Title: The Old Man and the Sea
Author: Ernest Hemingway
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Contemporary, Oceans
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 1952
Something about this novella hit really deeply. There was so much emotion in such a short number of words, that it still gives me a feeling of loss and hopelessness. I can’t even quite put my finger on it, after all, it is about a man going to fish, getting lost along the way and then coming back with nothing. Kind of, at its core. Honestly, if I were to articulate why there is some deep feelings here, I wouldn’t (and obviously can’t) explain it. Yet, the stubbornness and futility in the story are what makes it so worthwhile a read. My first Hemingway, and I’m really not disappointed.
There is so much love in this story – the love of the man and the sea, the boy and the man, the man and the fish. Everything about this spoke of affection and love. And how we can love something, care for it, and still have to let it go. I also found the death of the fish rather tragic. I mean, they battle, the man shows his love and consideration, and then, by the time he gets home… every evidence of the majesty of the fish is gone. An absolute exercise in futility.
The Old Man and the Sea was a little bit heartbreaking, but kind of bittersweet at the same time. I enjoyed the journey that the old man went on, and how he eventually returns, exhausted, but still honored and loved. I don’t know that I would read this novella again, but I definitely enjoyed my first foray into Hemingway.
