Moby Dick is a novel written by Herman Melville. It was published in 1851. Moby Dick is considered one of the Great American Novels. The novel is primarily about the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship Pequod, for revenge on a giant white sperm whale.
One of the most interesting aspects of Moby Dick is the use of religious imagery. Many readers interpret the whale as a metaphor for God or nature. For example, when Ahab first encounters Moby Dick, he says “Thou hast robbed me of my spleen…thou hast snatched me up and dashed me down; and behold, I am thy prisoner” (Melville 9). This could be interpreted as Ahab feeling powerless against the natural force of the whale.
Other religious imagery includes the use of biblical references. One example is when Ishmael is talking about Moby Dick, he says ” Moby Dick had made a sharp angle in its flight, and seemed now making for one of the low sandy shoals” (Melville 41). This could be interpreted as Moby Dick being a symbol for Satan, who is often associated with darkness and evil.
Whether you interpret Moby Dick as a story about man’s obsession with revenge, or as a story about man’s relationship with nature or God, there is no denying that Herman Melville was a master of using religious imagery to add depth to his novel.
The religious imagery in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick is extensive. The fight between the evil powers of the Devil and the good forces of God and Jesus is described throughout the adventure of captain Ahab in his quest for Moby Dick. In this metaphor, Captain Ahab is represented by the Devil, God is represented by nature, Jesus is seen in Moby Dick, and mankind is represented by the crew of the Pequod. The voyage of the Pequod represents humanity’s existence on Earth until Christ’s death.
One of the most famous religious references in Moby Dick is when Ahab says to Starbuck, “There is one God- one Moby Dick!” (Melville, Herman). This line emphasizes the belief that Moby Dick is a symbol of the Devil. Throughout the novel, there are many biblical allusions and references to religious stories.
For example, Ahab tells Moby Dick, “Thou hast fed me with blood in place of milk; thou hast quickened me with iron in place of bread. Thou hast made me drunken with wormwood; thou hast maddened me with fire” (Melville, Herman). This quote refers to the story of Jesus turning water into wine at the wedding at Cana. In Moby Dick, the wine is replaced with Moby Dick’s blood and the bread with iron.
Many of the characters in Moby Dick are also symbols of religious ideas. For example, Queequeg is a pagan who worships idols and believes in many gods. He is often seen as a symbol of mankind’s search for God. Starbuck is another character who represents Christianity. He is a faithful believer in God and tries to stop Ahab from his quest for Moby Dick. Pip, the cabin boy, also represents Christianity through his innocence and faithfulness.
The theme of good versus evil is one of the most prevalent themes in Moby Dick. The battle between Captain Ahab and Moby Dick is a metaphor for the battle between the Devil and Jesus. In the end, Moby Dick represents evil and Captain Ahab represents the Devil. The main character, Ishmael, is a symbol of mankind. He is caught in the middle of this battle between good and evil but ultimately sides with good. This novel is a story of the journey of man on earth and the battle between good and evil that takes place within each individual.
This passage from Moby Dick shows that Captain Ahab is possessed by the Devil. His crew’s manipulation is evident in the entire quotation. Words such as “flames,” “blackness,” “howled,” and “giant pronged forks” turn the Pequod into a den of evil spirits.
The commander’s influence can be seen on these innocent men, who made only minor mistakes in failing to see through Ahab’s insane aim. Kyle Kombrink dedicated his essay titled “A Passionate Soul in Hell” to this same idea . Kombrink writes, “The captain’s mentality is then passed on to his crew, who are forced to operate under a hierarchical structure.
Each member of the crew falls victim to Moby Dick as they lose their sense of reality and become puppets in Ahab’s mad game.” This Moby Dick quote is about how Moby Dick has control over everyone on the ship, making them do what he wants. Moby Dick is a metaphor for the Devil, who controls everyone by making them do what he wants. This is shown in the quote by how Ahab refers to Moby Dick as the “Devil.” The entire quote shows how Ahab is manipulating his crew and how they are all being controlled by Moby Dick. This idea is also stated in Kyle Kombrink’s essay “A Passionate Soul in Hell.”
Kombrink writes, “The mind set of the captain is then carried over to his crew, so to be unified under a hierarchical structure. Each member of the crew falls victim to Moby Dick as they lose their sense of reality and become puppets in Ahab’s mad game.” This quote from Moby Dick shows how everyone on the ship is controlled by Moby Dick and how they are all being manipulated by him.
The madness of Ahab becomes their dread and motivates them all. The savage appears in everyone of them.” Savageness refers to hostility toward religious morality.
As a result, the men on board his ship, which is loaded with firewood and contains a coffin that is being burned, and plunges into the darkness. All of the momentum generated through the ship’s rushing towards an unnamed objective reaches its apex in the final statement, when we learn that elements of the crew have been exaggerated in order to represent something much worse – Ahab’s madness itself.
Ahab’s insanity is Moby-Dick. The great white whale is a metaphor for the ultimate evil, which Ahab seeks out to destroy. In Moby Dick, the ocean is a place of chaos, where there are no rules and anything can happen. This is why Ahab’s ship is called the Pequod, which means “destroyer” in Indian. The name suggests that Ahab’s quest will end in destruction, which it does.
The color white is often associated with purity and innocence, but in Moby Dick, the great white whale is an embodiment of all that is evil. This is because Ahab sees the whale as an obstacle between him and his goal of revenge.