Is it possible to remain feeling young, even in old age? The main character, Santiago, of The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway sets a great example of this. Literally by the title of the book, Santiago is an old man. Contrary to this, he has quite a youthful way of life. The old man feels youthful because he is still strong and smart, he spends his time in a youthful atmosphere, and he acknowledges that he is old but does not let that stop him. Firstly, the old man feels young because his is still strong and smart. The two passages below illustrate some examples of this: "Then he began to pity the great fish he had hooked. He is wonderful and strange and who knows how old he is, he thought. Never have I had such a strong fish nor …show more content…
Santiago enjoys keeping up with baseball, which is usually associated with younger people (“Themes”). The following is an example of when Santiago’s mind wandered to baseball: "He...tried to think of other things. He thought of the Big Leagues, to him they were the Gran Ligas, and he knew that the Yankees of New York were playing the Tigres of Detroit (Hemingway, 67-68)”. Here, to give him something to think about while out at sea, his thinks of baseball. These thoughts keep him young because baseball is played by young, athletic people and is usually followed and watched by young people. “His friendship with Manolin is also based partly on Santiago's fond recollections of his own youth. For example, he recalls the time he saw the lions on the beach in Africa or when he beat a well-known player in a hand-wrestling match that lasted all day (“Themes”)". This is another example of the old man enjoying being in a youthful atmosphere. He is friends with and a mentor to a boy named Manolin. He enjoys being with the boy because it reminds him to stay young and also helps him in doing so. Their friendship gives Santiago companionship and keeps him in a youthful