The Old Man and the Sea: Thoughts - Part III

I really like Manolin's character. His love for the old man is undying, but he knows just the right combination of smothering love and extreme amounts of help to win over the man's affection. Manolin is a young boy living in the same village as Santiago, and he used to be part of the old man's fishing boat. They went out together for apparently a good amount of time to build such a strong ffriendship, but when they had some pretty bad luck for forty straight days, Manolin's father forced him off Santiago's boat in hopes of finding a better, more prosperous ship for young Manolin to work on. His father, first of all, made the right decision. It was quite unfortunate for the young boy and the old man, but as always, the father knows best. He was within every right to send his son onto a better boat because he needs to think of the best ways to support his family. This said, however, it was not very nice to Manolin who obviously loves the old man as a second father. He will not be able to have as strong of a relationship with Santiago as he once did, but they are at least satill able to visit before and after the day of fishing. Manolin takes this decision very maturely and accepts his own fate, however unhappy it may make him. Manolin decides to make the best out of the situation he is placed in, and he loves his father just as much as ever. Manolin does still make small references to his father's cruel dicision in conversations with Santiago, but they are nothing extremely negative. If I was in the same place, I would beg and plead for my father to let me continue with my best friend. It would not matter to me if we were not doing well on the seas in terms of fish, but I would be excited to be able to grow the friendship between myself and the old man.