Two Years Before the Mast · Character

Johnny Shark

A Hawaiian sailor aboard the Pilgrim whose easy humor and improbable yarns keep the forecastle entertained through long, weary watches.

supporting

Also known as Jack, Johnny

First appearance: iii

As a supporting figure in Two Years Before the Mast, Johnny Shark is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

See Johnny Shark in iii Book page

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Johnny Shark, sometimes called Jack, is one of the Sandwich Islanders who sign on to American vessels along the California coast, filling the places of men who have gone ashore or deserted. He spins tall tales no one believes and no one minds, since the telling itself is the point, and his man-of-war slang and salt phrases leaven the monotony of hide-curing and watch-standing. He belongs to the polyglot, makeshift community of the forecastle — Hawaiians, Americans, Englishmen, a Frenchman, a Swede — that Dana comes to know as his real shipmates.

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See Johnny Shark in iii