Class summary 2/2/12

1. Race Relations - Tolerance?

a. Early Chapters Ishmael and Queequeg: Chapters 3 and 10 both describe relationship as marriage like (share a bed, Ishmael smokes from Quequeg’s pipe)

Later Chapters romantic?

b. Crew Relations (Chapter 27, Harpooners and Mates)

i. Differences between relations on land and out to sea

c. Whiteness not necessarily a good thing - chp 42 - (Emily)

d. Each character is so quick to judge Queequeg as inferior because of his complexion and religion, when in fact Queequeg is easily one of the more tolerant and talented character that Melville introduces.  Furthermore, those who accept him for who he is, specifically Ishmael, are greatly rewarded throughout the novel by the good deeds that Queequeg does for them - Will Cox

2. Religious Allusions
A. Church Service (chapters 2 and 9)
1. “Blackness of Darkness”
2. Father Mapple “Preaching the truth in the face of Falsehood.”

ii. Story about Jonah, different explanation than most would initially rationalize

B. Allusions to Bible and Shakespeare - Basis of Melville’s reading

i. Foreshadowing in Biblical Names(Ryan)

ii. Ahab, Ishmael, Elijah

C. Initially told all people on Pequod had to be Christian
i. interesting that the were okay with Queepeg, showed they valued skill over mentality

D. Comparisons between Moby Dick and God

i. Can be in more than one place at a time, somewhat immortal, “intelligent malignity”

ii. Ahab as going against God’s will by going after Moby Dick (Kerry)

3. Ahab

• Monomaniac- Grudge against whale

i. Ahab searching for truth (Chapter 35 Masthead, Ishmael talks about the mysteries of the ocean and only seeing a small part of a big picture)   

• blindly on a quest, tragic quest?

a. Fatal Flaw as in Greek dramas (Worth)
b. Monomaniac

• Chp 52, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Poem)

i. Foreshadowing- a Mission destined to fail (Ryan)
ii. Crew met death chasing a dream/fate

• Fate, freewill, and chance (chapter 35)- how do all of these relate to Ahab’s desire to kill Moby Dick

4. Ishmael as a narrator

• The narrator is more like a normal person, which makes it understandable why he is so easy to like.  Melville wastes no time doing this, establishing a human to human relationship in the first line when he says, "Call me Ishmael."  This establishes a relationship of ease, and makes it easy to follow him, as if listening to a friend.

• Not a “plot driving character,” which also makes readers more comfortable with his perceptions (Tyler)
• Otherwise would be a single plot and less interesting, probably

• Informative Narrator: Why does Ishmael provide so much additional information, ie chapters on Cetology 32 and whaling in 33(Ben)

• Alluding language and Romanticism- Ishmael’s longing to be at sea (Jenny and Mike)

Whales

• Fascination with whales, because of size and mass
• not fair fight between Ahab and Whale
• Leviathan = Lucifer?
• Moby Dick is something of a symbol for power?
• Moby-Dick  or Moby Dick
• Ahab sees Moby dick as equal

Places of interest

• Nantucket
• New Bedford whaling museum
• Multiple nationalities of crew

1. Overall quest (I think chapter 47 does a nice job providing the reader with a metaphorical picture of fate, freewill, and chance, as it relates to the woven mat)
1. tragic quest
2. private revenge and for humankind
1. madness - chp. 36, 41
2. blasphemy - chp. 19, 36, 37
2. Ishmael
1. suicidal initially
2. Chp. 42, relationship with whale
3. Changing point of view
1. initially first person retrospective
4. Reference to Moby Dick as “Job’s whale” chp. 41
5. Biblical Ishmael
1. sole survivor, social renewal?
6. Reference to time period like knights
1. Moby dick - dragon
2. Ahab - King protecting territory (boat) against dragon (whale)
7. Most important chapters (so the book said) 1-13, 23, 36-38, 40-42, 93, 99

    a.  Chapters 1-13 are important, because I feel that the story changes direction a bit after Ishmael and Queequeg arrive in Nantucket