Whiteness

I found it very interesting that chapter 42 was devoted entirely to this idea of “whiteness.” Ishmael says that the whale Moby Dick bothers him because of its whiteness. He then goes on to describe that to him whiteness is not necessarily a good thing. To him it represents unnatural occurrences like albinism and contrasts contexts in which whiteness is a good thing, like expressing beauty and joy, to where it is not.  He begins to list different examples of whiteness like a Native American legend and albinism. He makes these remarks which are the exact opposite of what white generally represents which is clean, good, true, and purity. He says that when people encounter whiteness it is alarming because it is not usually associated with terror. He then gives two examples of a mariner and a native Indian of Peru fearing the whiteness of the sea and the whiteness of snow. Moby Dick seems to encompass this idea of whiteness and be the ultimate example. Ahab and Ishmael seem to have differing opinions of the whale Moby Dick’s intentions and whether or not they are evil. This leads me to wonder exactly what Moby Dick/White Whale symbolizes throughout the novel.