Old Man and the Sea

I think that Ernest Hemingway, the author of the novel Old Man and the Sea uses many techniques to engage the reader and make the story effective. One technique would be using characters that can be related to, or characters that are easy to like. The old man is wise, and very charming. The way his personality is portrayed makes it so much easier for the reader to enjoy the story. The little boy is another character who makes the novel much better. He is very kind and thoughtful for just being a boy, and the reader appreciates how he takes such good care of the old man. If the reader did not like the old man, though, they probably would not like the boy as much either. Because the old man is an enjoyable character, we like how the boy is crucial in keeping the him alive and as healthy as possible. All in all, good characters help make the plot interesting and easy to read. It is so difficult to read a book when all you can think about is how much you hate all the people in the story. It makes the reader hate the book! Another technique that the author uses to engage the reader and make the story effective is suspense. Suspense is not only used during the climax when he is stranded out at sea, but also through the entire story. The old man is not having luck catching fish, meaning he is not making any money. Without money, he can not buy food or supplies. Without food or supplies, he will die. That thought is always in the back of the reader's, as well as the little boy's, mind. The old man gets pulled out in the middle of the ocean by the great marlin, where he can not get food or anything, no matter how much money he has. The fact that neither the reader not the old man know how far he went out or when he will get back to shore keeps the plot going. The suspense of not knowing and picturing all of the possibilities of what can happen pulls the reader in.

Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1995.