Tag Archives: Queequeg

Of love and learning

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The very things that Ahab denied allowed Ishmael to survive the sinking of the Pequod – love and learning. For what could have kept the Rachel near but the unending search for the lost boy, for the love of a parent with a missing child? And what but love drove Queequeg to stave off his impending death so that his coffin can be the thing that saves Ishmael? Back in Chapter 10, Ishmael declared that “we were bosom friends; he would gladly die for me, if need should be.” (57) When Queequeg’s death was imminent, when his final moments neared, he changed his mind about dying, stating that “he had just recalled a little duty ashore, which he was leaving undone.” (523)

Without a doubt, that “little duty” was his pact with Ishmael, as he proceeded to use this coffin as a sea chest for all his earthly belongings – as was promised with their declaration – and he set about the journey aware of its inevitable end. Queequeg took the time “carving the lid with all manner of grotesque figures and drawings; and it seemed that hereby he was striving, in his rude way, to copy parts of the twisted tattooing on his body.” (524) This coffin, in turn, took the place of Queequeg. He carved it to use as a stand-in, when he knew he would likely not be able to keep his word.

I include learning in my analysis because Ahab never took the time to learn about anyone – he assumed that all he knew was all he needed to know, allowing his monomaniacal focus to hold sway over all aspects of his life. This meant that he did not try to learn about Queequeg beyond the fact that he was a cannibal. He did not try to learn from the misfortune of others that his own demise could be more than “the gallows.” Ultimately, learning from Starbuck or even listening to Stubb regarding Captain Gardiner’s request could have changed the shape of his life. Yet, because he did not, he was doomed to a predetermined fate of his own making.

Will To Live

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Queequeg has been my favorite character so far in the book, and not going to lie at the beginning of chapter 110 and the title of it scared me a little. I was definitely preparing myself for the end of Queequeg. Luckily, he was able to push through the fever and continue on. Something that he did that I found quite interesting was the fact that he made the coffin his “sea-chest; and emptying into it his canvas bag of clothes, set them in order there.” Queequeg set up his clothes with purpose in the coffin that was once going to hold his dead body, this was his way of moving past his near death experience and a reflection of his new found purpose—a reawakening. In traumatic events, the steps of acceptance and change is different for everyone but one way people deal with it is through rearrangement of their space. What was once the routine has changed thus implying for a change in the areas around us. 

To seal the deal of leaving behind what once was, Queequeg, “Many spare hours he spent, in carving the lid with all manner of grotesque figures and drawings…copy parts of the twisted tattooing on his body.” He left his mark on the coffin, he would not have had the chance to if he had passed, of course. He was once again taking control of the situation, he took control of his fate by deciding he wanted to live, he took control of what was going to be in the coffin instead of him, and took control of what was going to be on the outside of the coffin as well. He graffitied it, showing that he has lived on but left his mark just like when a person marks a tree “(name) was here.” 

This chapter felt very biblical, reminding me of the chapter in which Lazarus was mentioned—the biblical figure who was resurrected by Jesus. Melvilles choice to use Queequeg as the character who would have a near death experience just to “resurrect” was interesting because it shows that regardless of who the “God” is in your life, everyone has someone or something that they believe in and will hold onto them during moments of difficulties. Humans crave for that comfort that will convince us that things will be okay even if they feel like they aren’t, thus pushing us to want to change or push us to live life with purpose. 

ch 110, my Queequeq

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I obsessed with Queequeq, so this chapter had me a little emotional, for real, I thought we lost our man. Now to my claim and what I see, Melville is pushing us really to view class and structure in America, or even overall, the boat is all over the world, the ocean touches all the continents and the 7 seas blend together, yet we still like to have those hard lines to define what is what, who is who.

“Now, there is the noteworthy difference between savage and civilized; that while a sick, civilized man may be six months convalescing, generally speaking, a sick savage is almost half-well again in a day.” (524 Melville). Melville is telling us to note this, look at this passage, and take the meaning of the comparison of social class and class structure. What is to be civil and what it means to be a savage, what is even a savage. A savage has more willpower and strength than a civilized man; a civilized man takes 6 months to bounce back, but a savage needs a day. A savage is used to the germs and dirt, as a civil man does not touch dirt. It’s important to note that what society calls a savage is strong, but the ones who call clean men are weak. The idea that the man and savage need to blend, become equal

The enlightenment of death

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In chapter 110, we readers get a good scare from Melville, because it seems certain that our beloved Queequeg is going to die. I enjoyed this chapter very much, but there was a section in page 520 that especially caught my attention. Melville writes, “But as all else in him thinned, and his cheek-bones grew sharper, his eyes, nevertheless, seemed growing fuller and fuller; they became of a strange softness of lustre…And like circles on the water, which, as they grow fainter, expand; so his eyes seemed rounding and rounding, like the rings of Eternity.” Here, Melville presents a new kind of enlightenment, one that comes not from madness like in Pip’s case, but one that arises from proximity to death. For Queequeg, this enlightened state transcended the abstract and was physically visible in his body. Ishmael says that his eyes were getting bigger and gained a “softness of lustre.” The eyes are through which we take in the world around us, and the bigger they are can metaphorically represent a higher awareness and a deeper perspective on life. His eyes also had “lustre,” which is a glow (light) on reflective surfaces. Not only are eyes for taking in information, but some would say they are the window to the soul, and a visible shine on them is representative of an enlightened soul that can’t keep from outwardly reflecting that. Queequeg’s eyes are subsequently compared to “circles on the water,” another reflective surface, exemplifying the outward manifestation of enlightenment; but water isn’t just reflective, it is also a fluid, shifting surface, where marks expand and grow “fuller and fuller,” but also fainter. After all, Queequeg’s expanding eyes and thin body are a tangible sign of decay as much as they are a metaphorical sign of enlightenment. The human body is as impermanent as moving water. But while the body is temporary, the soul is eternal. Ishmael finally compares Queequeg’s expanding but fading eyes to “the rings of Eternity.” As he nears death, in Ishmael’s eyes, Queequeg becomes infinite in spirit. His body will fade away, but his soul, which is accessible through his eyes, becomes eternal. Aside from the spirituality in this scene, we also see Melville once again addressing the question of how we acquire knowledge. As he has shown us before in the book, existence is not exactly fit for certainty, but maybe death is. Melville questions that we can really know anything when we are alive, but in this scene, Queequeg’s expanding eyes and eternal soul display death as a true path to knowledge and revelation. In an ironic turn, when death begins to take the place of life, that is when a being may truly grasp their existence. It seems to be impossible to know anything with certainty, but that changes when we cease to exist. Though a very sad scene of sickness and decay, Melville uses lovely and serene language, giving the reader a sense of peace and almost as a way to dispel fear and restlessness. This is a tranquility that comes from finally understanding that which you could not in life, but the price to pay for that is death.

incorruption found within the heart of decay

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There were a number of parts from this most recent reading that struck me – I wondered if, perhaps, Pippin from Lord of the Rings was partially named for Pippin in Moby Dick. Both are known to be young, somewhat fearful, and thrust into a dangerous voyage that they may not have necessarily signed on for. They are also particularly clumsy, eliciting anger and frustration from their superiors.

Yet the part that interested me from an academic standpoint was Chapter 92, Ambergris. “Now that the incorruption of this most fragrant ambergris should be found in the heart of such decay; is this nothing?” (448) This passage, while referencing the thick, waxy stuff found within decaying whales, can apply too to the story of Moby Dick and the characters within it. The procurement of the Ambergris was duplicitous, the urgency from Ahab to continue forward on their journey despite the valuable find was further proof of his abandonment of their financial goals for this trip. Despite the harrowing nature of the journey, despite the questionable nature of Ahab and the cruelty expressed by crewmen such as Stubb, Ishmael and Queequeg are the ambergris of the ship – the incorruptible pieces found within the heart of decay.

As another aside, I have been listening to this https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=aNpA6yRene0&si=q_8oCmRmJK9RLytG while reading the novel and have found it to properly put me into the mindset of being on the Pequod. I wanted to share it for the others that may need to listen to something while they read.

Chapter 78: Queequeg the Midwife; or breech v. breach

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This chapter was a welcome one, helping to liven Ishmael’s last few detailed chapters, where he pondered the sperm and right whales contrasted views. Here we regain some action, and are faced with the consequences of human clumsiness which leads Tashtego to fall in to the whales Tun. I was very fond of Ishmael’s description of Queequeg coming to the rescue, of a scene that quickly spiraled out of control: “The next, a loud splash announced that my brave Queequeg had dived to the rescue (375).”

Like the rest on board of the Pequod, I read on with bated breath, hoping this was not the end of Queequeg’s journey. Luckily he emerged with Tashtego in hand, and subsequently, through Ishmael, we were able to read of the nature of this rescue. 

Much like we have discussed in class, this story is famously absent, but not completely devoid  of women and their presence. For this reason, I bring attention to the fact that Queequeg, of all characters, who is symbolic of the defiance of all presuppositions of the intelligence, bravery and capability of non-westerners (non-Europeans), is the one to perform this act of assisted birth. Not only is he special for the connection he forms with Ishmael, or of his selfless act’s of bravery, but he is also a midwife; assisting in Tashtego’s watery rebirth from the Tun:

“He averred, that upon first thrusting in for him, a leg was presented; but well knowing that that was not as it ought to be, and might occasion great trouble;—he had thrust back the leg, and by a dexterous heave and toss, had wrought a somerset upon the Indian; so that with the next trial, he came forth in the good old way—head foremost. As for the great head itself, that was doing as well as could be expected (p.376).”

I’d like to note, that in terms of giving birth, the way that Tashtego was first positioned at the entrance of the Tun/womb, feet first, Is called a breech position, in which the baby is usually in danger of injury or death by suffocation. Even in modern medicine this is considered a difficult birthing position for the fetus and mother, often resulting in the injury of the mother and tearing of the cervix. A skilled midwife, or obstetrician, is capable of either carefully following through with this birth position, or helping to turn the baby. In other words, Queequegs delivery of Tashtego was a feat of obstetrics even for what is possible on land (and with human babies). 

Ishmael, seems knowledgable of the naming of this breech position in medical terminology, and it’s contrasted meaning of the homophone breach, which means to break or split open, and which is commonly associated with describing whales breaking the surface of the water as they come up for air. Ironically, he notes, the great head of the dead whale is sinking, rather than coming up for air. 

I bring back to attention Queequeg, and the fact that he is the one that conducts this emergency delivery. I think it say’s something of Queequeg’s knowledge that he was able to convey this delivery from the difficult position which he and Tashtego were placed in, both sinking (as the knowledge of gynecology we now know to be expanded upon the experiments on enslaved Black women in the United States).

However, it also says something about the limitations of man, and how their plunder of natural resources comes at the expense of the death and endangerment of Mother Nature, as childbirth is a consequence of the ability to give life, and which endangers the lives of the mother. There is more to be said about the connotations of the honeyed substance of spermacetti, which Ishmaels likens Tashtego’s close call with death, as a ‘very precious perishing’. For now, I leave it on the discussions of childbirth, and the dangers of giving birth, which the men of the Pequod are faced with, with the perils of harvesting whales, in a way most men never are with women’s bodies.

Extra Credit – Moby Dick Costume

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For class on Thursday, October 30th, I dressed up as Queequeg at the beginning of Moby Dick. He is presented to us, in his and Ishmael’s first endeavors outside the Spouter-Inn, in a long coat, slacks, and a Beaver skin top hat. While I could only assume the attire he wore underneath (most sailors portrayed in media are placed in plain white button-up dress shirts), I decided to include a rope to my costume, ties around my belt loops, to incorporate the passage on Ishmael and Queeuqeg’s wedding by the anchoring of the rope they share on the Pequod while Queequeg assists in skinning the whale. While not very noticeable (since I wear these rings quite often to class), I assigned specific passages/meanings to the designs of each of my rings. 1) A coffin, symbolizing the crew’s imminent and constant threat of death, and the foreshadowing of the shipwreck of the Pequod at the end of the novel, 2) a skull, referencing chapter 80 – The Nut, and Ishmael’s rant about the phrenology and craniology of the Sperm Whale, 3) a sun, made of bronze, gold, and silver, referencing the numerous times Melville uses terrestrial language and points out the use of light in representation of the feature of the whale and whiteness, and 4) a ring I received from my eldest brother’s grandmother containing different parts of an Abalone shell. Another piece of jewelry I used to reference the book was my cross earing (I know, I wear it all the time and hardly switch it for something different), which I used to represent Queequeg’s desire to learn from Christians for the betterment of his people and himself, and later his repulsion of the behavior of so called Christians, and rebuttal for them to learn from cannibals instead.

Essay 1

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In Moby Dick by Herman Melville, there is a contrast between the civilized human beings such as Ishmael and the uncivilized human beings such as Queequeg. Through the book, it is noted that  Moby Dick interacts with the two different groups in settings that can demonstrate the kind of people they are regardless of their culture.   Specifically in chapter 13 of Moby Dick, Melville utilizes Queequeg as a representation of the morality of the uncivilized vs the civilized group on the boat who demonstrate the judgement and presumptions of society. 

Throughout chapter 13, Queequeg is described with terms such as a cannibal, devil, and savage—all terms with a negative connotiation. To describe someone this way is to presume that said person lacks the moral compass and will act in poor judgement and potentially cause harm to another human being. Interestingly enough, Queequeg finds himself being the pit of a joke by a young man who was mimicking him behind his back, not very kind to say the least. In result, the young man is grabbed and tossed up by the devil himself, the captain continues by yelling at Queequeg,  “Look you, I’ll kill-e you, you cannibal, if you try any more of your tricks aboard here; so mind eye.”(67) Melville uses irony in the captains’ statement by his threat to kill Queequeg, a cannibal, who kills and eats humans. While the captain might not be eating a human he is threatening to kill one so if Queequeg is the uncivilized character here, what does that say about the civilized captain? The captain is someone who is supposed to be leading their crew and making decisions that would not jeopardize the boat or themselves in order for everyone to return home safely. The appointed person should not be acting erratically by threatening the uncivilized cannibal  because it could have jeopardized the safety of not only him but the rest of the crew and the boat. 

Right after this altercation, the boom on the boat began to move side to side sweeping a part of the deck including the young man who was making fun of Queequeg. The only person who was able to return the boat back to normal and save the young man was the savage himself. After all his doing, “All hands voted Queequeg a noble trump; the captain begged his pardon.”(68) Disregarding the threat and the name calling he just faced a few minutes before this, Queequeg was now declared a hero by the same people. Melville uses this quick turn around to prove the judgment in character that the people on the boat had against Queequeg. He was most likely the least suspected person to jump in to save the young man, not just because of the altercation he had with him but because he was someone who they viewed as uncivilized. He is described as a wild man—lacking in politeness and good behavior, but yet he was the only one to jump in to save the young man. The measurement of a good person does not only come from the words of a person but also the actions which we can see here in this part of the story. 

Queequeg had no personal gain to save the young man and he definitely did not do it to heighten his ego, he did it as a person who wanted someone out of harm’s way considering, “He did not seem to think that he at all deserved a medal from the Humane and Magnanimous Societies. He only asked for water—fresh water—something to wipe the brine off; he put on dry clothes”(68) What he had done was worth recognition but for Queequeg the favor he had done was nothing more than that. Melville’s repetition of water, particularly fresh water, diverts the presumption of his savage-like description considering savages are  dirty and wild. Queequeg just wanted to be clean and dry, for this state of cleanliness is a reward in itself. 

In a state of reflection after what just occurred, Queequeg says “It’s a mutual, joint stock world, in all meridians. We cannibals must help these Christians.”(68) Using “joint stock world” to describe the kind of world they live in, a joint of different cultures that are interconnected. Pointing out the separation of cannibals and Christian’s, the uncivilized and civilized group, Queequeg believes they are there to help one another, making his morals align with the god obeying men. In reality the mayor separating between the two groups is the kind of culture they are in and what they follow but that does not mean that group that is frowned upon does not have good people as well. 

Considering Moby Dick is narrated by Ishamel who is a Christian, it is important for the readers to gain insight into the type of person Queequeg is beside from his usual description of savage and cannibal because it shows the kind of personalities that will be shared on the boat. It also helps deconstruct the belief that the uncivilized are perhaps bad people who lack the moral compass to help others as the civilized people in the story. Queequeg is used as an example of this as he demonstrates his belief in doing a righteous act for someone regardless of what he could gain, just for the pure fact that he wants to help someone because he is able to. This speaks volume of the kind of person he is and should not be looked over just because he is labeled as a savage. 

Week 6: A False Idol

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One passage I want to examine from the reading this week is at the end of Chapter 10. Melville writes: “How then could I unite with this wild idolator in worshipping his piece of wood? But what is this worship? Thought I. Do you suppose now, Ishmael, that the magnanimous God of heaven and earth–pagans and all included–can possibly be jealous of an insignificant bit of black wood?”

I initially found interest in this passage because of the switch to third person–the narrator speaks to himself, Ishmael, perhaps as a way of dissociating from the situation at hand or separating himself from it. However, after writing this quote out, I am now seeing the use of ‘wood’ and ‘worship’ with Queepueg. What I find interesting in this sexually charged paragraph is the use of a religious idol to represent this relationship. Ishamel, or whoever the narrator is, feels as if he is betraying his identity as a Christian (his identity as a heterosexual?), and feels worshipping a false idol is wrong. Yet he justifies this worship of another idol, saying “could possibly be jealous of an insignificant bit of black wood?”. With this and his switch to the third person, he pulls himself away from the moral qualm faced and makes his actions seem small in comparison to all of the world, as if he can tuck himself away from God. Ishamel continues on this need to justify: “But what is worship?–to do the will of God–that is worship. And what is the will of God?–to do my fellow man what I would have my fellow man do to me–that is the will of God.” This continuous internal dialogue drives a point of obsession, almost in an OCD way as Ishmael continues to justify his actions. I think we can also look at this in a different lens, in one of interpretation and translation. How we choose to understand something, whether religious text, foreign languages, or even Moby Dick is this subjective experience influenced by so many different things. Ishmael here is choosing to interpret God’s will in a way that serves himself. This is not necessarily right or wrong and I have no opinion either way, besides that it is to serve his current situation. This is something we all do, not in a religious sense, but to push through life, there has to be a justification for the things we do that we may find moral qualm with.  

Queequeg: King of the Sea [Chapter 4-12]

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Throughout the course of this week’s reading, I couldn’t help but be drawn to the similarities to the way they describe Queequeg to important abstract qualities of ocean fair, and to the whale itself. 

We’re first introduced to Queequeg in chapter three in a very comical way. His personality is very purposefully outlandish, and as our main character continues to develop a relationship with him, he’s able to learn more about Queequeg’s other character qualities. 

Queequeg is not like other characters. He does not look the same, he worships his own deities instead of Christianity, and he acts in a way that’s very outside of the mainstream culture norms—even in small, seemingly unimportant ways, as Ishmeal observes. 

“At that time in the morning, any Christain would have washed his face; but Queequeg, to my amazement, contented himself with restricting his ablution to his chest, arms and hands” (31). 

This characterization of Queequeg is very reminiscent of the Carnivalesque, which can be seen as a break away from traditional ideals and can be used to challenge the current system of power. Queequeg is set up to be seen as an outsider in this town, but making Queequeg a likeable character that Ishmeal is drawn to, indirectly symbolizes Ishmael’s urge to pull away from society by ways of going out to the sea. Queequeg is therefore used to represent the aspects of life at sea that are or can be desirable.  

Queequeg is also used to represent the whale itself, and that couldn’t be any more evident in how he goes about being on the ocean. 

“When a ship was gliding by, like a flash, he darted out; gained her side; with one backward dash of his food capsized and sank his cameo; climbed up the chains; and throwing himself at full length upon the deck” (61).  

Without proper context, this excerpt could easily be describing a ship attack involving a whale. The story purposely portrays Queequeg in this way to both demonstrate the animalistic qualities of man and as a means of humanizing the whale. By relating its qualities to a likeable human character, it creates a more intimate connection between man and beast through demonstrating our stark similarities. 

Queequeg has been my favorite character so far, and I’m excited to dive deeper into these aspects of his characterization as we continue our readings.