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Chapter 8
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Past the Shallows, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Brotherhood, Loyalty, and Hardship
Addiction and Abuse
Tragedy and Blame
Father Figures and Responsibility
The Duality of Nature
Summary
Analysis
One day on the boat, the men have finished their fishing early and Miles daydreams about surfing with Joe after they get back to the wharf. He is interrupted when Martin spots Atlantic salmon in the water and they stop the boat to catch the fish. Dad and Jeff amass a large catch while Miles scrambles to unhook the salmon and Martin kills each fish one by one.
While Dad, Jeff, and Martin are clearly skilled at their work, Miles struggles to keep up with the experienced fishermen and does not receive much guidance from them. Miles again finds a sense of comfort and escapism from his work in both his relationship with Joe and their shared love of surfing.
Themes
Suddenly, Dad reels in a giant mako shark that has bitten onto the salmon on his line. The shark crashes onto the deck and throws the fishing boat off balance, sending Miles flying into the railing and causing water to pour into the boat. Martin tries to yank Miles away from the shark as it thrashes up against the young boy and pins him to the railing, but the animal’s enormous tail hits Martin’s legs and he falls on top of Miles. Miles can feel the shark’s teeth brushing against his skin and is sure that he will be bitten.
The sudden shock of this shark encounter exemplifies the duality of nature, as the fishermen rapidly shift from rejoicing in their high-yield salmon catch to a state of frenzied panic over the shark. In spite of this terror, Martin puts himself in harm’s way to defend Miles in a strong display of protective responsibility.
Themes
Dad yells that the boat is going to capsize, but Jeff shoots the shark in the head to prevent the animal’s wild thrashing from tipping them over. Jeff laughs hysterically even as the shark’s teeth rip into his shins, shooting the animal again. The sound of the rifle temporarily deafens Miles, and he stands in shock as he watches Dad scrambling to rescue the abalone, salmon, and fishing equipment that had fallen off the boat amidst the chaos. He looks down at his body and realizes that the shark has not hurt him at all.
The shark attack causes immense chaos and destruction to the fishing boat, highlighting nature’s ability to wreak indiscriminate havoc on humanity. Whereas the ocean is the source of the fishermen’s livelihood, it is also their undoing, as they lose their catch and sustain serious damage to their equipment in the midst of the mayhem.
Themes
Miles watches in disgust as Jeff unnecessarily guts and mutilates the dead shark. He is especially disturbed when Jeff cuts into the pregnant animal’s womb and stabs the live baby shark inside. Miles catches the dead baby and holds it in his arms, thinking of how strong it must have been to have killed and fed off its other two siblings in the womb and how it would have survived if Jeff had just let it go into the water.
Miles’s disgusted reaction to Jeff’s unnecessary brutality reflects his deeply held reverence for animals and nature, as he clearly does not feel the same blind vendetta against the shark despite the damage it caused. Miles seems to have an ingrained respect for life, likely due to the tragic losses he has experienced, and he is deeply disturbed by how nonchalantly Jeff disposes of the shark and its baby.
Themes
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Miles, still deaf from the gunshots, suddenly feels Dad hit him from behind. His father flings the baby shark into the water and slaps Miles in the face, forcing him to take the wheel of the ship and steer them back to shore. Miles looks over to see Martin slumped against the wall of the boat’s cabin, his leg broken and mutilated by the shark.
Dad’s callous violence toward Miles is a stark contrast to the behavior of Martin, who sacrificed his own safety and sustained a serious injury in order to protect Miles. Dad, it seems, has no instinctive drive to comfort his own son. Martin’s wounded leg is significant on several levels—it highlights Dad’s own unwillingness to protect Miles, viscerally represents Martin’s role as a responsible father figure, and serves as a reminder of nature’s impartiality toward human beings.
Themes
Back on land, Jeff goes off to a pub while Miles and Dad take Martin to the hospital. Miles realizes that he will have to skip school next term and work on the boat with Dad and Jeff until Martin can return, and Martin cryptically warns him to “watch Jeff” before trailing off. When they arrive at Huonville Hospital, Miles reflects on seeing Granddad in the same hospital when he was sick. He regrets that he was too afraid to approach the bed or hold Granddad’s hand during his one visit before the old man died.
Jeff’s casual abandonment of his fellow crew, in tandem with Martin’s warning to Miles, foreshadows further reckless, negligent behavior on Jeff’s part and hints that Dad will not be a sufficient protector against him. Along with a sense of dread at having to fill in for Martin, the experience of being at the hospital reawakens a sense of guilt in Miles for his own perceived lack of courage during Granddad’s illness.
Themes
