"The old man was now definitely and finally salao, which is the worst form of unlucky." Santiago has now gone 84 days without a fish. On the 85th day, the old man returns to the sea in the hopes that he will be able to catch something. However, his chances of being successful are worsened by the various limitations he encounters. First and foremost, Santiago is old. Time has weakened the old man and his extraordinary skill for fishing. And with old age comes immense pain. The old man's body is covered with wounds and scars from past experiences. "His hands had the deep-creased scars from handling heavy fish on the cords. But none of the scars were fresh. They were as old as erosions in a fishless desert." The passage demonstrates the pain Santiago has endured…show more content… The old man is desperately hoping that his hand will cure. "It will uncramp though, he thought. Surely it will uncramp to help my right hand. There are three things that are brothers: the fish and my two hands. It must uncramp. It is unworthy of it to be cramped." Santiago uses positive reinforcement expecting that it will somehow heal him. However, in reality he knows it is useless. He despises his left hand for this and later refers to it as a traitor. He feels that it is a humiliation to his pride and views it as an being separate from himself. Secondly, Santiago has set out on a ramshackle skiff with little food. His skiff is small, and broken down. In fact, it is so small that the fish he is trying to catch is two feet longer than it. Food and water are scarce aboard the skiff. On multiple occasions, the old man finds himself debating whether or not he shall eat that day. "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
