Ernest Hemingway s The Old Man And The Sea - 942 Words

Some believe to live is to endure, and in Ernest Hemingway s The Old Man and the Sea This idea is explored in a simplistic style of writing called Iceberg Theory, a style unique to Hemingway. In this powerful, yet simple novel Ernest Hemingway eloquently portrays the hardships of the average man. Old Man and the Sea is based on an old man named Santiago and his battle with a giant Marlin in the middle of the sea. The old man s experience with the marlin is one of misfortune, pride, and accomplishment all joined into one enthusiastic battle for life itself. Hemingway uses this battle as a symbol for the everyday struggles of a man and the conflicts a man may experience throughout his life. A use of symbolism that is an example of†¦show more content†¦The old man doesn t pity himself for not having the boy, but thinks about the situation in a very rational way. This represents the fact that a man must move on and put great effort into overcoming obstacles that are seemingly di fficult to do alone. While Hemingway uses many other examples of struggle throughout the novel, he also utilizes Santiago s thoughts as symbolism. During the epic battle between the old man and the Marlin, he experiences great revelation. This quote is old man s opinion on the battle with the Marlin: â€Å"But he seems calm, he thought, and following his plan. But what is his plan, he thought. And what is mine? Mine I must improvise because of his great size. If he will jump I can kill him. But he stays down forever. Then I will stay down with him forever.† This quote does a great job at summarizing one of the main themes of Old Man and the Sea, the theme that life is unpredictable. There s no way that Santiago knows what the fish might do, so he must focus on himself and what he can do to achieve the best outcome of the situation instead of fixating on what may or may not happen. This is an example of how in life you will never know what other people actually think, or what they may do. The quote also shows how a person can receive either good or bad outcomes through other people s actions. In one scenario, the marlin would jump, and the old man can