Sometimes the things we are meant to be, aren’t the things that are easiest for us. In Old Man and the Sea this becomes very true for Santiago. Fishing is extremely hard for him, lines cutting his hands, countless hours waiting for a fish to jump. He was born to do this, it is his destiny, and it’s not easy. He shows this when he deals with many forms of nature, such as the sea, enormous fish, and countless things trying to take the fish away. The sea is a very important factor in fishing, without the sea there are no fish. Santiago believes the sea is a woman that gives favors. If the sea does bad things, its is just the moon affecting it just as it changes the woman.
On the other hand the younger fisherman “Spoke of her as a contestant or a place or even an enemy”(30).
They believe it to be evil. Santiago deals with the sea every day he is out there fishing, and fears what it might do. It’s the 85th day and Santiago expects luck this day. He throws his bait into the sea, feels a little tug, nothing, tug, nothing, and another tug. Then the weight on the line stays. Santiago believes that he has found a very bright fish. The fish keeps him awake for days.
Santiago prays that the fish dies, even though he loves him as a brother. His hand gets cut and he gets a cramp in the other. “I wish I had the boy. To help me and to see this.”(48) Along the way he regrets not bringing many things that he needed, such as salt for the dolphin that he killed. He finally kills the huge fish with a spear through the head. Santiago must deal with sharks trying to steal the fish from him. He kills one with a knife in the center of its head. He feels that this is a sin, and it never should have happened, he apologizes to the fish that he kills defending his fish.
The Term Paper on The Old Man And The Sea Santiago As An Image Of Christ
The Old Man and The Sea: Santiago as an Image of Christ Introduction Through the history of civilizations, as distant as the early ages when Homo Sapience first roamed the planet, man has incessantly entered into conflict with environment. As the ancient man has evolved, he has become over dependant on nature to the point where he takes benefit of its abundance of gifts. In spite of the fact that ...
“I am sorry that I killed the fish though, he though”(103).
He thought about sin for a while and wondered if it was considered a sin if he killed something that he loved. After a while he came to the conclusion that it could not be sin. He thought about this for a long time, then decided it was a silly thing to think about. So as anyone could see destiny is not easy. Santiago was born a fisherman, and must deal with the sea, huge fish, and things trying to take that fish away from him. Although his destiny was not easy, Santiago enjoyed fishing, and that’s what matters most.
He loved the thrill of it all.
