DOCSLIB.ORG

Pursuing the White Whale: Why Christians Should Read Moby-Dick," Pro Rege: Vol

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Pursuing the White Whale: Why Christians Should Read Moby-Dick, Volume 47 Number 4 Article 4 June 2019 Pursuing the White Whale: Why Christians Should Read Moby- Dick Raymond Ide Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/pro_rege Part of the Christianity Commons, and the Higher Education Commons Recommended Citation Ide, Raymond (2019) "Pursuing the White Whale: Why Christians Should Read Moby-Dick," Pro Rege: Vol. 47: No. 4, 9 - 13. Available at: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/pro_rege/vol47/iss4/4 This Feature Article is brought to you for free and open access by the University Publications at Digital Collections @ Dordt. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pro Rege by an authorized administrator of Digital Collections @ Dordt. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Pursuing the White Whale: Why Christians Should Read Moby-Dick he was the head of the church, Pastor Melville had the audacity to tell the king to his face that he was only “God’s silly vassal” while Christ was really head of the church.4 Melville was eventu- ally imprisoned for his disagreements with the king.5 At age twenty-one Herman Melville showed some of the same audacity as his Scottish ancestor by signing aboard a whaling ship, The Acushnet, which sailed out of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, in 1841. But before he departed, he visited The Seamen’s Chapel in nearby New Bedford.6 Visitors to that church on Johnny Cake Hill can by Raymond Ide still see this small church, which used to have a plaque outside the door, saying that Melville, in This year marks the 200th anniversary of his great novel, made the greatest journey of all— Herman Melville’s birth—August 1, 1819. the journey into the human mind. I would add Unfortunately, his novel Moby-Dick1 probably re- that the author sailed even further—into the hu- mains the least read American classic. This is es- man heart and soul. For in the quest described in pecially unfortunate for Christians who have not Moby-Dick, where Captain Ahab seeks revenge read this literary and religious masterpiece. on the whale that took off his leg—“dismasted” The author’s life is interesting in itself. As a him (174)—Melville the creative genius puts be- young man, Melville was baptized in the South fore his readers questions of free-will and predes- Reformed Dutch Church in Manhattan2 and tination, the problem of evil, and the character later attended the Reformed Dutch Church in of God. Albany, New York.3 His family’s Scottish ancestry Nathalia Wright, in Melville’s Use of the Bible, included Pastor Andrew Melville, who succeeded says that Melville knew the Bible so well that ”he John Knox as a leader of the Scottish Reformed could smell the burning of Gomorrah and the pit; Church. When King James VI of Scotland, who hear the trumpet in the Valley of Jehoshaphat,… later became James I of England, proclaimed that taste Belshazzar’s feast, feel the heat of the fiery furnace.” 7 She adds that Melville’s “mind seems to have been saturated with its [the Bible’s] sto- Dr. Raymond Ide is Professor Emeritus of English at 8 Lancaster Bible College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. ries, its ideas, and its language.” Melville’s per- Pro Rege—June 2019 9 sonal Bibles are heavily marked by the author, parts, my tail, he seems to say, but my face shall who has numerous underlinings devoted to the not be seen” (380-81). This biblical comparison book of Job and Ecclesiastes. In a letter to his of the whale to Moses’ vision of God 12 is one of friend Nathaniel Hawthorne around the time he Melville’s most audacious hints at what he is get- was writing his whaling novel, Melville wrote, “I ting at in the book. read Solomon more and more, and every time see Among whale men, Moby Dick is identifi- deeper and deeper meaning in him.”9 able in that he is not just a formidable creature Biblical names flavor this wild whaling sto- with “a peculiar snow-white wrinkled forehead, ry, where we meet not only Captain Ahab but and a high, pyramidical white hump” (193); what also a man named Elijah, who warns sailors to is especially puzzling to these sailors is that this beware of Ahab; a bartender named Jonah; and particular whale seems not only all-powerful but the narrator of the story, who famously begins also “ubiquitous [in] that he had actually been his tale by saying, “Call me Ishmael.” Of all the encountered in opposite latitudes at one and the names Melville could have chosen, why Ishmael? same instant of time” (192). And not only does Perhaps the narrator resembles his famous name- this whale seem omnipresent, but he has been sake in Genesis in that he too is a wanderer and cited over the course of centuries as if he is im- an outcast on the sea. Just like Ishmael in the mortal. Hints of the white whale’s supernatural Bible, his name means “God hears,” and by the qualities abound in the story. end of the novel, that will prove to be the case. At one point in the novel, Moby Dick However, the titular character of the story will be alluded to as Job’s whale, which for stays under the surface until the last few chapters Melville means the leviathan described in the of the book. This is the mysterious whale who 41st chapter of Job. Here God in the Voice readers realize after a while is more than just “a out of the Whirlwind proclaims, “Can you fill spouting fish with a horizontal tail” (147). In his hide with harpoons or his head with fish- the first chapter of the novel the white whale is ing spears? No one is fierce enough to rouse alluded to as “one grand hooded phantom, like him. Who then is able to stand against me?”13 a snow-hill in the air” (26). Later Ishmael says, Note how God first speaks of the leviathan “Gazing on…[the sperm whale’s head] you feel as “him,” which morphs into “me” where God the deity and the dread powers more forcibly speaks of himself. Carol Newsom, in her com- than in beholding any other object in living na- mentary on Job, states that “there is a curious lev- ture” (350). The chapters devoted to whales, the el of identification between God and leviathan. cetological chapters that comprise a quarter of God represents himself as being in the image the book, might seem tedious at first, but they of leviathan, only more so. Indeed, as has often are central to the author’s intention to contem- been pointed out, the physical description of le- plate leviathan. J. A. Ward argues that Melville, viathan is uncannily evocative of the theophanic in passages devoted to describing the whale, is descriptions of God.”14 “showing the insufficiencies of empirical knowl- The Voice out of the Whirlwind gives a pic- edge and establishing Moby Dick as a creature of ture of both God and leviathan: both are power- spiritual and physical dimensions”10 and reveal- ful, fierce, and awe-inspiring. Like C. S. Lewis’s ing “science’s inability to describe the whale ad- Aslan, the whale is not tame and certainly not equately.”11 safe. For example, at one point the narrator Captain Ahab will make this same identifica- Ishmael expresses his bafflement at trying to -un tion between the leviathan Moby Dick and the derstand the different movements of the whale’s Deity. The revengeful captain at one point tells magnificent tail as he exclaims, “But if I know his first mate Starbuck why he hates this ferocious not even the tail of the whale, how understand albino whale: “He tasks me; he heaps me; I see in his head? Much more, how comprehend his face, him outrageous strength, with an inscrutable mal- when face he has none? Thou shalt see my back ice sinewing it. That inscrutable thing is chiefly 10 Pro Rege—June 2019 what I hate; and be the white whale agent, or be peeping forth even beneath February’s snow” (56). the white whale principal, I will wreak that hate This pleasant description stands in stark contrast upon him” (176). to Ahab, who in his first appearance before his In other words, in Ahab’s imagination the crew is described as “moody stricken Ahab [who] whale that took off his leg is either an agent of stood before them with a crucifixion in his face; in the Deity or the Deity himself, and the monoma- all the nameless regal overbearing dignity of some niacal captain sees himself in nothing less than a mighty woe” (137). cosmic struggle. Interestingly, inscrutable is one of Ahab stands in further contrast to Father John Calvin’s favorite words to describe God, and Mapple when he first addresses his crew by in- it is at the center of why Captain Ahab hates the citing them to seek revenge on the white whale. albino whale. How different from Father Mapple, who first -ad This deity represented by or corresponding to dresses his congregation after he enters his pul- the white whale in Ahab’s pit and kneels in prayer: mind is only evil, inspiring Hints of the white whale’s he “folded his large brown him to convince his crew to supernatural qualities abound. hands across his chest, up- swear to kill Moby Dick. lifted his closed eyes, and The revenge-obsessed cap- offered a prayer so deeply tain sees himself as the master of his fate, and at devout that he seemed kneeling and praying at one point, Ahab will even exclaim, “I’d strike the the bottom of the sea” (58).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Influence of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick on Cormac Mccarthy's Blood Meridian
    UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones 8-1-2014 The Influence of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick on Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian Ryan Joseph Tesar University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/thesesdissertations Part of the American Literature Commons, and the Literature in English, North America Commons Repository Citation Tesar, Ryan Joseph, "The Influence of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick on Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian" (2014). UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones. 2218. http://dx.doi.org/10.34917/6456449 This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE INFLUENCE OF HERMAN MELVILLE’S MOBY-DICK ON CORMAC MCCARTHY’S BLOOD MERIDIAN by Ryan Joseph Tesar Bachelor of Arts in English University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2012 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts – English Department of English College of Liberal Arts The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas August 2014 Copyright by Ryan Joseph Tesar, 2014 All Rights Reserved - THE GRADUATE COLLEGE We recommend the thesis prepared under our supervision by Ryan Joseph Tesar entitled The Influence of Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick on Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts - English Department of English John C.
    [Show full text]
  • FILM Moby-Dick (1851) Herman Melville (1819-1891) Adaptation By
    FILM Moby-Dick (1851) Herman Melville (1819-1891) adaptation by Ray Bradbury & John Huston (1956) ANALYSIS Moby-Dick is the greatest American novel. This is the only film adaptation that is faithful to the book. All other movie versions are ridiculous. The only improvement any of them has made over this adaptation is in special effects—more spectacular shots of the white whale underwater. These are entertaining to see, but they add nothing to understanding and actually distract from the meanings of the book. Movie critics have been especially stupid in responding to this film. Ray Bradbury is a discerning writer who is largely true to Melville and John Huston was the most literary director in Hollywood. Contrary to the critics, the casting is perfect—especially Gregory Peck as Captain Ahab. Queequeg is also brilliantly portrayed. Unlike their critics Bradbury and Huston display a deep knowledge of the book, although they are limited in how much of it they can present in a film. They are able to include significant lines of dialogue that are over the heads of movie critics, such as the Pequod as a symbol of the world, expressed when Orson Welles as Father Mapple dresses like a sea captain, preaches from a pulpit in the form of a ship’s prow and refers to everyone in the world as “Shipmates.” They also convey the pantheistic divinity of Moby-Dick, who seems to be everywhere in the world at once. As Pip says, “That a great white god.” They establish that the story is a psychological allegory when Ishmael says that the sea is a “mirror” of himself.
    [Show full text]
  • Captain Ahab and Her Crew
    Illinois Wesleyan University Digital Commons @ IWU Outstanding Gateway Papers Writing Program 2016 Captain Ahab and Her Crew Abigail Kauerauf '19 Illinois Wesleyan University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/gateway Part of the English Language and Literature Commons, and the Rhetoric and Composition Commons Recommended Citation Kauerauf, Abigail '19, "Captain Ahab and Her Crew" (2016). Outstanding Gateway Papers. 11. https://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/gateway/11 This Article is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Commons @ IWU with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this material in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This material has been accepted for inclusion by Writing Program Committee at Illinois Wesleyan University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ©Copyright is owned by the author of this document. Abigail Kauerauf Gateway 100 22 February 2016 Captain Ahab and Her Crew In One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the novel’s anti-hero R.P. McMurphy unexpectedly parallels Moby-Dick. In the infamous Melville classic, Moby-Dick bites off the leg of Captain Ahab. Ahab thusly convinces his crew to join him in a revenge-filled quest to kill the white whale. The life of R. P. McMurphy presents a similar journey.
    [Show full text]
  • Point of View As Key to the Narrative Structure, Symbolism, and Theme of Moby Dick Delma Ward Tayer Central Washington University
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by ScholarWorks at Central Washington University Central Washington University ScholarWorks@CWU All Master's Theses Master's Theses 1964 Point of View as Key to the Narrative Structure, Symbolism, and Theme of Moby Dick Delma Ward Tayer Central Washington University Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd Part of the Liberal Studies Commons, and the Other Education Commons Recommended Citation Tayer, Delma Ward, "Point of View as Key to the Narrative Structure, Symbolism, and Theme of Moby Dick" (1964). All Master's Theses. Paper 416. This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Master's Theses at ScholarWorks@CWU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@CWU. POINT OF VIBW AS KEY TO 'rHE NARRATIVE STRUCTURE, SYMBOLISM , AND THEME OF .!iQg Q!.9lf A Thesis Presented to the Graduate Faculty Central Washington State College In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree Master of Education by Delma Ward Tayer August 1964 L{) b71 /, ~ T.?.--30 p SPECIAL COLLECTION .. • ' 122727 APPROVED FOR THE GRADUATE FACULTY ________________________________ H. L. Aushutz, COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN _________________________________ _________________________________ Donald J. Murphy TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION • • • . • • . • • . • • • • • 1 Purpose • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • 1 Method • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2 Definitions
    [Show full text]
  • Eminem 1 Eminem
    Eminem 1 Eminem Eminem Eminem performing live at the DJ Hero Party in Los Angeles, June 1, 2009 Background information Birth name Marshall Bruce Mathers III Born October 17, 1972 Saint Joseph, Missouri, U.S. Origin Warren, Michigan, U.S. Genres Hip hop Occupations Rapper Record producer Actor Songwriter Years active 1995–present Labels Interscope, Aftermath Associated acts Dr. Dre, D12, Royce da 5'9", 50 Cent, Obie Trice Website [www.eminem.com www.eminem.com] Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972),[1] better known by his stage name Eminem, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Eminem quickly gained popularity in 1999 with his major-label debut album, The Slim Shady LP, which won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. The following album, The Marshall Mathers LP, became the fastest-selling solo album in United States history.[2] It brought Eminem increased popularity, including his own record label, Shady Records, and brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition. The Marshall Mathers LP and his third album, The Eminem Show, also won Grammy Awards, making Eminem the first artist to win Best Rap Album for three consecutive LPs. He then won the award again in 2010 for his album Relapse and in 2011 for his album Recovery, giving him a total of 13 Grammys in his career. In 2003, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Lose Yourself" from the film, 8 Mile, in which he also played the lead. "Lose Yourself" would go on to become the longest running No. 1 hip hop single.[3] Eminem then went on hiatus after touring in 2005.
    [Show full text]
  • BUG: Moby Special at BFI Southbank
    PRESS RELEASE: May 2011 11/38 BUG: Moby Special at BFI Southbank On June 1 the smash hit, audio visual event BUG will celebrate the career of the multi-award- winning and internationally renowned musician Moby, with an exclusive event dedicated to his work, to date, at BFI Southbank. This month BUG is delighted to mark the arrival of Moby’s new album Destroyed, with a retrospective of the artist’s output and involvement in moving image, including memorable videos such as Natural Blues, We Are All Made of Stars, Bodyrock, Run On and Honey. This dedicated evening will reflect on Moby’s remarkable career and his collaborations with such directors as David Lynch, David LaChapelle, Mike Mills, Jonas Åkerlund and Roman Coppola. BUG host Adam Buxton will also reveal some of the videos made for the new album and talk to Moby on stage at BFI Southbank. Festivities continue into the evening with DJs and music in the benugo bar. After 4 years of sell-out shows at BFI Southbank and further afield, BUG continues to celebrate music video creativity and innovation with another artist-led special show. Previous artist specials have celebrated the work of Massive Attack, UNKLE and most recently, Royksopp. Now celebrating its fifth successful year, BUG events are presented on a bi-monthly basis at BFI Southbank, hosted by Adam Buxton and featuring leading guest directors from the world of music video. Tickets for this special event are in huge demand. Tickets are £13, with concessions at £9.75 (Members pay £1.50 less) at www.bfi.org.uk/southbank or by calling 020 7928 3232.
    [Show full text]
  • "Name That Song!" a Probabilistic Approach to Querying on Music And
    “Name That Song!”: A Probabilistic Approach to Querying on Music and Text Eric Brochu Nando de Freitas Department of Computer Science Department of Computer Science University of British Columbia University of British Columbia Vancouver, BC, Canada Vancouver, BC, Canada [email protected] [email protected] Abstract We present a novel, flexible statistical approach for modelling music and text jointly. The approach is based on multi-modal mixture models and maximum a posteriori estimation using EM. The learned models can be used to browse databases with documents containing music and text, to search for music using queries consisting of music and text (lyrics and other contextual information), to annotate text documents with music, and to automatically recommend or identify similar songs. 1 Introduction Variations on “name that song”-types of games are popular on radio programs. DJs play a short excerpt from a song and listeners phone in to guess the name of the song. Of course, callers often get it right when DJs provide extra contextual clues (such as lyrics, or a piece of trivia about the song or band). We are attempting to reproduce this ability in the context of information retrieval (IR). In this paper, we present a method for querying with words and/or music. We focus on monophonic and polyphonic musical pieces of known structure (MIDI files, full music notation, etc.). Retrieving these pieces in multimedia databases, such as the Web, is a problem of growing interest [1, 2]. A significant step was taken by Downie [3], who applied standard text IR techniques to retrieve music by, initially, converting music to text format.
    [Show full text]
  • Moby Dick by Herman Melville
    Moby Dick By Herman Melville Chapter 8: The Pulpit I had not been seated very long ere a man of a certain venerable robustness entered; immediately as the storm-pelted door flew back upon admitting him, a quick regardful eyeing of him by all the congregation, sufficiently attested that this fine old man was the chaplain. Yes, it was the famous Father Mapple, so called by the whalemen, among whom he was a very great favorite. He had been a sailor and a harpooneer in his youth, but for many years past had dedicated his life to the ministry. At the time I now write of, Father Mapple was in the hardy winter of a healthy old age; that sort of old age which seems merging into a second flowering youth, for among all the fissures of his wrinkles, there shone certain mild gleams of a newly developing bloom- the spring verdure peeping forth even beneath February’s snow. No one having previously heard his history, could for the first time behold Father Mapple without the utmost interest, because there were certain engrafted clerical peculiarities about him, imputable to that adventurous maritime life he had led. When he entered I observed that he carried no umbrella, and certainly had not come in his carriage, for his tarpaulin hat ran down with melting sleet, and his great pilot cloth jacket seemed almost to drag him to the floor with the weight of the water it had absorbed. However, hat and coat and overshoes were one by one removed, and hung up in a little space in an adjacent corner; when, arrayed in a decent suit, he quietly approached the pulpit.
    [Show full text]
  • Restaurateur Elevates Culinary Scene
    Restaurateur elevates culinary scene before throwing it out in frustration and, in a fit of anger, making a joke about broccoli hot dogs and then realizing that, yes, of course. Broccoli hot dogs. Q. For parents struggling to get their kids to eat vegetables, what dish would you recommend and how is it prepared? A. It’s not just kids. Everyone’s struggling to eat vegetables because they feel like they should be eating them, but you can’t cook vegetables like meat and expect them to turn out delicious. A few small tips: • Fat carries flavor. Vegetables have no natural fat, so make sure that you use oil or butter when you cook Restaurant owner/chef Amanda Cohen is a champion of “the vegetables. And if you use oil, cook some onions vegetable-forward movement.” Photo by Georgi Richardson at Maggie Marguerite and garlic in it first to flavor it. • Salt your salads. No one salts salads and it makes a New York City’s Lower East Side is home to Dirt huge difference. Candy, the city’s premiere vegetable-focused • Shock and blanch. Drop your vegetables in boiling restaurant. At the helm is chef/owner Amanda Cohen, water for 20 to 30 seconds, then drop them in ice a prominent advocate of what’s known as “the water. Sometimes that’s all the cooking they need vegetable-forward movement.” and this will preserve their color and keep them looking pretty on the plate. While at its previous location, the restaurant received • Grill your greens. Grilling hearty greens like kale and two stars from The New York Times – making it the collards gives them a meaty, rich flavor.
    [Show full text]
  • UFO Music Video Promotion Details
    Andy Gesner HIP Video Promo (732)-613-1779 [email protected] Music Video Promoter ‘UFO’ Cole Phoenix- USA, Canada, Latin America & International Web !Distribution/Servicing List- MTV VH1… is below proposal and company info. Here at HIP, we've had the great honor and privilege to promote over 1600 music videos over our thirteen year history. I encourage you to check out our client list, and there you can see we are not a promo company that just takes on any client no matter what the video looks like. Unlike others that do what we do, we are extremely selective about the videos we promote and are constantly searching for artists like Cole Phoenix to get in on the ground floor with. ! We will take all the necessary precautions to assure you that the Cole Phoenix "UFO" music video arrive to all of our programmers 100% ready for immediate programming. Here's the full national music video promotion proposal for you to check out, including both !internet and terrestrial television outlets in Canada and Latin America.! !Proposal:! At HIP Video Promo, music video promotion is the only thing we do! My staff and I are your guides through the treacherous terrain of music video promotion, and are here to make it as easy as possible for you to achieve maximum exposure for your video. We are fearless when it comes to promoting cliche-defying artists outside the mainstream, while always remaining highly selective in the projects we promote. Our constant goal is to supply our programmers with the videos their viewers really want to see.! HIP Video Promo has built the most impressive client roster in the industry, promoting videos by such epic talents as Pearl Jam, The B-52's, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Johnny Cash, Moby, Elvis Costello, and Motley Crue, as well being on the ground floor with artists like The Lumineers, Brooke Fraser, Iron and Wine, Death Cab For Cutie, Armin Van Buuren, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Maroon 5, Bon Iver, and others on their way to stardom.
    [Show full text]
  • From Mocha Dick to Moby Dick: Fishing for Clues to Moby's Name and Color
    From Mocha Dick to Moby Dick: Fishing for Clues to Moby's Name and Color Ben Rogers University of Delaware Melville's fictional whale Moby Dick appears to derive from the real whale Mocha Dick, yet the differences in names and colors between these two suggest that Moby's name may be intimately connected to his symbolic role. One meaning of mob is 'to wrap in a cowl or veil'. Creating an adjective by adding -y produces moby 'having the qualities of being hooded, especially about the head', a definition reflected in Ishmael's "grand hooded phantom." Dick may be a shortening of Dickens, a euphemism for the devil. Dick may also suggest Dicky 'an officer acting on commission', an appropriate meaning for Ahab' s and Starbuck's conception of Moby as God or an agent of God. Lexicons available to Melville reveal the meaning of the name and illuminate the characteriza- tion of Moby as both commodity and Zeus of the sea, both "dumb brute" and divine Leviathan. The 1929 discovery of a narrative about a white whale named Mocha Dick began 70 years of speculation as to the extent of Mocha as Moby's prototype. The narrative, written by J.R. Reynolds in 1839, described a "renowned monster, who had come off victorious in a hundred fights ... [and was] white as wool." Typical of the reaction of literary critics at the time was Garnett's remark that "Moby Dick ... was but Mocha Dick in faery fiction dressed" (1929, 858). Critical editions of Moby-Dick often include the Reynold's narrative and today scholars generally agree that Melville probably knew of Mocha.1 The obvious sibling qualities of the two whales has tended to center onomastic study on the name Mocha Dick, and subsequent research has attempted to demonstrate that Melville knew of Mocha Dick or, assuming this, to explain why Mocha changed to Moby.
    [Show full text]
  • Thar She Blows! Moby-Dick Meets the Digital Generation Spring 2018 Wednesdays, 5–6.30 P.M., SR34K1 (Attemsgasse 25, Basement) Dr
    Topics in Anglophone Literary Studies Thar She Blows! Moby-Dick Meets the Digital Generation Spring 2018 Wednesdays, 5–6.30 p.m., SR34K1 (Attemsgasse 25, basement) Dr. Michael Fuchs 1. About the Course “Call me Ishmael.” Even if you haven’t read Moby-Dick, you will probably know the novel’s iconic open- ing line. Likewise, even if you haven’t read Moby-Dick, you will have a rough idea as to what its story is about—Captain Ahab’s frantic hunt of a white sperm whale. The very fact that people know about Moby-Dick without knowing Moby-Dick testifies to the book’s cultural relevance and power. Indeed, as we will see, Moby-Dick is about so much more than the mere conflict between man and nature. This undergraduate seminar will consist of two main parts: In the first half of the semester, we will engage in a close reading of what many literary scholars and also the general public consider one of the (if not the) “great American novels.” In the second half of the semester, we will look at the presence of Moby-Dick in popular culture. Accordingly, we will watch movie adaptations, read comic adaptations, listen to music adaptations, but also explore some other texts in which Moby-Dick (and/or Moby Dick) plays a dominant role. Since the first part of this undergraduate seminar will pursue a close reading of Moby-Dick, the main objective here will be that students gain a deeper understanding of Moby-Dick and its socio- economic environment; in particular, students will come to understand (and appreciate) what might be termed Moby-Dick’s postmodernism avant la lettre, its rhetorical strategies, its ecological subtexts, its engagement with scientific discourse, and nineteenth-century whale-hunting.
    [Show full text]