In our world, there are many people facing powerful forces and obstacles. Some can be life changing, such as losing a close family member or friend, or not having enough money to get by. Others face small daily challenges, such as waking up late, losing a game, and being shunned from people. Although these obstacles are challenging, and sometimes unpredictable, we can get through them if we keep trying, as if you are trying to catch a fish that won't be captured. In the novella The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway, Santiago faces many obstacles while trying to catch the Marlin.
Santiago has a hard time dealing with being out on sea for so long, but he is patiently awaiting the perfect time to catch the fish. Santiago develops a compassionate relationship with the young boy and struggles being away from him. “If the boy were here, he would wet the coils of the line. Yes, if the boy were here” (83). There are a lot of people in the world who feel lonely at certain times. Some people chose to be lonely, simply because they don’t have the courage to keep trying to escape from the loneliness. Others don’t know what to do because they have never experienced being alone before, there were always people there to lead them in the right direction. Although people become lonely, they find a way to make it through the day.
Santiago faces another problem when his left hand begins to cramp at a critical moment while he is holding the line on his back. He always thought that his left hand was the one with the bad luck. “Why was I not born with two good hands” (85)? People often face injuries, big or small, that effect what they are trying to do, and in this case Santiago’s hand cramping affected him fishing. Although, Santiago’s hand cramping wasn’t an injury as drastic as someone breaking a bone, but this was a big deal for him, because he would have a much more difficult time catching fish. Often times, people become pessimistic by giving up on what they have set out to do because they feel they can't do anything with their injury. If people are determined enough to get what they’ve always wanted, they will fight through the pain, because in the end, it will be worth it.
After eighty four days of no fish, Santiago's first and perhaps greatest catch was stolen from him by an agressive series of shark attacks, “The old man could hear the noise of skin and flesh ripping on the big fish” (102). Many people, struggle with what could’ve been or what should’ve been. Santiago wished he never caught the marlin so it wouldn’t have had to struggle with being eaten. In our world, people wish they could do things differently, but what they don’t realize is at one time it made them happy. People should not have regrets, if at one time it is exactly what they wanted. They need to learn from their mistakes and move on, even if it isn’t easy.
Ernest Hemingway creates a character that wisely takes on determination and perserverence to achieve his goals. In this novella, Santiago shows great passion for what he likes to do, even if it isn’t easy. He struggles with being detached from someone he is close to, being old and away on sea for so long, and what he set out to do was harshly taken away from him. Everyday people struggle and have obstacles; they must face these because it will make them more ambitious people. Never giving up can go a long way in life, even if it is a small obstacle, it will teach you how to deal with even bigger problems down the road.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Third Quarter Outside Reading Book Review
Just Listen by Sarah Dessen. Penguin Books, 2006 Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Annabel Greene is a popular teenage girl that seems like she has the perfect life. She is a model and has the perfect family. Things start to change when she goes back to school because her best friend, Sophie, accuses her of sleeping with her boyfriend, when really he raped her. Annabel doesn’t tell anybody about this, so everybody thinks she’s a horrible person for doing that to her best friend.
“This is a believable work of fiction about learning to face complications by telling the truth,” a review states. “An outstanding book on how awful it can be to hold in your feelings, and how good it can feel once you set them free.”
At the same time Annabel is dealing with the painful losses of her friends, she is also dealing with family complications. Her sister, Whitney, is suffering from an eating disorder which is causing a lot of stress on her parents. Also, Annabel wants to quit modelling, since she has been doing it for a while, but can’t find the strength to tell her mom because she is afraid her mom won’t have anything else to make her happy.
Everybody ignores Annabel when she gets back to school because Sophie has told them what happened. She eats lunch by herself, but there is another outcast named Owen that eats lunch near her. Annabel always wants to know what his deal is because she always seems him with his iPod in his ears. One day, when Sophie causes a big scene about what happened over the summer, Owen talks to Annabel and offers to take her home. Annabel keeps all her emotions bottled up inside of her, which always makes her feel sick to her stomach. Over the course of the book, her and Owen starts a relationship by Owen helping her connect with her feeling through music.
While I was reading Just Listen, it reminded me of the book Someone Like You because they both are about teenage girls who are trying to get through the battles of high school drama. These girls both happen to find boys who help them through these struggles and they develop a relationship.
“Music is a total constant. That's why we have such a strong visceral connection to it, you know? Because a song can take you back instantly to a moment, or a place, or even a person. No matter what else has changed in your or the world, that one song says the same, just like that moment.” (319)
This book has made me realize that telling the truth, even if it scares you, will feel good once you finally find a way to say it. Holding things in, won’t make any situation better. I love Sarah Dessen’s writing style because she writes about everyday situations that girls face everyday. The way she creates her characters and uses the right amount of detail throughout the book makes me enjoy reading her books.
Annabel Greene is a popular teenage girl that seems like she has the perfect life. She is a model and has the perfect family. Things start to change when she goes back to school because her best friend, Sophie, accuses her of sleeping with her boyfriend, when really he raped her. Annabel doesn’t tell anybody about this, so everybody thinks she’s a horrible person for doing that to her best friend.
“This is a believable work of fiction about learning to face complications by telling the truth,” a review states. “An outstanding book on how awful it can be to hold in your feelings, and how good it can feel once you set them free.”
At the same time Annabel is dealing with the painful losses of her friends, she is also dealing with family complications. Her sister, Whitney, is suffering from an eating disorder which is causing a lot of stress on her parents. Also, Annabel wants to quit modelling, since she has been doing it for a while, but can’t find the strength to tell her mom because she is afraid her mom won’t have anything else to make her happy.
Everybody ignores Annabel when she gets back to school because Sophie has told them what happened. She eats lunch by herself, but there is another outcast named Owen that eats lunch near her. Annabel always wants to know what his deal is because she always seems him with his iPod in his ears. One day, when Sophie causes a big scene about what happened over the summer, Owen talks to Annabel and offers to take her home. Annabel keeps all her emotions bottled up inside of her, which always makes her feel sick to her stomach. Over the course of the book, her and Owen starts a relationship by Owen helping her connect with her feeling through music.
While I was reading Just Listen, it reminded me of the book Someone Like You because they both are about teenage girls who are trying to get through the battles of high school drama. These girls both happen to find boys who help them through these struggles and they develop a relationship.
“Music is a total constant. That's why we have such a strong visceral connection to it, you know? Because a song can take you back instantly to a moment, or a place, or even a person. No matter what else has changed in your or the world, that one song says the same, just like that moment.” (319)
This book has made me realize that telling the truth, even if it scares you, will feel good once you finally find a way to say it. Holding things in, won’t make any situation better. I love Sarah Dessen’s writing style because she writes about everyday situations that girls face everyday. The way she creates her characters and uses the right amount of detail throughout the book makes me enjoy reading her books.
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