Author Archives: Dianna Sittidet

The Mast Head – How Romantic

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It’d probably be easy to imagine yourself on a ship, and maybe you have been on a ship at some point in your life, but I think Ishmael really makes the idle yet active task on being atop the mast-head a bit romantic. Romanticism encapsulates the idea of emotion over rationality, of being in the moment. There needs to be a sense of calm. Now, there probably won’t be any idea of calm when encountering a whale, or being so high up on the mast-head if you’re afraid of heights, but Ishmael describes the job as such:

“There you stand, lost in the infinite series of the sea, with nothing ruffled but the waves. The tranced ship indolently rolls; the drowsy trade wings blow; everything resolves you into languor.” (169)

Languor. Tiredness. The ship itself is tranced by the sea, hypnotized by the pattern that often causes sea-sickness for sailors present atop of the ship. Even so, Ishmael addresses the reader with many “yous” after this chunk of text I present, and it makes me wonder as to how we’re supposed to think about the idea of how tediousness this seems. He’s directly talking about a job that often causes sailors to be tired, but I think there’s this idea of a good and bad tired. On another note, there’s also something about standing up from a high place and looking down at the world as something to be conquered. Even though the vast majority of the sea is unknowable, there’s this idea of high and mightiness based on the position of the mast-head on the Pequod. Personifying and Romanticizing the ship is also something that helps ground these sailors, something terrestrial despite their job at sea. They have to be attached to the very thing that keeps them afloat.

Chapter 17-18 (Thoughts on “The Other”)

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For the past seventeen chapters, Ishmael has reflected on religion a multitude of times. Each conversation tends to revolve around Queequeg’s “Pagan” actions, and I can’t help but feel like Melville really emphasizes the idea of “the other.” First, Ishmael recounts in chapter 17 of Queequeg silently fasting. “But when a man’s religion becomes really frantic; when it is a positive torment to him; and, in fine, makes this earth of ours an uncomfortable inn to lodge in; then I think it high time to take that individual aside and argue the point with him.” (94) Religion is brought it when it becomes a bother to Ishmael, when it starts to become a lot more foreign and unfamiliar. We had Mapple be highly emotional during the sermon, and Ishmael didn’t necessarily comment on that. It’s not different to him, it isn’t “other.” I could argue that in this day and age, many people use religion as an excuse to do highly extreme things. Part of me wonders if Queequeg did this in the name of the right “God,” would Ishmael still feel the same way despite claiming that there needs to be a means to argue?

And right after this chapter, we have Captain Bildad demands to see Queequeg’s papers. There’s this need for acclimation towards the majority, right as Bildad says “He must show that he’s converted. Son of darkness,’ he added, turning to Queequeg, “art thou at present in communion with any christian church?” (96), it becomes clear that the unfamiliarity towards a pagan cannibal’s presence and ways are unwelcome. They haven’t taken the time to be as open as Ishmael had been despite his initial confusion. I can only imagine the future development from here on out, but in all honesty, there’s this whole spiel about these whaling outcasts that just don’t fit in, even on a ship with each other.

Chapter 7 – The Chapel (And Death.)

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Ishmael finds himself entering a Whaleman’s chapel within this chapter, talking about his observations and feelings towards the idea of death. Part of me feels similarly towards his feelings about plaques, and while it is easy to imagine the countenance on the people he sees in the middle of mourning, I think this chapter puts into perspective on how people are supposed to understand and tackle the idea of a loved one dying. (Or anyone dying in general for that matter.) Ishmael himself doesn’t seem entirely bothered by the idea of death as we’ve seen, but he reflects this specific idea. “…yet lies antique Adam who died sixty round centuries ago; how it is that we still refuse to be comforted for those who we nevertheless maintain are dwelling in unspeakable bliss; why all the living so strive to hush all the dead…” (42) Ishmael seems baffled by the idea of people grieving loss at the idea of (Christian) heaven being a better place.

Additionally, he also makes a point about how those who embark for specific work or journeys are paid while others are not. There’s merit in how a man’s life is held. Going back to the plaques, I believe Melville’s intention of putting them in this chapter preface’s the idea that we are not necessarily supposed to feel anything at all. From Ishmael’s standpoint, there isn’t any sense of grief or personal connection. Why should these plaques take up a whole/half a page? Is there any true significance other than the idea that the whaling journey he is about to embark on might have him turn into nothing but a plaque as well? Is someone going to grieve him? Melville makes the chapter foreboding, and it changes the tone from the previous chapters before.

Week 5 : Extracting Value

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Simply put, I think the extracts chapter really put into perspective of what the audience can expect out of the book. Take a shot every time you read the word “Leviathan,” and I’m sure you’ll be feeling it by the end. Job, Psalms, Isaiah, Rabeleis, Lord Bacon’s Version of the Psalms, Paradise Lost, Ibid, list goes on. I personally know the Leviathan as a mythical creature in different kinds of media, but knowing its history from the Hebrew Bible, it goes to show just how much a Whale represented back then. It’s this huge, imposing, mythical creature to these people in the whaling industry, and I can already picture the kind of damage that is going to happen in this book. I specifically want to connect this description and this mention of Leviathan to a point Ishmael makes in chapter 1.

He mentions this large chunk about money and payment, saying, “Again, I always go to sea as a sailor, because they make a point of paying me for my trouble, whereas they never pay passengers a single penny that I ever heard of…The act of paying is perhaps the most uncomfortable infliction that the two orchard thieves entailed upon us. But being paid,–what will compare with it?” (6) We understand from the background of whaling that the industry utilizes (I hope) most parts of the animal, more specifically for things like blubber and oil. Ishmael makes it clear that going to sea as a sailor has more of a benefit than a passenger thanks to the work involved in such. Going after this “Leviathan” like creature surely poses a monetary benefit, but I think that this passage spells disaster. With how thick of a book Moby Dick is, I am so certain that Melville is loading this up to be a set of trial and tribulation that doesn’t end up keeping Ishmael’s monetary attention. I get a selfish kind of read from his statement about being paid, and while I can agree that getting paid is a great feeling, this Leviathan creature has to be humbling, or else I’m going to be very disappointed.

Poetics of Planetary Water

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Reading Mentz’s essay on The Blue Humanities, while more extensive than the Gillis article from the week before, really helped but into perspective how vast the train of thought towards the topic can be. The gears only turned in my head after reading this specific chunk, “The reason to study the water today, as I would phrase the point now, is that we are going to be seeing more of it, closer up, in the future. Rising sea levels and high-intensity rainstorms are making our environment wetter.” Water is an ever-changing substance, and even thanks to the long lasting impacts of global warming, water is what fuels life, yet is something that can also destroy it. Water is everywhere, and just as Mentz put it, is close to us in many ways, shapes, and forms. Whether or not we choose to acknowledge what water can do for us is up to the individual, but blue humanities, as it turns out, is starting to shape the way I think about tackling Moby Dick. Sure, I can simply think about water as a simple substance that I drink or as a recreational thing to swim in or exist by, but why is the human relationship towards it so important? What drives human nature to want to “bond” with a liquid of life? Honestly, it’s human nature to want to discover the unknown. People fear what they do not understand, and even though we’ve discovered many things about the land, the sea, and the sky, I do believe the sea is still the scariest there is. It is lots of uncharted territory, but needing to strive towards the knowledge of how to approach it safely, I’m certain humans aren’t ever going to stop. It’s ego, it’s hubris, it’s passion, all in all, tackling the vast blue of the ocean through the lens of humanities rather than science seems a little more humbling. Our environments change because of water, and while science gives us the numbers, arts and words allow for a sort of empathy that’s required to even spare the blink of an eye.

Extra Credit:Steve Mentz Questions

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1.) What importance does Blue Humanities hold for you? How would you say this topic works along existing fields of marine science?
2.) Despite a primary focus on the ocean, are there any other bodies of water that you think humans can explore just as in depth?
3.) Why does poetry offer such a lens into planetary waters in comparison to essays or other academic leaning books?
4.) Are there any other notable authors you look towards when speaking about or studying Blue Humanities besides Melville or Gillis?
5.) If you could chose one word to describe human relationship with the ocean, what would you pick and why?

What Moby Dick Means To Me – W3

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Hoare really makes a case to proving that Moby Dick is a hotshot of a book. I can immediately tell how passionate he is about it with every single word he uses to describe it. Simply calling it “good” seems a bit too simple, but I can’t necessarily judge it until I’ve obviously read it. His opening line is what really helped me form my initial opinion. “For years, ‘Moby-Dick’ defeated me.” I can already imagine not only the length of the book, but the boredom to get to me quickly in the midst of reading about a mutiny, a whale, and a dude named Ishmael. Even so, I think the way he puts Moby Dick on such a high horse pedestal sounds a little too far? Sure, a book can be life changing to this extent, but can I really expect this about Moby Dick?

Hoare mentions how “It’s barely a book at all. It’s more an act of transference, of ideas and evocations hung around the vast and unknowable shape of the whale…” and honestly, based off of my initial knowledge, I’d have to slightly disagree with that statement. A book is a book, and while a book could be different for someone else, it’s still something that tells a story. A story is already ideas, evocations, and unknowable to anyone but the author and intended audience. There’s no incorrect way to read something, but then again, why is a whale such a center part in the 1800’s? What’s missing other than sitting down and cracking the book open to dive right into the vast ocean? With the way Hoare speaks about it, I’m just sincerely hoping that the book really does knock my socks off. I’d kind of hate to be disappointed after being hyped up after reading his article. I hadn’t necessarily though about the book’s impact on others either, it just goes to show how lots of different pieces of literature stand the test of time.

Emerson and King – Honest Review

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I’m going to be honest and say that it probably wasn’t the best to be trying to write about this at around 10:30 PM, but I’m going to go ahead and do my best to break down what I understand and what I’m gathering from both. I’ll start with King purely because it is shorter. Reading about the tale that inspired Melville’s book in the first place doesn’t strike me as entirely horrifying. While it is a scary and unfortunate circumstance that occurred many many years ago, I do not find myself surprised by what has occurred. Human nature is often driven to limits and a breaking point, and it is only “natural” for dire circumstances to occur. Cannibalism thanks to extreme starvation from a lack of available/nutritious food? Yikes! I find the sort of questions that are phrased in a “Would you do this if you had to?” when it comes to scenarios like this are a little unreliable. I personally would obviously never condone or commit the act itself, but in a desperate attempt, I wouldn’t really know how my mind would justify it. If Moby Dick is actually based off of this retelling that includes the horrific nature of whaling back in the day, color me intrigued as boring as I thought the book would be based off of its initial length.

In terms of Emerson’s essay, I like how he puts this specific quote into perspective. “Man is thus metamorphosed into a thing, into many things.” The word thing seems entirely impersonal, a thing could be anything, as repetitive as that sounds. Man itself has evolved, made many advancements, and continues to strive for greater things to this day (at least I hope.) It is no surprise that it makes me think about the intriguing way he frames the way someone thinks about themselves. What purpose does someone have unless it is shaped by the very “things” around them? Ultimately, I do think his essay is something that strives to tell someone to move into action. There are a lot of phrases around there that say the world does not revolve around oneself, but even if it doesn’t, why not take knowledgeable advantages?

Hello guys, gals, and other pals!

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Hello everyone! The name is Dianna Sittidet (She/They). I am 22 years old and a transfer student from Mesa College. This is my 3rd semester as an ECL major at SDSU since transferring. I’m excited to tackle my ability of withstanding larger books with Moby Dick considering it is such a classic within the literary world. I genuinely do not know much about it other than it being about some “guy” pursuing and being obsessed with a whale. That description alone didn’t sound too engaging to me, but now that a class is requiring it, why the heck shouldn’t I analyze it further and give it a chance to potentially and seriously wow me? 

I’m not entirely sure as to what I fully want to do after graduation, but all I know is that I want writing to be involved. I’m always finding ways to inspire myself from different pieces of media, whether it be books, games, movies, TV shows, I’ll never fail to stare at something and have it creatively affect the way I write or explore the world. If that didn’t explain it, I am very much into video games and TTRPGs such as D&D and Monster of the Week. I do not stray away from calling myself a nerd with interests! I’m currently playing through Persona 5 Royal and Nier:Automata, but if we really wanted to get into my most solidified interest, I am a HUGE fan of the horror genre. Psychological, supernatural, analog, you name it. I’m always looking for new things to give me a freight, and while the interest can get a little morbid, I think the horror genre can be one of the most interesting things out there with how versatile it is. 

I’m writing this in the midst of discovering a new band called Inkubus Sukkubus, and I’d recommend their song Vampyre Erotica. (If I had to pinpoint another horror interest, I’m big into vampires.) 

I cannot stress enough how stoked I am to hear about everyone’s opinions on the book rather than the book itself, especially those who have not picked it up before. I know I myself will be brutally honest about my review this semester, especially with our seminar set up. 

And in case I don’t see you, good morning, good afternoon, and good evening!

Dianna Sittidet during Christmas of 2023, wearing an ugly christmas sweater featuring Ghostface from the Scream franchise.