June 14, 2019 - Chapters Twenty-five and Twenty-six


After a brief postscript in which Ishmael assures that the oil used for the anointing of kings and queens is whale oil, Ishmael introduces us in greater detail to the other men of the crew. Oddly, Chapters 27 and 28 (to be discussed tomorrow) have the same title – “Knights and Squires” – but rather than placing the format introductions to Starbuck and the other mates to a single, lengthier chapter, Melville breaks up the introduction into two chapters identically named. It’s an odd choice, to be certain. All that said, Ishmael has obvious admiration and affection for Starbuck, the “knight” of the chapters’ title. The chapter ends with Ishmael waxing poetic about the dignity of the common man, noting the common origins of John Bunyan, Cervantes, and Andrew Jackson.

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