The Old Man and the Sea
A collection of critical essays on Hemingway's novel
The Old Man and the Sea may very well become one of the true classics of this generation. Certainly, the qualities of Ernest Hemingway's short novel are those which we associate with many great stories of the past: near perfection of form within the limitations of its subject matter, restraint of treatment, regard for the unities of time and place, and evocative simplicity of style. Also, like most great stories, it can be read on more than one level of meaning. On one it is an exciting but tragic adventure story. Sustained by the pride of his calling, the only pride he has left, a broken old fisherman ventures far out into the Gulf Stream and there hooks the biggest marlin ever seen in those waters. Then, alone and exhausted by his struggle to harpoon the giant fish, he is forced into a losing battle with marauding sharks; they leave him nothing but the skeleton of his catch. On another level the book is a fable of the unconquerable spirit of man, a creature capable of snatching spiritual victory from circumstances of disaster and material defeat. On still another it is a parable of religious significance, its theme supported by the writer's unobtrusive handling of Christian symbols and metaphors. Like Coleridge's Ancient Mariner, Hemingway's Cuban fisherman is a character allowing the imagination of his creator to operate simultaneously in two different worlds of meaning and value, the one real and dramatic, the other moral and devotionally symbolic
The best sentence I like in The Old Man and The Sea is a man can be destroyed but he can never be defeated. I think the old man is very super.
The best sentence I like in The Old Man and The Sea is a man can be destroyed but he can never be defeated. I think the old man is very super.
Product details
- Series: Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations
- Hardcover: 205 pages
- Publisher: Chelsea House Pub (January 1, 1999)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 9780791047781
- ISBN-13: 978-0791047781
- ASIN: 0791047784
- Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 1 x 9.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
Tác giả:
Harold Bloom
Loại bìa:
Bìa cứng
