By Lindsey H.

In The Old Man and the Sea, the main character, Santiago, faced many different obstacles on his treacherous fishing trip. Santiago faced fatigue, loneliness, and vicious sharks while on his trip. These obstacles aren't ones that people usually have to face on a daily basis unless you're a fisherman like Santiago, of course.

It took Santiago about three days to catch the marlin, and those three days wore him out excessively. Santiago didn't have much time to eat or sleep, so he was very tired and hungry which caused him to be fatigued. "'But you have not slept yet, old man,' he said aloud. 'It is half a day and a night and now another day and you have not slept. You must devise a way so that you sleep a little if he is quiet and steady. If you do not sleep you might become unclear in the head'" (77). This quote from the old man shows how he has had no sleep in days and is very fatigued. If he loses any more sleep he will begin to hallucinate which will not be good while he is alone at see.
Santiago was very lonely during his fishing trip which was another obstacle. The only company that he had was his mind, the birds, and the fish while he was at sea. Manolin, the young boy who usually fished with Santiago, was no longer allowed to go fishing with him because of his parents, and that left Santiago with no one to help him out at sea. "Yes. If the boy were here. If the boy were here" (83) shows that the old man needed the boy in more ways than one while out on the sea. The old man needed him to help him fish, but he also needed him to keep him company. When Santiago says, "If the others heard me talking out loud they would think that I am crazy" (39), you can tell that he is lonely because he was talking out loud, but he doesn't care what people think about him because he needs himself to keep his head clear.

After Santiago caught the marlin, vicious sharks began to attack it. He had to protect the fish from the sharks, and he also had to protect himself. "But the shark came up fast with his head out and the old man hit him squarely in the center of his flat-topped head as his nose came out of the water and lay against the fish" (109). Hemmingway used a great amount of detail in this portion of the book such as this quote shows to explain what Santiago needed to do in order to protect the marlin. The sharks were one of the greatest obstacles in Santiago's way because he had already caught the fish, and all he had to do was get the marlin safely back to shore. His goal, however, was not achieved when the sharks began to devour it. He ended up only bringing back a skeleton as proof of his epic fishing trip.

In conclusion, Santiago faced many different obstacles in the novella The Old Man and the Sea. He faced fatigue, loneliness, and vicious sharks throughout the story. Sometimes, obstacles can cause people to become stronger people. Even though Santiago was physically weak by the end of the story he was more emotionally and mentally stronger.