The ocean not only engulfs two‑thirds of the earth but two‑thirds of Moby Dick; a literary space penned by Herman Melville which sweeps the reader in its ever‑elusive eddies of symbolic complexity. The symbolism in the novel ceaselessly ebbs and flows like the sea, submerging the reader into Melville’s imaginative sea voyage. This paper will examine the watery depths as a recognizable setting from the corporeal universe, further observing how Melville juxtaposes this element in such a peculiar way, that the reader has no choice but to abandon, “reason, tradition, belief, and rely solely on thought to interpret these images,” which accordingly creates an “opportunity for open imagination” (Glover, 2003:42) (Bachelard,1983: 22). From beginning …show more content…
Ishmael marvels at this site from the Pequod, and on the second day paints the picture of “Right Whales” mowing through the brit, “leaving behind them endless swaths of blue upon the yellow sea” (Melville, 1851: 305). The meadow‑like appearance of the sea is truly a realistic one, however, the comparison is embellished in such a farfetched, illusory way that Melville’s readers have no choice but to desert reason and visualize an image that most individuals have never observed. As the chapter ensues, Melville continues to illustrate the ocean through Ishmael’s perspective, where the watery expanse is anthropomorphized, to “swallow up ships and crews,” evoking the image that the monster, is perhaps not the White Whale but the ocean; an element that represents “universal cannibalism,” and an unconquerable wild beast (Melville, 1851: 307). Ishmael describes the ocean as “a savage tigress that tossing in the jungle overlays her cubs […] Panting and snorting like a mad battle steed that has lost its rider, the masterless ocean overruns the globe” (Melville, 1851: 307). This is perhaps, Ishmael’s first realization that the ocean is not what it appears and that the “loveliest shades of azure,” make one forget the feral beast that prowls in the deep. This visual juxtaposition is one of many that appear in Moby Dick,
Analysis: Melville's Great American Novel draws on both Biblical and Shakespearean myths. Captain Ahab is "a grand, ungodly, god-like man … above the common" whose pursuit of the great white whale is a fable about obsession and over-reaching. Just as Macbeth and Lear subvert the natural order of things, Ahab takes on Nature in his
In conclusion, this essay analyzes the similarities and differences of the two stories written by Herman Melville, Billy Budd and Bartleby. The settings, characters, and endings in the two stories reveal very interesting comparisons and contrasts. The comparison and contrast also includes the interpretation of the symbolism that Melville used in his two stories. The characters, Billy and Bartleby, could even be considered autobiographical representatives of Herman Melville.
In Chapter 69, the narrator vividly describes the image of a recently captured, decapitated sperm whale bleakly floating about near the Pequod while sharks and birds feast upon its dead remains. Despite the degrading imagery of, “the air above vexed with rapacious flights of screaming fowls, whose beaks are like so many insulting poniards in the whale,” the whale has still, “not perceptibly lost anything in bulk...it is still colossal,” (257). In the spite of its crude carcass, there is still human wonderment in regards to the indisputable massivity of the whale. However, the whale is not considered to be enormous just because of its literal size, but also because of the long-lasting effect its dead body will have on future ship encounters. It is the duty of a ship captain to avoid steering a ship into dangerous territory--the most common of which would be large rocks near the shore. In the lines, “...the whale’s unharming corpse, with trembling fingers is set down in the log-- shoals, rocks, and breakers hereabouts: beware!”, (257), the sperm whale’s carcass is often mistaken for rocks and, so, it necessarily follows that, “for years afterwards, perhaps, ships shun the place; leaping over it as silly sheep leap over a vacuum…” (257). The paragraph continues with the lines, “there’s your law of precedents; there’s your utility of traditions; there’s the story of your obstinate survival of old beliefs never bottomed on the earth…” (257), which reinforce the idea that since the sperm whale is already seen as being frightening and mysterious, its dead body ensues the same kinds of paranoid, uneasy thoughts. So, although
“Ishmael’s discourse is often calculated to undercut the myth of white supremacy, asserting that society’s survival may ultimately depend on the acceptance of Ishmael’s democratic vision (seeing equality in diversity) and a rejection of Ahab’s tyrannical one (seeing only white).”
Before exploring Ishmael, Ahab, and Moby Dick and their Biblical counterparts, it is important to understand Melville's background. He grew up as a baptized Calvinist in the Dutch Reformed Church. His parents trained him to obey God at all times, even if God’s commands seem unjust and cruel. However, he quickly turned against his faith after his father died. During his travels, he witnessed diseases, catastrophes, and hatred throughou...
In Herman Melville's Moby Dick the reader embarks on a journey narrated by a man in search of his soul and led by a man in search of the destruction of evil. Captain Ahab of the whaling ship the Pequod is a man whose heart is driven by revenge and a monomania that brings on the destruction of the Pequod and all but one member of her crew. He is looking to destroy the abominable White Whale, the Evil of the Earth, Moby Dick. This drive, in which Ahab believes he is doing good to the world by ridding it of this devilish creature, truly brings Ahab to commit the ultimate sin, pride, and become the evil of Christianity, he turns his back on God and follows in the footsteps of Lucifer himself. The twisted satanic based relationship between Ahab and Moby Dick starts as an unnoticeable aspect in the story and slowly grows until, like the serpent in the Garden of Eden, the full presence of the Devil can be felt and seen in every move made by both Captain Ahab and Moby Dick.
Brodhead, Richard H. "Trying All Things." New Essays on Moby-Dick. Cambridge [Cambridgeshire]: Cambridge UP, 1986. 9. Print.
Oh! my God! what is this that shoots through me, and leaves me so deadly calm, yet expectant, ---fixed at the top of a shudder! Future things swim before me, as in empty outlines and skeletons; all the past is somehow grown dim. (Chap. 135: 463)
“Bartleby, the Scrivener” is one of The Piazza Tales written by Herman Melville which was one of his greatest works that express the author’s groundbreaking beliefs through a relationship between a narrator and his coworkers. The narrator is a successful lawyer who hires Bartleby. Shortly after, Bartleby manages to drive the narrator crazy by doing absolutely nothing. Doing this, Melville introduces several important prompts for the reader to ponder over. These prompts are introduced to us and justified through Melville’s symbolism. Melville’s great uses of symbolism strongly address three major contentions to his audience: his critique against capitalism, his philosophical stance on the value of life, and his reaction towards his audience’s feedback.
Language is the foundation of communication in this world, whether we are conversing or recording, words are the way in which people allow others to gain knowledge into materials or even their own feelings. In works of literature language can play an even bigger role because the intent of an author is not always explicit and does not always hold as much ground as some may be lead to believe. In Herman Melville’s short story “Bartl...
On the other hand if he chooses to go native and join the Typee culture, people back in the states will never socially accept him. Typee sets a starting point for Melville to continue his thoughts on civilized and savage-like mannerism in his second book, Moby Dick. Moby Dick also takes place on a whaling ship where the readers develop an understanding for why the crew and the main character Ishmael do what they do. The whaling profession is found to be dangerous and even sometimes deadly based off of precedent with Moby Dick. Moby Dick is represented as being not only pure and innocent based off of its exterior, but as frightening and terrifying as a killer great white whale could be. The characters in this story also represent some civilized and savage features similar to Typee just portrayed
The poets’ visual imagery emphasizes the shock and amazement they feel after coming upon a shark in the open ocean. On one hand, Dickey begins by labeling a hammerhead as “unstirrable” (1), giving readers an opportunity to visualize the shark as an immense being with a very noticeable, presence that cannot be ignored. He continues to carefully illustrate the shark’s movement, describing how the “dreaming” (1) “hammerhead goes by the boat, passing [him] slowly
At first glance, Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick, appears to be the story of a man, his captain, and the whale that they quest to destroy. But a closer look reveals the author’s intense look at several metaphysical ideologies. He explores some of the most ponderous quandaries of his time, among these being the existence of evil, knowledge of the self and the existential, and the possibility of a determined fate. All of these were questions which philosophers had dealt with and written about, but Melville took it to a new level: not only writing about these things, but also doing so in a lovely poetic language backed by a tale packed with intrigue. He explores the general existence of evil in his antagonist, the white whale, and through the general malice that nature presents to humans throughout the novel. The narrator, Ishmael, gains a lot of knowledge about himself through his experiences on the whaling voyage, where he also is able to learn much about the phenomenon of existence itself. Also, through Captain Ahab, he sees more about the existence of man and the things that exist within man’s heart. Especially through Ahab and his ongoing quest for the white whale, and also in general conversation amongst the whalers, the issue of fate and whether one’s destiny is predetermined are addressed in great detail, with much thought and insight interpolated from the author’s own viewpoints on the subject.
Imagine a scene in which a small, wooden boat is peacefully floating on the ocean. Now, imagine that the scene is panning out to reveal the boat is merely a tiny speck, the ocean reaching out endlessly around it. Suddenly, the peaceful quality of the boat has been replaced by a feeling of consuming meaninglessness. Stephen Crane, a naturalist writer and reporter in nineteenth century America, often used nature to prompt readers into questioning their purpose and place in the universe. In “The Open Boat,” complex symbolism allows Crane’s characters to reflect humanity's shared experience regarding existence and self-worth.
That there are various perspectives to the white whale as symbol is a result of the value which Melville