Herman Melvilles MobyDick

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Herman Melvilles Moby-Dick

• Presentation by
• Desirée A. Beach

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Herman Melville

• Born August 1st, 1819, New York City
• Father Allan Melvillimporter of French goods
• Mother Mariadaughter of Revolutionary War hero
• During economic depression, family business
  failed
• Father died leaving family in debt
• Herman sought numerous jobs to support mother
  siblings
• Life of poverty no college education
• 19 years old became a seaman on ships traveling
  around the world
• Adventures abroad served as material for first
  two novels Typee (1846) Omoo (1847)

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Herman Melville (continued)

• 1847 Married Elizabeth Shaw
• After meeting members of New York literary scene,
  began writing articles for The Literary World and
  Yankee Doodle
• Publications
• 1849 Mardi
• 1849 Redburn
• 1850 White-Jacket
• 1850 Purchased farm in MA
• Became neighbor close friend to author
  Nathaniel Hawthorne

All novels not well received by public deemed
too serious/melancholy to reach wide audience
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Portrait of an Author
Video Presentation
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Moby-Dick

• 1851 Published
• Dedicated to Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Like other novels, not highly acclaimed at first
• Critics/readers confused disappointed
• Expecting narrative similar to past publications
• Melville tormented over novels failure
• Gave up writing professionally
• Worked as customs inspector at New York harbor
  for 19 years
• 1891 Melville died
• 1920s Melville revival
• Moby-Dick gained great status
• Deemed on of Americas greatest writers

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American Whaling Industry
Video Presentation
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Themes, Motifs, Symbols

• Themes Fundamental and universal ideas explored
  in literary work
• Motifs Recurring structures, contrasts, or
  literary devises that help develop and inform a
  texts major themes
• Symbols Objects, characters, figures, or colors
  used to represent abstract ideas or concepts

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Themes

• The Limits of Knowledge
• Ishmael throughout the novel discovers the whale
  has taken on numerous meaning in its life
• Through numerous sources tries to understand the
  nature of the whale, but is unsuccessful at
  giving an adequate account
• Suggests Human knowledge is limited
  insufficient

• The Deceptiveness of Fate
• Ishmaels narrative contains numerous references
  to fate
• (The Pequods doom is inevitable)
• Ahab manipulates sailors belief in fate
• (Suggesting the quest for Moby Dick is common
  destiny)
• Sailors various interpretations of the doubloon
• (Humans believe things the way they want to
  when
• interpreting signs/ omens)

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Themes (continued)

• The Exploitative Nature of Whaling
• Parallels with other exploitative activities that
  define American European territorial expansion
  (i.e. buffalo hunting, gold mining, unfair
  trading with indigenous people)
• The Pequods white sailors are dependent on
  non-white harpooners non-whites perform more
  dangerous/dirty jobs
• (i.e. Flask stands on Daggoo African harpooner
  to beat other sailors at catching a whale)

Video Presentation
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Motifs

• Whiteness
• Represents (to Ishmael) the unnatural/threatening
• (i.e. albinos, creatures living in extreme
  inhospitable environments, waves breaking against
  rocks)
• Reverses traditional association of whiteness
  with purity
• Whiteness then conveys lack of meaning
  unreadable excess of meaning therefore
  bewildering characters
• Moby-Dick pinnacle of whiteness
• --Represents evil (to Ahab)

• Surfaces Depths
• Seas depths are mysterious and inaccessible to
  Ishmael
• Represents greater problem of the limitations of
  human knowledge
• Humankind not all-seeing
• Through portions surfaces of observation one
  can acquire knowledge

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Symbols

• 3. Queequegs Coffin Life Death
• Death Queequegs illness
• Life Replaces Pequods life
• buoy becoming the buoy to
• to save Ishmael when the
• Pequod sinks

• The Pequod Native American tribe that
  disappeared shortly after white mans appearance
  
• --Extinction The Pequods doom
• Ship painted black covered in whale teeth
  bones tokens of violent deaths
• --Marked for death Pequod coffin

• 2. Moby-Dick Various meanings for different
  characters
• Crew Perceive it as where to displace their
  anxieties
• Ahab Moby-Dick is manifestation of all things
  evil
• wrong in the world
• Allegorical representation of unknowable God
• White expansion exploitation in 19th century
• Destruction of environment for such expansion

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Characters

• Ishmael The narrator junior member of the crew
  of the Pequod
• Ahab The egomaniacal captain of the Pequod who
  lost his leg to Moby-Dick
• Uses charisma terror to persuade crew in his
  pursuit of the wale
• As a captain, he is dictatorial but not unfair
• Moby-Dick The great white sperm whale, a.k.a.
  the White Whale
• An infamous dangerous threat to seamen
• Ahab considers him the incarnation of evil a
  fated nemesis

• Starbuck The Pequods 1st mate who questions
  Ahabs judgment
• - He is a religious man and believes
  Christianity offers a way to
• interpret the world around him
• Queequeg  -  Starbucks harpooner Ishmaels
  best friend
• Once a prince from a South Sea island who stowed
  away on a whaling ship in search of adventure.
• Brave generous allows Ishmael to see race has
  no bearing on a mans character

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Characters(continued)

• Stubb The Pequods 2nd mate
• Easygoing popular characterized by mischievous
  good humour
• Trusts fate refuses to assign too much
  significance to anything
• Tashtego Stubbs harpooner
• Gay Head Indian from Marthas Vineyard
• Similar to Queequeg, he possess certain
  characteristics of the noble savage and is
  meant to defy racial stereotypes
• More practical less intellectual than Queequeg
• Flask The Pequods 3rd mate
• Short and stocky man with a confrontational
  attitude and no reverence for anything
• Daggoo Flasks harpooner
• A physically enormous, authoritative-looking
  African
• Less prominent character than Queequeg or
  Tashtego.

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Melvilles Final Years
Video Presentation