In Chapter 116, “The Dying Whale,” we see that the Pequod has killed four whales, one of which was killed by Ahab’s boat. In this chapter Ahab opens up more about his own turmoil and inner thoughts, what he believes in and what he worships. While killing the the whale, he notices that the whales always turn their heads towards the sun, as if they were worshipping it in their final moments; “He too worships fire; most faithful, broad, baronial vassal of the sun!” (Melville 539). Ahab then goes on to discuss the similarities between both living things on land and in sea. This part of the novel almost feels like I’m reading a Shakespeare play, I can feel and understand the emotions that Ahab is feeling, his deep feelings of connection with the ocean. Ahab tells us that he may have been born on sea, but he belongs on the water; “Born of earth, yet suckled by the sea; though hill and valley mothered me, ye billows are my foster-brothers!” (Melville 540).

I think the purpose that this chapter is serving is to remind us that both man and whale, livings things on land and living things in the sea, are all connected and the same. A whale may worship the sun, the same way a human might’ve in ancient times. We are no better than those animals that live in the ocean, they are our brothers and sisters of this earth, and it is important for us to recognize that. However, of course, this doesn’t stop Ahab and the rest of the Pequod from killing whales for money, perhaps showing the superiority complex that humans have developed.