Summary: This book is set in a little fishing town of Cuba. The main character is Santiago. He is the Old Man. He was a very good fisherman when he was younger, but now his luck seems to have run out. He hasn’t been catching any fish for 80 some days. Most of the village people think Santiago is bad luck, but there are some who still have faith in him. One of these people is Manolin. He is a boy who admires Santiago’s respect for the sea. Even though his parents don’t like him visiting Santiago, Manolin continues to do so. He is the only person who looks after the old man and cares for him.
One day, Santiago sails out to sea alone, hoping to finally break his spell of bad luck. Santiago does hook what he thinks is a very big fish. He is so excited about catching the fish, that he ’’goes out too far.’’ The fish countinues to fight for his life for 3 days. During these 3 days, Santiago starts admiring the fish. He thinks of the fish as a noble creature and like a brother to him. But, he still wants to catch the fish. Once when the fish jumps out of the water, Snatiago stabs him and reels him in. the fish is truly grand and Santiago feels that he doesn’t deserve to get eaten by people because they wouldn’t know how magnificently the fish had fought for his life.
After getting the fish, Santiago has to come back all the way to his town. On the way, sharks get the fish and by the time he returns, the fish is nothing but a carcass. Santiago is disapointed with himself and drags himself to his shack and goes to sleep. The villagers soon discover the skeleton of the 18 ft. long fish and admire Santiago for catching it all by himself. but, Santiago doesn’t want to be considered a hero.
This book can be read at many different levels. There is so much symbolism in this book. Santiago could be compared to Jesus and Manolin to his disciples. Also, Hemingway’s style is also very different. It is so easy to read. The author uses only the minimum number of words to get across the point. All of the sentences are short and have a simple structure. This lucid style makes this one of the best reads by Hemingway.