Feb 14 2010
Starbuck wrestles with an angel
In Chapter 123, “The Musket,” Starbuck struggles with himself over shooting Ahab. If he did, he would have the chance to return home safely, protecting the rest of the crew from a suicidal mission. But he would be committing murder. He asks, “Is heaven a murderer when its lighting strikes a would-be murderer in his bed, tindering sheets and skin together?” (Melville, 456) Can God murder? Can God still be holy if God does kill someone, even if that person is a potential murderer? And can a sin be nullified if it is for the protection of someone else? Whose life is more sacred? I have no answers to these questions, and I cannot dream of passing judgement on Starbuck. Maybe Melville includes this chapter so that the readers will reflect on themselves and determine what is most valuable in their lives.
This idea of self-reflection is elaborated upon when Melville says that “Starbuck seemed wrestling with an angel.” (456) This description alludes to the story of Jacob wrestling with the angel, Genesis 32:22-31. The angel appears to Jacob after he has already spent several days preparing to meet with his brother Esau, whom he is afraid will attack. (Biblegateway) I see the confrontation with the angel as a physical representation of Jacob wrestling with his fears and his relationship to his brother. And although Jacob does not win the fight, he receives a blessing.
Genesis 32:30 says that “Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, ‘It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.'” (Biblegateway) Since Starbuck’s opponent is another part of himself, isn’t part of him God? This relates back to the idea that we discussed about Narcissus and never knowing oneself. God, after all, is unknowable. Maybe Melville says that God is the part of a person that he or she can never understand. During Starbuck’s internal struggle, he sees his true self and what he is capable of — “he [sees] God face to face.” He survives this encounter, making him stronger. Just like Jacob, Starbuck has “struggled with God and with men and [has] overcome.” (Genesis 32:28, Biblegateway) Jacob had to realize what he was capable of and how special he was before he could face his brother; Starbuck has to realize how strong he is by confronting both Ahab and his own desires before he can confront his future. If Starbuck fought God, then by not killing Ahab, he, like Jacob, lost that first battle. But maybe he will be rewarded with a happy future, just as Jacob received a blessing? Or that’s just wishful thinking on my part. If nothing else, he now knows who he is.
“Genesis 32” Biblegateway. New International Version, Web. 14 Feb 2010. <http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%2032&version=NIV>
Melville, Herman. Moby Dick. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1988, reissued 2008. Print.
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Good post, Shoshana! This moment in the text is, to me, one of the best — I love how Starbuck considers killing Ahab, which is an enormous moment for him, because Starbuck sees himself as an extremely moral sailor, which means he could never think of mutiny. But here he is, thinking of far worse. I like your reading of his internal struggle as one being like Jacob’s and the angel — a struggle that ultimately brings him closer to an understanding of himself or/and God. I do think, however, that there are also other implications here, which we can explore in class — that this moment is meant to underscore Starbuck’s recognition that his murderous act could, in fact, end the tyranny of Ahab, but would turn him into a traitor and a murderer. These are both moral and political ideas, which really expands the scope of the religious meaning of the text.