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Moby-Dick: a Man's Story

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Moby-Dick: a Man's Story Men’s Programs Moby-Dick: A Man’s Story The focus of this men’s program is Moby-Dick, one of the great American novels and a very masculine read. Written by Herman Melville, Moby-Dick was first published in London in October 1851, and then a month later in New York City. The book is widely considered Melville’s magnum opus—the work that defined him as a novelist and secured his place among the literary elite. However, Moby-Dick did not receive its critical acclaim until years after Melville’s death. Today, we’ll enjoy a synopsis of the book and engage in some discussion questions. Note: When referring to the title of the book, Moby-Dick is hyphenated, but it is not hyphenated when referring to the whale itself. Preparations and How-To’s • This is a copy of the complete activity for the facilitator to present. • Pictures of whales and whaling boats as well as posters from Moby-Dick movies and book jackets can be printed or displayed on the TV screen. • To set the mood for this activity, play this video of the Sheringham Shantymen singing “Blow the Man Down.” • Here is a large-print copy of the article and activity for participants. Read the article aloud and use the Discussion Starters to encourage conversation. • Ask the trivia questions and encourage participants to answer. • Check out Additional Activities for more material on this topic. Moby-Dick: A Man’s Story Introduction What makes Moby-Dick the classic man’s tale? Is it the fact that it features only male characters? Or that it immerses the reader in a very masculine theme, centered in adventures at sea? Perhaps it is more than this. Beyond the swashbuckling bravado that permeates this classic tale of adventure, there lies a deeper significance: Moby-Dick exemplifies the universal theme of man’s desire to conquer nature. It is a thrilling tale of adventurers who abandon the comforts of port to venture out and brave the “howling infinite” of the sea. But even more so, it is a story about a man’s deep longing for vengeance, as the reader follows Captain Ahab’s obsessive quest to conquer his nemesis, the great white whale Moby Dick, who severed Ahab’s leg. Before reading the plot synopsis of Moby-Dick, let’s take a few minutes to answer some questions. Discussion Starters • Have you read Moby-Dick? If so, how long ago? • Has a story like this ever made you want to go to sea or engage in some other perilous adventure? • Do you agree that Moby-Dick is a “man’s read”? Why or why not? ©Activity Connection Care Package - approved for free distribution – Moby-Dick: A Man’s Story – Page !1 of !4 Synopsis Moby-Dick begins with one of the most memorable fist lines in literature: “Call me Ishmael.” Its simplicity is striking, but the line belies the complexity of the story that Ishmael, the narrator, is about to tell. In the first chapter, Ishmael describes himself as an outcast who is drawn to the sea. He plans to board a whaling vessel and embark on a whale hunt in the hope that he will find meaning and purpose in his life. As he prepares for the journey, he meets and befriends Queequeg, a former cannibal and expert harpooner from the South Pacific. The two join an expedition traveling from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to Nantucket on a vessel called Pequod, which is to set sail on Christmas Day. As the venture begins, the reader is introduced to a series of characters, some of whom, like Ishmael, bear names with religious significance. In the Bible, Ishmael is the illegitimate son of Abraham, who was cast out when his half-brother Isaac was born. The captain of the Pequod, Ahab, shares the same name as an evil king in Hebrew scriptures. Before setting sail, Ishmael and Queequeg meet Elijah, a mysterious vagrant with a foreboding message about Captain Ahab and his ship; it is no coincidence that Elijah shares his name with the Old Testament prophet. The men ignore Elijah’s warnings and set sail without seeing so much as a glimpse of the shadowy Captain Ahab. They have heard from the ship’s owners, Peleg and Bildad, that Ahab is still recovering from losing his leg in an encounter with a sperm whale on his last voyage. They get their first look at Ahab once the ship reaches warmer waters and the captain finally makes his appearance on the deck. Hobbling around on his whalebone leg, Ahab tries to win the crew to his mission: to pursue and kill Moby Dick, the great white whale that had savagely attacked him, resulting in the loss of his leg. Ahab believes this whale is the devil and must be eradicated. He nails a gold doubloon to the mast, promising it to the first man to sight the elusive whale. Meanwhile, the Pequod makes its way around the southern tip of Africa, where whales are seldom hunted successfully. During the clamor of a hunt, several men suddenly emerge from the hold. They are a harpoon crew assembled by Ahab and smuggled aboard in defiance of the ship’s owners. They are led by a man named Fedallah, who possesses prophetic abilities. Ahab is hoping that Fedallah will lead him to Moby Dick. As the ship continues to round Africa and enter the Indian Ocean, Ahab’s obsession with the white whale never wanes. Each time the Pequod encounters other whaling ships, Ahab presses their captains for intelligence on the whereabouts of Moby Dick. On board one of these ships is a crazed prophet named Gabriel, who predicts doom for any who threaten the white whale. He warns that all who have hunted him have met with disaster. The captain’s first mate, Starbuck, strongly objects to Ahab’s pursuit of Moby Dick. Witnessing Starbuck’s dismay at Ahab’s obsession, Ishmael and Queequeg realize that Ahab is going mad. Even as it becomes increasingly ill-advised to chase the white whale, Ahab ignores all warnings, including those of his first mate. As predicted, bad things begin to happen as the ship sails closer and closer toward the great white whale. While the crew works to drain oil from a successfully hunted sperm whale, a harpooner falls into the whale’s head, which then rips free from the ship and begins to sink. Queequeg dives in to save the harpooner, cutting him free from the head as it descends into the deep. Later, during the chaos of another hunt, a panicked cabin boy named Pip jumps from a whaleboat and is lost in the vast ocean. Later, and by utter chance, the Pequod happens upon and rescues Pip, but he has gone crazy from the experience. Not long after, Queequeg becomes sick and believes he is going to die. At his request, the ship’s carpenter constructs a coffin for him. But eventually, Queequeg recovers. ©Activity Connection Care Package - approved for free distribution – Moby-Dick: A Man’s Story – Page !2 of !4 When a typhoon strikes the Pequod, the ship is illuminated with electrical fire, which Ahab takes as a sign that his quest is about to be fulfilled. However, Starbuck sees it as a bad omen and considers killing the captain. Upon the storm’s passing, a crewmember falls from the ship’s masthead and drowns. As they near the Equator, Ahab senses that Moby Dick is within his grasp. The Pequod encounters two other whaling vessels, the Rachel and the Delight, both of which have had recent fatal contact with the white whale. The captain of the Rachel pleads with Ahab to help them search for his son, who is lost at sea aboard a whaleboat that Moby Dick has towed away. Stubbornly refusing to abandon his quest, Ahab rejects the captain’s plea and continues his own mad pursuit. Finally, Moby Dick is sighted, and the crew of the Pequod hunts him over the course of three days. The whale targets Ahab each time the whaleboats are launched. Ahab’s first whaleboat is rammed and destroyed, and on the second day, the whale strikes and drags Fedallah the harpooner, ensnared in a fishing line, to his death. Starbuck then positions the Pequod between his captain and the angry whale. On the third day, as Moby Dick surfaces again and attacks, the crew can see Fedallah’s corpse lashed to his side. Ishmael is thrown from his whaleboat, a good distance from the Pequod. The whale rams the Pequod and sinks it; Ahab becomes tangled in a harpoon line and is dragged to his death. The whirlpool created by the sinking ship then pulls all of the remaining harpoon boats and crews under—except for Ishmael, who had been thrown clear. As he watches everything disappear under the water, Ishmael sees Queequeg’s coffin surface. He swims to it and floats atop the coffin for days until at last he is rescued by the crew of the Rachel, still searching for their lost whaleboat. Trivia Questions and Answers 1. Melville’s masterpiece was published in the U.S. under the title Moby-Dick; however, its first publication in London a month earlier featured a different title. What was it? Answer: The Whale 2. Melville dedicated Moby-Dick to another great American author who influenced the final rewrite of his book after the two met in 1850. Who was it? Answer: Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter 3. True or False: More than 10,000 copies of Moby-Dick sold while Melville was alive.
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