{"id":2386,"date":"2016-03-06T08:30:03","date_gmt":"2016-03-06T07:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/?p=2386"},"modified":"2025-09-07T00:07:07","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T22:07:07","slug":"moby-dick-oder-der-wal-herman-melville","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/2016\/03\/moby-dick-or-the-whale-herman-melville\/","title":{"rendered":"Moby Dick or The Whale \u2022 Herman Melville"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

This time I\u2019d like to present a real insider tip. A classic that hardly anyone knows and that I stumbled upon more or less by accident in the depths of the library. Still, the book Moby-Dick<\/em> is worth a mention. That\u2019s how I would have started my review if a few literary scholars hadn\u2019t rediscovered the book in the 1920s, bringing it to the fame and place in world literature it enjoys more than seventy years after its publication. During Melville\u2019s lifetime, Moby-Dick<\/em> sold only 3,000 copies. Over the past few months I feel like I\u2019ve bumped into the book exactly those 3,000 times, as it\u2019s available in countless editions and printings. Once again, I went for the handsome edition from Hanser Verlag.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"Moby-Dick;<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

In terms of theme and setting, the book fits perfectly into my wheelhouse: the sea, an adventure on the high seas, a story told from the perspective of an ordinary sailor\u2014and all that in a sleek, newly translated classic. Even so, I set the book aside for a while. At over 850 pages, it\u2019s a substantial read, and this edition is supplemented by around 200 pages of notes and an afterword.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

There are countless film adaptations of Moby-Dick<\/em>, none of which I\u2019ve seen, so beyond the broad strokes on the jacket copy I didn\u2019t really know the plot. The story is told by Ishmael, an ordinary foremast hand\u2014an ordinary seaman quartered in the less hospitable forward part of the ship. He signs on in Nantucket, a small island off the coast of Massachusetts, on a whaling ship. It quickly becomes clear that Captain Ahab has no intention of going on a regular whaling voyage but is planning a campaign of revenge against the notorious whale Moby-Dick, who cost him a leg in an earlier encounter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

I had braced for a thrilling adventure novel, breakneck and suspenseful from first to last page\u2014as many classics marketed as adventure novels are. However, the book doesn\u2019t fit neatly into that category. Melville\u2019s style is expansive and slow, and so the story begins with Ishmael\u2019s crossing from New Bedford to Nantucket, a stopover in a small harbor inn, and the search for a suitable ship to join. Melville does a superb job conjuring a genuinely maritime atmosphere, describing places, people, and the whole milieu with such loving detail that you can vividly picture the dark dives, the Pequod<\/em> (the whaler) rigged to the nines for whaling, and of course the sea.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201c[\u2026] how the wind howled and the sea surged and the ship groaned and pitched, yet still hurled its red hell farther and farther into the blackness of sea and night, and defiantly bit down on the whitish bone in its maw, and angrily spat spray to all sides, freighted with savages, loaded with fire, with a burning corpse aboard on its way into the blackest darkness\u2014thus the Pequod<\/em> stormed along like the material image of the soul of its possessed leader.\u201d (p. 656)<\/p><\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The book\u2019s title also includes \u201cThe Whale,\u201d and that\u2019s apt, because the whale in general\u2014not just Moby-Dick\u2014stands at the center. This book immerses you in the world of nineteenth-century whaling, which feels very archaic today. In small rowboats they set after the great marine mammals, with a strong seaman in the bow who harpooned the poor creatures and lanced them until they finally died. Then the whales were flensed, i.e., the blubber layer was stripped off. This layer protects the whale from the cold of the sea and contains the valuable oil (train oil), which in those days\u2014before petroleum took over\u2014was used as fuel.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"Moby-Dick;<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The reader learns all these things, and while the whaler Pequod<\/em> with Captain Ahab stands at the center, the narrative is repeatedly interrupted by extensive descriptions of whaling, its culture, everyday life, customs, dangers, and of course the whale itself. In meticulous detail, Melville explains how things were done, how the ships were built, the significance of spermaceti, how the killing and flensing of the whale proceeds in detail, and how the sailors thought and behaved. Melville even provides an overview of whale species, argues\u2014true to his time\u2014the case for whaling and its importance, and goes deeply into detail, even describing the hours spent on lookout in the mast-head. As a result, the ship doesn\u2019t sail until page 200, and even then the pace remains unhurried and is repeatedly interrupted for these thorough explanations.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

I\u2019m torn about the book\u2019s style and structure. On the one hand, I find it fascinating to learn about that era and life at sea. For all the dangers and hardships the sailors had to endure, it has something romantic about it: an apparently unfathomable sea, an undiscovered world full of adventure. On the other hand, I never quite found a reading flow, because the current events on board are repeatedly set aside for explanatory passages in an objective tone. Ishmael certainly tells his tale vividly and presents the facts in colorful fashion, garnished with many elaborate mythological, theological, and scientific comparisons and digressions. But if you set the general explanations about the whale against the on-board adventures, roughly three quarters of the book consist of detailed expositions on whales and whaling, and a quarter of the actual story. That leads to pronounced stretches and greatly diminishes the entertainment value\u2014especially because Melville really goes into the minutiae, dissecting the whale\u2019s anatomy down to the skeleton, from head to tail flukes. The entire process\u2014from the hunt to cleaning the ship after the oil has been rendered and stored\u2014is laid out across many short chapters, so the pace of the actual story is reduced to an absolute minimum. I found that a pity, because the episodes at sea when the Pequod<\/em> goes after whales, as well as the brief reports from other ships, are genuinely exciting and exactly the sort of thing I had expected.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The question is how to blend factual descriptions of whaling with an entertaining narrative arc so that a book remains a pleasure to read\u2014and there are some good examples. Captains Courageous by Kipling<\/a> is one such book that interweaves depictions of life in the fishing trade with a gripping story, delivering both solid entertainment and facts. Another example is Arthur Conan Doyle\u2019s Dangerous Work: Diary of an Arctic Adventure<\/a>, where he presents the experiences and observations from his voyage on a whaler in an engaging way. Perhaps that\u2019s just my perspective, because I\u2019ve read a lot in this vein. It\u2019s clear that Melville wanted to present a complete picture of the whale and whaling and leave nothing out. In that sense, comparing it with the two books above isn\u2019t entirely fair. Moreover, his reflections on whales and whaling certainly contain a great deal of substance, demonstrating his wide reading and his impressive ability to synthesize it\u2014far beyond the scope of the books mentioned.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The book wants to be both: a natural history of whales and an adventure about whaling. Moby-Dick<\/em> is meant to be a concrete instance of the extensively described species of whale, but in connection with the adventure it also says something on a meta-level. The numerous references to biblical passages, Christian stories, mythology, and works of world literature\u2014above all the story of Jonah, swallowed by a whale and spat out chastened\u2014lend the book a philosophical, metaphysical dimension. Shakespeare\u2019s figures also inspired Melville, so Hamlet, Timon, Lear, and Iago recur. According to the afterword, echoes of 160 texts can be heard in this work, alluded to by Melville in one way or another. Scholarly works and reports of his time also served as sources for the scientific view of the whale and whaling.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

His skepticism toward Spinoza\u2019s pantheism, but also the virtuous piety and fear of God portrayed, are clear indications that the book, in this respect, breaks a lance for Christian theism and is thus also an allegory of faith. In places this becomes quite plain.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201cBut if even the great sun does not move of itself but runs through the heavens as an errand boy; if not a single star can turn without an invisible power\u2014how then can this one little heart beat, this one little brain harbor thoughts, unless God drives this heartbeat, thinks these thoughts, lives this life, and not I.\u201d (p. 823)<\/p><\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

In many passages he offers striking ideas that genuinely captivated me.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201c[\u2026] and if we go further and consider that the mysterious cosmetic which produces all their color\u2014the great principle of light\u2014remains forever white and colorless itself and, if it acted on matter without a medium, would overlay everything\u2014even tulips and roses\u2014with its own empty pallor; if we consider all that, the gout-ridden universe lies before us like a leper, and like a willful traveler in Lapland who refuses to wear tinted, color-giving glasses, so the wretched unbeliever stares himself blind, unable to turn his gaze from the endless white shroud that veils everything he sees around him.\u201d (pp. 322\u2013323)<\/p><\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

For me, then, it\u2019s a book that feels somehow inconstant, hard to grasp as a whole. Editor Daniel G\u00f6ske calls Moby-Dick<\/em> a draft in the afterword\u2014an outline. From my point of view, a draft that is somehow complete and at the same time entirely open.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The fusion of narrative, concrete, and abstract\u2014even metaphysical\u2014elements, with a sidelong glance at texts from world literature, is also, in my view, why this book is counted among world literature. The question, however, is whether an allegorical meaning was actually planned from the outset by Melville and consciously inscribed into the work. The afterword asserts that it wasn\u2019t (cf. p. 886), but sees as a central element of this engagement \u201can existential struggle for the truth behind a deceptive, elusive world of appearances\u201d (p. 896). I\u2019d agree with the afterword here, for the work seems to me too uncontrolled, too diffuse to reveal a clear set of intentions beyond the story being told. The sea and whaling were, given Melville\u2019s career as a sailor, an inherent frame, and a story with that background, artfully elaborated, inevitably leads to humanity\u2019s big questions.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

A central theme is the struggle between humankind and nature, between good and evil, between God and the Devil. To forge a connection between mythology, faith, and the whale\u2014to give weight to the image of the Leviathan from the outset\u2014the book begins with excerpts about whales from various ancient sources. But of course this struggle is embodied most vividly in Captain Ahab\u2019s vendetta against the white whale Moby-Dick. It quickly becomes clear that Ahab is also a symbol. He unites many roles, even if his course of action doesn\u2019t surprise. Fearless, he confronts nature and defies it, behaves like a devil, reckless toward himself and others, and at the same time he isn\u2019t completely blinded but sees quite clearly. He embodies the dictator, the autocrat, the demagogue. Moby-Dick, as representative of pitiless nature, also unites several facets\u2014from God\u2019s vengeance, as in the biblical Jonah, to mute, instinct-driven nature\u2014and that frees the book from any form of stereotype, which I liked very much. As a reader you can interpret and discover a great deal here.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

What\u2019s particularly impressive is the multi-layeredness of Melville\u2019s text. From ordinary narrative to sermons, prophetic speeches, natural-historical descriptions, monologues, staged dialogues, and even a chorus-like multitude of voices before the mast\u2014everything is on offer here. Together with the many cross-references and the interruptions by comparatively objective treatments of whales and whaling, the result is a diffuse work, and at the same time the reading flow is heavily disrupted\u2014both linguistically and structurally. That\u2019s also reflected in the multitude of chapters, often quite short. The reader can\u2019t really develop a sense of closeness to any character, especially not to the narrator Ishmael, who increasingly recedes into the background as the novel progresses. I sorely missed that focus and the absence of a clearly guided narrative structure. I read the book with my intellect and never with feeling or emotion. The hunt for the whale filled me with suspense, but any outcome would have left me cold. The highest art is to abduct the reader body and soul, and Melville didn\u2019t manage that for me.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"Moby-Dick;<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Hanser edition, however, did win me over again\u2014both for its high-quality production and for the extensive supplementary material and, of course, the translation. You can immediately sense the care and dedication invested in the text, and a glance at the editorial note confirms the effort involved. Linguistically, the book is very pleasant to read, while aiming to echo the language of the period.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201c[\u2026] but the special patina of the English original should be emulated. That also applies to the older stylistic forms inscribed in the novel, insofar as usable German equivalents exist for them.\u201d (p. 907).<\/p><\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The translator Matthias Jendis uses nautical terms that were new to me. Very often you read fieren\/abfieren<\/em>, meaning to haul down, lower, let down. Or belegen<\/em>, which refers to securing and making fast lines or ropes. The book includes a glossary of all nautical terms, which I consulted repeatedly and found very helpful.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The afterword also gives a good overview of the work\u2019s genesis and history. In the summer of 1851, under pressure from the publishers, an initial New York edition appeared that was full of errors and contradictions; Melville apparently didn\u2019t have enough time to correct them. The September 1851 London edition was likewise riddled with errors. The November 1851 New York printing finally included numerous corrections. The October 1851 London edition, by contrast, had no epilogue and was trimmed of some delicate passages to suit female readers. The early reviews in the USA were accordingly rather negative, whereas some British reviewers praised his powers of observation, verbal force, and imagination. As mentioned above, the book only became famous in the 1920s and has since been adapted countless times into various formats\u2014youth editions, radio plays, films\u2014and, of course, translated many times.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

There\u2019s also a timeline of Melville\u2019s life appended, which at points reads quite adventurously. Melville\u2019s father was a businessman who ultimately went bankrupt. Melville never really achieved financial or professional security and took on many jobs in many places. He himself signed on a Nantucket whaler and gained experience before the mast, which he eventually processed literarily\u2014not only in Moby-Dick<\/em>. He was widely read and moved in New York\u2019s literary circles, writing articles and reviews for newspapers. As a writer, however, he never truly gained a foothold, and when he died in 1891 he was all but forgotten in the USA.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Conclusion:<\/strong> Moby-Dick<\/em> leaves me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, you can only respect the work\u2019s richness\u2014both linguistically and in terms of content. Whether ordinary narration, sermon, prophetic speech, natural-historical description, monologue, artful dialogue, or a chorus presented in the style of an operetta, this work offers astonishing variety. In terms of its broad range of interpretive possibilities, its numerous metaphysical readings, and its exciting episodes on the high seas, it\u2019s a success. On the other hand, I never quite found a reading flow, as the action is repeatedly interrupted and Ishmael, the narrator, lays out, in a lively yet still matter-of-fact style, every detail about whales and whaling at great length. The shifting modes of narration reinforce this impression and, for me, impeded immersion in the melody of his otherwise very beautiful prose. In fact, in several places in this edition I was grateful for the very sensible, carefully chosen cuts the editor made. Nor does the reader develop real closeness to the characters, so I didn\u2019t fully immerse myself in the work but read it more with my head than my heart. In a classic of world literature, I would have preferred a more balanced ratio. So I can offer a clear recommendation mainly to readers who feel a bond with the sea, are fascinated by the Leviathan, or appreciate many literary, theological, and mythological side glances.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Book information: <\/strong>Moby-Dick; or, The Whale \u2022 Herman Melville \u2022 Carl Hanser Verlag \u2022 1,048 pages \u2022 ISBN 9783446200791<\/p>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This time I\u2019d like to present a real insider tip. A classic that hardly anyone knows and that I stumbled upon more or less by accident in the depths of the library. Still, the book Moby-Dick is worth a mention. That\u2019s how I would have started my review if a few literary scholars hadn\u2019t rediscovered … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Moby Dick or The Whale \u2022 Herman Melville”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7722,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"Moby Dick oder Der Wal \u2022 Herman Melville - lesestunden","description":"Diesmal m\u00f6chte ich einen echten Geheimtipp vorstellen. Einen Klassiker, den kaum jemand kennt und auf den ich eher zuf\u00e4llig in den Untiefen der Bibliothek gesto"},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"_slim_seo_primary_term_category":0,"_slim_seo_primary_term_post_tag":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,20],"tags":[90],"class_list":["post-2386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-classics","category-reviews","tag-herman-melville"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/moby_dick_beitrag_2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2386\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}