What are the causes,gains, and losses dealt with in The Old Man and the Sea?

In The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, the conflict in this novel is the struggle between Santiago and the marlin that he is trying to catch. This conflict like many others has causes, gains, and losses. The cause of this conflict is Santiago's need to catch a fish. This old fisherman went eighty-four days without catching a fish (Hemingway 9). Since he was not catching fish he was not making money or eating as much as he should have been (Hemingway 16). This desperate desire to catch a fish causes Santiago to decide to go out farther in the ocean then he usually does (Hemingway 14). This is where Santiago finds the huge marlin that he hooks and struggles with to catch (Hemingway 44).

The conflict of The Old Man and the Sea has very few gains. One of these gains is that Santiago is able to break his eighty-four day streak of not catching a fish (Hemingway 97). Since he actually caught the fish this makes Santiago seem not as senile. Santiago probably also gains a little more respect from the other fishermen, because they see the huge skeleton that Santiago brings in to the harbor (Hemingway 22). Not all of these gains are as good though, because Santiago also gains a few injuries in the process of bringing up the fish. His body becomes worn down and his hands are covered with marks from holding on to the line (Hemingway 56).

This book not only has gains, but also losses. The main loss in this book is the loss of the marlin's dignity and life. The reader can see how much Santiago regrets killing the marlin when the sharks attack the body (Hemingway 115). The marlin was once a majestic and noble creature, but becomes bait for the sharks when they come and eat him (Hemingway 100). This enrages Santiago that this would happen to the marlin because the sharks do not deserve to eat him (Hemingway 108). Santiago thinks that they are not noble like the marlin and are mere scavengers (Hemingway 108). This makes Santiago vow to fight the sharks until he dies in the effort of maintaining the marlin's dignity (Hemingway 115).

Bibliography : Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. 2003 ed. New York: Scribner, 1952. Print.