The Old Man and the Sea Question 4

As we all know, Santiago is the hero in The Old Man and the Sea.  He is the only character in the novel that is talked about enough to be the hero.  The old man is considered to be the hero because of his confidence, inner strength, and commitment. 

From the first page of the novel, you are able to see that Santiago wants to end is bad luck streak of eighty-four days.  To stick with something that long without getting any benefit out of it takes some commitment.  Commitment is sticking with something you love even if some days are not the best.  I cannot imagine fishing for eighty-four days, forty of which were by myself, and not catching a single fish.

  Even through the tough, long, uneventful days, Santiago’s confidence never faltered.  “His hope and confidence had never gone” (Hemingway 13).  That is a great quality in a hero.  He accomplished many things because of his confidence.  Catching a fifteen thousand pound marlin is a nice prize after over eighty days of no catch brought in.  Along with confidence, he had pride in himself.  When he hooked that fish, his pride was automatically boosted.  “Then he felt the gentle touch on the line and he was happy” (Hemingway 43). 

Santiago is portrayed through the marlin.  The marlin did not give up on breaking free of the fishing hook for three days.  He kept going just like the old man.  The sharp hook in his mouth was just like the fishing line that Santiago was holding.  It would cut, tear, and injure them.  “Each jerk widens the cut the hook makes” (Hemingway 54).  Every time the fish lurched, the hole where the hook was would widen.  If it got to big, the hook could slip out and Santiago would lose the fish.

Santiago represents a person with inner strength.  Even though he looks frail and old on the outside, his strength on the inside makes up for it. 

Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scribner, 1952. Print.