The Marlin Ending

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mind will become unclear if he does not sleep. He butchers the dolphin meat and one of the flying fish. The old man then decides to sleep and has several dreams, one being of a school of porpoises, another of him being back at home, and the last of the lions. The marlin wakes the old man up by jumping out of the water, throwing Santiago into the side of the skiff. Santiago again wishes the boy was with him. He eats the second flying fish hoping it would give him strength. As the sun rose, the marlin began to circle. The old man fights off the circling marlin for hours. As the marlin passes under the boat the old man cannot believe its size. He pulls the fish onto the side of the skiff and plunges a harpoon into its heart. The marlin jumps majestically…show more content…
When the shark hits the fish, the old man harpoons it in the head. The shark sinks and takes the harpoon and rope with it. Fresh blood flows from where the Mako took a chunk from the marlin drawing more sharks to attack. Santiago realizes the struggle with the marlin was for nothing, but he says “a man can be destroyed but not defeated.” He decides “everything kills everything else in some way.” 2 hours later, a pair of shovel-nosed sharks arrive. The sharks attack and Santiago fights them both off but not before they take a good quarter of the marlin. He apologizes to the completely destroyed marlin for having gone out far, saying “it did neither of them any good.” When Santiago makes it back to land, he carry’s his stuff back to his shack. Early the next morning, Manolin comes to the old man’s shack and the sight of him brings him to tears. Fishermen have gathered around Santiagos boat and measured the carcass at 18ft. When the old man wakes, he and Manolin talk, Santiago says the sharks had beat him and Manolin insists that he will work for the old man again. He reveals that there had been a search for him involving the coast…show more content…
He’s described “thin and gaunt with brown blotches of skin cancer on his cheeks.” “Everything about him was old except for his eyes, which were the same color of the sea and were cheerful and undefeated.” He is humble and exhibits pride in his abilities. His knowledge of the sea and fishing helps him keep a sense of hope despite circumstances. Santiago is presented with a challenge to test his strength and endurance when he hooks a marlin for 3 days. Although he loses the fish to sharks, the marlin is his greatest victory. Manolin – A young boy who was once Santiago’s apprentice. Santiago first took him out on a boat when he was just 5. Dude to the old man’s bad luck, Manolins parents have forced the boy to join a new boat. He has still stayed loyal to Santiago despite having left him and considers him his mentor. His love for Santiago is shown as he helps Santiago profusely during the day. Joe DiMaggio – Santiago looks up to Joe as someone with great commitment and strength. He wonders if Joe would be proud of him after catching the marlin. Despite having a rough drought in his career, he went on to serve a triumphant career, pushing through the pain of his bone
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