Plot Part 2

Beginning Problem-
“He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and had gone eighty-four days no without taking a fish. In the first forty days a boy had been with him. But after the forty days without a fish the boy’s parents had told him the old man was no definitely and finally salao, which was the worst form of unlucky.” (1)

Rising Action-
"My choice was to go there and find him beyond all people. Beyond all people in the world.”(50)

"A man is never lost at sea..."(89)

“The month when the great fish come. Anyone can be a fisherman in May" (18).

“Now is the time to think of only one thing. That which I was born for."(40)

Climax
"Fish, you are going to have to die anyway. Do you have to kill me too?" (92).

Falling Actions
“He swung the tiller across the shark’s head where the jaws where caught in the heaviness of the fishes head”(87)

“That was the last shark of the pack that came. There was nothing more for them to eat.”(88)

Resolution
"They beat me, Manolin," he said. "They truly beat me." "He didn't beat you. Not the fish." "No. Truly. It was afterwards" (124).

Plot Part 1

Theme

The Old Man and the Sea revolves around Santiago, an old fisherman, who finds pride in what little he has and what he does. Santiago works harder and puts more devotion into fishing than most of the other fisherman he knows, not because he wants to be the best, but because he loves what he does. "There are many good fishermen and some great ones. But there is only on you." Even though Santiago hadn’t caught a fish in eighty-four days, he would not take no for an answer, and would not be defeated. "But a man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated." While Santiago struggles against the sea, and the marlin, he finds honor and bravery, and the will to win against what tries to take him down. "Fish, I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this day ends."

Conflict

Santiago struggled for eighty-four days without catching any fish. Hoping that the eighty-fifth day would bring him luck, like it had before, he set out sail once again determined to catch something worth bringing home. When he hooked the giant marlin he probably thought things would get easier from there, but they just got worse. “If I were him I would put in everything now and go until something broke. But, thank God, they are not as intelligent as we who kill them; although they are more noble and more able.” He struggled back and forth with the marlin for two days, causing cramps, cuts, and dehydration. "You are killing me, fish, the old man thought.” He had a hard time killing the fish, and when he finally did, and was on his way home the marlin was attacked by sharks, no matter how hard he tried to fend them off, they eventually ate it all to the point there was nothing good left to sell. By the end Santiago realized that he had gone out too far and he wished he never hooked the marlin.

Antagonist

The marlin Santiago struggled with was strong and just as determined as the old man. The whole time he was hooked he fought, swimming away from what he seemed to understand, was his death. "He is wonderful and strange and who knows how old he is, he thought. Never have I had such a strong fish nor one who acted so strangely" His strength is what kept him alive so long, the marlin continued swimming after he was caught, pulling the skiff behind him. "You are killing me, fish, the old man thought. But you have a right to. Never have I seen a greater, or more beautiful, or a calmer or more noble thing than you, brother. Come on and kill me. I do not care who kills who." For two days and two nights the marlin fought as hard as he could to stay alive. Even though in the end the marlin ends up dead Santiago feels that no one is worthy of eating the marlin.

Protagonist

Santiago spends each day out at sea hoping to catch something worth bringing to shore, and when he doesn’t you can find him out there again the next day, with all the hope and determination he had the day before. Santiago believes that he was born to fish, which plays a part in his drive to make a living off of what he loves to do. “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.” No matter how long he goes without catching a fish, he has enough hope in himself and in the sea to try again. Santiago loves fishing, weather he catches anything or not, being out on the sea is better to him than all the riches he could have. “Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same color of the sea and were cheerful and undefeated.”