How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
If other sperm whales should start ramming ships, it would be only a matter of time before the island's whaling fleet was reduced to so much flotsam and jetsam. (5.50)
The human race has been bullying whales around for a long time, but here's the truth: whales are a lot bigger and stronger than humans. If they can put their brains to it (and let's be real: their brains are pretty huge) they'll be able to devastate any boat they meet with the flick of a tail.
Quote #8
Instead of acting as a whale was supposed to [...] this big bull had been possessed by what Chase finally took to be a very human concern for the other whales. (5.57)
For the first time in his life, Chase confronts the idea that whales and humans aren't so different, after all. Whales are one of the smartest creatures on the planet, after all, and many scientists believe their inner lives to be very similar to those of humans. You might not be able to say the same about, say, sea snails, but whales are some smart cookies.
Quote #9
The intense darkness of the night was [...] "past conception." [...] Making the blackness all the more horrible were flashes of lightning that seemed to envelop the boats. (7.66)
At this point, the crew is pining for the days when they battled sperm whales. As they've come to learn, there's something scarier here than those monstrosities—it's the sea itself. These men are farther from human civilization than they've ever been in their lives, separated even from the manmade ship that made their journey possible.