What is the name of the protagonist in To Have and Have Not?

The protagonist in To Have and Have Not is Harry Morgan. In Hemingway’s 1937 novel, Morgan is a fishing-boat captain operating between Key West and Cuba during the Great Depression.

Morgan initially tries to make a living from charter fishing, but unpaid bills and economic pressure push him into smuggling people and goods. The novel follows his increasingly dangerous dealings with wealthy clients, Cuban revolutionaries, and political fugitives. Unlike a purely idealized hero, Morgan is practical and morally complicated, yet he remains fiercely loyal to the people who depend on him.

Readers often confuse the novel with the 1944 film starring Humphrey Bogart, who also plays Harry Morgan. The movie keeps the character’s name but changes the setting to Martinique and reshapes the plot into a wartime adventure involving the French Resistance. Jake Barnes and Frederic Henry are protagonists from different Hemingway novels.