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Moby Dick, Lecture Six: The Whiteness of the Whale (Ch. 30-42) (Patreon)

Published:
2022-04-05 18:07:33
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

"Talk not to me of blasphemy, man; I'd strike the sun if it insulted me."

Captain Ahab is utterly possessed by a single thought: exacting revenge on Moby Dick, and the idea it represents.  

Today we're talking about man's search for the soul, the psychology of will, monomania, cetology, the symbolism of the colour white, and much more.

Melville also treats us to a procession of chapters unlike anything we've experienced before.

Lecture Timestamps:

  • 0:00 dream and literary analysis
  • 3:00 man’s search for the soul
  • 5:00 the philosophy of mind & soul
  • 6:30 “I think, therefore I am”
  • 8:00 Parmenides, Jung & rebirth
  • 11:00 Melville’s Cetology
  • 13:00 Father, Son & Holy Spirit
  • 15:00 the immortality of souls
  • 16:00 the age of artificial intelligence
  • 19:30 Ahab as will personified
  • 23:00 William James & psychology of will
  • 27:00 do we have free will?
  • 29:00 possessed by a single idea
  • 30:00 how to read the short chapters
  • 31:00 the magisterial madness of Ahab
  • 35:00 Ahab’s monomania
  • 39:00 does Ahab have PTSD?
  • 42:00 Queen Mab (chapter 31)
  • 45:00 universal, living & dead thumps
  • 47:00 Cetology (chapter 32)
  • 51:00 whales and folios
  • 57:00 Melville’s procession of playlets
  • 1:00:00 man’s reach should exceed his grasp
  • 1:02:00 The Mast-Head (chapter 35)
  • 1:08:00 “over Descartian vortices you hover”
  • 1:10:20 The Quarter-Deck (chapter 36)
  • 1:11:00 Ahab reveals the revenge mission
  • 1:13:00 the backstory of Captain Ahab
  • 1:15:00 “I’d strike the sun if it insulted me”
  • 1:18:00 My Heart Leaps Up (Wordsworth)
  • 1:19:00 Ahab’s interiority (chapter 37)
  • 1:23:00 Sunset, Dusk, First Night-Watch
  • 1:24:00 Midnight, Forecastle (chapter 40)
  • 1:25:00 Moby Dick (chapter 41)
  • 1:27:00 the supernaturalism of Moby Dick
  • 1:30:00 wounded in our own sea-battle
  • 1:32:00 The Whiteness of the Whale (chapter 42)
  • 1:36:00 reading assignments for next lecture

Questions to consider:

1) Do you believe we have a soul? And what is a soul to you?

2) What did you make of Melville mixing genres? Did you prefer the encyclopaedia entries or the musical theatre?

3) Is it possible to sympathise with or relate to Captain Ahab?

Bonus: Please do share with us your favourite chapter from this selection, and any thoughts you've had during your reading.

Happy sailing, everybody. Brace yourself for rough seas!

Files

Previews only

Moby Dick, Lecture Six: The Whiteness of the Whale (Ch. 30-42)

0:00 dream and literary analysis 3:00 man’s search for the soul 5:00 the philosophy of mind & soul 6:30 “I think, therefore I am” 8:00 Parmenides, Jung & rebirth 11:00 Melville’s Cetology 13:00 Father, Son & Holy Spirit 15:00 the immortality of souls 16:00 the age of artificial intelligence 19:30 Ahab as will personified 23:00 William James & psychology of will 27:00 do we have free will? 29:00 possessed by a single idea 30:00 how to read the short chapters 31:00 the magisterial madness of Ahab 35:00 Ahab’s monomania 39:00 does Ahab have PTSD? 42:00 Queen Mab (chapter 31) 45:00 universal, living & dead thumps 47:00 Cetology (chapter 32) 51:00 whales and folios 57:00 Melville’s procession of playlets 1:00:00 man’s reach should exceed his grasp 1:02:00 The Mast-Head (chapter 35) 1:08:00 “over Descartian vortices you hover” 1:10:20 The Quarter-Deck (chapter 36) 1:11:00 Ahab reveals the revenge mission 1:13:00 the backstory of Captain Ahab 1:15:00 “I’d strike the sun if it insulted me” 1:18:00 My Heart Leaps Up (Wordsworth) 1:19:00 Ahab’s interiority (chapter 37) 1:23:00 Sunset, Dusk, First Night-Watch 1:24:00 Midnight, Forecastle (chapter 40) 1:25:00 Moby Dick (chapter 41) 1:27:00 the supernaturalism of Moby Dick 1:30:00 wounded in our own sea-battle 1:32:00 The Whiteness of the Whale (chapter 42) 1:36:00 reading assignments for next lecture

Comments

Dani

What a lecture--and these questions! Another great session, Ben, thank you. To me, a soul refers to the energy and essence of a living being. I don't believe a soul is immortal though, at least not indefinitely. Kevin Brockmeier's The Brief History of the Dead suggests that a person continues to exist as long as they are remembered, or are part of a greater consciousness. I think there is something to that. The mixing of genres left me baffled, mostly due to the sudden shift in narrator (was it still Ishmael?). Given my background as a biologist, I prefer the encyclopedic entries because I identify with attempts to define and categorize the natural world. The Cetology chapter was one of my favorites for its use of taxonomy and classification to try and render some semblance of order and comprehension to the magnificent and unfathomable whale. Okay, The Whiteness of the Whale, wow. I see the color white as symbolizing unknowability, ambiguity and muteness. I think Ahab's raging obsession stems from a sort of grief arising from his inability to find meaningful answers to the What and Why of his life. Perhaps he's demanding reasons where none exist. I can definitely relate--who hasn't felt powerless, unheard and isolated at times from a failed effort to understand?

Anonymous

Greetings everyone! I’m really enjoying the slow-read so far, and I can’t wait to keep going! I’m also excited to read Job. I read some of it a long time ago, and remember it being very strange... 1) Do you believe we have a soul? And what is a soul to you? I do not believe we have a “soul” that is separate from our bodies that will live on after we die. That being said, I confess that it “feels” like I have a soul, but I think that is formed from my general awareness/consciousness mixed in w/ some emotions and memories. 2) What did you make of Melville mixing genres? Did you prefer the encyclopaedia entries or the musical theatre? I enjoyed both! Both passages were so unexpected when I came to them, I found them a nice surprise. It still blows my mind that this book wasn’t a hit when it first came out; Melville was so ahead of his time... 3) Is it possible to sympathise with or relate to Captain Ahab? I absolutely sympathize with Ahab. The more I get to know him, the more he seems like a tortured soul instead of an evil villain. A guy who went through horrendous experience, has PTSD, and didn’t get the help he needed. They used to put animals on trial for hurting people back in the day, so Ahab seeking revenge on Moby Dick doesn’t seem too outlandish, especially for the time. I’m reading Paradise Lost alongside Moby Dick, and I can really see the parallels between Milton’s Satan and Melville’s Ahab. In the “Sunset” chapter where Ahab is doing his soliloquy, he says, “This lovely light, it lights not me; all loveliness is anguish to me, since I can ne’er enjoy.” That reminds me so much of Satan missing the light of Heaven after being cast out. Both characters play the villain, but I can’t help but empathize with them, and even see them as anti-heroes. Bonus: Please do share with us your favourite chapter from this selection, and any thoughts you've had during your reading. My favorite chapter from this selection, and maybe of the whole book so far, was The Quarter-Deck. It was awesome! I loved all the devil imagery for Ahab when doing the oath: “’Tis hot as Satan’s hoofs... It spiralizes in ye; forks our at the serpent-snapping eye.” I also loved what I took to be double-meanings: “Men, ye seem the years; so brimming life is gulped and gone” AND “the spirits were simultaneously quaffed down with a hiss” both made me think of men getting swallowed up by a whale. Great stuff.