This is an interesting article about Peter Benchley, the author of the novel Jaws.  The film was based on the novel, and so realistically portrayed shark attacks that certain species of sharks are now endangered.  Because of the film, there has been a so-called Jaws effect, in which certain species may not be reproducing fast enough to survive because of the backlash against sharks.  While the issue is of little significance to the director, the author felt terrible about what he started.  Before his death, Benchley said, “Back then when I wrote Jaws, we thought that once a Great White scented blood, it launched a feeding frenzy that inevitably led to death.”  According to the article, future research has shown that this is not the case, and sharks attack humans because they mistaken them for predators.  Even so, they often times realize their mistake after the first bite, and this is why three quarters of shark attack victims survive.  It is important to note that even with all of the publicity shark attacks receive, they have killed merely 74 humans in the past 100 years, proving they are far from a major threat.  All the hype that was created by Spielberg’s interpretation of Benchley’s novel speaks wonders of the film’s power.  This non-issue has become so prevalent because of the way Spielberg was able to draw fear and paranoia into the audience.  If the film wasn’t so moving, perhaps individuals wouldn’t be so scared of sharks and the fascination with the creature wouldn’t be as significant.