The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway The Old Man and the Sea was written by Ernest Hemingway and published in 1952. This is a gripping fictional story about a man named Santiago and his adventure when one day he goes on a fishing trip to catch the big one. However, this adventure quickly becomes one of pain and suffering when things get worse. The Old Man and the Sea is set in Havana, Cuba and the fishing waters off the coast of Havana. The Spanish names, Santiago and Manolin, are typical of Cuba. Cuba is predominantly Catholic, so this explains Santiago's devotion to Jesus Christ. The year appears to be around the 30's and 40's because Santiago is a big fan of Joe DiMaggio who played in those years. In the 30s and 40s the city of Havana was in full demographic and commercial expansion. Fish is one of the most popular foods in Havana, so to meet the growing demand for fish, many kids learned to be fisherman like Manolin did. Santiago is a complex character who learns a lot over the course of this story. He is a very good and humble man and loves Manolin, his apprentice. Santiago is a poor man and is considered unlucky by others because not a single fish has been caught in 84 days. You can't help but feel sorry for him because he is very lonely. His wife died and the book suggested he never had children. Yet he was humble and did not complain at all about his hard life. Santiago is a very persistent and determined character. He struggled against the enormous marlin he had caught for three agonizing days, without feeling intense pain. He often had contradictory feelings and thoughts. One I found strange was when he felt sorry for the marlin while happily contemplating how much money he would make from selling the fish. Mololin is Santiago's apprentice. Since he was a child, Manolin accompanied Santiago to learn to fish. Santiago loves him very much because he sees him as the son he never had. However, Manolin's parents prevent him from going to Santiago because they think he is cursed and has bad luck. Santiago is an old fisherman and has been for most of his life. He had an apprentice named Manolin but his parents stopped him because they believed he was bad luck because he hadn't caught a fish in eighty-four days. One day he decided that he would not return home without catching a fish. So... middle of paper... tells his readers to look at the positive aspects of things, even if it seems like a tragedy at first. A personal example of this is when my family got our first cat. My mother was on the subway on her way to work, she was already late. He was rushing to catch a train only to see the doors close right in his face. She got on the train worried about what her boss would say. He sat next to a very sad woman with a kitten in a cage. When asked what was wrong, she said she had found a lost kitten and since her supervisor doesn't allow cats in the apartment, she was going to the shelter to drop off the kitten. My mother said she would keep the kitten and the woman willingly gave it to my mother. Hemmingway's novel proves that things are not as bad as they seem at first glance. The Old Man and the Sea also expresses humility. Santiago is a fairly poor man and often suffers from hunger, yet he never complains or protests. Santiago shows his humility many other times in the novel, such as when he was beating the marlin and he slashed his hand and received other serious injuries. In the end he never said a word of anger when he fought the sharks to save his fish, but failed. Humility is a good attribute that many of us don't.