白鲸.doc

廊坊师范学院本科生毕业论文题目：白鲸的象征意义姓名：魏玲玲 指导教师：吴秀兰系别：英语系专业：英语教育年级：02接本完成时间 2004年5月20日A Reading of Symbols in Moby DickByWei LinglingProf: Wu Xiulan Submitted to the B.A. committee in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Arts in the English Department of Langfang Teachers College2004/5/20题目：白鲸的象征意义摘要:白鲸使美国作家麦尔维尔誉满全球,它不仅是一部惊心动魄的灾难历险小说，也是一部被赋予象征意味的哲理小说。其中的白鲸被描写成无处不在，无所不能的万能的上帝。埃哈布船长为复仇远涉重洋捕捉白鲸，最后自己，同伴与白鲸同归于尽的事迹，既表现了人类的勇敢与忍耐，也反映了他们的偏执与疯狂。另一个贯穿全文的象征就是“床单”，它象征世界不同文化的混合与交织，世界就像一块由多种布拼凑而成的床单，由不同的文化、种族、背景交织而成，人们在一起相互依靠，相互依存，小说中来自不同国家的船员就是最生动形象的体现。关键词：白鲸; 埃哈布; 上帝; 人类; 床单Title: A Reading of Symbols in Moby DickAbstract: Moby Dick is not merely a whaling tale or sea adventure, but also a philosophic novel with symbolic meanings. Moby Dick represents God owing to his godlike characters and his awfully severe beauty. Ahab symbolizes the league human with evil. In the whaling trip, we can see his bravery and patience, as well as his madness and stubbornness. The third symbolic element is the idea of the “counterpane” that is woven throughout the story as a symbol of the worlds multiculturalism. Melville develops the symbol proving that the world is indeed a counterpane of diverse cultures, races, and environment, in which we are always connected by our humanity. Key words: Moby Dick; Arab; God; human; counterpane 20ContentsI. Introduction .6II. The Symbolic Meanings of Moby Dick .7 1. Moby Dicks Characteristics .7 2. Moby Dicks Whiteness.83. Moby Dicks Power and Strength .8III. The Symbolic Meanings of Ahab .9 1. The Name Ahab . .10 2. Ahabs Madness.10 3. Ahabs Characters .12IV. The Symbolic Meanings of Counterpane .14 1. The Grandiose Sea.14 2. The Crew of the Pequod.14 3. The Character Queequeg.16V. Conclusion .18Notes.19Bibliography.20I. IntroductionMoby Dick is Melvilles masterpiece, but it is overlooked in its authors time. The revival interest in Moby Dick in the 1920s is of the most dramatic reversals in all literary history. From a by-line in the textbooks, Melville becomes, overnight, one of the half-dozen major American literary figures of the 19th century. Some critics hold it the greatest American novel. They assert that there is no other character as commanding as Ahab and no other book as full of such action, religion, philosophy, detailed information about a way of life, democratic beliefs, humor, tremendous variety of style and allusions. Therefore, Moby Dick has been studied and analyzed on different points by hundreds of writers. Some writers focus on the protagonist Ahab, who is seen as the tragic hero; some writers state that all moral judgments are accompanied with tensions, paradoxes and ambiguities, and take many illustrations to prove their statement; some writers study the brotherhood of man in the novel, the theme of which is the idea of comradeship between human beings, no matter how different. However, the paper will take Melvilles symbols as the subject matter. What does make him become a master of symbolism? It relates to his life experience and culture background. Herman Melville began working on his epic novel Moby Dick in 1850, writing it primarily as a report on the whaling voyages he undertook in the 1830s and early 1840s. Many critics think that his initial book didnt contain characters such as Ahab, Starbuck, or even Moby Dick, but the summer of 1850 changed Melvilles writing and his masterpiece. He became friend, with author Nathaniel Hawthorne and was greatly influenced by him. He also read Shakespeare and Miltons Paradise Lost. Their influences lead to the novel Moby Dick completed and published in 1851. Although ignored by critics after its release, Moby Dick took an important place in the world literature.In Moby Dick, Melvilles imagination has achieved its great peak through employing every means and technique he can reach, among which symbolism is the most thought-provoking and well-studied one. The symbolism of the white whale can be interpreted in many ways. The paper concerns that Moby Dick is the symbol of God. Ahab, the captain of the ship, represents the league human with evil. He questions the fate that God sends upon him and wants to challenge him. The idea of “counterpane” is the third symbolic element, which is woven throughout the story as a symbol of the worlds multiculturalism. II. The Symbolic Meanings of Moby DickMoby Dick is introduced through Ahabs speech and his dialogue with Starburk. Starburk accuses Ahab of blasphemy, which is irreverence toward God or something sacred. Melville places this rather bitter accusatory word in the mouth of the Christian-minded Starburk, directing at a cruel revengeful Ahab. If Moby Dick is sacred, Ahab only can take the action of blasphemy against him. Through indirect description of Moby Dick and direct cursing of a crazy man, Melville fills Moby Dick with hints and clues. At the true essence, Ahab sees behind the symbol of Moby Dick.According to the sailors stories and legends, Moby Dick is seen in two places at once at different places around the world. In this trait, Melville is suggesting omnipresence, a godlike trait. The sailors think he is immortal, another godlike trait, because he has been harpooned many times and still lives. Ahab himself believes Moby Dicks power is shocking, like gods omnipotence. Ahab states in chapter XXXVI, “that inscrutable thing Moby Dicks power is chiefly what I hate”1. In addition to the godlike characteristics of omnipotence and omnipresence, Moby Dick has got a reputation for tearing through sinners. He shows godlike justice and mercy in saving Steelkilt and killing the unjust Radney, as the crew learns from the sailors of the Town-Ho.Melville uses many other symbols to make the white whale a symbol of divine power. Moby Dick is thought to be immortal. He is the collective whale soul, the essential, eternal whale of which all other whales are only ephemeral manifestations. The sacred, special character of Moby Dick is indicated by his whiteness. His awfully severe beauty is godlike, as is his titanic power and his pyramid-like white hump. His color, white, has signified a special sanctify: In many natural objects, whiteness refines and enhances beauty, as in pearls, or confers special qualities such as innocence or purity. There is an elusive quality that causes the thought of whiteness to heighten terror, such as the white bear of the poles or the white shark of the tropics. Among humans, the Albino is considered shocking and loathed, while the whiteness of a corpse is a distinguishing and disturbing feature. In its most profound idealized significance it calls up a peculiar apparition to the soul. White is portentous because it is indefinite, not so much a color as the visible absence of color. 3In this chapter, Melville attempts to define Moby Dick through its whiteness, instead finding that the very nature of the color white defines definition. Melville devotes an entire chapter, narrated by Ishmael, in which he explores the meaning of whiteness through the ages and through the eyes of many different cultures. White or albino animals are typically considered sacred. Melville notes this fact, giving as examples the sacred white elephant of the Orient and the sacred white dog of the Iroquois.Melville portrays Moby Dick in nearly human terms, endowing the great whale a sense of intelligence, strategy and grandeur. The whale is more than a match for Ahab, despite his dogged persistence, and in fact appears altogether unconquerable. From the beginning of the novel, we are confronted with the image of the whale as the personification of power and strength, as Stubb says in the inn, “If God where to be any fish, he would be a whale,” the quote proves that the whale holds a great deal of power. Its also obvious that to confront a whale is much like confronting Mother Nature or God. One of the first remarks that makes about the whale is “Aye, it was Moby Dick that tore my body and soul until they bled into each other.” This quote, by captain Ahab, describes the whale as not only having power to destroy in the physical realm, but also to ruin in the spiritual world. Many biblical allusions in the story reinforce the notion that Moby Dick is an instrument of God if not God himself.Through these and other small clues and symbols, Melville hints that Moby Dick is sacred and godlike. He destroys those who seek to destroy Moby Dick. Harry Mackey, second mate of the Jeroboam, who pursues Moby Dick, is killed. However, Ahab, suggestive of an Old Testament conception of God, sees Moby Dick as unjust and too powerful. For the character Ahab, however, the whale represents only evil. Moby Dick is like a wall, hiding some unknown, a mysterious thing behind. Ahab wills the whole crew on the Pequod to join him in the pursuit of the big whale so as to pierce the wall, to root out the evil, but only to be destroyed by evil, in this case, by his own consuming desire, his madness.III. The Symbolic Meanings of AhabAhab is the central character and the primary focus of the novel, despite his mysterious and long-delayed appearance. Long before Ahab actually interacts with Ishmael and the other characters, Melville establishes him as an impressive and tragic figure, deserving of sympathy. Most of the details surrounding Ahab contain some elements of legend, such as the story that he loses one of his legs, and Melville further creates a tension between Ahabs supposed grandeur and his more fearsome qualities. Pelage describes him as simultaneously that the dynamic between these sides of Ahabs personality will form the primary internal struggle against Moby Dick. Melville additionally continues the Biblical allusions that dominate the characters name. The name Ahab in Moby Dick is symbolic and taken from the Bible, in which Ahab is described as a king who turns vile, suggesting that the Ahab of this novel will be a similarly conflicted leader. Ahab is an evil man having had someone killed so he could be king. Mysterious captain Ahab, a combination of Macbeth, Job, and Miltons Satan, appears after several days at sea. Melville names the character after the Israelite king who worshiped the pagan sun god Baal.Ahabs blasphemous hunt of Moby Dick has made him a sinner against God. Ahab wants to look through the “pasteboard mask” of reality and see what is behind physical objects. He wants to look behind the mask of Moby Dick and see God, to challenge him and question his justness. Ahab believes God is oblivious to the suffering of mankind and even states, “ sometimes I think theres naught beyond” the mask of Moby Dick. Not only has Ahab questioned Gods justice; he has questioned Gods existence. This blasphemy against God and no acceptance of human limitations have made Ahab to harpoon God, God in the guise of Moby Dick.Melville many times in Moby Dick makes Ahabs association with evil forces in the world apparent. Ahab declares himself to be mad and “demoniac”. He was called the Anti-Christ by the church Fathers. Ahab sets sail on Christmas Day, leaving when Christs life begins, symbolizing Ahabs opposition to Christ like values. Ahab also names his specially made harpoon in the name of the devil“Ego no baptize tee in nominee patris, sed in nomine diaboli.” The translation of Ahabs Latin is “I do not baptize thee in the name of the father, but in the name of devil.” Ahab baptizes his harpoon in the blood of his pagan harpooners. Queequeg, Dagoo, and Tashtego, Ahabs personal whaleboat abounds with heathens, led by Fedallah, whose name suggests “devil, Allah,” the crusader view of Allah.Ahab is a deeply disturbed man, who could be viewed as a crazy lunatic. He has been trapped in a world gone mad for a long time since the day he is unable to catch the feared Moby Dick, and he no longer finds simple pleasure any more because of the torment of his obsession. This is illustrated when he throws his favorite pipe into the sea. The pipe is a symbol of peace and tranquility. Ahab himself is trapped in madness and states, “May God damn us all if we do not hunt. Moby Dick to his death!” Ahab obviously knows what he is doing, “Drub brute blasphemy-kills and mutilate out race. I would strike the sun if it offended me? ” And he would not let Moby Dick get away this time no matter what the circumstance is. We can see Ahab as a tormented man, he suffers in physical and mental pain, and is obsessed by only one thing, vengeance against the whale. This does not allow him room in his heart for love and affection for others. The whale symbolizes a thing; he must destroy to regain what he has lost in his life, his freedom, and his mastery over his world. He sees his encounter with the whale as a defeat. By being maimed by the whale he is no longer the unconquerable, immortal godlike sea captain. He knows that in this pursuit he may die and so may his crew. Ahab has accepted the fact the beast is much more than an animal, but he still persists in his quest for vengeance, this constant struggle between Ahab and the whale indicate mans ongoing conflict with god. Like Ahab, no matter how often or in what manner God makes his will known to us we always seem to stray a way from that. Here Ahab or man does not ignore the will of God but he also challenges it. He is a man who we know has been to sea for years, three voyages, neglecting his wife and child in Nantucket. He is a loner with no friends. No one can come close to him. He is feared. Numerous examples support that something is not quite right with his mental state.In the novel, we learn that he has stowed away, much to the surprise of the crew, a mysterious group of oriental men who act, as Ahabs own personal whaling crew, designed specifically to hunt Moby Dick. It seems that, the leader, Fedallzah, is perceived by the crew as having a dark influence over Ahab. Stubb at one point confides to Flask that he thinks that Fedallzah is the devil himself and Flask thinks that Ahab may have struck a deal with him.Another example that demonstrates his madness is the sad case of Pip, the castaway. The small African boy is required to replace an oarsman on Stubbs boat; he is cast overboard and nearly drowned. From the experience, he goes mad. Pip seems to have been sacrificed for the sake of Ahabs obsession. We see a similar story in Ahabs own life. He abandons his own wife and child. Seeming to remember back to those days, he shows a small sign of affection toward the insane Pip. When the Pequod meets the whaling ship, the Samuel Enderby, on the high seas we get a look at the mindset of Ahab opposed to the mind of a rational and sane sea captain. Captain Boomer suffers a similar fate to that of Ahabs at the wrath of the white whale. Instead of a leg he loses his hand. Whale ivory replaces his hand. The two engage in a discussion. Ahab is interested in knowing the location of the whale. Captain Boomer does not want to have anything to do with the whale and he thinks Ahab is crazy for wanting to pursue him and risk further bodily injury. Along the long journey, the Pequod encounters some problems with whale oil leaking. Starbuck immediately tells Ahab that they need to fix the problem or they would loose their profits. Ahab does not want to waste time in his pursuit of Moby Dick. In the chapter “Pequod meets the Bachelor,” we see the contrast of what could have been the fate of the Pequod. The Bachelor is a ship with a happy crew loaded with a large cargo of whale, headed home. Had not a mad man been the captain of the Pequod, the same happy ending would have resulted instead of the tragic one we will see later on. Later, the ship meets another ship, the Rachel. Ahab asks the usual question about the whereabouts of the white whale. Captain Gardinar of the Rachel it turns out is missing a boat with his young son in it and needs the aid of the Pequod to find the boy. Ahab seems more interested in the subject of the white whale than the missing boy. Ahab refuses his plea for help. His refusal shows how his mania has overtaken his sense of human decency. Ahab, the Pequods obsessed captain, represents both an ancient and a typical modern type of hero. He is a man distinguished by courage and ability, who is admired for his qualities and achievements. Peleg describes Ahab as a “.grand, ungodly, god-like man, captain Ahab; does not speak much but when he does speak, then you may well listen. ”4 Peleg tells that he is “ moody, desperate moody and savage sometimes.” “ better to be a moody good captain than a laughing bad one.”5 The captain maintains a strong sense of dignity. He is single-minded in his pursuit of the whale, using a mixture of charisma and terror to persuade his crew to join him. As a captain, he is dictatorial but not unfair. At moments he shows a compassionate side, caring for the insane Pip and musing on his wife and child back in Nantucket.Like the heroes of Greek or Shakespearean tragedy, Ahab suffers from a single fatal flaw, one he shares with such legendary characters as Oedipus and Faust. His tremendous overconfidence, or hubris, leads him to defy common sense and believe that, like a god, he can enact his will and remain immune to the forces of nature. He considers Moby Dick the embodiment of evil in the world, and he pursues the white whale because he believes it his