Rafael is a poor fisherman, who, for some reason in the past, has gone mad. All he can say is, ‘She gave me the golden fish,’ or ‘She gave me the ring. I still have it. She gave the ring back to me.’ Did he go mad for love of a girl, or because he saw or committed some terrible deed? Chapters 1–4: In Chapter 1, the narrator, who is a doctor when the story starts, still remembers meeting Crazy Rafael when, as a twelve-year-old boy, he was visiting his Uncle Miguel. Rafael was living in an abandoned boathouse and kept mumbling the same words. Twelve years later, mad Rafael is at the same place and still deluded.The doctor determines to get treatment for Rafael to find out what is wrong with him. In Chapter 2, the doctor tries to learn the facts surrounding the strange case. The people of the village oblige. He assembles many facts. He learns through his uncle that Rafael’s father was a fisherman who was killed by a white shark. Rafael therefore devoted his whole life to avenging his father’s death by killing sharks. In Chapter 3, the doctor’s uncle retells the life story of Anita, Crazy Rafael’s beloved. He also talks about their unrequited love and Anita’s mysterious disappearance. In Chapter 4, Miguel retells the story of the soldier who came to the village on an engine boat and fell for Anita. He made friends with Anita’s father and became a local at his shop. One day, to everyone’s shock, Anita vanished into thin air and the soldier was never seen again. It is believed that they eloped. According to village gossip, the soldier stole Anita’s heart and eventually took her away forever. That was also the night that Santiago’s donkey went missing, but it is hard for anyone to see a connection, since the donkey was too old to carry anyone. Anita’s father was broken-hearted and furious and he never mentioned his daughter again. To him, his daughter was dead.
