Novel :- Moby Dick

Novel :- Moby Dick 

* About the Author :- 

                          Herman Melville born 1 August 1819 and Death 28 September 1891 was an American novelist, short story writer and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are his magnum opus, Moby Dick Published in 1851 and Typee 1846, A romantic account of his experiences of Polynesian life. Moby Dick although now considered one of the great American novels was initially not well received by contemporary critics. his psychological novel.

* About the Novel :- 

                       Moby Dick or The Whale is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, Captain of the Whaling ship Pequod, for revenge on Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale that on the ship's previous voyage bit off Ahab's leg at the knee.  

                           The tale of seen through the eyes of Ismael, a young man aspiring to be a sailor. He meets Captain Ahab of the Pequod, a whaling boat. The purpose of their excursion is to hunt whales and profit by harvesting their oil. However, he is driven to seek revenge against Moby Dick, a great white whale who took his leg. It is apparent by the first day, when he offers a reward for whoever harpoons Moby Dick.

                           The captain of the ship, the dark brooding Ahab, is obsessed with hunting a giant white sperm whale, Moby Dick. Some years ago during an encounter at sea, Moby Dick had bitten off Ahab’s leg. Thirsting for revenge, the one-legged Ahab decides to hunt the whale down. Thus, Ishmael, along with the ship's crew, is caught under the spell of Ahab’s obsession for Moby Dick.

                      Several days into the voyage, Ahab finally appears as a man seemingly made of bronze who stands on an ivory leg fashioned from whalebone. He eventually gets into a violent argument with Stubb when the second mate makes a joke at Ahab's expense, and kicks him. This leads Stubb to dream of kicking Ahab's ivory leg off, but Flask claims that the kick from Ahab is a sign of honor.At last, Ahab tells the crew of the Pequod to look for a white-headed whale with a wrinkled brow: Moby Dick, the legendary whale that took Ahab's leg. Starbuck tells Ahab that his obsession with Moby Dick is madness, but Ahab claims that all things are masks and there is some unknown reasoning behind that mask that man must strike through. For Ahab, Moby Dick is that mask. Ahab himself seems to recognize his own madness. Star buck begins to worry that the ship is over matched by the mad captain and knows that he will see an impious end to Ahab.

                       Moby Dick is a huge white whale. He was responsible for Captain Ahab losing his leg. Now Ahab is obsessed with destroying him. Despite being written during a time when whaling was acceptable in the western world Melville shows a distinct sympathy for the whales who were destroyed in their thousands by the whaling industry. The protagonist in this novel is Ishmael, an ex-schoolteacher who arrives in the coastal town favoured by whalers and signs up as a deckhand. He befriends Queeqeg, a harpooner, who helps him adapt to life aboard ship. Melville describes his subjects down to the very last detail so this book is almost as good as a text book on the whaling industry and the whales themselves. Ahab is one of those dark and brooding characters familiar in literature who is prepared to risk his ship, his crew and his life to capture his prey. Moby Dick, however, thinks differently and evades Ahab till the end.

Thank You