Thursday, September 15, 2011

"Truth to the face of Falsehood"

Throughout Moby Dick, Melville often writes on the topic of Truth. He uses many characters to convey the importance of this trait, and more specifically uses Ishmael to judge it's usefulness compared to the focus of whaling. However, the symbolic representation of Truth throughout the book is what fascinates me the most, as Melville uses the story of Jonah, Ahab's persistence after Moby Dick, and Ishmael's stress on false descriptions of whales, to compare the image of the whale (particularly Moby Dick) to that of God and hisTruth.

In chapter Nine, Father Mapple preaches the story of Jonah from the Bible. When Jonah attempts to avoid God's word and flee to the ocean, a whale swallows him up on God's command. In my opinion, the whale represents the fate of hell awaiting Jonah if he refuses to follow God. It states on page 48 in a hymn where the whale swallows Jonah, "I saw the opening maw of hell / With endless pain and sorrow there." Father Mapple also preaches of the importance of the story, stating, "The sin of this son of Amittai was in his willful disobedience of the command of God...But all the things that God would have us do are hard for us to do...And if we obey God, we must disobey ourselves; and it is in this disobeying ourselves, where in the hardness of obeying God consists" (49).  

This quote from Father Mapple paralles with Ishmael's persistence in accurately representing the image of a whale in Chapter 55. The story of Jonah, while preaching the value of "Truth to the face of Falsehood," (53) contradicts with the literal truth that Ishmael insists upon when describing whales. Throughout the chapter, he cites numerous times in history and art where whales have been illustrated poorly or completely wrong, and therefore states on page 218, "For all these reasons...you must needs conclude that the great Leviathan is that one creature in the world which must remain unpainted to the last...The only mode in which you can derive even a tolerable idea of his living contour, is by going a whaling yourself." Ishmael also uses the example of Jonah on pages 215-216, citing it's innacuracy as well. This, I believe, brings the struggle of man's ability to disobey himself that Father Mapple talked of to the forefront of the story unfolding in Moby Dick. Ishmael is struggling to accept any truth but the one he harbors, just like Jonah struggled to accept the truth of God.

Also similar to Jonah is Captain Ahab. Similar to how Jonah ran from God, he is trying to escape from the real truth of his endeavors. A quote from Father Mapple on page 49 highlights this perfectly. While talking of Jonah, he states, "He things a ship made by men, will carry him into the countries where God does not reign, but only the Captains of this Earth." Ahab is so obsessed in his own truths, that he disregards the dangerous nature of it.

Moby Dick can therefore symbolize God, or Truth in this sense. Towards the end of the story in Chapter 54, he seems to be delivering vengeance upon Radney, while also sparing Steelkilt from evil, much like he did with Jonah. On page 212, as Radney along with his other shipmates are attempting to rope and capture Moby Dick, it states, "The whale rushed round in a sudden maelstrom; seized the swimmer between his jaws; and rearing high up wiht him, plunged headlong again, and went down." He also escapes, as it states, "But a sudden, terrific, downward jerking of the boat, quickly brought his knife to the line. He cut it; and the whale was free. But at some distance, Moby Dick rose again, with some tatters of Radney's red wollen shirt, caught in the teeth that had destroyed him." This, to me, represents the deliverane that God exacts upon those who deserve good, and those who deserve evil. Moby Dick spared Steelkilt from exacting revenge and damning himself, and was able to escape being caught in the traps of men that so often lead to their own demise. This shows that, even on teh sea, God is Captain, and his truth cannot be avoided.

1 comment:

  1. This is a good application of the messages of the sermon, Nick. Moby-Dick becomes an agent of justice in the Town-Ho's story, almost a kind of god.

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