Blog #13: The Old Man and the Sea

The setting of the Old Man and the Sea is in a little fishing village on the coast of Cuba. There really is not much to it. Most of the men there are fishermen. The wives, like most wives of that era, were stay-at-home women. The men made the money and worked out on the sea all day. The women cleaned the house and made sure that everything ran smoothly. The men came home, expecting a home cooked meal on the table, and the women made sure the man’s expectations were fulfilled. All of the women, in my opinion, were there for show. The men wanted the women to always be clean, cut, and gorgeous.

Then, secondly, the women had to be able to do all of the “women’s” work. I do not think that is what or how it should be, but that was the lifestyle back then. It was not just in the Cuban fishing village, but all over the world. The men were typical men, like I already said, of that time. I think some people still have that mentality today, but it is not quite true. There are plenty of families where the wife stays at home and the men work. Then again there is probably more families where both the woman and the man work. The children of the families in the Cuban fishing village were just kids. The little girls followed their mother around so they could learn how to do all of the housework that they would be expected to do once they were older. The young boys followed older brothers or their dad around to learn their trade. The kids did go to school and learned. But, at a certain age, the boys would be expected to become an apprentice to someone and be on the right route to finding a job. The setting and style of life was pretty normal in that day and age’s society. Though it has changed in today’s world, some people still have the old mentality.

Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.