in self-defence,” the old man said aloud. “And I killed him well.”

‘’Fishing kills me exactly as it keeps me alive. The boy keeps me alive, he thought. I must not deceive myself too much.’’

“I have the gaff now,” he said. “But it will do no good. I have the two oars and the tiller and the short club.”

Now they have beaten me, he thought. I am too old to club sharks to death. But I will try it as long as I have the oars and the short club and the tiller.

“You’re tired, old man,” he said. “You’re tired inside.”

Ø Santiago (pg.30-31)

“Half fish,” he said. “Fish that you were. I am sorry that I went too far out. I ruined us both. But we have killed many sharks, you and I, and ruined many others. How many did you ever kill old fish? You do not have that spear on your head for nothing.”

Ø Santiago (pg.32)

                            Conclusion

                  So by all this sentences and the lines of the  paragraph we can imagine that  how Santiago faced  lots  of struggles when he went for fishing and if he don’t want this then even he have to do it because for his struggle for the existence.

Note: The page NO.which I have mentioned in bracket are from

 ‘The old Man and the Sea’ by Ernest Hemingway

                                       To Charlie Shribner And Max Perkins