The Old Man and the Sea

From ArticleWorld


The Old Man and the Sea is a novel set in the early 1950s in Cuba. It has been written by the very famous American author, Ernest Hemingway, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. Although Hemingway wrote the book in 1951 it was published in 1952 and won the Pulitzer in 1953. The novel also contributed largely towards Hemingway wining the Nobel, the most prestigious award in literature.

Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway was born in 1899 in Chicago and showed exceptional grasping powers even as a small child. He made clear his literary bent early in school life, writing articles for his weekly school newspaper. His first job after leaving school was as a reporter with Kansas City Star. He left this job within six months to join the war as an ambulance driver. Hemingway was a prolific writer and wrote several books of fiction between the 1920s and 1940s. He hit a writer’s block around then and wrote the Old Man and the Sea after coming out of it in 1951. By then he was living in Cuba and the story is based there. In fact most of his works from A Farewell to Arms to Men without Women are based on his personal experiences during the war and later.

Old Man and the Sea

The Old Man and the Sea is the story of Santiago, an aging Cuban fisherman, who alone in his small boat faces the most difficult fight of his life against an enormous marlin. Santiago has lost his fisherman's luck; and has gone eighty-four days without catching a fish. A young boy whom he has taught to fish has been forced by his parents to leave him and join up with luckier fishermen. The other fishermen make fun of Santiago and feel sorry for him.

On the eighty fifth day, Santiago leaves to go to the sea in his skiff promising himself that he would get a fish worthy of his name. He does manage to catch a marlin which is so large that he drags Santiago’s boat for two days before Santiago manages to kill it and head for shore. Santiago’s troubles are not yet over as he attracts a school of sharks that eat the marlin, leaving only its skeleton attached to the boat. Santiago has to kill seven sharks before he drags his skiff and himself on to the shore. He goes to sleep once reaching home and the people are awestruck on seeing the carcass of such a large fish attached to Santiago’s boat. The book ends with the boy and Santiago making plans to go fishing for even larger fish in the ocean.