L2L Moby Dick (pt. III)

Moby Dick; or, The Whale (pt. III)

Herman Melville

When last we left Ishmael and Queequeg, they had just signed up for the voyage of the Pequod. As they wait to set sail, Ishmael ignores some sinister portents and gives an eloquent defense against those who say there is “no dignity in whaling.” As far as he is concerned, whaling has been his “Yale College and [his] Harvard.” He then introduces the men in charge — chief mate Starbuck, second mate Stubb, Flask, and the harpooneers. But no one has seen and not much has been said of the most important officer. Ishmael’s first impression: “foreboding shivers ran over me. [..] Captain Ahab stood upon his quarter-deck.” Indeed, what to make of the captain? And what will he make of this possibly doomed journey? This week, Leigh, P. T., and Dr. C continue “reading allowed” from the Great American Novel that is Melville’s Moby Dick.