The protagonist in this book is Santiago, so I guess you could call him the hero. Although he did not come back with the big marlin he gained many other things. Santiago has many traits. One of his main traits is courage. Everyday, although he is old, he wakes up very early, always before dawn, (Hemingway, 25) and goes out to sea in hopes of catching a good fish. And for a long time Santiago would come back with nothing because his luck at sea was no longer good. But day after day he would go to sea. Other fishermen would call him crazy for going back out there all day and every day having not caught a single good fish. That is why Santiago is courageous, because he does it anyway. Another trait he has is strength. Although he is old he has enough determination to do anything. He fought the marlin for three days and after that fought sharks, and all with a cramped hand and back! I think that is pretty impressive. Last but not least, he has patience. Waiting for three days for one fish seems crazy to me, but Santiago had the patience to do so. I also think that Santiago represents all of those traits as well.
I believe that the old man accomplished alot. I mean once again, no he did not get the fish but all of those things that I mention above he either gained or already had, but either way, he also proved to himself that he could get a fish that big. Santiago says to Manolin that he was defeated, (Hemingway, 124) but Manolin doesn't believe so, and neither do I. I believe that despite everything, Santiago was not defeated. We can learn alot from this book. I'm not sure if I understood everything the way it was supposed to be understood, but I feel like this book still taught me some things.
Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scibner Paperback
Fiction, 1995. Print.
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