What is victory and defeat? Introduction. "Victory and defeat." Essay example. Moral, philosophical and psychological aspects

There are probably no people in the world who would not dream of victory. Every day we win small victories or suffer defeats. Trying to achieve success over yourself and your weaknesses, getting up thirty minutes earlier in the morning, studying sports section, preparing lessons that are not going well. Sometimes such victories become a step towards success, towards self-affirmation. But this doesn't always happen. Apparent victory turns into defeat, but defeat is, in fact, victory.

In the comedy by A.S. Griboedov “Woe from Wit” main character A.A. Chatsky, after a three-year absence, returns to the society in which he grew up. Everything is familiar to him; he has a categorical judgment about every representative of secular society. “The houses are new, but the prejudices are old,” the young, hot-blooded man concludes about the renewed Moscow. The Famusov society adheres to the strict rules of the times of Catherine:
“honor according to father and son”, “be bad, but if there are two thousand family souls - he and the groom”, “the door is open for those invited and uninvited, especially from foreigners”, “it’s not that they introduce new things - never” “they are judges of everything, everywhere, there are no judges above them.”
And only servility, veneration, and hypocrisy rule over the minds and hearts of the “chosen” representatives of the top of the noble class. Chatsky with his views turns out to be out of place. In his opinion, “ranks are given by people, but people can be deceived,” seeking patronage from those in power is low, one must achieve success with intelligence, and not with servility. Famusov, barely hearing his reasoning, covers his ears and shouts: “... to trial!” He considers young Chatsky a revolutionary, a “carbonarius”, dangerous person, when Skalozub appears, he asks not to express his thoughts out loud. And when the young man does begin to express his views, he quickly leaves, not wanting to bear responsibility for his judgments. However, the colonel turns out to be a narrow-minded person and only catches discussions about uniforms. In general, few people understand Chatsky at Famusov’s ball: the owner himself, Sophia and Molchalin. But each of them makes his own verdict. Famusov would prohibit such people from approaching the capital for a shot, Sophia says that he is “not a man - a snake,” and Molchalin decides that Chatsky is simply a loser. The final verdict of the Moscow world is madness! At the climactic moment, when the hero makes his keynote speech, no one in the hall listens to him. You can say that Chatsky is defeated, but this is not so! I.A. Goncharov believes that the hero of the comedy is a winner, and one cannot but agree with him. The appearance of this man shook up the stagnant Famus society, destroyed Sophia’s illusions, and shook Molchalin’s position.

In I. S. Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons,” two opponents collide in a heated argument: a representative younger generation- nihilist Bazarov and nobleman P.P. Kirsanov. One lived an idle life, spent the lion's share of the allotted time on love for the famous beauty, socialite - Princess R. But, despite this lifestyle, he gained experience, experienced, probably, the most important feeling that overtook him, washed away everything superficial, arrogance and self-confidence were knocked down. This feeling is love. Bazarov boldly judges everything, considering himself a “self-made man,” a man who made his name only through his own labor and intelligence. In a dispute with Kirsanov, he is categorical, harsh, but observes external decency, but Pavel Petrovich cannot stand it and breaks down, indirectly calling Bazarov a “blockhead”:
...before they were just idiots, and now they suddenly became nihilists.
Bazarov's external victory in this dispute, then in the duel turns out to be a defeat in the main confrontation. Having met his first and only love, the young man is unable to survive defeat, does not want to admit failure, but cannot do anything. Without love, without sweet eyes, such desirable hands and lips, life is not needed. He becomes distracted, cannot concentrate, and no amount of denial helps him in this confrontation. Yes, it seems that Bazarov won, because he so stoically goes to death, silently struggles with the disease, but in fact he lost, because he lost everything for which it was worth living and creating.

Courage and determination in any struggle are essential. But sometimes you have to put aside self-confidence, look around, re-read the classics so as not to be mistaken making the right choice. After all, this is your life. And when defeating someone, think about whether it is a victory!

Total: 608 words

Direction "Honor and dishonor" of the final essay 2016-2017 in literature: examples, samples, analysis of works

Examples of writing essays on literature in the direction of "Honor and Dishonor". Statistics are provided for each essay. Some essays are for school, and can be used as ready-made samples It is not recommended for the final essay.

These works can be used to prepare for the final essay. They are intended to form students’ understanding of the full or partial disclosure of the topic of the final essay. We recommend using them as additional source ideas when forming your own understanding of the topic.

Below are video analyzes of works in the thematic area “Honor and Dishonor”.

Concepts of honor in our time

In our cruel age, it seems that the concepts of honor and dishonor have died. There is no special need to preserve honor for girls - striptease and depravity pay dearly, and money is much more attractive than some ephemeral honor. I remember Knurov from “Dowry” by A.N. Ostrovsky:

There are boundaries beyond which condemnation does not cross: I can offer you such enormous content that the most evil critics of other people's morality will have to shut up and open their mouths in surprise.

Sometimes it seems that men have long ceased to dream of serving for the good of the Fatherland, protecting their honor and dignity, and defending the Motherland. Probably, literature remains the only evidence of the existence of these concepts.

A.S. Pushkin’s most cherished work begins with the epigraph: “Take care of your honor from a young age,” which is part of a Russian proverb. The entire novel “The Captain's Daughter” gives us the best idea of honor and dishonor. The main character, Petrusha Grinev, is a young man, practically a youth (at the time of his departure for service he was “eighteen” years old, according to his mother), but he is filled with such determination that he is ready to die on the gallows, but not to tarnish his honor. And this is not only because his father bequeathed to him to serve this way. Life without honor for a nobleman is the same as death. But his opponent and envious Shvabrin acts completely differently. His decision to go over to Pugachev’s side is determined by fear for his life. He, unlike Grinev, does not want to die. The outcome of the life of each of the heroes is logical. Grinev lives a dignified, albeit poor, life as a landowner and dies surrounded by his children and grandchildren. And the fate of Alexei Shvabrin is clear, although Pushkin does not say anything about it, but most likely death or hard labor will end this unworthy life of a traitor, a man who did not preserve his honor.

War is a catalyst for the most important human qualities; it shows either courage and courage, or meanness and cowardice. We can find proof of this in V. Bykov’s story “Sotnikov”. Two heroes are the moral poles of the story. The fisherman is energetic, strong, physically strong, but is he courageous? Having been captured, he betrays his partisan detachment under pain of death, betraying its location, weapons, strength - in short, everything, in order to eliminate this center of resistance to the fascists. But the frail, sickly, puny Sotnikov turns out to be courageous, endures torture, and resolutely ascends to the scaffold, not for a second doubting the correctness of his action. He knows that death is not as terrible as remorse from betrayal. At the end of the story, Rybak, who escaped death, tries to hang himself in the toilet, but cannot, because he does not find a suitable weapon (his belt was taken away during his arrest). His death is a matter of time, he is not a completely fallen sinner, and living with such a burden is unbearable.

Years pass, in the historical memory of mankind there are still examples of actions based on honor and conscience. Will they become an example for my contemporaries? I think yes. The heroes who died in Syria, saving people in fires and disasters, prove that there is honor, dignity, and there are bearers of these noble qualities.

Total: 441 words

Good afternoon, dear reader!

Continuing the “” section that I started, I would like to discuss the importance we attach to defeats and victories in our lives. Maybe someone will say that this is a “hackneyed” topic. However, I disagree for several reasons.

If “hackneyed” means interesting, even “heartbreaking.”

I would like to find out: is it really true that one does not exist without the other?

First you need to understand: what is victory And What is defeat?

We most often associate victory with winning. To win means to win against an opponent, for example, in sports or in an argument. Or achieve success, a positive result in any business.

Defeat, accordingly, is associated with loss. To be defeated by someone or fail in some business, to get a negative result.

But is defeat really connected with failure, and victory with success?

I would call this attitude towards victory and defeat somewhat primitive and superficial. In sports, yes, there is a winner and a loser. But in life everything can be completely different. This is HOW we perceive the RESULT we get in the end. This is just our attitude to what happened after some actions. Why should we be happy about victories and upset about defeats? Who said it had to be this way? But society has its own stereotypes, which are ingrained in us from childhood by our environment, and then they become part of our ideas or beliefs. It’s also simpler: there is “white” and there is “black”. But, by themselves, these “strips” do not exist, but follow each other, constantly alternating. Therefore, first you just need to know that defeats are followed by victories, and victories are followed by defeats.

If you've thought about this, you won't spend too much time suffering over what didn't work out. Accept this as a fact. It didn't work out today. However:

Try to find the reason for what prevented you from achieving victory.
Maybe you put high bar and couldn’t overcome it the first time.
Then it’s worth reducing it a little or choosing a different approach to solving the problem.
Alternatively, “split” the task into several stages.

In any case, a constructive approach will yield results. You will find a solution to the problem. If the situation is difficult, just try to understand that you need this defeat now. Accept it as a fait accompli, even if it is painful and difficult. Over time, you will remember this situation as a favorable opportunity to change your life for the better and achieve better results.

After all, every loss is given to us as an incentive to reconsider something in our lives, take a fresh look at this situation and change something, perhaps in a fundamental way. The main thing is not to lose heart and not give up. The main thing is to find the ability within yourself to be strong and remember that all people go through a period of defeats and failures. And the one who copes with his difficulties rises one more step in his development. And so every defeat makes us stronger, harder, wiser.

Learn yourself and teach your children to accept difficulties and enjoy failures, because without “defeats there are no victories.” Well, what else should I add? How do you think?

Description of the presentation by individual slides:

1 slide

Slide description:

Working materials for the final essay in the direction of “Victory and Defeat” Work by teacher of Russian language and literature Ekaterina Kirillovna Repnina (Moscow)

2 slide

Slide description:

3 slide

Slide description:

4 slide

Slide description:

5 slide

Slide description:

Final essay. Thematic direction “Victory and defeat” In essays on this direction one can speculate about victory and defeat in different aspects: socio-historical, moral-philosophical and psychological. Reasoning can be associated both with external conflict events in the life of a person, country, world, and with a person’s internal struggle with himself, its causes and results. Literary works often show the ambiguity and relativity of the concepts of “victory” and “defeat” in different historical and life conditions.

6 slide

Slide description:

“To live honestly, you have to rush, get confused, fight, make mistakes, but calmness is spiritual meanness” L.N. Tolstoy

7 slide

Slide description:

Victory and defeat. Aphorisms on the topic You need to be able to lose. Otherwise it would be impossible to live. e. M. Remarque Success is always someone's defeat. Man was not created for defeat. Man can be destroyed, but cannot be overcome Ernest Hemingway

8 slide

Slide description:

Sample Topics essays Is it possible to live a happy life without victories? The most important victory is victory over yourself. Victory can be achieved quickly, but the most difficult thing is to secure it. Victory over fear gives a person strength. To win the “war”, sometimes you have to lose the “battle”. Defeat helps you understand yourself.

Slide 9

Slide description:

How to write an introduction on a topic? First introduction. Victory and defeat... In human life they always exist side by side. Each of us strives to achieve a certain success, win and consolidate it. Life path any person is very difficult. This is usually the path of victories and defeats. A person strives to make fewer mistakes that lead him to complete defeat. In life, we take any defeat hard. This is very difficult because the person is in a difficult situation. But there is another situation when a person wins a victory, which then turns out to be a complete defeat. There is a third situation when a person wins more than one victory and is always able to consolidate this success. Why does this happen in life?

10 slide

Slide description:

Transition from the introduction to the main part of the essay These and other questions related to the problem of victory and defeat have always been of interest to world literature. Thus, in Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy’s novel “War and Peace” we see what a difficult life path his favorite heroes go through - this is the path of quest, the path of victories and defeats. We analyze the pages of the novel from the point of view of what victories Prince Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov won in life, what failures and defeats they went through.

11 slide

Slide description:

The second argument to the main part of the essay And in the story of Mikhail Aleksandrovich Sholokhov “The Fate of a Man” we meet with a simple Russian soldier who was captured by the Germans. Yes, captivity is a terrible defeat. But we are convinced that the author of the story, showing such a difficult life situation, emphasizes that defeat turns out to be high moral victory Russian person. In the interrogation scene, Andrei Sokolov's defeat becomes his moral victory, when the commandant of the prisoner of war camp near Dresden, Müller, admires the dignity, courage and fortitude of the prisoner and highly appreciates him for this - he saves his life, calls him a real Russian soldier.

12 slide

Slide description:

Conclusion to the essay So, what conclusion can be drawn? Where did my reasoning based on the books of L.N. Tolstoy and M.A. Sholokhov lead me? Re-reading and remembering the pages of these works, I come to the conclusion that in the life of any person the problem of victory and defeat plays a serious role, since it is difficult to go through the path of life without victories and defeats. And how a person endures victory and defeat depends entirely on himself, on his character. This is very important in the life of each of us. So let there be more people in our real life who win than suffer defeat.

Slide 13

Slide description:

Chatsky. Who is he? Winner or loser? In the comedy “Woe from Wit” by Alexander Sergeevich Griboyedov, we see that few people understand Chatsky in Famusov’s house. The hero with his views turned out to be completely out of place. Moscow society pronounces its verdict on Alexander Chatsky: madness. And when the hero makes his main speech, no one wants to listen to him. What is this? Chatsky's defeat? Writer I.A. Goncharov, in his essay “A Million Torments,” argued that Chatsky is a winner. Why did the author of the essay come to this conclusion? It’s hard to disagree with Goncharov: after all, Chatsky shook up the stagnant Moscow society, destroyed Sophia’s hopes, and shook Molchalin’s position. And this is a real victory!

Slide 14

Slide description:

15 slide

Slide description:

A.S. Pushkin. The tragedy “Mozart and Salieri” The Italian Salieri perceives the personality of the Austrian composer Mozart as some kind of miracle that refutes his entire life as a person and a composer. Salieri is tormented and tormented because he is insanely jealous of the great Mozart. The Italian is a dry person, selfish, rational, terribly envious. He poisoned the Austrian genius. The actual victory goes to Salieri. But what did the Italian composer achieve? After all, he understands and realizes Mozart’s superiority over himself, feels the great power of his talent and the great power of his music. Having killed Mozart, Salieri could not free himself from that terrible envy, which is the source of his real moral torture. He has lost the ability to perceive life easily and joyfully; his soul is burned by envy and pride. And life in such a psychological state is torture, this is real defeat.

16 slide

Slide description:

Slide 17

Slide description:

18 slide

Slide description:

Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse Reading F. M. Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment, we learn that the thought of saving the world forced Raskolnikov to create his own theory. He chooses an old money-lender as a victim. The idea haunts the hero. Everything that happens around pushes Raskolnikov to kill the old woman. A noble crime turns into a bloody murder. Murder is a terrible crime, it cannot be calculated. Raskolnikov kills the old pawnbroker and, together with her, takes the life of the kind, humble Lizaveta. Dostoevsky's hero experiences unbearable mental anguish and is terribly tormented. Inhumane thoughts and deeds can never serve the good of humanity. Happiness cannot be built on blood, cruelty and violence. Therefore this theory failed. This is a complete defeat for Raskolnikov. He comes to rethink moral values: “Did I kill the old woman? I killed myself." And, reading the pages of the novel, we clearly realize and understand that only through a humane principle can humanity rise and rise, that there is no other way and cannot be.

Slide 19

Slide description:

20 slide

Slide description:

Defeat and victory of the old fisherman Santiago The old fisherman Santiago is the hero of the story by the American writer, Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway. Santiago lived a very difficult life, he had no family. The Cuban old man has a faithful boy friend, Manolino. For eighty-four days the old man returned with nothing. And on the eighty-fifth day, all his efforts were rewarded. The fish pulled the old man and the boat forward. It was the first time he had to fight such a huge fish. An exhausted Santiago wins. When the fisherman courageously guarded the fish from sharks that attacked in whole flocks, he lost his harpoon. The old man pulled only a huge skeleton to the shore. “They defeated me, Manolin,” the fisherman said to the boy.

21 slides

Slide description:

What did Ernest Hemingway show? What does his story “The Old Man and the Sea” make you think about? How did it all end? Victory or defeat? Of course, a victory! It was not just a victory, but a victory of the human spirit, endurance and courage. While on the open sea, Santiago talked to himself and said: “Man was not created to defeat. A person can be destroyed, but cannot be overcome.” How wonderfully said! The story of an American writer about a man who does not give up. The old man's fight with a huge fish, which carried his boat along the Gulf Stream for a long time, had a huge impression on the writer. And he decided to talk about the dignity of man, about the grief and happiness of the winner. The theme of victory and defeat in the story takes on a special role. The old man defeats not only the fish, but his own weakness, fatigue and old age.

From 2014-2015 school year The program for the state final certification of schoolchildren includes a final graduation essay. This format differs significantly from the classic exam. The work is of a non-subject nature, relying on the graduate’s knowledge in the field of literature. The essay aims to reveal the examinee’s ability to reason on a given topic and argue his point of view. Mainly, the final essay allows you to assess the level of speech culture of the graduate. For the examination paper, five topics from a closed list are offered.

Introduction
Main part - thesis and arguments
Conclusion - conclusion

The final essay 2016-2017 requires a volume of 350 words or more.

The time allotted for the examination work is 3 hours 55 minutes.

Topics for the final essay

The questions proposed for consideration are usually addressed to the inner world of a person, personal relationships, psychological characteristics and concepts of universal morality. Thus, the topics of the final essay for the 2016-2017 academic year include the following areas:

"Victory and Defeat"

Here are concepts that the examinee will have to reveal in the process of reasoning, turning to examples from the world of literature. In the final essay 2016-2017, the graduate must identify the relationships between these categories based on analysis, construction of logical relationships and application of knowledge of literary works.

One such theme is “Victory and Losing.”

As a rule, works from the course school curriculum in literature - this is a large gallery of different images and characters that can be used to write a final essay on the topic “Victory and Defeat.”

Leo Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace"
Roman I.S. Turgenev "Fathers and Sons"
Tale by N.V. Gogol "Taras Bulba"
Story by M.A. Sholokhov "The Fate of Man"
Story by A.S. Pushkin "The Captain's Daughter"
Roman I.A. Goncharov "Oblomov"

Arguments for the theme “Victory and defeat” 2016-2017

“War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy

The theme of victory and defeat itself is present in the war in its most obvious manifestation. War of 1812 - this is one of the largest and most significant events for Russia, during which the national spirit and patriotism of the population, as well as the skill of the Russian high command, were demonstrated. After the council in Fili, the Russian commander M.I. Kutuzov decided to leave Moscow. Thus, it was planned to save the troops and thereby Russia. This decision does not demonstrate defeat in military operations - but on the contrary: it proves the invincibility of the Russian people. After all, after the military, all its residents, representatives of high society and the nobility began to leave the city. The people demonstrated their disobedience to the French by leaving the city to the enemy rather than be under the rule of Bonaparte. Napoleon, who entered the city, did not meet resistance, but saw only burning Moscow, which people had abandoned, and realized not his seemingly victory, but defeat. Defeat from the Russian spirit.

“Fathers and Sons” by I.S. Turgenev

In the work of I.S. Turgenev, the conflict of generations is manifested, in particular, in the confrontation between the young nihilist Evgeny Bazarov and the nobleman P.P. Kirsanov. Bazarov is a self-confident young man, he boldly judges everything, considering himself a man who made himself with his own work and mind. His opponent Kirsanov led a riotous lifestyle, experienced a lot, felt a lot, loved a secular beauty and thereby gained an experience that influenced him. He became more reasonable and mature. In the dispute between Bazarov and Kirsanov, external victory is manifested young man- he is harsh, but at the same time maintains decency, and the nobleman does not restrain himself, breaking into insults. However, during the duel between the two heroes, the seemingly won victory of the nihilist Bazarov turns into a defeat in the main confrontation.

He meets the love of his life and cannot resist his feelings, nor admit it, because he denied the existence of love. Yes, here Bazarov was defeated. Dying, he realizes that he lived his life denying everything and everyone, and at the same time lost the most important thing.

"Taras Bulba" N.V. Gogol

In the story by N.V. Gogol can be found as an example of how victory and defeat can be intertwined. Younger son Andriy, for the sake of love, betrayed his homeland and Cossack honor, going over to the enemy side. His personal victory is that he defended his love by boldly deciding to do this kind of act. However, his betrayal of his father and homeland is unforgivable - and this is his defeat. The story demonstrates one of the most difficult battles - the spiritual struggle of a person with himself. After all, here we cannot talk about victory and defeat, since it is impossible to win without losing on the other side.

Essay example

In life, a person is accompanied by a large number of situations in which he has to resist something or someone. Often, these are some circumstances, specific conditions and a struggle where there are winners and losers. And sometimes these are more complex situations where victory and defeat can be viewed from different points of view.

Let us turn to the treasury of arguments from Russian classical literature - the great work of Leo Tolstoy “War and Peace”. A significant part of the novel consists of military actions during the Patriotic War of 1812, when the entire Russian people stood up to defend the country from the French invaders. The theme of victory and defeat itself is present in the war in its most obvious manifestation. After the council in Fili, the Russian commander M.I. Kutuzov decided to leave Moscow. Thus, it was planned to save the troops and thereby Russia. This decision does not demonstrate defeat in military operations - but on the contrary: it proves the invincibility of the Russian people. After all, after the military, all its residents, representatives of high society and the nobility began to leave the city. The people demonstrated their disobedience to the French by leaving the city to the enemy rather than be under the rule of Bonaparte. Napoleon, who entered the city, did not meet resistance, but saw only burning Moscow, which people had abandoned, and realized not his seemingly victory, but defeat. Defeat from the Russian spirit.

In the story by N.V. Gogol can be found as an example of how victory and defeat can be intertwined. The youngest son Andriy, for the sake of love, betrayed his homeland and the honor of the Cossack army, going over to the enemy side. His personal victory is that he defended his feelings by boldly deciding to do this kind of act. However, his betrayal of his father and homeland is unforgivable - and this is his defeat. The story demonstrates one of the most difficult battles - the spiritual struggle of a person with himself. After all, here we cannot talk about victory and defeat, since it is impossible to win without losing on the other side.

Thus, it is worth saying that victory does not always represent the superiority and confidence that we are accustomed to imagine. And, besides, often victory and defeat go side by side, complementing each other and shaping the characteristics of a person’s personality.

Still have questions? Ask them in our VK group:

Date of publication: 03.12.2016

A verified final essay on the topic “All victories begin with victory over oneself” in the direction of “Victory and defeat”

Introduction (intro):

The life path of every person is thorny and difficult. It is woven from many victories and lesions that accompany us throughout our lives. We make mistakes, we endure defeat, We are deeply worried about this, and, as happens very often, we give up. A person loses faith in his strength and abilities. To win victory, necessary to get started win yourself, your fears and doubts. This is the very road leading to big victories, and only people strong-willed are able to overcome this difficult path.

A comment: Good girl, very good. Just be more careful with repetitions, do not allow them, use synonyms, pronouns or synonymous expressions. Sometimes you can just remove a word.

The volume is good, the topic is covered. Only the thesis is not formalized. So that it does not get lost against the background of the rest of the text, it is advisable to emphasize it.

Argument 1:

What does it mean to conquer yourself? Victory over yourself is great success, a significant achievement, because only people with a certain set of qualities can defeat themselves. Some of them are determination, as well as the desire to live and the desire for the best.(transition too long). A striking example of such a person is the main character of Boris Polevoy’s story “The Tale of a Real Man” - Alexey Meresyev. The story of a brave pilot is based on real events, which proves that anyone can defeat themselves if they can make every effort. One of Alexey’s flights ended sadly: terrible accident, due to which the pilot lost the ability to move independently. But, even having been defeated in the sky, the hero did not give up, did not give up, but was able not only to set a goal, but also to achieve it. Alexey Meresyev dreamed of how he would take off again and see the azure sky, the expanse of fields, meadows and rivers from above. Only the desire to return to his former full life, determination and daily work on himself helped Alexey overcome fear and illness and achieve his goal.

A comment: Very good. But the transition is too big, you can abandon it altogether. The argument is good, it even became clear what thesis you are proving.

Argument 2:

Sometimes the main value - human life - depends on conquering your fears (this may be true, but not in this argument. It turns out that you have gone a little off topic). It was thanks to his endurance that the old fisherman Santiago survived in Ernest Hemingway’s story “The Old Man and the Sea.” Only on the eighty-fifth day did luck smile on the fisherman, and a huge fish caught his hook. Santiago throws all his strength into fighting her, but she drags him further into the sea. Overcoming fatigue and hunger, the fisherman finally enters into a final battle with the fish and defeats it. What would happen to Santiago if he gave up and stopped fighting for life? His life in this case would have ended in an absurd death in the middle of the sea, and the people on the shore would never have known about what really happened. Not everyone could withstand such an unequal struggle, but the old fisherman succeeded thanks to his courage and fortitude.