Setting- A small village near Havana and water of the Gulf of Mexico in 1940s.
Characters- Santiago: An old Cuban fisherman who has been going through a lot of bad luck. He hasn't caught a fish in 84 days. Although he has gone through all that bad luck he never gives up. On the 85th day he catches a Marlin but sharks eat it on his way home.
Manolin: Santiago's young apprentice. He sees Santiago a mentor. Santiago took Manolin fishing when he was five. Since Santiago has been going through a lot of bad luck, Manolin's parents have forbade him to go on Santiago's fishing boat. Even though he can't go on the boat Manolin still cares a great deal for Santiago.
The Marlin: The 18ft fish that Santiago catches. Due to the enormous size of the fish it becomes hard to reel it in. For three days the fish pulls Santiago. When Santiago catches it he hooks it to the boat but the blood attracts sharks and it gets eaten.
Summary- And old man named Santiago goes 84 days without catching anything at sea. His young friend, Manolin is told to leave Santiago and go to a better boat. Manolin still went to Santiago to help him put away his fishing gear, and they would talk about baseball. The next day, the 85th day Santiago goes for farther than usual to try to change his luck. In the afternoon a big fish, known as Marlin, hooks on to the fishing line. The fish is so big and strong that Santiago can't reel it in. The line cuts Santiago's hand all through the day and the next on the 3rd day Santiago pulls the Marlin in close enough to stab him with the harpoon. Santiago ties the fish to the boat and sets sail for home. The blood of the fish leaves a trail of blood. The blood attracts a mako shark but before the shark can eat the fish, Santiago kills it with the harpoon. The harpoon stayed on the shark so now if another attacked he wouldn't be a able to stop it. Soon enough more sharks come, he tries to stop them with a spear he made with a knife tied to an ore.
