论小男孩在老人与海中的作用英美文学论文

论小男孩在《老人与海》中的作用-英美文学论文Abstract

TheOldManandtheSeatellsthefrustratedexperiencethattheoldfishermanfishesinthecourse.Thethemeisdeep,anditisasongofpraiseofheroism.“Butmanisnotmadefordefeat.Amancanbedestroyedbutnotdefeated”hasbeentheclassicsayingandtheoldmanalsohasbeenthemosttypicalandthemostrepresentativeoftheHemingway’s“toughguy”.WhenHemingwaytalkedaboutthesuccessfulfactorslater,thelittleboywasmentionedinthesamebreathwiththeoldman.

Thispaperstartswiththedetailsanditisdividedintotwomainpartstodiscusstheindispensablerolesofthelittleboyinthenovel.Itishimwhohelpstoperformthethemeof“graceunderpressure”:during40days,theoldmanwiththelittleboywenttofishbutwithouttakingafish,whenhissituationwasgettingworsestepbystep,thelittleboy’sleavingwastheheavypressurethatachievedtheextremesternforcertain.However,itwasso“heavypressure”thathismannerwasgracefulwhentheoldmanfacedafterwardsdefeatandhisoptimistic,generouslifeattitudewasworthytastingbypeoplecarefully;itishimwhoplaystheroleofleading,inspiringtothereaders,andincreasingtheappealofthework,enrichingthecontentofthework:althoughthelittleboyappearsonlyatthebeginningandtheendinginthenovel,thereisnothinginhisinnerstatebuttheoldman,sohisattitudeandemotionstowardstheoldmanaffectsthereaders’emotionsfortheoldmanquietlyandgradually.Anditisunavoidablethathisinnerfeelingleadsandimpactsthereaders’emotions.

Keywords:roles;thelittleboy;theoldman;graceunderpressure;TheOldManandtheSea摘要

《老人与海》讲述了老渔夫捕鱼过程中的坎坷经历，主题深刻，是一部英雄主义的赞歌。“一个人不是生来就要被打败的，你可以消灭他，但就是打不败他。”已经成为至理名言，老人也成为海明威式“硬汉子”的最典型、最完美的代表。当海明威谈到小说成功的因素时，曾颇为自得地将小男孩与老人相提并论。

本文拟从有关细节入手，分析讨论小男孩在《老人与海》中所起的微妙且不可或缺的作用：是他帮助表现了“重压下的优雅风度”这一主题：在老人84天没有捕到鱼，处境一步步恶化的厄运中，小男孩的离去无疑让老人的“重压”达到了极度严峻的地步，然而正是由于如此的“重压”，老人后来面对失败时的态度才可谓“优雅”，所表现的大度、乐观的人生态度才值得人们仔细地品味；是他对读者发挥着一定的牵引、打动和启发作用，从而增强了作品的感染力，丰富了作品的内涵：孩子虽然只出现在小说的首尾两处，但是孩子的内心世界里别无他物，只有老人，他对老人的态度和感情潜移默化地左右着读者对老人的感受，他的内心情感无可避免地要牵动影响着读者的情绪。

关键词：作用；小男孩；老人；重压下的优雅风度；《老人与海》1.Introduction

1.1Aboutthebackground

Before1952,Hemingwayhasmetthecoldshoulderandattackinthesectorwhichlastsfornearlyadecade.Torescuethedecliningreputation,hepublishesanewwork,thatis,TheOldManandtheSea.Hebelievesfirmlythatitisthebestworkhecanwriteinhislifetime.WilliamFaulknerconsidersitasthemostexcellentworkinthisgeneration.BecauseofthisworkHemingwaywinsthePulitzerin1952andtheNobelPrizeforliteraturein1954whichpushhiswritingcareertothepeak.

TheOldManandtheSeaissoimportanttoHemingwayandtheAmericanliteraturethattherearelotsofcommentsaboutit.Buttheresearchonthelittleboy,Mandolin,isminimal.Itseemsthathisroleisirrelevantandunimportanttothenovel.Infact,theappearanceofthelittleboyistheemergenceofacoincidenceaccordingtohisroleinthework.

HemingwaypublishedapieceofcommunicationentitledOntheBlueWaterintheEsquireinApril,1936.TheOldManandtheSeaiswrittenonthebasicofthematerial.Inthemiddleofthenovel,wecanalwaysfeeltheexistenceoftheboy,becausetheoldmanthinksofthelittleboyformorethantentimesduringthethreeintenseandarduousdays.Moreover,whenHemingwaytalkedaboutthefactorsofthenovel’ssuccesslater,thelittleboyismentionedinthesamebreathwiththeoldmanthatheisluckytohaveagoodoldmanandalittleboy,andsomewritershaveforgottenthesethingsrecent.ThisshowsHemingwaylayshisartisticcreativityandingenuityonthelittleboy.Sothelittleboy’sroleinthisnovelisworthybeingconsideredbycriticsandreaders.

1.2Aboutthenovel

TheOldManandtheSeaearneditsauthorthePulitzerPrizeforfictionin1952,andwasinstrumentalinwinninghimtheNobelPrizeforliteraturetwoyearslater.ItisashortnovelaboutSantiago,anoldCubanfishermanwhohasgonefor84dayswithouttakingafish.Therefore,theboy,Mandolin,whousedtosailwithhim,isforcedtoleavehimandcatchinanotherboat.Theoldmaninsistsonfishingaloneandatlast,hehooksaneighteen-foot,giantmarlin,thelargesthehaseverknown.Butthefishisverypowerfulanddisobedient.Ittowstheoldmanandhisboatbuttoseefor48hours,withtheoldmanhearingthewholeweightofthefishthroughthelineonhisback.Theoldman,withlittlefoodandsleep,hastoenduremuchpainandfightsagainsthistreacheroushandcramp.Tohisgreatexcitement,onhisthirddayatsea,hesucceedsindrawingtheweekendmarlintothesurfaceandharpoonsit.Onhiswayhome,helashesmarlinalongsidehisboatbecauseit’stoobigtobepulledintotheboat.But,unfortunately,thecomeacrosssharksasmuchmightandmanyweaponsashecansummon,butonlytofindagiantskeletonofhismarlinleftafterhisdesperatedefense.Atlast,Santiago,havinglostwhathefoughtfor,reachedtheshoreandstrugglestohisshack.Hefallsintosoundsleep,dreamingofAfricaandthelionsagain.Hisstrugglewinshismuchrespect.

2.TherolesoftheboyinTheOldManandtheSea

2.1Helpingshowtheoldman’spressure

OneofthebrightestspotsinTheOldManandtheSeaistheperfectexpressionofHemingway’squalityofgraceunderpressure,whichiscomposedoftwofactors:pressureandgrace.Andpressureisthepremise:onlyunderthebackgroundofpressurewilltheherohavetheelegantmannersintherealsignificance.Thesetwofactorsaremostlyshownbythelittleboy.Toshowpressure,Hemingwaydescribesthebackgroundofthestoryinfourlevelsbypicturingthedetailswhenthelittleboyleavestheoldman.Inthisway,hestressestheheavypressureattheverybeginningofthenovel,whichlaysanecessarypremiseandanatmospherefortheso-calledgrace.Toshowthegrace,Hemingwaydescribesseveraldetailswhentheoldmangetstogetherwiththelittleboyunderthepressureatthebeginningandtheendofthenovel,drawingtheimageandtargetsindescribingtheimageoftheoldman.

Firstistheheavypressure.Thefirstsentenceofthisnovelaccountsthedifficultiesthattheoldmanfaced:theoldmanhasbeenfutilefor84days.Thisisofcourse,sympathetictopeople,butitisnotenoughtoarousepeople’ssympathyonlybyanumberandthepressureitstatedisalsoambiguous.What’smore,themannerslaterdiscussedisdifficulttomovethereadersandthenovel’sdepthwillbeaffectedwhileitisdifficulttomakeaclearsensethroughafewwordsandtheoldman’saloneappearinginthenovel.SoHemingwaygivesaconsiderabledescriptionofthelittleboyinordertosetoffagradualdeteriorationsituationoftheoldman.Inthisincreasingpressure,theoldman’sfailureisparticulartragic,andthemanneroftheoldmantothefailureiselegant.

Atthebeginning,theoldmanandthelittleboysailedtogethereveryday,buttheydonotcatchanyfishformorethan40days,whichisquite“unlucky”,thisisthefirstlayerofpressure.Atthistime,theboyisforcedtoleavetheoldmanandcatchesonanotherboatfollowedhisparents’order,thustheoldmanisleftaloneinhisboatwhichisasymbolofhisfailure.Obviously,failureandlonelinessisthesecondlevelofpressure.Theboybegantolearntofishfollowingtheoldmanwhenheisonlyfive.Theoldman’swifepassedawayseveralyearsago,sothechildisactualhisonlycompanioninhislonelylife,andthedepartureofthelittleboyatthisunfortunatemomentisundoutableaheavyblowtohim.Previously,ithassaidthatthelittleboydoesnotappearinthematerialonwhichthestorybased.ThelittleboyisimagedbyHemingwayasthesolepartnerandassistantoftheoldman,andthentakeshimawayfromtheoldmanmercilessly,whichistheso-called“givingitbeforetakingit”.Inthisway,theoldman’smiserablesituationbecomesevenworse.Moreover,aftertheboy’sleaving,theoldmandoesnotcatchanyfishfor44dayswhichmakesbearanalmostdesperatefeeling.Thisisthethirdlevelofpressure.Althoughthefirstandthirdlevelofthepressurehavingnothingtodowiththelittleboy,theboy’sleavingdividesthe84daysintothreelevelstoincreasethepressurelayerbylayer,therebycreatingasenseofmoreandmore,dignified.

Ontheotherhand,“theboyhasgoneattheirorderinanotherboatwhichcaughtthreegoodfishthefirstweek”,afterhisleaving,soitformsasharpcontrastbetweentheoldman’sdeterioratefateandthelittleboy’s.Asweallknown,thefishermenallbelieveintheluckverymuch.Inthenovel,Hemingwaydeliberatelyusestheword“salao”andstressesitisthesuperiordegreeofthe“unlucky”.Andwecanseethattheoldmanalsobelievesfirmlyinfortunefromthewordsheusuallyusessuchas“lucky”,“gamble”,“takeyourchance”,andthedetailthathebuyslotteryticketstobetonhisfortune.Thus,itiscommontoothersiftheycatchfishwithasuddentransit,buttheWhiteHousemeetsthelittleboywhohasfollowedtheoldmanfor40days“withouttakingafish”.Itismorecertainthattheoldmanisbeingin“unlucky”accordingtothefishermen’sopinion.Beyondanydoubt,itisaheavyblowtotheoldmanandalmostputshimintodespair.AlthoughhereHemingwaycankeepcalmadistancefromhisownfeelingswhenhedescribestheheroofthenovel,itisnotdifficultforthereadersunderstandtotheoldman’ssituation—fulloffailure,loneliness,embarrassment,andnearlyindespaironlybecauseheisabletodescribesaccuratelythedetailswhichcanarosethereaders’feelinginanappropriateorder.Itisthispressurethatforcetheoldmanto“gofartofish”,thereforehavingthefollowingexperience.

Hemingway’sstoryhasoncebeenaccusedthatthescenesaretoonarrow.Butnotalltheliteraryworksmustpursueagrandscene.HereHemingwayputalonelyoldmanintoaconfinedenvironmentinordertomatchthehero’srealsituation.What’smore,althoughthesceneislimited,itcanalsoshowtheauthor’soriginalityifhemayarrangethecontentwellinthislimitedscene.Itisthusmethodthatmakesthebeginningofthenovelmorewonderful.HereHemingwayusesauniquescentwaytosympathytohishero.Wecanfellhissympathyforthepeoplewithdeservessympathy.ThisisHemingway’sstyle.

2.2Offeringamethodtoperformtheoldman’sgrace

Pressurehasbeenstated,buthowtheoldman’sgraceisperformedvividlyinthenovel,itisnotexacttosaythatthegraceisonlyliesinthebraveandtenacityinhisfightwithfish.Graceisnotasimpleornotionalthingbutalwaysreflectedinpeople’sinnerandexternalbehaviorsespeciallyinfacingwithdifficulties,whiletheboyinthisnoveloffersanimportantwaytorepresenttheoldman’sgrace.

Although,theoldmanlivesunderaheavypressure,healwayshasanaturalandunaffectedattitude.Thechildhaslearntfishingskillsfollowingtheoldmanwhenhewas5yearsold.Andnowtheoldmanisatlowebbinhislifeandistrappedbybadluck,butthechildleaveshimandgetsagreatsuccessinanotherboat.Ifthishappensonothers,eventheydonothatethechild,therewillbeanunbalanceintheirheart.Buttheoldmanshowshisbroadmindandunderstanding.Hesaystotheboy:“Iknowyouleavemenotbecauseyoudonotbelieveme.”Whenthelittleboyleaveshimathisparents’orderandcatchesanotherboat,theoldmansays:“Iknow,itisquitenormal.”Havingnoresultafterthreedayshardworkingbutwhenheistoldthattheboyhasaharvesteverydayinthesedays,however,hedoesnotfeelanyunpleasantatall.Instead,hefeelshappyforhimandremarks“verygood”immediately.Inaddition,althoughtheoldmanisisolateandunlucky,heisnotinaspiritofsensitivetotheconcernofothers.Bycontrary,heacceptstheboy’scarecalmly.Hedoesnottakeitforgrantedthatstudentsoughttocareteachers,butviewsthechildashispeerandpartner.Thelittleboyalsoworriesaboutiftheoldmanhasbecomeover-sensitiveinsuchanembarrassedsituation.Therefore,heaskstentativelywhethertheoldmaniswillingtodrinkacupofbeerwithhimornot.Andtheoldmanagreed:“whynot?”“Betweenfishermen”Whiletheyaredrinking,manyfishermenlaughattheoldman,buthedoesnotbecomeangry.Afterdrinking,theoldmansaystotheboy:“youboughtmeabeer.”“Youarealreadyaman.”Thesedetailsshowthattheoldmanisreasonable,amiableandkind-heartedaswellashasanaturalandhealthylifeattitude.Hisunderstandingforlifehasreachedasimpleandnaturalrealm.Thisisthegrace.

Secondly,theoldmanhasanotherminutesideinhischaracter.Actually,theoldmanisthemodelofHemingway’s“toughguy”,butitdoesnotmeanthatheisastubbornfoolordumbcow.Letusseehowhewakesthechildupinthemorning.“Hetooktoldofonefootgentlyandheldituntiltheboywokeandturnedandlookedathim”[12],buthiswarmthdoesnotaffecthisimageof“toughguy”atall.Onthecontrary,thebackgroundofstandinggreatpressureinspiritjustmakestheoldman’sgracekeepinginthebalanceofhardandsoft.

Theoldmanhasaconfidentandoptimisticlifeattitudeinthenovel.Infact,theoldmanwouldliketolettheboyreturntohimverymuchinhismind.Butwhentheboyaskstoreturntotheboatbyhimself,theoldmanrejects:“noyouarewithaluckyboat,staywiththem.”“Ifyouweremyboy.Iwouldtakeyououtandgamble.Butyouareyourfather’sandyourmother’sandyouareinaluckyboat.”[13]Becausetheboy’sleavingisfallinghisparents’order,theoldmandoesnotwanttoputhiminaembarrasssituationandlettheboygetalittlebadluckfromhimwhichreflectshishighspiritofresponsibilitytowardsthechild.Whenthechildsaysitagainaftertheoldman’sreturn,herejectshimoutofthesameconsideration.Asthechild’sinsisting,theoldmanacceptshimcalmlyandthenmakesaplantotheirfollowingfish.However,thechangeoftheoldman’sattitudeisnotconflictingseeingfromthesurface,theoldmanstillremainsnothingatlast,andthewholecycleisfromfailuretofailure.Butitisdifferentbetweenthebeginningandtheendafterthreedays’hardshipandthought.Hehasabetterunderstandingtothesea,thehuman,thefishandhimself.Therefore,hehasenoughconfidencetoacceptthechild’sreturnand,feelsthatitisnecessarytocreateanewfuturetogetherwiththeboy.Theoldman’sacceptancereflectsthatHemingway’sartandphilosophyhasalwaystendedtoreturntothesociety,especiallyfrom1937on.Thisistheperfectintegrationofthepersonalityandsocial.

2.3Thelittleboyisthebestcomplementtotheoldman’scharacter

AsforHemingway’s“toughguy”,somecriticspointedoutthatastheheroicmanneristooconspicuous,whichdeterminedtheiractionsisquiteobviousandsometimesitcausedthefiguresthinkingabstractandisolated.However,inTheOldManandtheSea,theimageoftheoldmanisentirebecausetheauthorarrangesalittleboypurposelyanddescribeshiminagreatdealofdetails.Thus,thegraceoftheoldmanbecomesmorerealisticandvivid,whichofcourseshouldbeattributedtotheexistenceofthelittleboy.

Inadditiontodescribetheoldmanthroughtheboy’sandhiseyes,Hemingwayalsodrawsadirectiveanddetaileddescriptionoftheboy’scharacter.Inthisway,itrevealstheoldman’scharactercharmfromanotherstandpointwhichshowsaoptimistictrendintheendofthenovel.Theboybegantolearntofishattheageof5,whichistheagethatthechildrenbeginstohavememoriesaboutthings.Therefore,intheprocessoftheboy’scharacter’sshaping,theoldmaninevitablyoccupiedanimportantposition.Hemingway’sdescriptionabouttheboy’spersonalityisactuallyacomplementtoperformtheoldman’scharacter.

Althoughtheboyisyoung,heisnotboyish.Helearnsthefishingskills,alsoinheritsthespiritoftheself-esteemandself-reliantfromtheoldman.Afterseveralyearslivingwiththeoldman,hehasunderstoodthehardshipoflifeandthedutyofaman.Herethereisadetail:theboyisverylittle,attheageofsleepy,aftertheoldmanwakeshimup,heissleepywhenhegoesoutofthedoor.Insuchayoungagehehastofacetherealityofthelife,whichobviouslycausespeople’ssympathyintheirhearts.Buttheboydoesnotmindit,histendershoulderhasalreadyaccustomedtothelives’responsibilityandheregardsitiswhatamanmustdo.Thewordsaresosonorousandforcefultodriverasound.Itsauditormusthavefollowers.Thepupilislikethis,letalonethemaster!Heretheboy’spersonalitytosetofftheoldman’s.itprovidesanindispensableprecludetodrawtheperfectimageofthe“toughguy”.Asaresult,theheroicmettleoftheoldmanappearslogically.

AttheendofTheOldManandtheSea,Hemingwayexpresseshisoptimistictendencytolifebythesymbolicmeaningoftheboy’sreturnatlast.Thelittleboydecidestoreturntotheoldmanevenignoringhisfather’sauthorityandthefishermen’ssuperstitionabouttheluck:

“Thehellwithluck.”theboysaid.“

Iwillbringtheluckwithme.”

Whatwillyourfamilysay?”[14]

“Idon’tcare.Icaughttwoyesterday.ButwewillfishtogethernowforIstillhavemuchtolearn.”[15]

Beforetheboy’sreturn,itisjustaisolatedstruggleoftheoldman.Therefore,nomatterhowitisbrave,itisnotenoughtobeasourceofoptimism.Hemingwayhasconvincedforseveraldecadesthat:lifeisalonelystruggleandthereisnothingmeaningfulbehindit.Sosomecriticspointout:thefigureswrittenbyHemingwayallgototheoldway---exploration,loneliness,theresultisadeadend.ButthispatternchangesinTheOldManandtheSea;theoldmannotonlyhasafollowbutalsocanfindthesupportoftheboy.Andthereturnoftheboyishisnewstarting---theboybecomesmoreandmorematureinthefluenciesoftheoldman’sheroicspirit:Inthissense,TheOldManandtheSeaisorientedtothefuture.Attheendofthenovel,Hemingwaydealswiththeboy,whichshowsthat:heisreturningtohisstartingpointthroughanewpath.

Carlos.Bakerpointsoutthat:inacertainsense,thechildandtheoldmansymbolizedtheyouthandtheelderlyofthehuman.Intheoldman’ssubconscious,thechildisanotherstageofhislife.Becauseitisimpossibleforapersontodreamtwostagesofhimselfinonedream,sothoughthechildstayswithhimallday,heneverdreamstheboy.Thereforethechild’sreturnmeansthathumanbeing’sintelligenceandmentalstrengthwillbepassedonfromgenerationtogeneration,whichisthenovel’soptimismliesin,alsoisHemingway’slifelongpursuitandthehighestexpressionofthe“toughguy’sspirit”.Itisthereasonwhytheboycannotbetakenplacebythewomenhavingthesameageoftheoldman,likeCatharine(theheroineofFarewelltoArms)orAlbright(theheroineofTheSunAlsoRises).Becausethesameagedwomenandmenareintheparallelorantagonisticconcept,andcannotexpressthecontinualoptimism,whichisanimportantdistinctionbetweenTheOldManandtheSeaandtheotherworksofHemingway’s.Theboy’sreturnalightsthenovelandenrichesthecontentofthework,whichinspiresreaderstomakeafurtherexplorationonthemeaningandtendencyofthework.

Therearemanydifferentviewsaboutwhethertherearesymbolsornotinthisnovel.Hemingwayoncewrotetohisfriend,BernardBryson:thereisnotanysymbol,theseaisthesea,theoldmanistheoldman,thechildisthechild,andfishisfish,whatpeoplesaysaboutsymbolismisnonsense.Infact,thereasonforsayinglikethisisthathewantstoopposethatkindofrhetoric,unfoundedandso—calledsymbolism.Objectivelyspeaking,symbolismisoftenstressedthesymbolicnatureofthewholework,however,Hemingwayistoooutrighttobethesymbolism.Butthisdoesnotmeanthatthereisnosymbolismandsymbolicsignificanceinhisworks.Thesymbolism,asawholeandthesymbolicmethodasanrhetoricmethodaretwodifferentconcepts.Hemingwayacknowledgeslaterinpublicthattherearesymbolicmethodsinhisworks,heexplainsthathetriestoportrayarealoldman,arealchild,arealsea,arealfishandrealsharks.Ifhecanpicturethemverywellandrealistically,theywillmeanmanythings.Herewhathesaysthatmeanmanythingsisactuallyasymbolicmeaning,whichisbasedontheprofoundunderstandingofthenovel.Ofcourse,wecannotviewarealisticnovelasasymboliconejustbecauseitappliessomesymbolicmethods;meanwhile,wecannotdenytherearesymbolismsinawordjustbecauseitisarealisticnovel.

3.Therolesinmovingandinspiringreaders

Inthisnovel,thesecondimportantroleoftheboyisthatheleadsandinspiresthereaders.Hemingway’sdirectdescribingofthelittleboydoesnotonlyrevealtheboy’ssimpleandcomplexemotiontowardstheoldman,butalsoportraytheboy’spersonalityinordertoenhancetheeffectiveoftheworkandrichthecontentofthework.

3.1Thelittleboy’semotion

InTheOldManandtheSea,inacertainextent,especiallyatthebeginningandtheendofthenovel,theboyismuchclosetothereadersthantheoldman.Sotheboy’sfeelingisinevitabletoleadandimpactthereaders`emotion.Thereisnothingintheboy’sinnerstatebuttheoldman.Hisattitudeandemotionstowardstheoldmanaffectsthereaders`emotionfortheoldmanquietlyandgradually.SoCarlosBakeroncesaidthattheboyhasaroletomakepeoplepaymoresympathytotheoldman.Becauseatthebeginningandtheendofthenovel,weseetheoldmanintheboy’seyeswhichfillswithrespectandsympathy.Butinfact,theboy’srespectandsympathytowardstheoldmanisnotstaticinhisinnerstateodemind.Hisemotiongoesalongadeeperanddeepertrajectorywhichisfromsympathytoheartache;andsuchkindoffeelingbecomesstrongerandstronger,atlastrisingtothepeakandburstingout,“hestartedtocry”[16].Thefluctuationsoftheboy’sinnerworldaffectthereaders’emotionunknowingly.Theemotionalchangesoftheboycanbedividedinto3stages.

3.2Thelittleboy’ssympathyinthestaticstage

Theboy’ssympathyfortheoldmanisverysimpleandplain:“theoldmanhadtaughttheboytofishandtheboylovedhim”[17].Theboyremainsconcernedabouttheoldmanaftergettingluckyinanotherboat.Hecannotfeelhappyevenwhenhegetsachievesquitegoodgradesbecauseoftheoldman’shardship,whichreflectstheboy’ssincereemotionfortheoldman.Itmadetheboysadtoseetheoldmancomeineachdaywithhisskiffempty.Hewantstoreturntotheoldman.Aftertheoldman’sseveralrejections,hestillwantstohelptheoldmantodosomething.Itisunbootablethattheboy’sdeepandsimpleemotionhasbrandeddeeplyinthemindofthereadersbythefirstimpression.

3.3Thelittleboy’srespectandworryinthesubtle,fluctuatingstage

Thelittleboyshowshisrespectfortheoldmanallthetime.Hememorizedthepastexperienceofluckyandunluckytogetherwiththeoldman,heregardstheoldmanasthebestfisherman,anunusualfisherman.Theboy’srespecttotheoldmandoesnotreducebecauseoftheoldman’sfrustration.Itistheboy’sencouragementinspiritthatsupporttheoldmantogoonstruggleimpregnably.Latertheoldmanrealizesthatifitisnotthechild,hehasalreadyfinished.

Althoughtheboyhopesthattheoldmancancreateanotherbrilliantprospection,heworriesabouttheoldman’spsychologicalconditionaswell.Heisafraidofthattheoldmanissooldandfeeblethathecan’tbearthedifficultiesalone,sometimeshealsorevealshisworries:“I’lltrytogethimtoworkfarout.Thenifyouhooksomethingtrulybigwecancometoyouaid.”[18]Thesecommonwordsseemrandombutisagoodwishofgoodluckwhichleadsthereadersattentiontotheuncertainsea.

3.4Thelittleboy’saffirmationintheoutbreakstage

Theoldmanreturnsfromtheseaexhaustedandraggedbothinphysicallyandmentally,enduringallkindsofhardshipsanddifficultiesinthreedays,hecatchesabigfishwhichhasaspecialmeaningforhim,unfortunately,thebigfishisgnawedbysharksandleftapairofhugeskeleton.Thevictorygainsnothing,theresultsisdisappointed.Buttheboy’seyesdonotstayonthepaleskeletononly;heperceivesthesuccessthattheoldmaneverachievedfromthefailure:

“Theybeatme,Manolin,”hesaid.

“Theytrulybeatme.”

“Hedidn’tbeatyou.Notthefish.”[19]

Whattheboysaidisafact.Thatistheboy’saffirmationinhisdeepmindwhichisalsotheoldman’swishofprovingheisunusual.Buttheboy’sattitudetotheoldman’sretu