The Old Man and the Sea Study Guide

The Old Man and the Sea

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

The Old Man and the Sea is the story of Santiago, an unlucky fisherman far past the prime of his life. The story concerns itself chiefly with Santiago's struggle to land an enormous marlin far out in the Gulf of Mexico. Plagued all his life by bad luck, Santiago's apprentice has even been forbidden by his parents from fishing with the old man. At the novel's conclusion Santiago lands the prize marlin and restores some of his reputation and self-worth.

The Old Man and the Sea Quotes

Table of Contents
  • “Age is my alarm clock,” the old man said. “Why do old men wake so early? Is it to have one longer day?”
  • “I don’t know,” the boy said. “All I know is that young boys sleep late and hard.”
  • Every day above earth is a good day.
  • He always thought of the sea as la mar , which is what people call her in spanish when they love her. Sometimes those who love her say bad things of her, but they are always said as though she were a woman. Some of the younger fisherman, those who used buoys as floats for their lines or had motorboats bought when the shark lovers had much money, spoke of her as el mar , which is masculine, they spoke of her as a contestant or a place or even an enemy. But the old man always thought of her as feminine, as something that gave or withheld great favors. If she did wild or wicked things, it is because she could not help them. The moon affects her as it does a woman, he thought.
  • Let him think I am more man than I am and I will be so.
  • Keep your head clear and know how to suffer like a man. Or a fish, he thought.
  • 'But man is not made for defeat,' he said. 'A man can be destroyed but not defeated.'
  • 'Ay,' he said aloud. There is no translation for this word and perhaps it is just a noise such as a man might make, involuntarily, feeling the nail go through his hands and into the wood.
  • Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you can do with what there is.
  • Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.
  • You did not do so badly for something that is worthless. But there was a time when I could not find you.

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