Terse words, vivid images, copious emotions and profound thoughts were the outstanding features of The Old Man and the Sea. The novella was one of Hemingway’s masterpieces, which solidly confirmed the renown of him and made him one of the most influential writers in American history.
In this novel, two opposites existing side by side depended on each other and were unified, namely, Hemingway created the delightful characters and plots. On the other hand, he created tragic ambience in the whole novel. People could find the plot of tragedy from the old man. At the same time, they could also feel the inspiring strength from him; the big marlin lived in the Gulf Stream, a place far away from the old man, but it was doomed to be a tragedy when the old man went far out. It fought against the old man for three days and nights which was also inspiring.
This thesis has analyzed the old man and the big marlin separately to demonstrate that they contained both delightful and tragic facets, which brought about the novel’s success and novelty. The combination of the two facets was the soul of the whole story and gave the novel oneness.
Abstract....................................................................Ⅰ
Key Words...................................................................Ⅰ
摘要........................................................................Ⅱ
关键词......................................................................Ⅱ
Introduction................................................................1
Ⅰ.The Tragic Ambience in the Old Man and the Sea...........................3
A. Analysis of the Old Man for the Tragic Ambience..........................3
1. The Tragic Ambience in the Old Man’s Daily Life.........................3
2. The Tragic Nature---People and Objects around the Old Man Brought to
Him.......................................................................4
3. The Old Man’s Tragic Ending.............................................5
B. Analysis of the Big Marlin for Tragic Ambience...........................6
C. The Tragic Ambience Connected with the Author’s Life....................7
Ⅱ.The Delightful Facet in the Old Man and the Seav.........................8
A. The Delightful Facet from the Old Man....................................8
1. Analysis of the Old Man’s Character.....................................8
2. Inspiring Ending of the Old Man..........................................9
3. The Delightful Facet Shown by the Boy’s Coming Back.....................9
B. The Big Fish’s Noble Character and Morals...............................10
C. The Success in Spirit Connected with the Author’s Life..................10
Ⅲ.The Combination of the Tragic Facet and the Delightful Facet in the Novel11
Conclusion..................................................................13
Acknowledgements............................................................14
Bibliography................................................................15
