Compare And Contrast Santiago And The Marlin By Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway’s novella, The Old Man and the Sea, is a piece of literature that allows for a variety people to relate to the symbols found within the pages. But at a mere fifteen years of age, I have not yet seen or done enough to allow myself to say that I have found my giant marlin. For Santiago, the marlin was his biggest defeat while simultaneously his biggest lost. It brought out the best in him, his will despite the pain it caused him. I have experienced such a little piece of this world that it is laughable for me to even begin to attempt to discuss what in my life is my ideal opponent or brings out the best in me. Frankly, I have not yet found the best of myself. Similarly, I cannot say that I have a Manolin either. I lack an “apprentice”
Santiago finds himself caught in a struggle with the marlin; he cannot pull the marlin into the boat and the marlin cannot pull Santiago out. Though they are essentially enemies, the fishing line allows for a connection to be made between the two. This can be seen when Santiago says to the fish, “I love you and respect you very much I will kill you dead before the day ends” (Hemingway 54). Even though the fish has caused him pain, Santiago loves and respects the fight the marlin puts up. In the short amount of time that I have existed here on Earth, I have been unable to make such a connection. I have not found myself struggling to overcome anything; I haven’t overcome anything. I do not find myself at war with people or feelings or objects - I am simply a fifteen year old girl with a lot of living left to do. There is nothing in my life that resembles my ideal opponent. There is nothing that brings out the best in me. Of course, there are people that fill my life with warmth and light -people that make me happy to be alive. I like to believe though, that I have not found something that brings out the best in me simply because I have yet to reach a point in my life where I am the best that I can possibly become. It would be devastating if I had reached my peak while in my teenage years. Fortunately, I have not yet found my
He has been going fishing with Santiago since age five, until his parents force him to change mentors due to the extended lack of luck that Santiago experiences. Santiago appreciates and loves Manolin, and it is apparent when Hemingway writes, “he loved [the lions] as he loved the boy” (Hemingway 25). Manolin respects and cares for Santiago even when he switches to a new boat. I have not yet found my Manolin, either. I am the apprentice, and have been so my entire life. I have decades left to learn and will continue to do so. There is so much left for me to discover. There is places to see and mistakes to make and people to love and things to lose. I would make a terrible mentor as of now, for I have experienced very little. So I remain without an apprentice, without my Manolin, but nonetheless I intend to find