The Essex reflects the internal horrors that one can face when pushed to their absolute limits. As Ishmael himself notes the sea as a romanticized experience that men must run to rather than the safety of the shore, the Essex falls short of that romance when its men were left stranded and starving to the point of cannibalism. Melville takes this tragedy and reimagines new parameters for man, a fictionalized world that speaks to real life tragedies, analogized in the form of a tyrant who takes this boat beyond its limits and ultimately destroys everyone with it. Melville’s romance for the sea is preemptively shaped by tragedy, as seen in the early chapters of Moby Dick. Ishamel has idealized his voyage on the Pequod, yet there is an internal hesitancy as the ship is preparing to take off among other warning signs, immediately sealing this tale as one of misfortune. For Melville, romance and misfortune are fated together, whether this is consciously noted by Ishamel.
The Essex’s fate led to the cannibalization of its shipmates, notably two teenaged boys one of which was the cousin of George Pollard Jr., the survivor who shares his story of the Essex. Melville uses the real life cannibalism from the Essex in his fictional piece, figuratively having the leader devour his own shipmates for his insatiable hunger to conquer nature. The men on the Essex were left to the fate of an unforgiving and endless ocean, left feeble. Yet, Moby Dick presents a man who cannot accept his powerlessness against the open sea, going to inhumane lengths to conquer the unconquerable.
The Essex is a tragic story that immediately draws your attention with its horrible images and tragedy. It’s easy to see how Melville was able to create a world based on the events of the Essex, drawing from reality as a basis for Ishamel’s journey on the Pequod. From the many mirrored images we can see from the real life story of survival, Moby Dick takes the lived experience of Pollard and weaves it into a tale that speaks to something much bigger than any single individual.
Hello Graciela,
Great post. I found King’s article very interesting. I also found the real life incident of the Essex to be both terrifying and fascinating. You make a great point about how the Essex reflects the internal horrors of a person when tested. I was unfamiliar with the plot of Moby Dick, and while reading this article it brought up the question of how much the real life incident is in the book.
Reading about the cannibalism that occurred within the crew of the Essex was what caught my attention the most. The crew came across some islands and convinced the captain of the ship that they were filled with cannibals. However, Pollard and his crew ended up taking part in cannibalism themselves. Although it was in an inhumane way, they did what they had to do to survive. With limited solutions, you have to work with what you have. And like you mentioned, this tragedy shows what man is faced with his limits are pushed.