Previous
Chapter 46
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Beach, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Tourism and Authenticity
Power, Control, and Human Nature
War, Violence, and Escapism
Secrecy, Fear, and Paranoia
Summary
Analysis
Richard never keeps travel diaries, but he wishes someone had been there to take a picture of him when he came out of the water holding the dead shark. Everyone in the camp congratulates him, grilling the shark for a meal. Keaty encourages him to tell the shark story for the whole camp. Jed is also very impressed. Ever since the Rice Run, Richard has liked Jed better and has tried to convince Keaty to give Jed a chance too. Even Bugs congratulates Richard, although he’s sure to mention that he himself once caught a shark in Australia. Afterward, Richard learns that he gave himself away and that Jed, Keaty, and Étienne can all see that Richard doesn’t like Bugs much.
For Richard, just the memory of killing the shark isn’t enough—he wants some kind of evidence like a photograph that would prove his worth to the world. The shark’s body and meat end up partly fulfilling this role as it allows Richard to offer something back for the entire camp to share. Still, while this gift of shark meat is seemingly a selfless act, Richard’s conversation with Bugs, which clearly annoys Richard, shows how Richard is competitive and doesn’t like the idea of Bugs one-upping him.
Themes
