Moby Dick Chapters 41-60

Chapters 41-60

Ishmael, like the rest of the crew, is deeply affected by Captain Ahab and his hatred for Moby Dick. He resolves to discover all he can about the white whale and learns that the whale hadn't become common knowledge among the worldwide whaling community due to the disorganized and solitary movements of whale ships that often left them deprived of any news for long periods. Moby Dick's unusual rage and ferocity became linked with superstition, and so those that knew of the whale believed it to be both ubiquitous, for it had been sighted miles apart in very short durations, and immortal, as it had escaped several attacks of whaling ships and survived. When Ahab had been hunting the whale, it had turned around on the attacking boats and reduced them to splinters, and then taken off Ahab's leg. Ahab in his anger had attempted to kill the animal with a knife even when struggling to stay afloat in the debris of his boat. Ahab had lain on the Patagonian coast to recover, and during his healing, the anger he bore for Moby Dick had suffused him, so much so that he had to be put in a straitjacket on the voyage home. As the ship approached Nantucket, Ahab had come to terms with his madness and bound it tightly with his powerful mind. So good was his control that his crew soon forgot about his lunatic ravings, and everyone ascribed his transformed demeanor to the loss he had borne. Ahab had knowingly hidden his true motive for returning to the sea from the owners for they had believed that Ahab's condition would allow him to drive his men harder to kill whales. Had they known Ahab's intention to seek revenge on Moby Dick, they certainly wouldn't have given him command of the vessel. The crew of the Pequod, including Ishmael, find in themselves a growing hatred for the white whale and the desire to deliver vengeance to their captain.

One of the sailors working on the deck of the ship claims to hear a cough from the hold and believes that there may be someone in the ship's hold that is yet to be known and that Captain Ahab is aware of who the individual is.

After the ritual on the deck of the ship, Ahab retreats to his cabin and pores over charts of the oceans, something he does every night. Ahab uses the logbooks of the whaling vessels that reveal the feeding grounds of the sperm whale and the different seasons in which they can be found. The sperm whales migrate through the ocean using 'veins', definitive passages through which Whales have been found to travel. With the albino whale, there is a specific feeding ground and time of year called the 'season on the line' where Moby Dick has been seen with some degree of consistency. Ahab deliberately chose to sail the Pequod just as that specific time window had just begun with the intention to reach that area of the ocean the following year and meanwhile attempt to find the whale at other likely places.

Ishmael lays out certain facts for the benefit of the reader so that the tale of Moby Dick can be placed in the appropriate context. He has personally experienced three instances in which a sperm whale has been hit with a harpoon only to escape death and then been struck dead by the same hand at another time. He also verifies the ability of the sperm whale to cause severe damage to large shipping vessels by citing specific instances in history dating as far as back as the roman empire. Ishmael establishes that sperm whales have been known to retaliate pursuit and attack with deliberate intention and not blind rage.

Ahab's monomania about Moby Dick doesn't prevent him from paying attention to the disposition of his crew, and he is aware that if the sailors are not occupied with the general tasks of their trade, a mutiny could very well occur. As such, he is adamant that the masthead lookouts report all whale sightings irrespective of whether it was Moby Dick or not.

Queequeg and Ishmael are weaving a sword mat when Tashtego signals the sighting of a school of whales blowing in the distance. The ship's atmosphere immediately changes as the sailors begin preparing the boats that would ride to the whales, line tubs are fixed into place and the cranes are thrust out. An exclamation is heard and all eyes turn towards Ahab who seems to be surrounded by phantoms.

The phantoms are tiger-complexioned sailors from the Manillas, led by Fedallah, an old man with a white turban, they lower the Captain's boat into the water and man its oars. Now where there had been three boats in the water, there were now four. The three boats are led by the mates and the fourth by Ahab. As the boats chase after the whales, the mates discuss the curious men and their origin, one of the sailors aboard Flask's ship comments that he had heard something in the hold and was convinced that it was these fellows. The boat with Ahab pulls faster than the other ships, and as the whales separate so too do the boats. They are hidden from one another by a thick mist and a squall, but Starbuck's boat, where both Queequeg and Ishmael are part of the crew, sight a whale. Queequeg throws his harpoon at Starbuck's command but they fail to kill the whale and are left stranded in the mist-covered ocean. The Pequod rescues them the following morning and they discover that the other boats had given up the chance and retreated, they had thought Starbuck's boat lost to the sea.

Flask and Stubbs wonder at how old and maimed Ahab had braved the difficulties and perils of being aboard the hunting boats. Ahab had been aware that the owners of the ship wouldn't agree with his plan to venture into the ocean with a boat of his own, and so had made arrangements for a crew of his own, and made changes to the spare boat to make it suitable for his ivory leg.

Fedallah had a habit of going up into the masthead in the night, for the first few nights nothing occurred then one-night Fedallah raised a cry for a whale blowing in the distance, the whole ship was animated but once they reached the spot where the whale ought to be they found nothing and had no more spouts. This continued to happen on most evenings and the sailors begin to speculate that it may be Moby Dick that was vexing them so. The sea turns harsh and the sailors retreat from the foredeck that is almost continually assaulted by waves, but Ahab remains steadfast. He continues to man his post and returns to his cabin drenched at night, but still, his desire for the Moby Dick burns bright in him as he continues to stare at his charts.

Ishamel sights another whaling ship coming towards them, the ship appears to have spent a good long while on the seas and appears ragged. The crew is unable to trade any news because as soon as Ahab inquires of a white whale, the other captain loses his speaking trumpet into the ocean. Ahab however, tells the other ship to convey his message to the Nantucketers, that the Pequod was sailing around the world and all future correspondence should be sent to the pacific ocean.

Around Cape Horn, the Pequod encounters another whaling vessel, the Town-Ho, this vessel has both sighted and engaged with the Moby Dick. Ishmael discusses the full account of the occurrences aboard the Town-Ho at the Golden Inn, in Lima. He informs an interested audience about the rivalry that existed on board the ship between the first mate, Radney, and a sailor, Steelkilt. Radney the smaller man, had been jealous of Steelkilt and had assigned him menial work. Steelkilt refused to obey and when Radney threatened to hit him, and in the ensuing conflict, Steelkilt punched the first mate and knocked him unconscious. Steelkilt was a popular sailor and so when a commotion was raised about his actions, some of the sailors sided with him and retreated into the hold where they were locked in by the Captain. Slowly the sailors in the dark hold began to calm down and deserted Steelkilt until just two of the less honorable sailors were left. In the night, when Steelkilt slept, they arose, tied him up, and delivered him to the captain. The captain nearly flogged Steelkilt for his punishment but stopped himself, Radney, who had now recovered however felt less sympathetic and so flogged the sailor. The temperament of the sailors was already low due to the tireless work on the pumps that were kept running due to a leak in the ship. Steelkilt convinced the other sailors to passively work the pump and to never raise an alarm over any sighted whale, in the meanwhile, Steelkilt plotted his revenge. He never needed to himself make use of it as one of the sailors in the excitement of sighting the large white whale raised a cry for it. Radney was killed in the encounter with the hateful whale, Moby Dick, and he later escaped any legal repercussions of his actions aboard the ship by abandoning the captain at a savage port with a good many of the sailors.

The Pequod passes through the feeding grounds of the right whale, but being a sperm whaler, the crew leaves the majestic beasts to feed in peace. Ishmael ponders the nature of the ocean and the creatures that live within it, he draws an analogy that compares land surrounded by a merciless ocean with a human living a life of uncertainty.

As the ship sails to Java, Daggoo happens to see a white mass rising in the ocean, and mistakes the white mass for Moby Dick. The whaleboats are promptly lowered but they soon discover the white mass to be a large squid. The whaleboats return dejectedly to the Pequod, made all the more uncomfortable due to the superstitions held by sailors regarding the sighting of the squid.

Analysis

Ishmael ironically declares that the hunt for the White Whale is not allegorical but an instance that is backed by similar situations recorded in the history of the whaling industry. This section is meant to communicate that captain Ahab's desire for revenge is not something symbolic but rather a real and physical thing. At the same time, itt is ironic for the reader it is established that the tale of Moby Dick is indeed fictional.

Ahab's refusal to participate in the 'gams' with other whaling vessels serves to further emphasize the obsession he has for hunting down the white whale. His only and chief inquiry from all the captains that he encounters throughout the book is only about Moby Dick. The author intelligently uses these gam sessions to paint a more detailed picture of the whaling community.

The instances involving the white squid and the phantom spout in the night and the killing of Radney by the white whale, all serve as tools for the author to foreshadow the disaster that awaits the Pequod.