“Hemingway is one of my all time favorite authors, and yet for some reason I had never managed to get around to reading this very short novel. After doing so, I can say that I was honestly not disappointed and fell in love with the writing of Hemingway yet again. There are many things about his writings that I enjoy.
First of all, I love his ability to take what is a very simple story line and transform it into a story about human existence. Who else could have taken an old man and his struggles being a fisherman and express what it is to be an American male. The metaphor for the struggles men face was tremendous. The inside look into things such as being an appropriate example to youth, finding ourselves when we are unable to do the job we have always done, and the inherent nature of a struggle in which the opponent is unclear. Amazing what Hemingway is able to do with his insight into human nature.
Second of all, I love the abbreviated writing style. The use of short sentences with words that don't venture into sophistication. The works of Hemingway become more accessible and engaging because it sounds like your neighbor talking rather than a successful writer of novels. The story does not lack depth or beauty, but yet those goals are reached through a manner that is quite uncommon.
Finally, the mixture between positive and negative, good and evil, and satisfaction and disappointment. I love the fact that Hemingway honors the fact that every real story ends with a mixture of these emotions. This work does the same. Certain elements of the story reflect great levels of satisfaction for the characters and yet great disappointment in the same breadth. This is often the essence of true existence.
I don't know that this work surpasses The Sun Also Rises and A Moveable Feast but I did enjoy it very much.”
Jeremiah C wrote this review Monday, February 6, 2012.
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