The Perfect Storm

by

Sebastian Junger

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Perfect Storm makes teaching easy.
The Grand Banks are a biologically rich, storm-prone fishing ground located 1200 miles from Gloucester, Massachusetts, and east of Newfoundland. The Grand Banks were the Andrea Gail’s destination and the site of the storm that led to her sinking.
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Grand Banks Term Timeline in The Perfect Storm

The timeline below shows where the term Grand Banks appears in The Perfect Storm. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Gloucester, Mass., 1991
Family and Domestic Strife Theme Icon
...to be on the Andrea Gail, a swordfishing boat, for a month-long trip to the Grand Banks . When Chris finally wakes up, she notices Bobby’s eye and wonders how she did... (full context)
Money and the Fishing Industry Theme Icon
Family and Domestic Strife Theme Icon
...for 10 or 20 days. Sword boats follow the swordfish population to the North Atlantic’s Grand Banks in the summer and to the Caribbean in the winter. These boats can bring in... (full context)
Money and the Fishing Industry Theme Icon
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
Science and Technology Theme Icon
...In one instance in November 1880, two men were thrown from their dory on the Grand Banks . While both managed to scramble back into the boat, one of them only survived... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
Family and Domestic Strife Theme Icon
Science and Technology Theme Icon
Worse could befall a fisherman on the Grand Banks , though. Because of the meeting of the warm Gulf Stream and chilly Canadian currents... (full context)
God’s Country
Money and the Fishing Industry Theme Icon
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
Europeans, especially Portuguese, began codfishing off the North Atlantic’s Grand Banks in the 16th century. Codfish was easy to transport because it could be salted and... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
The Grand Banks , a major North Atlantic fishing ground, are especially dangerous. That’s because the spot is... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
...Nowadays, fewer boats fish Georges Bank; most of them make the week-long journey to the Grand Banks instead, 1200 miles away. The cold Labrador Current creates the perfect environment for sea life... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
During the journey to the Grand Banks and back, the crew generally sleeps, because once they reach the fishing grounds, they work... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
...September 26th or 27th, the Andrea Gail has made it to the “Tail” of the Grand Banks , about 300 miles off the coast of Newfoundland. Here plentiful swordfish can be found—fearsome... (full context)
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
Around this time, the Andrea Gail, still on the Grand Banks , gets slammed by a rogue wave while the crew is hauling in their gear.... (full context)
Money and the Fishing Industry Theme Icon
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
The Andrea Gail spends another week fishing off the Grand Banks ’s Tail, but the trip is shaping up to be a bust. Around the middle... (full context)
The Flemish Cap
Danger, Human Frailty, and Death Theme Icon
Science and Technology Theme Icon
...protected channel between Sable Island and Nova Scotia. Instead, he decides to cut across the Grand Banks ’s Tail and then head due west to Gloucester once he’s clear of Sable Island.... (full context)