QUESTIONNAIRE FOR LITERARY APRECIATION

I. STRUCTURE:
1. Who is the author of this book?
The author is Ernest Hemingway.

2. What is the title?

The title is “The old man and the sea”.

3. Is the title clear or confusing? (Does it give any idea of the contents of the
book?)
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4. Who is the narrator?
a. The author himself.
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b. An external narrator who knows everything about the characters and
event.
c. One of the main characters.
d. There’s no narrator. We learn what happens through the characters
thoughts and through their dialogues.
5. Which personal pronouns are used?
Santiago, a boy named Manolin, the old man, Perico at the bodega,
Martin’s thoughtfulness, the sun comes up,

6. What is the theme?

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7. What is the setting? (When and where does the action take p lace?)

8. What is the sequence of events? (the photo)

9. Day one: He only dreamed of places now and dog the lions on the beach. They
played like young cats in the dusk and he loved as he loved the boy.
10. Day two: The old man hit him on the head for kindness and kitched him, his
body still shuddering under the shade of the stern.
11. Day Three: I do not understand these things, he thought, but it is good that we
do not have to try to kill the sun or the moon or the stars. It is enough to live on
the sea and kill our true bothers.
12. Day four: Then the fish came alive, with this death in him, and rose high out of
the water showing all his great length and width and all his power and his
beauty.
13. Day five: From Manolin bringing the old man coffee to the old man’s return to
sleep to dream, once again, about the lions.
14. (The plot) are the events presented in chronological order?

II. CHARACTERS:
1. Who are the main characters?

2. Who are the minor characters? What is their function? Explain who they
are.
3. What is the social status of the characters? Are they rich/ poor/
educated?
4. Is there a here / heroine? If yes, what is his / her role? How do you know
he / she is a hero / heroine?
5. Does the hero / heroine have to fight against any opponent or opposing
force? Explain.
6. What is their relationship with others and the environment? Family /
relatives? Friends? Acquaintance? Teacher / pupil?
7. Describe your favorite character in no less than words. Use your
imagination.

III. CONTENT:
1. What is the theme / purpose of the story?
2. Was the author successful in getting to that purpose? Why?
3. Did the author use? Give one example of each.
a. Descriptions
b. Dialogues
c. Punctuation
d. Slang
4. Did the story develop and end according to your earlier expectations?