We feel ambiguous about the pool shark. We praise his skill and condemn his dishonesty. After all, he commits the sin that Americans are least inclined to forgive--duplicity. He isn't what he seems to be. And yet, because the shark preys upon hubris--a human weakness that Americans particularly abhor--he is the sort of miscreant we tolerate or even encourage. At a recent New England Nine Ball Championship, where a $100 entry fee bought me the opportunity to be humiliated by two pros (after you lose once, you get a second chance--a process called double elimination), I met a pool shark named Tom, a Boston Irishman still relatively young, although he had been a pool player for twenty-five years, and had three times been New England champion. Tom and I hit it off right from the start. When I invited him to my home for an afternoon of pool, he said he'd be happy to come. Naturally, Tom did not try to hustle me. He didn't need to. I knew immediately--he broke and ran out a game of eight ball--that he was a great player. At first I thought I wouldn't mind losing; after all, what chance did I have? And yet after I'd lost seventeen games in a row, I felt sick with frustration and anger. Eventually Tom and I talked about what is required to be a successful pool shark other than the ability to shoot an exquisite game. Tom said that first and foremost a shark needs a good night's sleep--every night, no matter how late he gets in. "Call any real player before noon," Tom said, "and see what happens." (I did, and I got Allen Hopkins, one of the best American players of the past twenty years, out of bed.) "Nothing affects the eyes like sleep--the lack of it," Tom said. "And in pool the eyes are everything." "What about glasses?" I asked. "What about the guy who doesn't see too well? Can he ever get to be good enough?" I wear glasses.

"Glasses are a burden," Tom said. "You have to train yourself to ignore what you see over them when you're down low to shoot." But one of the best shooters in the country, Bill "Chickenman" Dunsmore, wears glasses so thick you'd call him handicapped. "The human mind's a wonder," Tom said. "It compensates for all kinds of things. A guy with glasses, with less than twenty-twenty vision, learns to shoot at the right part of the fuzzy ball. It may even be an advantage not to see long shots too clearly. Seeing too clearly encourages the shooter to be overprecise, to aim his stroke, making it an act of will rather than a function of a well-trained body." I had difficulty believing Tom's notion that poor vision could be an advantage, but I thanked him silently for the agreeable illusion. Another component of hustling, Tom said, is the equipment. And part of the "equipment" is the appearance of the shark himself. First of all, he must be clean-cut: short hair, no moustache, no beard. He must be dressed conservatively. In town he must dress like a businessman in leisure clothes; in the country he needs to look like a hick, a hayseed. Most important, he must learn and adopt the sucker's barroom style, which says in every intonation of voice, every gesture (such as the way he handles his money--confusedly, carelessly paying for his drinks with crumpled bills, ignoring his change), that he's out for a good time. The shark needs the right pool cue--what pros call a Sneaky Pete. Available from most of the big-time manufacturers, the Sneaky Pete looks exactly like an ordinary one-piece cue except for a thin, almost indiscernible line at the joint where its two pieces screw together. But it is custom weighted, tipped, and balanced for the shark's game. The shark usually enters a bar with the shaft and the butt of the Pete already screwed together. The chances are slim that anyone will notice this, because the shark arrives just as the steady drinkers have become competitive, which is around 10:00 P.M. in most bars. For a while the shark stands at the bar, holding his cue, buying beers for himself and, occasionally, for the guys near him. He drinks steadily and looks over at the table while he drinks, appearing anxious to shoot.

Now and then, when a decent shot is made, the shark feigns excitement. "Hell of a shot," he says to the bartender, who of course hasn't noticed. Then the shark turns to his drinking friends, shakes his head, and says loudly enough to be overheard, "Wow, they've got some good shooters around here." Then he buys another drink. Eventually the shark is coaxed by his newfound buddies to put his quarters on the table--to be next up to shoot. By this time of night one player has taken possession of the table. More often than not this player, having won many drinks as well as a couple of hundred dollars, is contemptuous and cocky, and ready to be had. The shark will never approach the evening's champion with a challenge. Nothing about a shark must even hint at his true ability or his intent. He must appear a gregarious dupe, ready and willing to be embarrassed and to call it fun. The first question the shark asks is "What are the stakes here?" This takes the betting out of the personal range. It becomes a circumstance of the table that night. The night's big winner will always inflate the wager. If he's been playing eight ball for five dollars a rack, he will claim he's played all night for ten. At first the shark balks at playing for such a sum. He chalks up his cue. He considers. Perhaps the most important skill a shark has is the ability to imitate a novice's game. A novice has predictable and readily identifiable mannerisms, which the shark has practiced until they are second nature. First of all, a novice talks--before, after, and sometimes even during his shooting. Second, when a novice thinks he's shooting well (he has sunk two or three balls), he moves quickly around the table to position himself for the next shot. This is to say, "Now I'm playing for real." Finally, the stroke of a novice is short, stabbing. And on a difficult or a crucial shot his body contracts and sways as he aims. His grip on the butt tightens; the cue tip moves from side to side.

The second strategy, patience, is as necessary as haste. The more a champion loses, the quicker his game will become. He will express, through his rapid, nervous play, the desperate urgency that is creeping into his heart. This is the time when the shark does all his fussing at the table: he will discuss his shot aloud, with himself or with one or two onlookers. Between shots he always needs a sip of beer. The shark has one great advantage over a bar player. The shark has trained in a poolroom, on a regulation table nine feet by four and a half feet. The usual bar table is only seven feet by three and a half feet. The difference the size makes is phenomenal. To the shark, no shot on a seven-foot table is a "long" shot. And the short balls are child's play. Just seeing that little table, with its bigger pockets, its forgiving banks (a ball can hit the rail a diamond above a pocket and still go in), gives the shark all the confidence he needs. He believes he can make any shot on this table. And usually he can. Success for the shark means two things: first, he must win two or three hundred dollars, or two or three thousand--depending on where the games are played--for a night's work. Second, he must never have let the champion know that he, the shark, is the better player. His success must seem to be all luck, a consequence of the champion's own, easily forgivable mistakes. If the shark accomplishes this, he can return to the bar again and again, and reap a harvest from whoever is the big winner that night. By losing occasionally, the shark can acquire and maintain a reputation for being "just a lucky guy." The worst mistake a shark can make is to allow himself anger: to be so offended by the idiocy, the rudeness, the egotism, of his opponent that he gives in to the temptation to show off.

I thought that being a pool shark sounded wonderful. But how many players can achieve the perception of a psychotherapist, the self-discipline of a monk, and the skill of a general surgeon? "Just a few," Tom said. "Just a few."

6. How does a novice act around the pool table? 7. How does a Pretender act around the pool table? 8. Why must the shark lose? 9. In order to make money, what must the shark do with the Champion? Why would the author use the opposition of “haste” and “Patience.” Stylistically, the author has given up using names, but rather uses types. What is the effect of that? 10. Why will a shark win in a bar, more often than not? 11. What is success to a shark? What causes failure? 12. What qualities are necessary in a pool shark? Is loneliness one of them?

6. When the boy flatters Santiago, how does Santiago respond? 7. What sport do Santiago and the boy talk of? Why do they talk about that? Who was the great Dimaggio? 8. What doesn’t Santiago dream of anymore? What does he dream of instead? When did he see the lions? What is he really dreaming about? Why doesn’t he have appetites anymore? 9. When Santiago wakes up the boy, he apologizes. Why? Manolin says “it is what a man must do” What is he talking about? Explain that quote? 10. Is the old man staying close to shore, or is he going far out? Why? 11. What is the difference between La Mar and El Mar? What does La mar mean? How do fishermen treat her then? What does El mar mean? How do fishermen treat him then?

12. What fishing equipment does the old man use? Why does he keep the lines with precision? What does that show about him?

5. How does he actually hook the fish? Why would the boy be helpful right about now? What is his strategy for catching this fish? How are he and the fish similar? 6. What had the old man done with the pair of marlins? Why is that so sad to both the boy and the old man? 7. What does the old man do to the other lines? Why? If he were more thoughtful, would he still do that? 8. Who comes to visit Santiago? Why is it so tired? How is it similar to Santiago? What will the bird learn about soon enough? 9. What error did Santiago make? How is he “paying” for it? 10. How does Santiago interpret his cramping hand? Why is it cramping? Why does Santiago think it is cramping? How does he address his hands?

11. Santiago often thinks of death. Why? 12. What does the fish look like? How is the fish more noble? What advantage does Santiago have?

4. Complete the quote: “It is enough to live on the sea and _______________________” What is he implying that it is all right to do? Is it better to have to kill your brother or your enemy? Why won’t he cut the fish loose? 5. Complete the quote: “The punishment of the hook is nothing, but the punishment of the hunger ___________________________________ _______________ everything.” Why is the hook not a problem? Why is hunger a problem? 6. What to does the fish start to do? How does the old man show how tired he is? What prayer does he make? Which is weaker? His body or his head? Have you ever felt that way? Explain. 7. How does the old man actually kill the fish? What is the slave work? How is he going to bring the fish in? 8. How are he and the fish “brothers”? How does the position of the fish affect the old man?

10. How do the sharks finally come for the fish? How does the old man try to fight them off? Why does he fight? 11. After the fight, the old man has a strange taste in his mouth. What is it? What does that imply? 12. What does the old man feel when he is beaten? What has beaten him? (be careful) Why did he never know what beaten meant? Look at the earlier quote “A man can be.....” Is that still true for Santiago? 13. What happens to the old man as he walks back to his cabin? These accidents are another allusion. Who else fell, while carrying a large wooden thing? 14. How long was the Marlin? How long must Santiago’s boat be? What was incredible about the last fight? 15. Why does Manolin cry? Why does he want the sword?

16. The novel ends with a scene with the tourists. What do they mistake the fish for? Do the tourists get it? What is the point of this. 17. How is Santiago sleeping at the end of the novel? Will he live? Explain.

6. Complete the quote: “Though much is taken, __________________” What has been taken from Ulysses? What is left? How does that phrase apply to Santiago? 7. Complete the phrase : “To strive, to seek, ___________________” What does that mean? How does it apply to Santiago? Will Ulysses be defeated or destroyed? 8. A cliché is that “Old soldiers die in bed.” What does that phrase mean? Is it honorable or dishonorable to die that way? 9. How is Ulysses different from Santiago? Since Santiago and Ulysses are both ciphers (stand-ins) for their authors, what is the difference in the authors attitudes towards writing?

8. A large mako shark 9. Sneaky Pete 10. Ambulance 11. Lions on the beach 12. A dolphin 13. A clean cafe.

8. “Pull the boat, fish.” 9. “I wish I had the boy.” 10. “Sleep well, old man” 11. “Nothing, I went out too far.” 12. “Our Nada, who art in nada....” 13. “If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him.” 14. “Double or nothing.” 15. “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”