Moby Dick

The first line of Moby Dick draws the reader close into the mind of the narrator, with his command, “call me Ishmael,” (Melville,  For the first 21 chapters, and presumably the whole text, we see the word through the eyes of the enigmatic Ishmael.  We know his thoughts, feelings, and deepest opinions.  However, he himself is invisible.  We see what he sees, but have no way to look at him as a character.  Melville forces us to piece together the central figure of the book through his feelings, opinions, and subtle allusions to his past.

In the first chapter, Ishmael explains why he goes to sea, and why he will never go as a passenger; he has no money and he enjoys the freedom of the forecastle deck.  He acknowledges that, as a common sailor,

they rather order me about some…and at first, this sort of thing is unpleasant enough.  It touches one’s sense of honor, particularly if you come of an old established family in the land, the Van Rensselars, or Randolphs, or Hardicanutes.  And more than all, if just previous to putting your hand into the tarpot, you have been lording it as a country schoolmaster…the transition is a keen one, I assure you, from a schoolmaster to a sailor. (Melville, 4)

Ishmael speaks in the third person, but he clearly speaks of himself .  We have a glimpse of his past as a blue-blooded, well educated, and powerful individual.  This, of course, makes the reader wonder what happened to turn Ishmael from the son of some wealthy house to a penniless sailor.  The answer seems to lie in Melville’s own life.  Melville was born to an important New York Dutch family, well-educated, and spent several years teaching school before signing on as a deck hand to sail to Liverpool.  Ishmael is clearly modelled on his creator, Herman Melville.  The author seems to be purposefully obscuring the face of Ishmael so that we might not notice it is actually him.

There may be an additional reason for Ishmael’s obscurity.  It allows the reader to put a bit of himself into the character.  Perhaps this is one of the reason this book rings so true for so many.  Through Ishmael, the reader can get into this world, know the characters, and experience the same adventures and change of hearts as the elusive narrator.  We cannot hold a mirror up to him to see what he looks like, allowing us to use him as a window instead.

(New York: Signet Classic, 1998)

…at the present day not one in two of the many thousand men before the mast employed in the American whale fishery, are Americans born, though pretty nearly all the officers are. Herein it is the same with the American whale fishery as with the American army and military and merchant navies, and the engineering forces employed in the construction of the American Canals and Railroads. The same, I say, because in all these cases the native American liberally provides the brains, the rest of the world as generously supplying the muscles (130).

This excerpt clearly relates to the idea of American slavery, as Melville presents the idea of the well-oiled American machine as one operated by “native” Americans (a term that did not refer to Melville’s conception of the “Indian”) and fueled by the physically stronger outsiders. Towards the end of the passage, he almost directly refers to slavery in his mention of “the engineering forces employed in the construction of American Canals and Railroads,” many of whom were, in one sense of the word, not employed at all.
I instantly picked this passage out as a case of Melville using sarcasm to get across his anti-slavery message. Though he presents (what I assume to be) a truth about many American industries, he follows it up with a tongue-in-cheek explanation, relying on qualifiers such as “liberally” and “generously” to describe collective human behavior. He presents the idea as if civilized, American born white men all have such excessive stores of brainpower to spread over the workings of the savage brutes of foreign lands, as if the Americans are doing everyone else a big favor by bestowing their vast knowledge upon the others. Melville mocks the imperialist attitude that states, The men of our country know best. Then, in using “generously” to describe the “supplying” of the non-Americans’ brawn, Melville pokes fun at the idea that those forced to work for the white men do it out of their own beneficent spirits. The whole sentence creates this artificial atmosphere of the master and the worker combining all of their efforts for the benefit of the other. It’s as if a master says of his slave, “So-and-so was kind enough to pick all this cotton for me on the plantation today, weren’t you, So-and-so,” as the slave stands by with a big grin and a thumbs up. “Only because you told me where to pick, Master.”
Perhaps, though, I am wrong. Maybe Melville is being heartfelt in this passage, as a mere product of his times. In fact, the picture that Melville depicts seems to be that of the Pequod, where the brutish and foreign harpooners seem to get on quite will with the ship’s American born crew.

And since this famous fishery, each mate or headsman, like a Gothic Knight of old, is always accompanied by his boat-steerer or harpooner, who in certain conjunctures provides him with a fresh lance, when the former one has been badly twisted, or elbowed in the assault; and moreover, as there generally subsists between the two, a close intimacy and friendliness… (129)

While lacking a conventional plot structure, Moby Dick’s magnetism is Ishmael’s psychological process and his labor of storytelling, which reveal a complex and thoughtful protagonist. The most significant relationship formed during the initial 21 chapters (with apologies to Queequeg) is Ishmael’s new intrigue with whaling. As he has not been whaling yet, most of whaling’s ‘presence’ in the novel so far is the theoretical or the symbolic. What we do learn from Ishmael are the beliefs, ideas, and ideals that form the inner workings of his mind. Ishmael is satisfied in being ‘a working man,’ his self-effacing comments conveying an appreciation of hard labor and the desire to “abandon the glory and distinction of such offices to those who like them” (3). Ishmael lives simply, and his preferred lack of superfluous funds and possessions instills in him a way of directly correlating labor with the earnings it provides.

And though the 275th lay was what they call a rather long lay, yet it was better than nothing; and if we had a lucky voyage, might pretty nearly pay for the clothing I would wear out on it, not to speak of my three years’ beef and board, for which I would not have to pay one stiver.  (76).

He further ruminates on the way he understands money and the act of being paid, saying, “being paid, – what will compare with it? The urbane activity with which a man receives money is really marvelous, considering that we so earnestly believe money to be the root of all earthly ills” (4). Ishmael understands that hierarchy is a necessary institution, especially on a ship, where quick and singular decisions must be made be some experienced force in order to keep order. He asks rhetorically “Who ain’t a slave?” (4) but only in so much as to acknowledge the implicit order of things and to demonstrate that he understands the system, but is willing to work within it, and seems to derive pleasure out of it. His manner, confident but free of pretension, allows him to present himself to Captains Peleg and Bildad as a capable and willing worker. It is this sentiment about his own abilities that later makes him ‘horrified’ when he is presented with his ‘first kick’ by Captain Peleg for not working hard or fast enough as the Pequod disembarks from port. Ishmael respects Bildad’s reputation for being able to make men work hard without taking on the character of a screaming taskmaster, while simultaneously conveying that he too feels small in Bildad’s presence. Ishmael relates little of his past in the first chapters of his narrative, speaking instead simply in the moment; this is the way he also lives, moment to moment, deciding to go to sea when it suits him, confident in his own abilities. He is impressed by those, like Queequeg, who excel at their work and distrustful of those, like Elijah, who stray too far from normalcy and order. However, Elijah and the mysterious, so far unseen Captain Ahab are also sources of intrigue to him, representing those who have strayed or dropped out of the social order.    Ishmael’s self-status as a laborer works twofold- he equates hard work with monetary gain, recognizing the power of good, honest work. At the same time, his role as a simple seaman affords him the opportunity to witness what is going on around him, which gives him the information and structure for his other labor- the narrative.

Melville, who was not a scientist, frequently utilizes scientific justifications and explanations in the first few chapters.  Reading this today, it’s interesting to see what was considered acceptable or at least normal culturally in terms of scientific thought.  For instance, during one of Ishmael’s Queequeg observation sessions, he comments that Queequeg’s “head was phrenologically an excellent one.” (44) Ishmael then compares busts of George Washington to Queequeg, which adds to his preexisting positive impression since Washington evokes images of new hope, national glory, and victory!  Of course we know today that Phrenology is a form of scientific racism with no grounding whatsoever, but it’s interesting to hear Ishmael, who probably doesn’t know much about science or pseudoscience, mention this.

The type of thought process Ishmael uses here to describe Queequeg depicts the protagonist as someone with great judgment who will seek the silver lining even if it takes some effort.  Although Ishmael spends plenty of time discussing the more “barbaric” features of Queequeg as well, he does so in a tone that emphasizes hope and positivity:

“Through all his unearthly tattooings, I thought I saw the traces of a simple honest heart; and in his large, deep eyes, fiery black and bold, there seemed tokens of a spirit that would dare a thousand devils.  And besides all this, there was a certain lofty bearing about the Pagan, which even his uncouthness could not altogether maim.  He looked like a man who had never cringed and never had a creditor.  Whether it was, too, that his head being shaved, his forehead was drawn out in freer and brighter relief, and looked more expansive than it otherwise would, this I will not venture to decide; but certain it was his head was phrenologically an excellent one.  It may seem ridiculous, but it reminded me of General Washington’s head, as seen in the popular busts of him… Queequeg was George Washington cannibalistically developed.” (44)

Ishmael describes Queequeg in a whimsically philosophical tone here with metaphors that, based on prior and later descriptions of the amazing Queequeg, all seem completely reasonable and consistent with his character and intentions.

Melville, Herman.  Moby Dick. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2008.

“I’ll try a pagan friend,” Ishmael says matter-of-factly on page 49 of Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick. Melville presents Ishmael as an example for his readers in the subject of race. At times Ishmael acts as a race-relations role model, and at others he represents the audience’s faulty ideas about race.

As soon as Ishmael hears that the harpooneer with whom he is to share a bed is dark-complexioned, he becomes suspicious. However, he does not immediately think about race differences, and continues to worry mainly about his bedfellow’s unattractive harpooneer qualities.

When Ishmael lays eyes on Queequeg for the first time, he sees that the dark complexion is not solely a tan, and that Queequeg is in fact of a different race. This realization changes everything and Ishmael becomes frightened. Instead of thinking of his new companion as a “head-peddling harpooneer” (19), Ishmael calls Queequeg a “purple rascal” and an “abominable savage” and concludes that “had not the stranger stood between [him] and the door, [he] would have bolted out of it” (21).

Melville slips in a lesson to his readers at this point. In explaining his terror, Ishmael states: “Ignorance is the parent of fear” (21). Ishmael reflects the audience in that his lack of knowledge about Queequeg causes his fear. Melville’s readers should take away from this passage that they have nothing to fear of other races and should simply learn about them. They will learn that they are not so different.

With one polite act, Queequeg wins Ishmael’s affection. Ishmael concludes that “cannibals,” or “savages” are not so bad after all. Ishmael’s appreciation for Queequeg is a huge step in the right direction, but at the same time opens up a new can of worms.

In describing Queequeg, Ishmael generalizes people like him. He says things like “these savages have an innate sense of delicacy” (27). Ishmael does not think of them as individuals, but decides that since Queequeg can be polite, his whole tribe, or even the entire race, must also be polite. Most likely Queequeg’s race has both polite and rude individuals, just like white people. Ishmael does not think of them as “just like white people,” however, so allows himself to make generalizations.

In the quote with which I opened this post, the line from page 49, Ishmael makes yet another generalization. He has befriended a pagan, a savage, a man who is a different race. Ishmael feels pretty good about himself for that. What a good Christian man he is for befriending a pagan! While Ishmael is in fact ahead of his time, and it was a good thing for him to get along with Queequeg despite their differences, Ishmael is again not thinking of Queequeg as an individual. In that statement, he counts Queequeg as just some pagan he can befriend to feel good about himself.

Ishmael, like Melville’s readers, is imperfect. On page 31 he still judges people by their color. He explains that “in New Bedford, actual cannibals stand chatting at street corners, savages outright.” Ishmael sees them simply standing and chatting, so how can he make a judgment on them, except by the color of their skin? Ishmael has made progress for his time and environment, but there is still work to be done.

Melville uses Ishmael to teach his readers about true acceptance. Ishmael demonstrates that overcoming society’s racial separations is a difficult feat. He has taken the first step in conquering prejudices by accepting Queequeg, but he undoubtedly has more attitude changes to make. Melville presses upon his readers that superficial changes are not enough. They can befriend people of different races, and claim to unprejudiced all they want, but it may not necessarily be so. Melville calls for deeper change, and maybe one day we can all be friends.

Melville, Herman. Moby Dick. New York: Signet Classic, 1998.

The characters presented in the early chapters of Moby Dick are studies in contrast, with religion (and its attendant hypocrisy) sparring with realism or work. This framework allows Melville to unambiguously state his own positionality vis-à-vis the main narrator Ishmael. Ishmael is portrayed as the tolerant pragmatist, quietly decrying insidious forms of discrimination in New Bedford. Upon first seeing Queequeg enter his room at The Spouter-Inn, Ishmael remarks, ‘And what is it, thought I, after all! It’s only his outside; a man can be honest in any sort of skin…’ (Melville 20) As their relationship matures, Ishmael finds Queequeg’s ‘paganism’ a more honest and noble mode of existence, in contradistinction to the ‘civilized hypocrisies’ and ‘bland deceits’ of the harsh Puritanism of New England.

If Christian kindness has proven itself hollow (Melville 49), the Pequod’s Captain Bildad becomes the representative of a certain form of piousness that cannot reconcile itself with the practicalities of everyday life, leading to Ishmael’s rebuke of Christianity. For Captain Peleg, Captain Bildad’s worst offense was his inaction during a particularly perilous journey to Japan with Captain Ahab.  After presenting Queequeg with a tract titled “The Latter Day Coming; or No Time to Lose,” Bildad implores Peleg if he never considered God’s judgment in the moment of crisis in Japan. In a furious response, Peleg admonishes Bildad’s piousness;

“Hear him, hear him now,” cried Peleg, marching across the cabin, and thrusting his hands far down into his pockets,-“hear him all of ye. Think of that! When every moment we thought the ship would sink! Death and the Judgment then? No! No time to think about Death then! Life was what Captain Ahab and I was thinking of; and how to save all hands- how to rig jury-masts- how to get into the nearest port; that was what I was thinking of.” (Melville 88).

In conclusion, the foundational dichotomy between intolerant religious views and work (where one’s worth can only be gleaned through action, or the showing of practical skill in public view) frames this part of the story and informs Melville’s characterization. One can assume that this theme will be made even more manifest once the Pequod sets sail

Melville, Herman.  Moby Dick. New York: Signet Classic,  1998.

As Professor Friedman has said, Melville makes numerous references to literature, philosophy, and Greek/Roman mythology and history in Moby Dick.

In the first paragraph of the novel, Melville alludes to the Roman politician known as Cato the Younger. Cato lived from 95 BC to 46 BC and was a statesmen during the late Roman Republic. He is remembered for his stubbornness and being in staunch opposition to Gaius Julius Caesar and the triumvirate. I may be simplifying this quite a bit, but I believe that a Civil War broke out between supporters of Caesar and a faction of the Senate who opposed Caesar; the latter group included Cato. After Caesar’s troops defeated the rebellion army in the Battle of Thaspus, Cato committed suicide by stabbing himself (Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cato_the_Younger)

In Moby Dick, Ishmael compares his need to go to sea to Cato’s suicide: Melville writes:

Some years ago—never mind how long precisely—having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world… This is my substitute for pistol and ball. With a philosophical flourish Cato throws himself upon his sword; I quietly take to the ship (3).

I know we talked briefly in class about how “pistol and ball” could mean that sailing is Ishmael’s substitute for either killing himself or going on a murderous rampage; however, I believe this reference to Cato’s suicide indicates that Ishmael is referring to the former. It would also be difficult for Ishmael to kill others with a just a single ball which also implies suicide.

Melville could be making this reference to Cato for a couple of reasons. He could be trying to foreshadow that Ishmael is a rebellious character who might stand up to Captain Ahab (the nautical Caesar). He could also be trying to illustrate that Ishmael’s character is somewhat pretentious since he is comparing himself to Roman figure who had the courage to oppose Caesar. Finally, Melville could simply be making a reference to Cato because he wants to show the readers that he is familiar with the history and is therefore an educated and learned individual.

Herman Melville begins Moby Dick with a vocabulary lesson on the word “whale,” and follows this with a series of literary references to this famous creature.  While he cautions the reader that we “must not, in every case at least, take the higgledy-piggledy whale statements, however authentic, in these extracts, for veritable gospel cetology” ( xxiii), they do contain what sounds like scientific information about whales.  Much of this information comes from recordings of voyages taken by various explorers around the globe.  However, there are also references that come from great literary works such as the Bible, Shakespeare, and Paradise Lost.

These excerpts elevate the whale from being a mere animal to an entity whose history is intertwined with humanity’s.  Giving us the translation of “whale” in different languages also implies that this creature has an important place in cultures all over the world.  I would like to know his source for the Hebrew translation though.  As far as I can tell, חר means “hole,” or biblically “lord,” and the word for whale is actually לויתן, which is “Leviathan” in English.

These early pages prepare the reader for the importance of the whale in the main part of the novel.  Though the long introduction takes place primarily on land, whaling is present in many aspects of the lives of residents of New Bedford and Nantucket.  The Spouter-Inn is decorated with the accoutrements of whaling, and the bar is shaped like a whale.  Even the pulpit at a local church resembles a ship.  The chaplain gives a whale themed sermon retelling the story of Jonah who is swallowed by a whale for disobeying God.  Queequeg, Ishamael’s new harpooner friend, uses his harpoon to shave in the morning.  These details display ways in which whaling can truly enter into peoples’ ways of life.  Ishmael seems to understand this melding as he himself has a very close relationship with the sea, and goes to it for a form of catharsis.

Ishmael describes his affinity for water in the opening pages, but also implies that all men are innately drawn to the sea.  Men who work in offices every day at some point leave and “must get just as nigh the water as they possibly can without falling in” (2).  This connection between men and the sea, and between humanity and whales, acts as foreshadowing for the rest of the novel.  After the long introduction, the plot will continue away from land and become increasingly concerned with the act of whaling and man’s fascination with the whale.

Whaling is the perfect career for Ishmael.  The story of Melville’s Ishmael closely parallels that of the Bible’s.  Melville’s opening paragraph sets Ishmael in the same position that the baby Ishmael was placed in: both need water for survival.  Melville then continues for several paragraphs describing the importance of water to humans.  Melville binds the two Ishmaels by the one thing that will save both of their lives.

Violence also binds the two figures together.  As we discussed in class, Genesis 16:12 describes Ishmael as

…a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers.  (Biblegateway.com)

Many times in the first few chapters, the narrator comments on the violence of whaling – in describing the “heathenish array of clubs and spears” that decorates the inn (Melville, 10), in his concern for Queequeg when he shaves with the head of a harpoon (Melville, 25), and in his confusion over the fact that a devout Quaker, such as Captain Bildad, would participate in such an occupation (66).  For these reasons, the job of whaling meshes perfectly with the biblical figure for whom Melville’s character is named.

The biblical Ishmael also represents a person who followed a different path, just as Melville’s Ishmael makes his own way in the world.  Melville’s characters would have grown up with the stories of Isaac and his descendents, but Ishmael’s story travels off in a different direction.  In mirroring his namesake, Melville’s Ishmael can question the norm and decide his own fate.  But Melville’s Ishmael strays even farther from any sort of settled path; even though he has so many connections to the Genesis story, this Ishmael does not even follow completely in his namesake’s footsteps.  He defies the second part of the prophecy and makes a bosom friend, Queequog at the beginning of the novel.  Although the job of whaling, where everyone must work smoothly together for the three long years that they inhabit the cramped quarters of the ship, seems to work against Ishmael’s prophecy, I think that Melville’s Ishmael makes himself even more similar to the biblical character by making himself a path different from the norm.  But by tearing himself away from the constraints of the story that gives him his character, I think that Ishmael becomes even more closely tied to the biblical character.  And whaling allows Ishmael to explore his freedom and question any norm or idea.

Another question that arises for Ishmael is the morality of whaling.  In presenting this question, whaling allows him to question his life.  Even though Ishmael seems destined for a whaling ship at the beginning of the novel, whaling is perhaps one of the most ungodly professions.  Melville writes that Captain Bildad is “a sworn foe to human bloodshed, yet had he in his straight-bodied coat, spilled tuns upon tuns of leviathan gore” (66).  Here Melville implies that whaling is comparable to murder – a act prohibited by one of the Ten Commandments.  A few sentences later, Ishmael says that “a man’s religion is one thing, and this practical world is quite another.  This world pays dividends” (66). Ishmael is starting to question the well-travelled path of his past and searching for a new religion.  He is becoming the biblical Ishmael.  After all, Ishmael went on to father his own religion, Islam.  The high seas offer Melville’s character a place in which to question and explore his ideas on religion.

Yet Ishmael is not the first to look to whaling for answers to spiritual questions.  It seems that the entire town of New Bedford, and perhaps most of New England, has found a way to reconcile whaling with God.   The imagery in chapters 7,8, and 9, “The Chapel,” “The Pulpit,” and “The Sermon” shows how far a church can go to becoming a whaling ship.  This begs the question “how far can a whaling ship go to becoming a church?”  The church, however, also raises another question for Ishmael to sort out.  In chapter 8, “The Pulpit,” Melville describes the pulpit of the church as enclosing Father Mapple almost as if he is isolated from the congregation in a whaling-inspired room of his own.  The description of the church as similar to a whaling ship makes me think that the Pequod will be a sort of community, but when Mapple shuts himself away, he makes prayer seem to be an individual activity.  So on his journey, will God make Ishmael into “a great nation,” the metaphorical father of the men on the Pequod, or will Ishmael travel alone? (Biblegateway.com) Whaling seems to bring up many questions for Ishmael, but perhaps it will also reveal the answers to his unique future.

Works Cited:

• Melville, Herman. Moby Dick. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1988. Reissued 2008. Print.
• “Genesis 16:10-12.” Biblegateway. New International Version, Web. 29 Jan 2010. <http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+16:10-12&version=NIV>.
• “Genesis 17:20.” Biblegateway. New International Version, Web. 29 Jan 2010. <http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+17:20&version=NIV>.

What of it, if some old hunks of a sea-captain orders me to get a broom and sweep down the decks? …Do you think the archangel Gabriel thinks anything less of me, because I promptly and respectfully obey that old hunks in that particular instance? Who aint a slave? … Well, then, however the old sea-captains may order me about-however they may thump and punch me about, I have the satisfaction of knowing that it is all right; that everybody else is one way or other server in much the same way – either in a physical or metaphysical point of view.

Melville’s words have a meaningful message.  When deciding to become a sailor, one accepts that there will be a break down of their previously unconstrained and entitled life.  They will be at the mercy of their captain, who will abuse them to the greatest extent.  But a sailor knows he is not alone, his fellow shipmates will experience the same mental and physical cruelty.  Thus when Ishmael comments, “Who aint a slave?” (4) is he incorrect? Is a man not a slave to the work he is forced to complete? But is the horrors of slavery lessened when one knows that his fellow men are enslaved as well?  To answer these questions, I think we would need to discuss the definition and terms of slavery.  Understandably, Ishmael is not a slave in the sense that he chose this career for himself, but once he is on the boat with the captain, he cannot escape from him.  Thus is a sailor a slave to the captain or the boat? Or perhaps both?

No, when I go to sea, I go as a simple sailor, right before the mast, plumb down into the forecastle, aloft there to the royal mast-head.  True, they rather order me about some, and make me jump from spar to spar, like a grasshopper in a May meadow. And at first, this sort of thing is unpleasant enough.  It touches one’s sense of honor, particularly if you come of an old established family in the land, the Van Rensselaers, or Randolphs, or Hardicanutes.

Furthermore, is humility not something we should all learn and experience? To live under the control of another individual, does it not teach us who we are or want to be?  To clarify there is a difference between humility and slavery.  They are not one and the same.  But I believe Melville is attempting to articulate is that although a man’s “honor” is taken away when he becomes a sailor because he can no longer live behind his possibly good name; he can create his own respected name through working with his own hands.  Thus hard work teaches humility and respect for one’s superiors but also gives a man honor.  Labor is then not demeaning as some would believe because it gives a man the ability to accomplish something through their own physical force.  And unlike money, these accomplishments cannot be taken away; they belong to that man forever.