Jaws Scene 8 Summary

  • As the men wait for the shark to resurface, they enjoy a few drinks in the cabin. Quint and Hooper start to loosen up and compare the scars each has received in his travels.
  • Quint tells how he served on the USS Indianapolis in WWII when it was sunk by a Japanese submarine. Hundreds of crewmen stranded in the water were eaten by sharks. He describes how unfeeling and deadly sharks are. So Quint definitely has some issues.
  • The men hear whales singing, and they join in with some rousing sea shanties. Just as they're getting to verse seven of "Show Me the Way to Go Home," the barrel pops to the surface, signaling the shark's return.
  • He pounds on the sides of the boat, causing serious damage. Quint takes out his WWII rifle and starts taking shots at the shark, just for a lark. He misses his mark, and the shark leaves the boat in the dark.
  • The next morning, as the men are trying to fix the battered engine, that dang barrel pops up again. Hooper and Quint try to pull the barrel in, but the shark pops up, snapping its jaws (hey, that's the name of the movie!).
  • Quint tells Brody to start the engine, but Brody's done. He tries to call the Coast Guard for rescue, but Quint takes a club and smashes the radio to bits.
  • Brody goes nuts at Quint. No time for couples counseling, though: The shark's coming back toward them.
  • Quint shoots the shark with two harpoons and Brody shoots it several times with his revolver. The shark drags the barrels underwater, but soon resurfaces.
  • Brody wonders why they're not leading the shark into shore rather than letting the shark lead them out to sea.
  • They snag the barrel ropes and tie them to the stern cleats at the rear of the boat to tow the shark into land. But the shark starts to pull the cleats out of the hull, so Quint shoots a third barrel into him. That just makes him mad and he starts powering away from them, then actually starts towing them.
  • The boat's getting swamped and the engine's struggling. They finally cut the ropes.
  • Contrary to Quint's expectations, the shark pulls all three barrels underwater. Quint decides they should head back to land to try to drown the shark in shallower water. Brody thinks that sounds great.
  • As they're heading into shore, Quint pushes the boat's engines too hard, despite Hooper's warnings, and the engine explodes, stranding the men in the sinking ship.
  • Quint finally caves and asks Hooper how his equipment might kill the shark. Hooper says he brought poison that he can stab into the shark's mouth if he gets close enough.
  • They decide Hooper will have to go into the water in the shark-proof cage and give it a go.