Oh, my good lord in heaven. Cut your line, land your boat and go to McDonald's! Just as in the case of The Great Gatsby, I understand the book. Yes, I know it changed the way American writers write. I also understand that it celebrates the ridiculous American idea that you're only a REAL man if you've done something entirely purposeless, but really dangerous, in pursuit of making yourself look like the bull with the biggest sexual equipment. Get over it, already! Go home and clean out the refrigerator, or wash the curtains, or vacuum under the furniture. Pick your kids up from school or take your daughter bra shopping. THAT would impress me. Being too dumb to cut your fishing line? Not the mate I would pick...
The only bright spot about the book is if you think of it on a metaphorical level: there is a point at which ALL of us must grit our teeth and hold on in the face of despair. That is the definition of life. However, if that's the point, then the plot situation needs to be one of necessity (like the shipwreck in Life of Pi), instead of stubbornness.
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It's been a while since I wrote this review, and there's a lot of amusing speculation in the comments people have attached. I have to say, they crack me up. Here's my final word on reviewing on Goodreads (or anywhere); One of the most important elements of reading is that it allows each of us to react in the way we need to react, without judgment, as we experience the book. This is how I reacted to The Old Man and the Sea. Hemingway is dead, or I wouldn't have been so up-front with my opinion. He's not insulted, I understand that we all need goals in life, and I've been happily married for a LONG time. Now take a deep breath and smile. Life is too short to be anxious about picayune stuff like this.

"There isn't any symbolism. The sea is the sea. The old man is an old man. The boy is a boy and the fish is a fish. The sharks are all sharks no better and no worse. All the symbolism that people say is shit. What goes beyond is what you see beyond when you know."

-Ernest Hemingway

It is intimidating to offer a truly critical look at such a classic, so we will ease into it with a few images.

The GOP has offered us a ready-made item to begin this list, and yes, I know that John Stewart already snagged this one and threw it back.


I turned up a visual art concept that fits in, for a restaurant based on EH themes:

Although I did not sit for this photo, the resemblance is indeed striking

And, of course

The Old Man and the Cee Lo.

I suppose am certain there are plenty more images one might lure into our net, but sticking to words for a bit, we will pass on the porn offering, The Old Man and the Semen. How about the moving tale of a Navy Construction veteran, The Old Man and the Seabees, or an obstetrical episode of Grey's Anatomy, The Old Man and the C-Section. Then there might be a psychological drama about a man with bipolar disorder, The Old Man and the See Saw, or a book about an elderly acupuncturist, The Old Man and the Chi. How about a Disney adventure in which Paul Hogan rescues a pinniped, yes, gentle reader, The Old Man and the Seal. Maybe a bit of Cuban self-affirmation, The Old Man and the Si. I could go on, of course, and probably will, at home, until my wife threatens to leave. The possibilities are rather endless. But the Geneva Conventions might be brought into play, and we can’t have that. Tackling such a review head on seems, somehow, wrong, like using paint by number to copy the Mona Lisa, carving the Pieta out of gigantic blocks of cheddar, writing a love poem for your beloved using MadLibs or  Yes, the forces of righteousness sanity wanted this one deep-sixed:

…checking for skid marks on Ghandi’s dhoti. Ok, 12-year-old inner me is all giggly now. At some point, though, I guess you have to, you know, fish or cut bait.

I struggled mightily with this one, finding a hook, then having it pull away, grabbing hold of an idea and watching it disappear beneath waves of uncertainty. I tried waiting a while, resting between attempts, losing myself in other contemplations. Smiling a bit, but always hoping for something I could finally yank aboard. Notions of religious connections, Papa’s personal philosophy, and story-telling technique all pulled in diverse directions. As you will see, it was a not a simple contest. And I am not certain that what I ultimately caught is all that filling.

He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish. In the first forty days a boy had been with him. But after forty days without a fish the boy’s parents had told him that the old man was now definitely and finally salao, which is the worst form of unlucky.

So opens The Old Man and the Sea, the book, we hear tell, that convinced the Nobel committee to reel in EGH with the biggest literary hook of them all. Santiago is an old, unlucky, but skilled Cuban fisherman. He has an able assistant, the young Manolin. The lad is not a blood relation, but he sees a father figure in the old man, and he may be a younger reflection of the old man himself. Maybe Santiago sees himself in the young man and takes some strength from that. Like the best sort of father, he teaches the boy to fish rather than fishing for him. But Santiago’s ill fortune has marked him as someone to be avoided and Manolin’s parents have put the kibosh on their professional association. The old man is determined to salvage his reputation, and his honor, and bring in some money by going farther out than the other fishermen are willing to sail, in search of redemption. No herald calls him to action. No dramatic event sparks him to excessive risk. It is an internal challenge that powers his engines. But it is a quest nonetheless on which Santiago embarks.

Any time there are fish involved, one might presume a degree of soul saving. I do not know enough Hemingway to have a take on whether or not that figured here. I raise it only as a passing thought. But the second sentence of the book offers a hint. “In the first forty days…”clearly places Santiago’s travails alongside another person who spent forty days in a different barren environment. It was after being baptized that Jesus spent his time in the desert, preparing for what awaited. Is Santiago to be tested here? Will he be offered a route away from his difficult path?

The waters are becalmed. Nothing moves. A moment, then, for a digression. OK, let’s try some simple arithmetic, if Jesus, at age 30, spent 40 days in the desert, and Santiago has gone 84 days in his version of the desert, just how old is the old man? 63, according to my calculations. Possible. I do not recall seeing an actual age noted, so I am gonna go with that. I know you guys will let me know if an actual age is revealed somewhere and my squinty geezer eyes missed it. Done. I can feel a slight breeze beginning to flutter the sail.

Some sort of religion seems to flow through this fish tale. Not only are we sprinkled with forty-day references, but Santiago discusses sin. In his struggles he suffers physical damage in which some might see an echo of Calvary. But I think that is a stretch, personally. So, we have a bit of religion, and a quest. What is Santiago questing for? Redemption would fit in nicely. Having failed for a long time, he feels a need to redeem himself in the eyes of his community. Maybe not a religious thing, per se, but swimming in the same waters. And speaking of religion, water as a baptismal element is always a possibility, although somewhat diluted here, as Santiago makes his living on the water.

The old man is strong, skilled and determined. Maybe it is his character that is at issue. Maybe somehow, taking on this challenge is a way to prove to himself that he is truly a man. He goes about his business, and his fishing is his fate, maybe even his life. It is in how he handles himself when faced with this challenge that will show us the sort of person he is, a common Hemingway theme, and he does just that.

This is a very short novel, more, maybe, a novella or large short story. But it has the feel of a parable. There is definitely something going on here even if it keeps slipping out of my analytical net.

I was reminded of another well-known fish story, Moby Dick (really, allow a little literary license here people. Yes I know the whale is not a fish. Geez.). Whereas in that one, the fisherman, Ahab, sets himself against the whale, and therefore either fate or god, seeing a personal enemy, Santiago sees the fish as his brother, a fellow creature in the universe acting out his part. The challenge is always about oneself and not about the external enemy, or rival. In fact, the fish and Santiago are both victimized, together, by the sharks that feast on his catch.

Then he was sorry for the great fish that had nothing to eat and his determination to kill him never relaxed in his sorrow for him. How many people will he feed, he thought. But are they worthy to eat him? No, of course not. There is not one worthy of eating him from the manner of his behaviour and his great dignity.

One might be forgiven for seeing here a possible reference to catholic communion and the relative merit of so many of those who receive. Is the fish (a Christian symbol if there ever was one) meant to be Jesus or some other form of deity, as Moby was?

Could it be that Hemingway’s notion of religion is less Christian and more a sort of materialist (as in non-spiritual, not as in accumulating stuff) philosophy? Lacking the proper tackle for that I will leave such considerations to those who have spent more time than I trolling Hemingway’s waters.

The writing is mostly either third-person description or the old man’s internal, and sometimes spoken, dialogue. Regardless of the literary ambitions splashing about here, the story is about a very sympathetic character. Santiago is a man not only of physical strength, but moral character. He is not portrayed as a saint, but as a simple man, maybe even, in a way, an ideal man in his simplicity. He knows his place in the world, faces the challenges that world presents to him and using only his skill, intelligence, strength and determination, overcomes (or not). It is easy to climb on board as a Santiago supporter. He is a fellow who is very much a part of the world, even as he contemplates larger things.

The Old Man and the Sea is a small story, but it is a whale of a tale. If you have not fished these waters before, don’t let this be one of those that got away.

WB32


==============================UPDATES

1/5/13 - Jeffrey Keeten sent along this amazing link. Gary Wyatt had shared it with him. It will definitely make you smile

6/20/13 - I discovered that one of the images I used had vanished into the ether, so I substituted another

9/4/2019 - I just came across a really wonderful piece about Hemingway, this book in particular, by Joe Fassler, in The Atlantic - The Hemingway Scene That Shows How Humanity Works, in which he interviews novelist Téa Obreht about the unexpected lions in this book - Great stuff. Check it out.

"But man is not made for defeat" he said. "A man can be destroyed, but not defeated."
  The Old Man and the Sea ~~  Ernest Hemingway”



I first encountered Hemingway in college while taking a humanities class; the professor had us read Hemingway’s n   The Nick Adams Storiesn. I fell in love with Hemingway’s short stories. I wrote an impassioned paper on the character of Nick and received an “A” for my efforts. Throughout the years, I have returned to Hemingway’s short stories, and novellas, and I have never been disappointed.

Fast forward 15 years: n  The Old Man and the Sean had been on my book shelves for quite some time. I picked it up on a whim on July 21st, in honor of Hemingway’s birthday. So once again, I returned to the world of Ernest Hemingway.



n  The Old Man and the Sean is told with extraordinary simplicity. It is amazing that Hemingway accomplishes so much using so little. Hemingway sacrifices nothing, and shows that brevity is the essence of style here. He clearly draws a portrait of the inner and outer strength of this amazing man. A man who faces each day with a quiet dignity.

n  The Old Man and the Sean is not just a tale of a man and a fish. It is a story of man against nature, and valor, in the face of adversity. Most importantly, it is a story of man and God. To quote  William Faulkner: n  His best. Time may show it to be the best single piece of any of us, I mean his and my contemporaries. This time, he discovered God, a Creator. Until now, his men and women had made themselves, shaped themselves out of their own clay; their victories and defeats were at the hands of each other, just to prove to themselves or one another how tough they could be. But this time, he wrote about pity: about something somewhere that made them all: the old man who had to catch the fish and then lose it, the fish that had to be caught and then lost, the sharks which had to rob the old man of his fish; made them all and loved them all and pitied them all. It’s all right. Praise God that whatever made and loves and pities Hemingway and me kept him from touching it any further.n



Hemingway celebrates the daring and resolve of the old man. Hemingway celebrates this man who goes thru life alone, ferocious, heroic, daring, showing what Hemingway views as the human spirt at its very best. I can’t help but think this is how Papa Hemingway views himself.

There is another story being told here as well; one of the purest, most beautiful stories of friendship I’ve ever read. The old man is not alone. He has a friendship, with a young boy who began fishing with him when the boy was only five. Their story is rooted in love, and mutual respect. The boy has been forced to work with another boat, a luckier boat, by his parents. He dreams of working with the old man once more. When the old man goes to war with the fish, he says repeatedly, “I wish the boy were here.”



I am surprised that there is such animosity towards this brilliant work. Most people are introduced to this work in high school. That is really quite a shame since it is not intended for the young. With their limited life experience, they cannot relate to the old man.

Is there a place for Hemingway’s view of the world today? Politicians’ speak of individualism, and point to rugged individualism. But in this world of Trumps and McConnells, Kardashians and Ye, the individual spirit is trampled on daily. Are there any people left in this world like the old man? I don’t know of any.

To those who criticize this brilliant work, I understand; today we live lives far removed from the old man’s world. But Hemingway forces us to remember the spirit of the individual, the struggle for human dignity in the face of our daily struggles to survive. Hemingway forces us to recognize bravery, tenacity, expertise, skill and strength.

A lot of people will hate me for this but I fucking haaaaaate The Old Man and the Sea. It was so boring and yeah I get it, it's an allegory. I don't fucking care.

A story of a destroyed but undefeated thin, old, gaunt man, Santiago, with an unlucky boat.
A story of a decrepit man with deep neck wrinkles.
Everything was old about him, but for his cheerful and infallible eyes!
With no fisherman luck but a helping-hand in a young boy with ardour and empathy, Manolin!
The bond between the two is way too adorable!
Though the circumstances distance the two physically,
but could not deter the love between the two!
Both have sincere love and care for each other.
One day the old man ventures onto the
outer lying areas of the sea,
Lost in his musings, a gigantic fish, Marlin, eats his sardine bait,
Breaking his reverie!
What follows is sheer adventure on the sea!
But Santiago keeps feeling alone,
keeps cursing his diminishing strength!
He says Hail Marys and Our Fathers,
To magically assist his quest for conquering the fish,
It is a story of adventure of the man to get hold of marlin!
What happens during the expedition and upon his return,
Kindly read for yourself to swim and breathe!

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My Views-

n  I am personally a fan of stories about sea and seafarers. This story is emblematic of it, and corroborated the concept phenomenonally , in entirety and handsomely! Indeed, a MASTERPIECE. n
The appealing themes of unity, undying heroism, and obsession with proving one’s worthiness, are propounded gracefully.

I forever tried my best to increase the rating beyond 3.5-stars, but could not, seriously in a pickle situation! :(

Maybe because of the exposition of hopelessness, declining age and at no juncture of the story, seeing infused-hope, refrained me from falling in “true-love” with this “award-winning story”!
I am a sucker of hope-inducing plots.Though Santiago remains undefeated till the end, still the signals of despondency and down-heartedness at smooth intervals, gave me a grimace of pain!

At no point I was unleashed from this vicious cycle of pain and despondency conferred on by old-age and dwindling muscle!

Old-age is fated, inevitable and a hard-fact, which cannot be changed, and hence wailing over it and commiserating, didn’t do any good to me. Irrespective of the lack, Santiago keeps fighting, which is creditable.

One of my biggest take-aways from my personal life is- harping or sympathizing with irrevocably painful truths, pervades more despondence and imparts infirmity!

Again, this is purely my stance, so couldn’t go beyond 3.5-stars!

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What stood out for me?

The unique relationship between the old man and boy, comprising of sincere love and friendship! Afterall, they had spent countless hours on the sea together. Love and concern weren’t incumbent on the boy, but just out of compassion for the old man!