Moby Dick
This universe was created with the intention of it to be comprised of infinite meanings, but man if constantly settling upon one specific meaning. Melville suggests, in Moby Dick, that every event and every object have various meanings. The way an individual lives their life rests only upon their shoulders. Yes, God has already mapped out our lives, as we are here on this earth just mere puppets acting out this inevitable play we call our lives, but it is up to us how we get there. If one goes through life seeing it as just black and white they will certainly miss the meanings that every object or event is comprised of. It is because of Ishmael's all-encompassing view on life that allows to be saved in the end. He strives to understand the reasons and interpretations a specific occurrence that happens where other characters, like Ahab, designate one reason for an act. Ishmael goes to sea to escape the world around him and to reflect on the fundamental meanings of the world. While reading this novel, Melville gives the sea a whole other meaning. I see the sea as a vast body of water that makes up 75% of the world. Melville, on the other hand, portrays the sea as representing the difficulty of life's meaning, the terror i
The meaning of any object lies in the beholder of the object, not the object itself. One example is the object that starts out as a coffin in the shape of a canoe, than into a storage chest, next into a work of art, and lastly a life buoy that saves Ishmael in the end. This objects primary purpose was Queequeg's coffin, but when he didn't die he found other purposes for it. We are unaware if the object is really a canoe, a coffin, a storage chest, or a work of art. This just goes to show that we can't give objects one meaning. Each individual that encounters objects or events in life bring meaning to them. Also the doubloon has many different meanings to the men on the ship, not just one. To Ahab it represents his determination and vengeance. Starbuck sees it representing the Trinity, which ties in his religious beliefs. To Stubb it represents the Zodiac and for Flask the doubloon only has economic value. In the chapter titled The Sperm Whale's Head-Contrasted View, Ishmael explains that the whale has its eyes on the sides of its head and this lets the whale see two different images. Unlike the whale, man is forced to focus on one thing because of the placement of our eyes. This explains why man is monistic, attempting to see everything in one thing. The whale represents nature and the world and their ability to see many meanings to things. Ahab's problem is seeing Moby Dick as one thing, when really its many, and this leads to the destructio
Some common words found in the essay are:
Yes God, Whiteness Whale, Moby Dick, Pequod Ishmael, View Ishmael, , Adam Ahab, Zodiac Flask, moby dick, life meaning, storage chest art, life ahab's, chest art, storage chest, meaning life, understand life,
Approximate Word count = 990
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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