老人与海(the old man and the sea)英文书评

Book review of The Old Man And The Sea

The famous novel-- The Old Man And The Sea is a book that I have always wanted to read in my high school. It tells a story about an old, experienced fisherman named Santiago who had gone eighty-four days without taking a fish and was considered \"salaohe worst form of unlucky. On the eighty-fifth day, Santiago set out alone, confident that his unlucky streak was near its end. [1] By the moon of the day, an exceptionally huge marlin took his bait，which was 2 feet longer than his skiff. But the vigor of the big fish was so strong that it dragged the boat drifting for two days and two nights. Meanwhile, the old man held the line and bore the great tension from it without a break. Despite the injury and pain from the struggle Santiago still appreciated his rival and always regarded the marlin as his brother. Finally Santiago gathered all the strength he has left in him and managed to stab the marlin with a harpoon, ending the bitterly tough fight, which lasted for nearly two days. [2]

On his way back, crowds of sharks were attracted by the blood scent of the big marlin. Unwilling to lose his trophy which he thought was beautiful, noble, calm and of great dignity, the old man kept fighting with the sharks though there was no hope to win. During the fight, he killed several sharks but lost almost all the tools that could be used as a weapon. Finally the sharks have almost devoured the marlin's entire carcass, [3] only leaving the old man a huge skeleton. The old man continued his journey back trying not to pay attention to the marlin fish as if the sharks had took nothing away. At the end of the story, the writer told us the old man was dreaming about the lion.

After reading the story, I was shocked deeply and an affection of respect arose spontaneously in my heart. Santiago is a hero of great courage, brave soul and no fear of anything. He respects his rival and will never admit defeat no matter how strong the opposite side is. He loves the marlin which he fought with for two days. As he has said: “I love you and respect you very much, but I will kill you dead until this day end.” [4]When the sharks bit the marlin, he felt sorrowful.

Santiago is a real man and will never give up even when there is little hope. He likes challenges and will spare no effort to achieve it. He has played the hand game with the great negro from Cienfuegos who was the strongest man on the docks. They had gone one day and one night with their elbows on a chalk line on the stable and didn`t stop even blood came out from the fingernails of both his and the negro`s hands. Finally he unleashed his effort and forced the hand of the negro down and down until it rested on the wood. [5] I still remember the scene: when the marlin fish was attacked by a group of sharks, “Fight them,” He said. “I`ll fight them until I die.” [6]

The old man is a symbol of the perfect person: strong, generous, kind and full of love, which Hemingway admires most. Even failed in the arena of life, in faced with irreversible fate, he is mentally strong and always tough. Although they didn`t succeed, they owned the dignity and courage as a man and the poise of a winner. The brave Santiago is also an image to reflect the author himself. To some extent we regard it as an autobiography of Hemingway. World WarⅠhas left him with 237 scars on his body and the nightmarish memories of war. After the war, he insisted on writing every day and created many famous books. And in 1954, the novel The

Old Man and The Sea brought him the Nobel Prize in literature. He has a special

writing habit: when he was writing, he always stood. But in his later years, Hemingway was in great sickness and deeply addicted to alcohol without creating any influential work. In 1961, Hemingway ended his life with his gun. Hemingway has always been regarded as a Dauntless Man in literature, just like the old Santiago. They represent a kind of man, who has full energy to overcome any obstacles, brave spirit to respond to any challenge and a strong will never to give up. His suicide shocked all the people. Maybe we can get an answer from Nietzsche`s point which he advocated--Timely and die. Die in the peaks of happiness is the most glorious. He said in The Old Man and The Sea that a man can be destroyed but not defeated. Maybe he was worried himself to be defeated, so he destroyed himself. He gave up his life to defend his dignity and nobleness.

Our life is like a long journey from birth to death. It will be full of endless difficulties and obstacles, just like the marlin and the shark. Sometimes they will prevent us from getting what we want and sometimes they will take away what we cherish most. Only those who have no fear of everything and never give up can win the long battle. I will always remember what Santiago said, man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated. [7]

Reference

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Man_and_the_Sea

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Man_and_the_Sea

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Man_and_the_Sea

4. Ernest Hemingway. The Old Man and The Sea.

5. Ernest Hemingway. The Old Man and The Sea.

6. Ernest Hemingway. The Old Man and The Sea

7. Ernest Hemingway. The Old Man and The Sea.