The Old Man and the Sea: Tone

The tone of a novel overpowers the plot itself. For example, if a novel tells of a funeral with a happy, celebratory tone, the reader will be confused and be lead to feel a positive emotion about a funeral. All of this to say, the tone makes the novel. Ernest Hemingway uses tones such as suspense, depression, and perseverance to portray the characters and events of The Old Man and the Sea.

Although The Old Man and the Sea ends with a (somewhat) happy ending, the greater part of the story was a hard struggle. Hemingway creates a sad story in order for the reader to sympathize with the old man. Having the other fishers make fun of Santiago makes readers feel bad for the old man. The line, "I wish I had the boy to help me and to see this (Hemingway 48)," shows how lonely the old man felt during his long trip. By the description of the old man and the tone of the novel, readers feel for Santiago from the very beginning of the novel.

Suspense was used often in The Old Man and the Sea, especially during the old man's journey stuck at sea. Santiago's struggle to survive makes readers question if he will make it back to the Havana. His encounter with dolphins and sharks question whether or not the fish will make it home. This novel creates a number of questions for readers to have, which is a good way to add suspense and keep readers interested. The ending of this novel was debatable for most of the book.

An obvious theme and tone in this novel was perseverance. It was seen when the old man continued to fish for that eighty fifth day. "Eighty-five is a lucky number (Hemingway 14)," the old man stated. It was also seen when Santiago prayed to God. He felt that his journey in life was coming to an end, so he prayed that he could persevere and return home. "Now that I have him coming so beautifully, God help me endure (Hemingway 87)." Most importantly, Santiago continued to say "Tomorrow is going to be a good day (Hemingway 14)."

[Bibliography]

Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.