The Old Man and the Sea: Question 2

            What are the causes, gains, and losses of the conflict dealt with in The Old Man and the Sea?  To begin, the main conflict of The Old Man and the Sea is that the old man, Santiago, is stuck at sea for five days trying to catch a fish.  

            There are several factors that caused the conflict of the novel. The main cause of the conflict is that Santiago has not caught a fish in over ninety days. He is a fisherman and does not make much money as it is, therefore it is extremely essential that he catches fish in order to make money and be able to eat and provide for himself. Another reason he needs to catch the marlin is because he needs to redeem himself and his reputation. He gets made fun of by the other fishermen because of his age and his bad luck spell (Hemingway). The only way he can do this is to get the marlin and prove to them he is not just an old man.

            There are not many gains from the conflict. Just about the only gain is that the old man does end up redeeming himself to the others. He puts all he has into it and the other fishermen can see and respect that. He earns back their respect and for his skills. He also rids his bad luck streak and reputation.

            However, there are far more losses than gains in the novel. The old man is beaten, cut, and exhausted from his journey. The main and most important loss was the marlin. After five days of chasing, Santiago finally catches the fish and ties it to his boat. Unfortunately, by the time he gets back the marlin is completely eaten by sharks, which beat and exhausted the old man who was trying to save the fish (Hemingway).    

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