By Emma M.

Whenever you read a story, there is always a theme. It helps to make the story more interesting and it helps the story flow. In The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway, there are many themes. I think that Hemingway having the character, Santiago, continue to struggle to catch a fish applies to the theme “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”

Having faith in yourself is an important part of being willing to try again. Manolin, one of the boys in Santiago’s village, once said to him, “ ‘He hasn’t much faith.” ’ Santiago then replies, ‘ “No, but we have. Haven’t we?” (11). Santiago has faith in himself and that is all that matters to him. He could have gone home and sulked about how unlucky he had been for eighty-four days, but he didn’t. Instead, he went out and tried again. Because he kept trying, he eventually achieved his goal of catching the marlin.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again has been said to me by many people in my life. Every time I faced something I didn’t think I could handle, I kept thinking to myself that I could do it and I just needed to try again. For example, during soccer season a few years ago, I had trouble learning all about a new position-goalie. I had never even attempted it and I never thought I could do it, but, I tried. Every time a ball went past me, I’d ask for help from my coaches to improve myself. There were a few bumps in the road, but I overcame them because I kept trying despite the odds. I can connect to this quote from Santiago: ‘ “You’re feeling it now fish, and so, God knows, am I.” ’(56). When I read this quote, I connected with it because it showed how hard Santiago was trying. He was facing so many obstacles, but pushed through them.

Santiago knew that he needed to keep trying. After going eighty-four days without catching a single fish, he finally caught the marlin. He had achieved his goal, but ended up facing an unexpected obstacle-the sharks. He was unable to bring the massive fish home and doesn’t feel too great about himself. On page 124 after Santiago returns home, he says to Manolin: ‘ “They beat me, Manolin. They truly beat me.” ’ Manolin then replied ‘ “He didn’t beat you. Not the fish.” ’When Manolin says that the fish didn’t beat Santiago, I agree with him. The fish hadn’t beaten Santiago, Santiago had beaten the odds. He tried against all of them and won.

Many people have gone through hardships. If they hadn’t tried again, they might never have overcome their obstacles and become better people. In The Old Man and the Sea, Santiago overcame all of his hardships because he kept trying despite all of the odds. If he hadn’t, he might never have caught the fish or been praised by Manolin. Thanks to the theme “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”; Hemingway’s novella was a very interesting book.