Hunger Quotes - Quotes, The Old Man and the Sea | The Old Man and the Sea - Summary, Themes & Characters - Novels PDF Download

There was no cast net and the boy remembered when they had sold it. But they went through this fiction every day. There was no pot of yellow rice and fish and the boy knew this too. (1.59)

Santiago does not live in a normal world of food and rest.

"I’m not very hungry." 

"Come on and eat. You can’t fish and not eat." 

"I have," the old man said getting up and taking the newspaper and folding it. Then he started to fold the blanket. (1.92-1.94)

The old man is almost supernatural in his ability to work without food.

The old man drank his coffee slowly. It was all he would have all day and he knew that he should take it. For a long time now eating had bored him and he never carried a lunch. He had a bottle of water in the bow of the skiff and that was all he needed for the day. (2.16)

Eating holds no pleasure for the old man. It is only a means to an end.

He also drank a cup of shark liver oil each day from the big drum in the shack where many of the fishermen kept their gear. It was there for all fishermen who wanted it. Most fishermen hated the taste. But it was no worse than getting up at the hours that they rose and it was very good against all colds and grippes and it was good for the eyes. (2.46)

Eating is an unpleasant but necessary activity for the old man, rather than a pleasure. It is his means to strength.

No one should be alone in their old age, he thought. But it is unavoidable. I must remember to eat the tuna before he spoils in order to keep strong. Remember, no matter how little you want to, that you must eat him in the morning. Remember, he said to himself. (2.88)

The man hungers for company rather than food.

There is no sense in being anything but practical though, he thought. I wish I had some salt. And I do not know whether the sun will rot or dry what is left, so I had better eat it all although I am not hungry. The fish is calm and steady. I will eat it all and then I will be ready. (3.41)

The old man believes he must consume one fish to be ready to do battle with another. There is a cyclical nature to his thinking that extends his fishing activities into the future.

I’m learning how to do it, he thought. This part of it anyway. Then too, remember he hasn’t eaten since he took the bait and he is huge and needs much food. I have eaten the whole bonito. Tomorrow I will eat the dolphin. He called it dorado. Perhaps I should eat some of it when I clean it. It will be harder to eat than the bonito. But, then, nothing is easy. (3.102)

Eating is as much of a struggle as his fight with the marlin.

The punishment of the hook is nothing. The punishment of hunger, and that he is against something that he does not comprehend, is everything. Rest now, old man, and let him work until your next duty comes. (3.111)

Although he seems not to feel hunger himself, the old man recognizes the pain associated with it.

It has more nourishment than almost any fish, he thought. At least the kind of strength that I need. Now I have done what I can, he thought. Let him begin to circle and let the fight come. (4.16)

The old man gains confidence over the fish when he eats.