The Old Man and the Sea #2

I thought the main conflict in the book The Old Man and the Sea was kind of hard to point out. At first, I thought the main conflict was between Santiago and the sea or the marlin. I thought that because all this time Santiago was having bad luck and not catching any fish. Also in the book Santiago describes the sea as harsh even though it is beautiful.(Hemingway,29) Catching the marlin in the first place was a challenge. Every time Santiago put up a fight, so did the fish. However, once he caught the fish and tied it to the side of his boat a new set of problems began. The sharks smelled the blood of the fish and were beginning to gnaw away at the marlin. So, by the time the old man got to shore, there was just a skeleton where the fish would have been. The other conflict that I thought of was internal, and it was between Santiago and himself. Because Santiago is becoming older, he is becoming limited in what he can do. The reason I think he fought so hard for the marlin is so he could prove to himself that he is capable of bringing in a fish that big. If he could prove that to himself than he wouldn't feel so old.

The cause of the first conflict I think has to do with Santiago and the marlin being too much alike. Part of the reason it was so hard to catch the fish was because he wouldn't stop fighting. Santiago would never stop fighting either. (Hemingway, 63) The second conflict was caused just by old age I think. Getting older must be kind of hard. Eventually, you realize you can't do all of the things you used to and that's a bummer. That is probably how Santiago felt. He always stayed strong and calm, but deep down, he knew he was getting older.

The gains of the conflict are that you learn patience, courage, and strength. Santiago has all of these things and keeps them throughout the book even when things get hard. The losses of the conflict is that he didn't end up getting a big fish, despite all his efforts. (Hemingway, 126)

Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scibner Paperback

Fiction, 1995. Print.