Category Archives: Essay 1

Essay #1: On rumors and isolation

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When it comes to rumors, people often go out of their way to exaggerate or downplay the situation at hand. These rumors do not have to come from land or be about anything that’s on land; there are rumors circulating in and about the ocean as well. We have to ask ourselves this: are these rumors actually true? How bad is it compared to what is really happening? In Moby Dick, Herman Melville asks us to consider the accuracy of these rumors while drawing attention to the effects of the ocean on the mind. In open water, isolation can shape the mind and make us naĩve to such assumptions.

In chapter 41, Ishmael learns of the white whale Captain Ahab and his crew are going to hunt, but he goes to great lengths to ruminate on the rumors spread by the whalemen that paint the whale as this fierce and formidable foe. Regarding the rumors, he writes:

“…not only do fabulous rumors naturally grow out of the very body of all surprising terrible events … but, in maritime life, far more than in that of terra firma, wild rumors abound, wherever there is any adequate reality for them to cling to. And as the sea surpasses the land in this matter, so the whale fishery surpasses every other sort of maritime life, in the wonderfulness and fearfulness of the rumors which sometimes circulate there.” (Melville 195)

This is a very meaty passage, but it highlights an important difference between how rumors spread over the ocean and how they spread on land, or in his words, “terra firma.” The ocean takes up much more space on Earth than on land, and it is much more sparse. Because of its openness, there are less people who can verify these “wild” and “fabulous” rumors, since they are mostly grounded on personal experiences. Without anyone nearby to back up (or refute) their claims in this isolatory environment, these rumors are allowed to run rampant.

There is something “supernatural” about the whale that whalemen constantly make rumors about, yet there is seemingly no one in the ocean who can stop these rumors from spreading. The White Whale is a very large creature, and it would take a lot of harpoons to take it down. Its size, along with the many “deaths” it has caused, instills a great terror among those who have encountered it, including those who were exposed to the rumors and have yet to encounter it. The whaling industry, as Melville notes, basks “in the wonderfulness and feafulness of the rumors which sometimes circulate there.”

Why is it, then, that we come to accept these “wonderful” and “fearful” rumors? Why do we welcome them even if we know that they come from some crazy whalemen who know whales no better than we do? Continuing in chapter 41, Ishmael answers these questions:

“Alone, in such remotest waters, that though you sailed a thousand miles, and passed a thousand shores, you would not come to any chiseled hearth-stone, or aught hospitable beneath that part of the sun; in such latitudes and longitudes, pursuing too such a calling as he does, the whaleman is wrapped by influences all tending to make his fancy pregnant with many a mighty birth.” (Melville 195-196)

This implies that in a more isolated space, people find comfort in these rumors, acting like a sort of coping mechanism for them. Melville uses the motherly comparison in the phrase “to make his fancy pregnant with many a mighty birth” to illustrate the malleability of the mind–about how our minds are constantly preoccupied with the ocean’s vastness. This vastness is the “influence” to the mind; we are isolated, and without anyone to talk to, this isolation makes us submissive. Our mind made malleable, we are willing to accept any “wonderful,” “fearful” rumors that we come across “in such remotest waters.”

In conclusion, Moby-Dick by Herman Melville is a novel that ruminates on isolation and how our minds are shaped by the ocean. Chapter 41 gives us a taste of the rumors fishermen spread throughout the ocean, then shows us how we eventually give in to these rumors. All alone in the ocean, its openness is all you can think about. Eventually, it makes you submissive, ready to accept the rumors and spread them to anyone nearby.

Short Paper One: Suicide, the Sea, and Salvation

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“Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet…” (3).

This segment is at odds with previous discussions of the ocean in the novel, as Melville previously spent copious amounts of descriptions and excerpts from whalers and whaleships describing the dangers of the sea and her creatures. However, it is meant to stand out, as it differintaites the author from the characters. While the excerpts portion of the novel is to give context to the broader picture of the world’s experience with whales, chapter one introduces a different perspective – one that looks at whales not as dangerous creatures capable of significant threat, but of adventer and solution. 


By opening the novel with Ismael, the central narrator, discussing the grey temptations of a dull life, Melville introduces the sea as a primary character capable of duality, acting as both an oasis of sanity and salvation of refuge. This description, beyond Ismael’s blatant introduction of his preferred name, is the first that the readers get of Melville’s protagonist. From this, he is bored to a point of suicide – lingering into coffin warehouses involuntarily, attending stranger’s funerals purpisefully, feeling the cold, boring stillness of unsatisfaction and November depression. His solution for this, for suicide, is to go to the ocean and find adventure within her waves. In his words, “this is my substitute for pistol and ball” (3). 


In this section, the sea is a place of salvation and opportunity – somewhere that Ismael looks to with open eyes and an excited perspective. On land, he finds himself lingering in areas close to death and its permanence. However, by seeking out the ocean and her fluidity, Ismael is rejecting the concrete perspective of the sea being a place of danger and death, even despite the foreword given by Melville and the later scenes of the Chapel and it’s deathly inhabitants. Instead, Ismael is introducing the sea as a central character and solution to life’s most tempting boredoms – a place that acts as a substitute for suicide and the lingerings of melancoly. 

The diction used in the quote above is deliberate and calculated. Involuntarily, Ismael’s acitons on land are tired, repeatative, and full of despndency, yet not deliberately so: His pausings before the coffin warehouses is “involuntary” and he’s “in the rear” of the funerals he comes across. The trip to the sea is the first decision that the reader sees from Ismael, centralizing the ocean as a legitimate solution to the everyday melancholies of life. The irony in this decision is apparent to everyone but Ismael, especially given the multiple introductions by Melville. However, this perspective of the ocean and the monsters she contains is not Ismael’s – going to the ocean and facing the potential dangers in the waters is a more valuable solution to his depression than his current life, making the sea and her inhabitants a refuge instead of a possible death sentence. 


While characters aboard the Pequod seek financial gain from their exploits and catches, Ismael’s primary motivation to join the three year exhibition are not aligned with monetary profit, but in salvation from daily grievances and boredom. This trip, in all it’s confusing turns, cold watchful shifts, and relative isolation, is Ismael’s “substitute for pistol and ball” (3).

Marley Arreola

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Moby Dick

Ch.17: Ramadan

An Awakening that Precedes Ishmael’s Christianity

“Heaven have mercy on us all–Presbyterians and Pagans alike–for we are all somehow dreadfully cracked about the head, and sadly need mending” (pg. 90).

The above passage in Ch.17, titled “The Ramadan” displays a specific moment in time where Ishmael’ religious beliefs are slowly being questioned. From the moment he meets and becomes close to Queequeg, we see a gradual development in Ishmael’s character. For Ishmael, he grapples with his faith, and Queequeg as a character is a reference point for us to better define Ishmael. 

Ishmael, as a Christian, grew up thinking that his religion is superior. However, in this passage, there is no show of arrogant superiority. Instead, there is a display of the Christian “love thy neighbour”: “Heaven have mercy on us all–Presbyterians and Pagans alike…”. This is a shocking but still nice surprise to us, as Ishmael, having been with Queequeg for some time now, sees his Pagan counterpart as the caring, affectionate, and patient man that he is. He then goes on to say that “we are all somehow dreadfully cracked about the head, and sadly need mending.” The rest of this line is a clear and humble acknowledgement of both his and other people’s stubbornness and pride in their beliefs. This heady thought might come off as endearing, but there is still an underlying tone of the Christian man who was born a sinner and must work for the Lord’s forgiveness. 

This passage at the beginning of the chapter presents to us Ishmael’s honest effort to be open-minded to another’s religion, as we all gravitate towards different beliefs and ideologies. It is admirable for one man to be strong in his faith, but he will go crazy trying to persuade someone who doesn’t want to follow the same religion. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. The last half of the passage tells us that we all need some kind of help. Some kind of outward belief to make us better. This mustn’t be confused with strictly Christian faith as the only healer, but instead we must search for our own beliefs to find our own mending within them. 

It is crazy to think that a Christian is sharing a bed with a Pagan, but this worldly experience for Ishmael helps to gradually open his eyes beyond the Christian outlook, and in turn, we get some beautiful, introspective passages that clearly depict a development in our protagonist’s character. Queequeg is the mirror for Ishmael, and something inside of him begins to germinate (metaphorically and physically) as he interacts with Queequeg. The above passage is a result of spending time with Queequeg’s oxymoronic character: a tattooed, scruffy, Pagan cannibal. Beyond these labels, he is such a sweet person to Ishmael. Like it was mentioned above, Queequeg’s kind nature allows Ishmael to have these epiphanies about his religion, his feelings, and ultimately, a pure awakening of the soul. This is what it means to be human.

Short Essay: Close Reading 1

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In one interesting choice of many, Melville named two consecutive chapters the same way; chapters 26 and 27 are both called “Knights and Squires.” For the first one, he spends most of his time describing the knight in shining armor that happens to be the first mate of the Pequod: the great Starbuck. His qualities are all manly, dignified, serene, and heroic. Melville’s language is full of flourish and can get downright soppy. In chapter 27, he reveals who the other knights are, which are the second and third mate respectively, Stubb and Flask. They are not as regal as Starbuck, but they are still portrayed as dignified, rugged warriors. Then, to finish the medieval reference, Melville describes our squires, which are the three harpooneers; Queequeg, Tashtego, and Daggoo, one for every mate. At the end of this, however, Melville abruptly shifts his tone. In page 132, he writes, “Curious to tell, this imperial negro, Ahasuerus Daggoo, was the Squire of little Flask, who looked like a chess-man beside him. As for the residue of the Pequod’s company, be it said, that at the present day not one in two of the many thousand men before the mast employed in the American whale fishery, are Americans born, though pretty nearly all of the officers are. Herein it is the same with the American whale fishery as with the American army and military and merchant navies, and the engineering forces employed in the construction of the American Canals and Railroads. The same, I say, because in all these cases the native American liberally provides the brains, the rest of the world as generously supplying the muscles.” In other words, Melville initially uses medieval imagery as an analogy to build up the whaling ship hierarchies,  but we can see how in this passage he drops the curtain to reveal the exploitative nature of this and other systems our country was built on, which contrasts our romantic illusion of our nation’s greatness with the stark reality that it was built on the backs of the marginalized. 

In the first sentence of the passage, we can see how Daggoo, a Squire, is described as “imperial,” a term for royalty. He is obviously physically superior to Flask, as Melville calls Flask a “chess-man.” Having spent all the time up until now in these two chapters reinforcing the typical medieval hierarchy, Melville switches the language associated with Daggoo, who is of a lower rank, to recognize that there is nothing about Flask that should make him inherently superior to Daggoo; in fact, it should logically be the contrary. In the next sentence, however, he reveals what gives Flask authority over Daggoo, and that is that Flask is “American born.” In fact, while most whalers in America are immigrants, almost all officers are “native” Americans. This pattern repeats, Melville notes, in most other industries and systems that keep the country running, like the military or the builders of “the American Canals and Railroads.” Melville puts it eloquently in the last sentence: “in all these cases the native American liberally provides the brains, the rest of the world as generously supplying the muscles.” In other words, the working class in America is composed of native born Americans (more specifically, white Americans) who hold positions of power, and the rest (the ones who do the heavy lifting) are foreigners and first generation immigrants. Xenophobia and racism were 

It is interesting that Melville chose the analogy of knights and squires for this dynamic between mate and harpooneer. Historically, knights were heroic warriors and they did the fighting, while squires had the role of assisting them with their equipment and didn’t fight a lot despite being trained for it. In the book, the mates are called the knights when it is actually the harpooneers (the ones being called squires) who go hand to hand with Leviathan and deliver the killing blow. We have not heard of the mates actually doing anything laborious up to this point in the story, while we know the harpooneers’ role clearly. Nevertheless, Ishmael reserves most of the heroic language in chapter 26 and 27 for the mates. The mates and the harpooneers seem to have reverse orders in the analogy of knights and squires, a sarcastic commentary on the part of Melville that the system gives recognition to the wrong party. In short, the harpooneers work like knights but get the same amount of recognition as squires. Society is built on the backs of people who are treated as second rate, but their contributions go largely ignored.

Essay 1 – Queer Offerings in Chowder: Clam or Cod?

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In chapter 15, the audience is introduced to a wonderful bowl of chowder; inside the chowder isn’t only a couple of clams or a chopped up cod, but a new understanding and acceptance of who Ishmael is: as the other. It is here in chapter 15 that Ishmael is confronted with a perceived threat outside the Try Pots establishment. Despite knowing exactly what it is he is looking at, Ishmael can’t help but see the gallows within the trees and hanging rope. “…[T]wo of them,” he writes, “…one for Queequeg, and one for me. It’s ominous…” (Melville 73).

Ishmael is now visibly queer as he and Queequeg walk through town. Two men, a Christian and a Pagan, walking through together. As they do so, Ishmael is being perceived and is fully aware of it and is completely uncomfortable with being perceived; the first time he is being othered and walking in Queequeg’s steps—both metaphorically and physically in this instance. Ishmael seeing the gallows among the trees illustrates his anxiety with being considered the other. As someone who has othered Queequeg not that long ago, Ishmael is now understanding what that feels like.

When they arrive at the Try Pots, they are asked what they’d like to eat: clam or cod chowder? Ishmael answers with a question completely rattled by the ‘gallows’ outside. Upon eating the clam chowder—and asking and eating cod seconds—Ishmael regains his confidence. When asked which he’d like for breakfast tomorrow, he boldly replies, “Both…” (Melville 75). In this moment, Ishmael is fully accepting his queerness, even going so far as to argue on behalf of Queequeg, arguing that Queequeg should keep his harpoon—a concern Ishmael had that first night they met. Ishmael realises that the harpoon is apart of his partner, and as such, does all he can to fight for Queequeg’s right to have his harpoon over night.

Through his saying “Both…”, Ishmael’s mind is open for new experiences; no longer is he the closed-minded man who was fearful of Queequeg, but now a man who sees his partner for who he is, not what his is (Melville 75). When othered, Ishmael is fearful initially, but with his partner by his side, he realises that being an other, while initially devastating, allows one to live freely, to love openly—whether it be a Pagan harpooner or a damn good cod chowder.

Essay 1- “Historians would say they were roommates”

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In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, Melville uses the room and bed Ishmael and Queequeg share together as a space where companionship can transcend into romance and as a place where they can act without judgement. This moment reveals how Melville turns a simple act such as sharing a room and a bed into an exploration of intimacy between the two men without care, showing how a shared space can allow romance to develop. By depicting Ishmael and Queequeg in this intimate setting, Melville also challenges the societal norms during this time period by using their companionship to mirror the closeness which is typically seen with heterosexual marriages. This can be seen in chapter 10, A Bosom Friend as Ishmael is comparing his and Queequeg’s relationship to a married couple. Melville writes,

“How it is I know not; but there is no place like a bed for confidential disclosures between friends. Man and wife, they say, there open the very bottom of their souls to each other; and some old couples often lie and chat over old times till nearly morning. Thus, then, in our hearts’ honeymoon, lay I and Queequeg— a cosy, loving pair” (Melville 58)

Through Ishmael’s narration, Melville uses language that blurs the lines between friendship and marriage. By using the chosen words “man and wife” to talk about their relationship, it goes to show the height and comfortability of their relationship– that they are close enough such as a husband and wife. Married couples should also be able to and are able to talk for hours until morning time and truly enjoy each other’s company, and in this case, Ishmael and Queequeg are doing so while lying in bed together in the room they share. Ishmael compares their relationship to a “cosy, loving pair” because they are able to lie together in bed and chat for hours on end, as a couple does. This highlights that the shared room and bed are not just physical spaces where they sleep at, but a space where companionship can flourish. Melville focuses on this moment to reveal how a genuine connection between two people can form while sharing a private space due to the lack of judgment from others. By doing it this way, Melville not only illustrates the intimacy between the two men with feelings but by highlighting the environment in which those feelings can be safely expressed. This quote also highlights how being in close proximity, both emotionally and physically can allow a bond that goes beyond societal expectations to evolve into a form of intimacy that mirrors the romantic partnerships between man and woman. Two men during this period were not typically seen as a “cosy, loving pair” and by Melville depicting them in this way goes beyond “normal” masculine and feminine roles. 

Before the two men had become roommates, Ishmael’s perception of Queequeg was shaped by fear and assumptions. He would refer to Queequeg as a “savage”, expressed his discomfort at the idea of sharing a room with him, and even acknowledged his own prejudices against him. However, through sharing an intimate space, Ishmael’s perspective changes completely– what had begun in fear and judgment progressed into understanding and comfortability. The bedroom allows them to interact without judgment or care, which allows Ishmael to witness Queequeg’s true self and grow to it. From calling him a savage to calling themselves a “cosy, loving pair” clearly shows their companionship deepening beyond friendship and reaching the point of romance. 

In their room, where it is just the two of them, they are in a safe enough space to do whatever they want without judgement and they are able to live freely as a couple does. By presenting the bedroom– an intimate environment, Melville is highlighting how companionship between two men has the ability to transcend into something more where judgment and societal norms are absent. 

Through their physical closeness in a shared and private space, and the way they refer to each other as a married couple explores how companionship between the two men transcended into something more intimate— a romance. Showing that true intimacy begins in private spaces where the individuals(s) feel safe to express themselves fully. Melville uses Ishmael and Queequeg’s relationship as a way to combat societal norms because a relationship springing between two men as fast as theirs was seen as suspicious. But Melville explores the possibility of a relationship happening and because of a shared space with no judgments.

Essay 1

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Melville’s novel is peppered with chapters dedicated to illustrating the history of the various places that we inhabit throughout the book. I am focusing this essay on chapter 14 Nantucket; Particularly the exposition of the history of Nantucket. In the quote, Melville demonstrates an ongoing refusal to contribute to the erasure of the Native Americans of the land and how their contributions have been elemental in the construction of America. This passage struck me as important because Melville makes us, the readers, consider how the story of America is constructed and what is lost when truths are omitted.

The passage goes as follows: “Look now at the wondrous traditional story of how this island was settled by the red-men… in the olden times an eagle swooped down upon the New England coast, and carried off an infant Indian in his talons. With loud lament the parents saw their child borne out of sight over the wide waters. They resolved to follow in the same direction. Setting out in their canoes, after a perilous passage they discovered the island, and there they found an empty ivory casket, —the poor little Indian’s skeleton. What wonder, then, that these Nantucketers, born on the beach, should take to the sea for a livelihood! First they caught crabs and quohogs in the sand; grown bolder, they waded out with nets for more mackerel; more experienced, they pushed off in boats and captured cod; and at last, launching a navy of great ships on the sea, explored this watery world; put an incessant belt of circumnavigations round it…and in all seasons and all oceans declared everlasting war with the mightiest animated mass that has survived the flood; most monstrous and most mountainous! That Himmalehan, salt-sea mastodon,” (Melville 69-70)

The first point that I want to draw attention to is Melville’s command to the reader, “look now”. He uses it often throughout the novel when he wants the reader to pay particular mind to what he is about to say. It is the way that he emphasizes the importance of the picture he wishes to paint. With this in mind he immediately draws our attention to the next claim he makes. The story does not start with western settlement. The story begins with the settlement of the Native American on the island. In using the word ‘traditional’ to begin this story, he also does something very insteresting; he makes it clear to the reader that this is an old story that was passed down lines of generations. This claim denies the assumption that history begins when the western settlers arrive and commit the story into writing or any kind of physical permanence. He gives attributes the importance of oral tradition in creating history. I find this fascinating because the common myth that goes into creating American exceptionalism is that of a virgin and uninhabited land. That the western settlers arrived and set the land to work and produce for the building of their country. This idea would have us believe that the amount of natives present in the continent at the time of settler arrivals to be of little note. A number of so little significance as to be neglected. Within the first line, Melville dismantles this idea and posits the story of the stolen baby as a sort of origin story for all the inhabitants of nantucket, regardless of race.

I now turn my attention to the next point of interest in the excerpt. “In the olden times and eagle swooped down upon the new ngland coast and carried off an infant indian in its talons…”. He starts with the telling of a myth rather than any factual information. I think Melville understands that a history is not just built on facts but also on the mythologizing aspect. If his aim is to show the reader what a unique an powerful nation America has become then it also needs to have this mythologized history. Just like that of the founding of Rome or the founding of the Aztec empire. While he is using the modern day whalers to create this American mythology around, he is also including the founding story to create grandiosity through antiquity. In short, He claims that like other empires, America—though a young country— cannot be said to have no long history as a land. The story of Nantucket then, is a story borne out of search; much like the story of the settler search for a land of possibilities and opportunity that we have grown up with.

Short essay: Close reading #1

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When it comes to isolating yourself from others and being in the most strenuous environment, we humans tend to seek out ways to tap into our unconscious ( incomoda) state and be able to feel that sense of dopamine and pursue that freedom, which allows us to step outside ourselves and feel alive. Alone at the top of the ship’s mast surrounded by nothing, but sea and sky, Ishmael ascends himself into a dream-like trance. Herman Melville’s, “Moby Dick”, this accurate moment transforms a simple task of whale-watching into an intense reflection of the human mind. As Melville describes in this quote on Chapter 35, “ “but lulled into such such an opium-like listlessness of vacant, unconscious reverie is this absent-minded youth by the blending cadence of waves with thought, that at last he loses his identity; takes the mystic ocean at his feet for the visible image of that deep, blue, bottomless soul, pervading mankind and nature….” (172) Melville demonstrates the beauty and rhythm of the ocean can disintegrate the boundaries of thought and reality. Melville uses philosophical imagery and hypnotic language in this quote to explore the meaning of isolation and nature can be blurred by the line of self-awareness and self-loss. The passage becomes more about daydreaming, it slowly becomes a meditation form to Ishmael and how easy it is the dangers of transcending and the fragile nature of the human identity.

We describe the ocean as a marvelous one of a kind part of our existence as human beings and planet earth. We try to connect ourselves with the sea in the phrase, “..blending cadence of waves”(172), Melville starts to incorporate the language tone with rhythm and imagery in the passage mirrors of the sea; it makes you feel like you’re in a hypnotic state. He merges the sound and the mind together and creates this melodic tone of repetition and softness, just like the waves of the ocean. It makes both the reader and Ishmael be in a trance-like state. The sea’s rhythm becomes like a lullaby, almost like a natural feeling of comfort and safety, imagine like a rocking chair where your mother would carry and sing to you to fall asleep, it soothes you and forget about everything around you. Through this sensory and mental imagery, Melville uses these effects because he suggests that the power of nature can weaken the human consciousness, which I find credible, hence why some people tend to connect more and live in areas surrounded by trees and nature. We can see in the chapter how Ishmael is starting to slowly dissociate himself from everything around him and his mind starts to synchronize with something bigger and dangerous, the ocean. The more he surrounded himself  with the ocean itself, the more he started to lose himself mentally wise.

One of my preferred parts of the phrase in the chapter, “ opium-like listlessness” (172) Melville reveals both the pleasure and the danger of losing oneself in their own thoughts. The word “opium”, which defines an actual narcotic, is like an escape and intoxication and having freedom from the pain and reality. I think for Ishamel the ocean became a drug for him, and starts to seduce him into a state of numbness and forgetfulness, obviously being under the influence of a drug, which is why he uses the imagery of the word, “ opium”. Melville demonstrates to us in this scene of the chapter, that transcendency is not a part of an understanding, but more of an erasure. He demonstrates to us how Ishamel starts to lose his identity and experiences both the pleasure and terror. The sea is giving Ishamel the freedom he wanted from the beginning, but it will also consume him entirely spiritually and mentally.

The most philosophical part of the chapter to me was Ishamel being on the mast-head of the ship. The mast-head represents a place between heaven and earth, Ishamel is among the sky and sea. The higher he rises, the more he isolates himself from reality. Melville uses this metaphor for the mast-head as a separation from reality due to the fact he is up in the mast-head, which disconnects Ishamel from bottom, obviously the human world (earth). The scene reflects the balance between self-knowledge and self-loss through the unlimited whether is nature or knowledge or even faith. We see Ishmael’s identity start to fade due to the immenses of existence he confronts which makes the human thought be diminished.

Herman Melville portrays the conflict of human consciousness with a perception of wanting to transcend to a sense of freedom, even if it costs us into disappearing into a state of the unknown. Just has how Ishmael’s trance in the mast-head becomes more of a distraction for him from reality, we as humans tend to seek the same way to escape the reality of existence. It’s what makes us feel human at one point in our lives, even if it make us feel has if we are losing and have that feeling of discomfort with ourselves, it makes us be who we are.

Essay 1: Authority, Self-Awareness, and Obsession

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In the 19th century, authority at sea was absolute. The captains had the say in everything, and this unchecked power was a matter of life or death. Being able to lead means understanding your people’s capabilities, and in a whaling ship, the boat’s life are the shipmates, like organs in a body. As the brain, Ahab from Moby-Dick knows this, but instead, he uses his position to satisfy his vengeance and obsession. When Starbuck questioned Ahab’s pursuit, Ahab saw it as a motivation. He calls himself “demoniac” and “madness maddened,” revealing his self-awareness as part of his insanity rather than a barrier. Ahab turns his madness into justification for his actions as captain.

Ahab’s self-awareness enables his rationality to make obsessive decisions, turning his authority as captain into an outlet for vengeance. In chapter 37, Sunset, Ahab was sitting alone in his cabin, staring out the windows, when he pondered, “They think me mad—Starbuck does; but I’m demoniac, I am madness maddened! That wild madness that’s only calm to comprehend itself!” (Melville, p. 183). The sentence “They think me mad—Starbuck does…” shows Ahab acknowledging how people see his craziness, but instead of denying it, he redefines it. By saying, “I’m demoniac, I am madness maddened!” he is claiming a higher, almost supernatural-like, form of madness. Melville’s choice of using repetition and the word “demoniac” shows how Ahab consciously justifies his abuse of authority with madness. He portrays how someone under emotional obsession can be dangerous regardless of clarity. In the phrase, ”That wild madness that’s only calm to comprehend itself,” that calmness is not sanity but a moment of control inside insanity. Ahab acknowledges the chaos he controls rather than resists. He understands he became the embodiment of absurdity, insanity, vengeance, and obsession, and he lets it all define him. Such madness isn’t blinding Ahab; it sharpens his vision. He clearly sees what he’s doing and he still chooses destruction.

What does that have to do with life or death? Simple: if madness himself is the brain, the rest of the body is obliged to follow it. You are reading this essay because you want to understand my insight, and just now you may have been wondering what authority, obsession, and self-awareness have to do with anything, or maybe you just came here to find something to talk about in the reply section. Whatever your reason for being here, you wouldn’t have been able to if your fingers, blood, and/or nervous system refused to obey. The same goes with captains: their team, or in the context of Moby Dick, their crew would not be able to do anything without a voice to follow. However, there would be a little voice in the mind that goes against their wishes. For Ahab, that little voice of reason is Starbuck. When Ahab thought, “They think me mad–Starbuck does,” he isn’t rejecting the warning. This is the first domino to fall before the ship’s fate: as the more these two bicker, the higher chance the ship would split before Moby Dick the whale is back in the action. This reveals how obsession overrides reason and sets the crew to an inevitable downfall. The type of captain matters far more than being charismatic, and much like the captains, leadership in the historical and modern context are just as vulnerable to emotions.

During that time, royalty and those that could taste that similar power were often indulging in said power. Melville’s warning still resonates today: a leader driven by obsession leads their followers to ruin. Our politics, our social circles, our families, our social media circles like influencers, there is a reason why there are followers. For Captain Ahab, his followers are the crew of the Pequod, and with one incentive, he managed to convert regular sailors and whalehunters into soldiers to do his bidding. This is what Melville criticizes about authority: awareness without restraint, paired with obsession, is just another form of power that can destroy the very people meant to be protected.

Short Essay: Close Reading 1

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Throughout the adventure of reading Moby-Dick by Herman Meliville readers are introduced to characters that come from all different backgrounds and belief systems. The development of friendship between Ishmael and Queequeq is extremely notable, as the growth and understanding between these two characters seems rather abrupt, however, it is refreshing to witness two people from opposite backgrounds begin to bond and respect each other. Throughout chapter three of the novel, we see Ishmael do anything in his power to remove himself from Queequeg path before he ever even meets him. However, once the two meet this feeling of understanding begins and their relationship transforms. In chapter ten of the novel title “A Bosom Friend”, Ishmael sees Queequeg sitting alone at the Inn and watches him out of pure interest. As Ishmael’s curiosity grows he begins to talk with Queequeg, they look over a book together, he invites Queequeg for a smoke, and they agree that once more they will be bed mates. Their relationship grows quickly with the claim of being bosom friends, which means that, “he would gladly die for me if need should be” (Melville 57). Through this passage, Melvillie is showing more than just two men forming a bond, he is exploring how people from different backgrounds can care for each other if they allow themselves to open their minds. 

Ishmael’s willingness to open his mind towards Queequeg is fascinating when considering the ways it challenges what would have been acceptable in American Society during this time, with Christianity being the “true” religion. The two men are drastically different, but that did not deter Ishmael, it rather made him more curious, “I began to feel myself mysteriously drawn towards him. And those same things that would have repelled most others, they were the very magnets that thus drew me” (Melville 57). Within society, it has become far too common for people to judge someone immediately based solely on having differences in race, culture, or religion. However, this is Melville’s way of inviting readers to be curious and learn about others before joining in on the close minded ways of thinking. The fear of the unknown is something that is always being talked about and often the thing that is unknown becomes the object of hate and distrust. This is the same in the situation between these characters, Ishmael explains that many others would be “repelled” by Queequeg and his way of living. Whereas, he is drawn to Queequeg and wants to learn more about him almost as if he was being drawn to him. Melville is using these lines to tell readers to let your curiosity drive you, do not let the fear of the unknown create a close minded space for yourself or else you may miss out on the beautiful things in life. 

With their friendship growing through this passage, Ishmael demonstrates another key example in how opening your mind can draw people closer together. Ishmael is shown trying to understand and respect Queequeg’s culture, even though as he points out, it is extremely different from his own, “he pressed his forehead against mine, clasped me round the waist, and said that henceforth we were married; meaning, in his country’s phrase, that we were bosom friends; he would gladly die for me if need should be. In a countryman, this sudden flame of friendship would have seemed far too premature, a thing to be much distrusted” (Melville 57). As the men press their foreheads onto one another and hold each other with the declaration of becoming bosom friends, Ishmael is far out of his comfort zone. The progression of their friendship is something that would be too premature for a countryman, which Ishmael points out, however, he completely allows Queequeg to guide this interaction. Melville uses this small interaction between them to demonstrate that building a relationship between two people of completely different cultures and religion does not have to be difficult as long as you are able to show respect and understanding for one another. The text tells us that this interaction is something that would be distrusted by most people around them, however, Ishmael decides to allow Queequeg in and not judge him for the differences that they clearly have. Melville beautifully inputs the line “meaning, in his country’s phrase”. This line may seem small when first reading over, however it is Melville’s way of showing that Ishmael did not only listen to Queequeg, but that he also tries to understand and respect the parts of his culture that differ from his own. 

This passage feels as though Melville is calling out society, both then and now, about their ideas of savage vs civil. It feels that many people are quick to judge others once they realize that they will not conform to what they believe to be “right”. Yet the hypocrisy of this is strong because they then completely ignore the violence and wrongdoings of those that are like minded to them. Ishmael even calls out the lack of sincerity that he at times feels around his own religion, “I’ll try a pagan friend, thought I, since Christian kindness has proved but hollow courtesy” (Melville 57). Around a time that Chrisitanity was viewed widely as the one true religion, Melville opens the door for people to explore what other cultures look like and find relationships that may fulfill you in a way that you have not experienced before. When being constantly told that Christianity is the right way of living it is easy to fall into a comfortability of something that may lack genuine sincerity. Melville provides Ishmael with the strength to push out of that box and look past the culture, religion, or race and focus solely on the connection and friendship that is possible, demonstrating again that curiosity can be the beautiful thing that pulls people together. 

Herman Melville uses the evolving friendship between Ishmael and Queequeg to emphasize that wonderful relationships can be created between people, even with differences in race, culture, and religion. Something that begins with fear and hesitation transforms into a genuine bond that is rooted deeply in a mutual respect for one another. Instead of letting society and his own fears define their connection, Ishmael opens his mind and finds a meaningful relationship that pushes against the boundaries he had found himself in. Melville’s message within this passage remains powerful today, understanding and connection are possible when people allow their fears of the unknown to drive their curiosity into a positive place.