Moby Dick
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The story of Captain Ahab's quest to avenge the whale that 'reaped' his leg. The quest is an obsession and the novel is a diabolical study of how a man becomes a fanatic. But it is also a hymn to democracy. Bent as the crew is on Ahab's appalling crusade, it is equally the image of a co-operative community
… More »The story of Captain Ahab's quest to avenge the whale that 'reaped' his leg. The quest is an obsession and the novel is a diabolical study of how a man becomes a fanatic. But it is also a hymn to democracy. Bent as the crew is on Ahab's appalling crusade, it is equally the image of a co-operative community at work: all hands dependent on all hands, each individual responsible for the security of each. Among the crew is Ishmael, the novel's narrator, ordinary sailor, and extraordinary reader. Digressive, allusive, vulgar, transcendent, the story Ishmael tells is above all an education: in the practice of whaling, in the art of writing.
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they call me ismalhel
In this world ... sin that pays its way can travel freely and without a passport, whereas virtue, if a pauper, is stopped at all frontiers.
Take high abstracted man alone and he seems a wonder, a grandeur, and a woe. But from the same point, take mankind in mass and for the most part, they seem a mob of unnecessary duplicates.
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Add a CommentI'm going to skip the words of praise for this book because you've probably already heard them. Some observations: 1) This book came out the same year as Darwin's Origin of Species. It's amazing because, in the chapters describing whales, evidence of evolution is described though not identified as such. It's clear that they had all the information they needed to see evolution in those days, it just took Darwin to interpret it. 2) This is one of those books that is amazing while you're reading it but it's hard to pick up. I would recommend setting yourself a schedule. 3) Looking for a similar but easier/more modern book to read afterwards? Interested in the subject matter of Moby Dick but can't get through the language? Try The Terror by Dan Simmons. It's amazing, it's similar to Moby Dick in some ways, but it's different enough that comparing them won't diminish either of them.
Feb 16, 2012. Read one chapter while waiting at the library. Hope to get back to it soon!
They call me Ishmael ! With Ishmael joining the rag tag crue of Captain Ahab...they all join the hunt for the Great Whale. Classic
They call me Ishmael ! The wonderful and tragic story of the hunt for the great Whale. True classic