The Old Man and the Sea Essay
Ernest Hemingway has managed to create a unique character using close to no action and dialogue all described in just fifty pages. The audience is able to recognize Santiago’s understanding and relationship with the world, his attitude towards life as well as some of his more concrete problems. It appears that in the novel “The Old Man and the Sea” the author needed to show a certain personality type encapsulated in one character on his fishing trip. It is visible that with all the pleasant characteristics the fisherman has, he is still holding on to his life tightly though immense amounts of problems. In addition to that, a rather vivid physical description was given to Santiago.
The old man in the book was not outstanding in his appearance. Like many more Cuban fishermen, as I would imagine, he was thin and wrinkly. The text states this fact clearly in the phrase ,” The old man was thin and gaunt with deep wrinkles on his back and neck. Santiago was also covered with “blotches of benevolent skin cancer” likely because of the burning sun in the area. The Cuban fisherman’s eyes were the “same colour as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated”. The old man’s appearance hints about some of the personal qualities he might have, for example a good attitude to life. Read more…