At first I wasn’t too sure what I was expecting for the extracts, as I don’t think I have read a book that has a section for extracts. After reading the opening, which to me seemed more of a warning in terms of what NOT to think- to read the extracts with fluidity. The extracts served as entertainment with Holland’s Plutarch’s Morals extract stating, “And what thing soever besides cometh within the chaos or this monsters mouth, be it a beast, boat or stone, down it goes all incontinently that foul great swallow of his, and perisheth bottomless guilt of his paunch” (p. xl) This is what I have always kind of imagined and seen in movies, the way whales mouth are so huge and can sometimes just swallow things whole or tear up boats. The amount of strength that they have is truly amazing, and it sets image of the whale that we will be reading about in the book.
The extracts are also educational, considering quotes like “Ten or fifteen gallons of blood are thrown out of the heart at a stroke, with immense velocity” by John Hunters account of the dissections of a small sized whale. Both quotes are great introductions to the whale that we will be meeting in Moby Dick.
You start to move towards a point, an interpretative claim– “after reading the opening, which to me seemed more of a warning in terms of what NOT to think”– but you then move to generalizations and asides. Can you instead stay with your insight and push it towards a claim? See our WRITERLY handouts.
It is interesting to read the way that whales were portrayed during this era and how it sets the tone for us in modern times. They make them out as these vicious creatures even though they are the ones doing the hunting and agitating them. It will be interesting to see how the portrayal of whales is talked about throughout the novel. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Jackie! The etymology and extracts were an interesting compilation of what is known about whales so far. I thinkk that this serves, not just as an introduction of whales, but also as a way for Melville to later prove to us how little we know about whales and whaling. It will be interesting to read this novel and discover this unknown world, out on the sea, with Ishmael, and about this “vicious beast” of immense size and power that fights back.