S-A for OMS in BG by PJL

Perseverance has become an overlooked skill in today's society. With so many quitters, cheaters, schemers, and liars in life, there are a scarce handful of those who keep going when the going gets tough. The novella The Old Man and the Sea contains a man who truly possesses great perseverance when it comes to life’s troubles. The old man in question, also known as Santiago, is a fortitudinous man who struggles with the profession of a fisherman; even though he had gone for eighty-four strenuous and depressing days without a solitary fish, Santiago continues to vie for the catch that will save him from poverty. Not only must he try to snap the seemingly unbounded streak of fishlessness, he has to do battle with the merciless ocean.

Even with all of these obstacles in his way, Santiago still found a way to catch a fish; not just a fish, mind you, but the marlin of all marlin. “Then the fish came alive, with his death in him, and rose high out of the water showing all his great length and width and power and beauty”(94). The fact that an old man could somehow muster the strength and possess the cogency to pull in such a fish is, for lack of a better word, incredible. Perhaps the fact that he needed to catch this marlin explains the implausible ability to capture one giant of the deep.

Now then, the physical limitations of age were not the only thing keeping Santiago down. Once he had snared and practically hogtied (or marlin...tied) the fish to the side of his skiff, he noticed the elegance of this particular black marlin. “Never have I seen a greater or more beautiful or a calmer or more noble thing than you, [fish]” (92). So, he had to cope with his personal feelings for the fish. In a way, Santiago felt sorry for the trapped marlin. The old man was stricken with remorse and appreciated the marlin's iridescent complexion.

Adding to Santiago's emotional distress was the fact that he was known as a (I wish there was a more eloquent way to put this) a screw-up. However, the old man took to this reputation just as every awkward teenager is told to deal with a bully- he shook off the insults and went on his way. “Many of the fishermen made fun of the old man and he was not angry" (11). The old man's best friend, Manolin, had been working with him for sometime on his boat; now, because of a lack of eminence in the art of fishing, the boy's (Manolin's) parents forced him to leave the old man's side to find more work. This saddened Santiago but, nevertheless, he persevered.

Enough of the emotional stuff; Santiago also was forced to defend his catch from vicious predators looking for an easy meal of marlin. Specifically speaking; sharks wanting a quick blue plate special courtesy of one old man's efforts. “‘Ay,’ the old man said. ‘[Sharks]. Come on [sharks]’”(108). Alas, after all of Santiago's perseverance, he could not save most of the gorgeous fish's meat, or his release from a deep rut of failure. However, I do not mourn for Santiago's physical and mental well-being; he renewed his friendship with the boy, and told a tale of masterful angling which led to approval amongst the other fishers. So, after all of these trying ordeals, the old man went back to what he loves: fishing.