Relationship in Old Man and the Sea Essay

Santiago and the fish he chases and eventually catches have a very simple relationship. Santiago respects the fish and views him as an equal. They are alike in many ways. He views the fish as his brother and loves him like one, too.

Santiago has a fish on his line for many strenuous days and nights. Over the course of this time, he begins to love the fish and have great respect for it. When the old man was still strong and nowhere near tired, he was the master of the line and trying to get the fish to jump into the air. As he was figuring out how much tension to put on the line he says Fish, I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this day ends. He knew death was going to be the final outcome and he respected the fish for being so strong. At another point, Santiago was trying to slow the fish down. He thought to himself, He is a great fish and I must convince him. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could do if he made his run. If I were him I would put in everything now and go until something broke. But, thank God, they are not as intelligent as we who kill them; although they are more noble and able. The last sentence is especially important. Santiago is admitting that the fish has more knowledge than him and more strength and he understands and honors him for it.

Santiago and the fish are alike in many different ways. Santiago is very old and has been fishing for a considerable amount of time. He was currently going through a point where he could not catch fish for weeks straight. However, he never gave up. Every morning he would get up extremely early to go out on his boat and try and catch fish. He was strong willed and refused to go against his living. The fish is exactly the same. Everyday the fish swims in the ocean but when it is hooked, it refuses to give the only life its ever known up. The fish fights and fights for days with skill and nobility. Another way they are alike is that they are both very predictable. Santiago has a routine that he goes through everyday. He wakes up, wakes up the young boy, goes fishing and then comes home. That is his life. The fish is the same way. At the end of his life, the fish circled the boat repeatedly in small and wide circles. Santiago knew this was going to happen because that is what all fish do before they are caught. Santiago and the fish both have foreseen actions that rarely change. The more obvious way that they are alike is that they are both injured and destroyed. The fish was killed by Santiago and then torn apart by sharks. Santiagos hand is ripped open and his head is cut open by the sharks. Also, his faith is injured by the young bys family and other fisherman when they called him unlucky. Although Santiago is human and the fish is an animal, they have as many similar characteristics as their own species have with each other.

The relationship Santiago and the fish have can best be described as a brotherhood. Santiago called the fish his brother countless times. He views the fish as an equal. When the old man is eating he says I wish I could feed the fish. He is my brother. He shows the will to nourish the fish because he feels they are on the same level. When Santiago is on the verge of killing the fish he thinks to himself, You are killing me, fish. But you have the right to. Never have I seen a greater or more beautiful, or a calmer or more noble thing than you, brother. Come on and kill me. I do not care who kills who. Santiago views the fish as a friend and not as an enemy. He is aware that one of them must die and he doesnt care who because both of them deserve to win. He treats the fish like a true brother and compliments it on its strength and beauty. Overall, Santiago treats the fish like a man would treat his only brother. Their strengths are equivalent and Santiago just wants the best man to win.

The fish and Santiago have as much as a complicated relationship as a simple one. Santiago respects the fish, treats it like a brother and they have many different similarities. Although humans are much more complex, the fish is still noble and full of beauty. Then he was sorry for the great fish that has nothing to eat and his determination to kill him never relaxed in his sorrow for him. How many people will he feed, he though. But are they worthy to eat him? No, of course not. There is no one worthy of eating him from the manner of his bahaviour and his great dignity. Their relationship is based on respect and equality which is more than any human relationship could ask for.