Symbolism in The Old Man and the Sea

There are several symbols in The Old Man and the Sea, but the most prevalent to me was Santiago's infatuation with Joe DiMaggio. Not only did Santiago follow his baseball career, he looked up to DiMaggio like a hero. He would always compare his situation to DiMaggio's, or think things through like he thought Joe would. Constantly Santiago would even wonder if what he was doing would make DiMaggio proud of him for his strength or courage. Santiago several times mentioned that during his career that DiMaggio had a bone spur yet worked through it. Whenever Santiago would come across a new challenge he would relate it to the bone spur. Basically, DiMaggio was a symbol of admiration and inspiration for the old man.