This short novel, as the title suggests, is mainly set on the sea over a period of three days. The protagonist, Santiago, is a fisherman by profession and lives in a small village in Cuba. Geographically, Cuba is an island in the Caribbean, whose main industry is fishing. The warm waters of the Gulf Stream flow very close to the village where Santiago lives, bringing the giant marlin in the months of September and October. Santiago sets out on his momentous journey in the early fall, probably in September. During the course of the novel, the setting becomes symbolic. The sea represents the total universe against which humanity (represented by Santiago) is pitted and in which, everybody has to take a chance. The climax in the story occurs when Santiago kills the fish and its blood attracts the eager sharks nearby. His hopes of taking home his huge fish are dashed when the sharks attack and eat the fish. The antagonist in the novel is the sea, a symbol of life, which robs Santiago of his final victory. The real antagonist in the sea is the group of sharks that eat the giant fish. Since the waters also provide Santiago with his way of life, he sees the sea more as a challenge than an enemy. Manolin is a young teenage boy who serves as the son Santiago has never had. He looks up to Santiago as a teacher, a father figure, and a hero.
             Santiago is an old Cuban who is the protagonist of the book. He is a skilled fisherman by profession and Hemingway's Code Hero who always maintains grace under pressure. Though he is exceptionally unlucky in not having caught a single fish in eighty-four days, he is still hopeful and happy, full with self-confidence and bravery in the face of the most tiresome circumstances. Although he loses his giant fish, Santiago is still a winner. His neck is wrinkled from the sun, and his hands bear the scars of many fishing battles; only his blue eyes remain bright and cheerful.
             "The old man was thin and...