His record of this adventure was read by Melville, and incorporated into the greater story of Moby Dick.
There are parallel's drawn between the stories that Severin collects from a plethora of sources as he traces the voyage of The Pequod and passages of Moby Dick, which serve to ground Melville's novel in a more complete type of relevance, with a modernity that casts a fresh, more accessible light on The Pequod's adventures. Slightly excessive, yet quite enlightening and refreshing.
Not entirely sure how it can be used in my essay. Perhaps the motives are of most use, as it will serve to more fully explain important themes. .
Tanner, Tony. In the "Introduction" to the Oxford World Classics edition of Moby Dick, 1988.
Some good quotes used: "Mr Melville has a strange power to reach the sinuosities of a thought" (pvii). .
Brings focus to the internationality of the Pequod, the vast historical scope of the novel, and the positioning of Moby Dick at the height of the New Worlds glorious ascent to its place "of triumphant dominion and expansionary confidence in the Western world" (pviii). .
The Pequod is seen to represent, in a way, the American Frontier- "The new individualism, the violence, the brawling and the boasting, the story telling, the superstition, the unsocialised conditions of life" (pix). Also notes the insignificance of women and their role. This could be important, particularly when comparing Moby Dick to The Shining, as the role of women in both is definitely subject to the whims of the male characters. Compare Ahab's bride to Jack's wife. .
Tanner sees Ishmael as a survivor. Why? Ahab is explained as a monomaniac. (pxi) Good term, interesting approach to take. He also has some good insights into Melville's writing style, noted "the way words accumulated meanings and speculations accrue to words" (pxi). .
Fulmer, Tim and Rod Munday, The Shining and Transcendence, http://www.visual-memory.
Just as many people fear God they also feared Moby Dick. Moby Dick possesses an array of symbolic meanings for a variety of individuals. ... Melville shows that Moby Dick is capable of great violence. ... Moby Dick is symbolic of nature. ... It is evident that Moby Dick holds a great deal of power. ...
Biblical and Mythological Allusions in Moby Dick An allusion is a reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art. ... In Moby Dick, Herman Melville frequently uses biblical and mythological allusions. ... Melville not only used a number of biblical allusions in Moby Dick, but he also used many mythological allusions. ... Another mythological allusion Melville used in Moby Dick is mentioned of the Fares. ... The allusions in Moby Dick are to commonly known people and conflicts. ...
This being the case, it makes sense for Moby Dick to be white. ... He's lucky Moby Dick didn't kill him outright! ... Moby Dick was an exceptionally intelligent whale. ... While Moby Dick went out of his way to avoid hurting a human again, Ahab went insane hunting down Moby Dick to avenge himself. ... He joined the Parsee in his watery grave trailing Moby Dick. ...
Furthermore, while on their journey to find Moby-Dick, the phenomenon of St. ... Lastly, Ahab's treatment of Moby-Dick is very brutal. ... He talked of killing Moby-Dick in all his waking hours. ... In this book, Moby-Dick is portrayed as being godlike. ... Ahab is closely linked with evil in Moby-Dick. ...
The Redeeming value of Moby Dick Moby Dick was, in the physical, written to tell a story of the ever-allusive white whale. ... Moby Dick, in all actuality represents the idea of Christianity and purity. It could even be said that Moby Dick represents the figure of Christ. ... Ahab's main objective was to discredit and destroy Moby Dick. ... This is the redeeming value of Moby Dick....
The underlying themes to Moby Dick, by Herman Melville, are far-reaching and studied in many academic areas. ... When this idea is brought to Moby Dick, many interpretations can be made. ... I see the ways of Moby Dick, like those of a god, as being unknowable to man. ... In reality it can be true, and in Moby Dick it is certainly true. ... Ahab exploits the crew to have them share his idea of their fate, to find and destroy Moby Dick. ...
The American Classic ~Moby Dick~ The story of Moby Dick is truly an American literary classic. ... Moby Dick was first published in 1851 and to this day is still being studied by many scholars. There is much to be learned from the theme of this novel, as in any book, there is a message or a "moral of the story" type lesson you can learn from Moby Dick that keeps not only the new age scholars interested, but the average reader as well. "Moby Dick is not a dream but a work of imaginative art, and this means that it is the product of a complex creative process- (Arvin; 278). ... So in concl...
Moby Dick Synopsis Melville's novel Moby Dick tells us a strange journey of an ordinary seaman named Ishmael, who decided to go on a whaling voyage in Massachusetts during the 1840s. ... As the ship was destroyed by the Moby Dick, it sinks. ... Individualism in Moby Dick. ... Shulman indicates that in Melville's novel Moby Dick, he questions traditional answers about where evil comes from. ... Moby Dick is a great example of nature's destructive way. ...
Moby Dick, a Man's Obsession Herman Melville's idea of human obsession as demonstrated in Moby Dick is clearly a sign that it shall be man's downfall. ... Throughout the years many have studied Moby Dick is hopes to find the true meaning, or just deep literary value the book provides. ... Which of course was the captains fault for being obsessed Moby Dick. ... He has two sides to him, and the darker one was released whenever Moby Dick was mentioned. ... Melville must have sensed this too, because not long after he wrote Moby Dick he wrote Moby Dick, or the whale, which is pret...
