August 15, 2019 - Chapters One Hundred Thirteen and One Hundred Fourteen


In the first of the two chapters for today, we learn what the blacksmith is doing on the Pequod – he’s responsible for making the harpoons. Ahab watches Perth make a new harpoon and then insists that he incorporate his shaving razors into it as barbs. Finally, Ahab insists that his three harpooners “baptize” the new harpoon with their blood. He says, “Ego non baptizo te in nomine patris, sed in nomine diaboli!”

The line is reminiscent of that spoken by John the Baptist in the Vulgate: “Ego quidem aqua baptizo vos: veniet autem fortior me, cujus non sum dignus solvere corrigiam calceamentorum ejus: ipse vos baptizabit in Spiritu Sancto et igni” (Luke 3:16). John tells the people around him that, while he baptizes them with water, Jesus will do so with fire and the Holy Spirit. Ahab says that he baptizes not in the name of the Father but in the name of the Devil.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

August 31, 2019 - Chapter One Hundred Thirty-five (pp. 555-561)

Lest we think we’ve seen the last of Fedallah, he appears in this, the third (and final) day of the hunt of Moby Dick – in a manner of speaking. Rather, he appears lashed to the white whale’s back when he sounds once again. Ahab cries, “"Aye, Parsee! I see thee again.—Aye, and thou goest before; and this, this then is the hearse that thou didst promise.” Ahab might believe he will survive this final encounter; he certainly believes that this third day will be the final day of the hunt. There is, after all, a certain finality about the number three.
Read more

The Idea

Image
It's a pretty straightforward idea. One novel ( Moby Dick , by Herman Melville), one summer (Memorial Day to Labor Day inclusive), around six pages per day, one blog post per day of roughly 100 words (perhaps more) on what I've read and observed. I meant to do this a few years ago and kinda pooped out. This year I'm going to try it again. Wish me luck.
Read more

August 27, 2019 - Chapter One Hundred Thirty-three (pp. 537-541)

Image
Finally, the chase begins. In the first part, which ends with the destruction of Ahab’s boat by the white whale (he said ironically), we get this: “But soon the fore part of him slowly rose from the water; for an instant his whole marbleized body formed a high arch, like Virginia's Natural Bridge.” As we have already been told, Moby Dick isn’t actually all white, as the image below of said bridge shows us. The question is why the whale is referred to as white when it clearly isn’t. Curious readers should probably consult the chapter entitled “The Whiteness of the Whale” once again.
Read more