PATCH-BREECH
. . . Master, I marvel how the fishes live in the sea.
FIRST FISHERMAN
Why, as men do a-land; the great ones eat up the little ones. I can compare our rich misers to nothing so fitly as to a whale; 'a plays and tumbles, driving the poor fry before him, and at last devours them all at a mouthful. Such whales have I heard on a th' land, who never leave gaping till they've swallowed the whole parish, church, steeple, bells and all.
PERICLES [aside]
A pretty moral.

In this passage from Pericles, Prince of Tyre, a fisherman draws an analogy between life in the sea and human society on land, suggesting both realms are dominated by the powerful preying on the weak. The fisherman likens wealthy individuals to whales that swallow everything in their path, illustrating the ruthless nature of human greed and ambition. This metaphor resonates deeply with Pericles, who has just narrowly escaped the deadly machinations of King Antiochus. Pericles' aside, "A pretty moral," underscores his recognition of the truth in the fisherman's observation, linking the natural world with the treacherous political landscape he navigates. Thus, the quotation emphasizes the pervasive presence of power struggles and moral decay, both in nature and human affairs.