Review: Good summary of a classic short story by a master
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 9, 2014
As a reviewer, I regularly comment on the quality of written work. If anyone were ever to ask me for advice on how to write gripping short stories, I would tell them to read "The Old Man and the Sea" by Ernest Hemingway. It is the short story where the density of delivery of lessons and actions is the highest that I have seen. Hemingway never lost the lessons he learned early as a newspaper reporter, short concise sentences using simple words and all with a point to make.This book outlines the basic story of Santiago, an old Cuban fisherman that has not done well lately but manages to catch a large Marlin. However, his catch also attracts sharks and he must fight them if he is to salvage any part of his catch. As the author mentions, this is a metaphor for the constant struggle that life is, where a great success is often followed by challenges that tend to gnaw away at that success and take it from us.Secondarily there is the backdrop of the mighty ocean that has earned the respect of all who have sailed on it. A great deal of scientific advancement has been driven by the attempt to navigate and survive the many trials that the sea presents to sailors.This book can be considered in the league of a "Cliff's Notes" book with a summary of the plot followed by a brief literary analysis the the story. I could not disagree with any of the conclusions reached by the author.