The old man, whose name is Santiago, is a fisherman who lives alone near Havana. Incredibly poor, he sleeps in a shack and sets out each day on a small skiff to try to catch himself some fish to eat or sell. For awhile, the boy, named Manolin, accompanied the old man each day, to learn from him and assist him. Unfortunately, the old man went weeks without catching anything, so the boy's parents made him stop accompanying the old man. When the story begins, the boy is probably around twelve ...