The Old Man and the Sea- Day One

At the beginning of this book, the old man is introduced to us as an old wrinkly man who is know by other fishermen in the community as "salao", which means the worst kind of unlucky. In fact, the old man is seen as so unlucky the young boy that was an apprentice to him was forced by his parents to switch to a different, more successful boat. The old man is often laughed at and mocked by the other fisherman because he is so unlucky and unsuccessful. At the beginning I felt really bad for the old man, because he seemed so lonely and unlucky, but the more we get to know him the more we realize how he does not see himself as unlucky at all. The old man lives in a shack that has only a few pieces of furniture, including a bed, a chair, and a small table. While having a drink with the young boy, the old man tells him that he plans to go far out into the sea the next day in hope of catching a big fish and ending his streak of bad luck. During this first day, we learned that the old man and the young boy love baseball. We learn that the old man has a great admiration for the famous baseball player Joe DiMaggio, and he ends up being a huge part of the rest of the story. We soon find out that the old man loves Joe DiMaggio because his father was a fisherman. I think the old man likes Joe DiMaggio because he feels that they have something in common, both having some background in fishing. My opinion of the old man from the first day is that he is a very simple and wise, and that he does not need much in life to make him happy. The old man lives a very simple life, yet he shows much wisdom while he is fishing. The old man is very optimistic about his life, because even though he has been very unlucky, everyday he tells himself that tomorrow will be better.

Bibliography

Hemmingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scribner, 1996. Print.