Elements of Literature: The Old Man and the Sea

by Donna Reardon, Ernest Hemingway

The last novel Ernest Hemingway saw published, The Old Man and the Sea has proved itself to be one of the enduring works of American fiction. It is the story of an old Cuban fisherman and his supreme ordeal: a relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. Using the simple, powerful language of a fable, Hemingway takes the timeless themes of courage in the face of defeat and personal triumph won from loss and transforms them into a magnificent twentieth-century classic.

Genres: Classics, Literary Fiction, Literature, Fiction

36 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Brandon De · Rating 5 out of 5]

The article “Old man of the sea”

author Ernest Hemingway


1 This book is an amazing tale about a old fisherman who has a amazing fight with a Giant Marlin. The setting is in cuba. I read this book because i love fishing and i saw this is a about a fisherman.



2 Book summary

For 84 days, the old fisherman Santiago has caught nothing. Alone, impoverished, and facing his own mortality, Santiago is now considered unlucky. So Manolin has been constrained by his parents to fish in another, more productive boat. Every evening, though, when Santiago again returns empty-handed, Mandolin helps carry home the old man's equipment, keeps him company, and brings him food.

On the morning of the 85th day, Santiago sets out before dawn on a three-day odyssey that takes him far out to sea. In search of an epic catch, he eventually does snag a marlin of epic proportions, enduring tremendous hardship to land the great fish. He straps the marlin along the length of his skiff and heads for home, hardly believing his own victory. Within an hour, a mako shark attacks the marlin, tearing away a great hunk of its flesh and mutilating Santiago's prize. Santiago fights the mako, enduring great suffering, and eventually kills it with his harpoon, which he loses in the struggle.

The great tear in the marlin's flesh releases the fish's blood and scent into the water, attracting packs of shovel-nosed sharks. With whatever equipment remains on board, Santiago repeatedly fights off the packs of these scavengers, enduring exhaustion and great physical pain, even tearing something in his chest. Eventually, the sharks pick the marlin clean. Defeated, Santiago reaches shore and beaches the skiff. Alone in the dark, he looks back at the marlin's skeleton in the reflection from a street light and then stumbles home to his shack, falling face down into his bed.


3 The ending of the book is the best part of the store. After a long hard fought battle with the Marlin he puts it on the side of the boat and heads home but the blood attracted sharks and the sharks were trying to eat the fish but Santiago fights them all f but there were too many and they eat his marlin.


4 This book is an amazing book i love the fishing in this book and I hope there are more books like this.

[Pramod R Sankar]

SUMMARY: This teaching guide includes focusing on the background of the novel, elements of the novel, vocabulary from the novel, plot synopsis and literary focus, reading guide questions, testing on the novel with answer key.

[Sue Brienza · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lovely, heart warmiing but ultimately sad story

[Jigmet katpa · Rating 4 out of 5]

extraordinary work i must say.....a life changing lesson . one must do what they are meant to do.