Santiago has many struggles in the novella, The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway. He has to try and catch an enormously large marlin, which is two feet longer than his skiff is. Also, he has to fend of sharks that try to attack the marlin. And, he is out there all alone with nobody out there to help him. As long as the old man does not get naive then his struggles should not be worse than they already are.
There is nothing tougher than trying to catch a fish that is larger than the little skiff that someone is in. “‘He is two feet larger than the skiff,’ the old man said.” (63). If he gets too sloppy the fish could pull him miles away or he would just lose the fish. This was truly significant to the story and Santiago, because this is the fish of his dreams. He was ambitious to catching this fish because he is poor and hasn't caught any real fish in a long time. He wanted his golden fish. This is an enormous struggle because he is only a little old man trying to catch a fish that weighs a significant amount more than the man. He is out there with a fishing pole which would make the fish even tougher to catch for it cannot handle the weight and size of the fish. However, he is a wise old man and uses his intelligence to catch this fish and overcome this struggle. He was very manipulative with the line in such a way where he would pull the line in little by little every time the fish circled. This made it easier for him to catch the fish.
When he was alone at sea trying to catch an enormous fish in a small skiff, he had to make every move right. Santiago was out there all by himself, not another boat for miles. He wanted the compassionate boy who loved him and would always help him. When his hand cramped up he had no one to help him with the line or to rub his hand and help him out. “‘I wish I had the boy. To help me and to see this.’”(48) It was a significant struggle because he needed somebody’s help out there at sea. He cannot do everything by himself because it is a lot of work. He has to reel in the fish and make sure that the fish doesn’t come off of the line. He ends up getting rid of his cramp by rubbing it and not overworking it and manages the line by himself. The old man is devoted to catching this fish, through pain or not.
He has to fend off an aggressive shark when he is an old man and is way out at sea all alone is no easy task. The shark has incredible speed and strength, and the old man has lost most of his. “The shark came in a rush and the old man hit him as he shut his jaws.” (114). The fact that he was also weak from being out at sea for more than three days makes this certain thing even more of a struggle. He would not be able to move as swiftly or forcefully as he would if he had not been fatigued. This was probably the worse and most important struggle that Santiago faces throughout the book. If he does not fend off the sharks, then his marlin will get torn to pieces. If he does not fend off the shark and the marlin gets torn to pieces then the whole trip would have been for nothing. He fought off the sharks for the most part, but he was a noble man and apologized to the fish.
Having any struggles when he is alone at sea can be pretty stressful for him. Especially if he is trying to catch a fish significantly larger than himself and his boat. Having patience when you are out there is key, if he tried to pull it in while he was struggling could have caused him to lose the fish, but the old man was cautious and did not get too careless. He was trying to catch that fish with a cramped hand and nobody else out there to help him manage the line. And the worst part is when he was being attacked by hungry sharks that have amazing speed and strength when he has been out at sea for more than three days and are week. In the Old Man and the Sea, Santiago undergoes these struggles and manages to work his way out of his problems. By fighting a shark, by outsmarting the fish, and by using his smarts when he is out at sea. He has many struggles, and is able to manage through them.
