Paula’s Comments (group member since Jun 18, 2025)

Paula’s comments from the Reading the Chunksters group.

Dianne wrote: "Everyman wrote: "Dianne wrote: "Chapter 1 - Loomings.."

There's something ominous about that title, isn't there? What is looming and over whom?

But my Norton edition says that the term in nautica..."

Dianne, this is a great post. I go back to it often. And I love the illustrations you post. My book has none, so I'm really enjoying them.

I just finished rereading and mulling over the chapters about the chapel and the famous sermon. I learned so many interesting things (adding to the pile of fascinating tidbits - as Dianne phrased it). It wasn't until Sue mentioned it that I understood the "Whalesman's Chapel" was based on an actual church Melville had attended just prior to his own sailing. Of course, I had to look it up (thank goodness for the Internet), and found pictures and descriptions of the church - how it gained recognition from Moby Dick, most especially the movie based upon the book.

What's interesting is reality backing into/accommodating historical fiction, instead of the other way around. The movie portrayed the pulpit as the prow of a ship, and it struck such a chord with the public, that people starting making the chapel a tourist attraction. But when they visited, they were very disappointed to find a ordinary pulpit and not the fantastical one described so vividly in Melville's book.

Apparently, in response to the disappointment of so many visitors, funds were raised to build a facsimile of the famous, fictional pulpit, and there it stands to this day.

From that reading, I learned that Father Mapple is very probably based upon a real preacher whose sermons were widely popular, and very stirring - Father Taylor, the "Sailor Preacher", who was the Pastor of The Seaman's Bethel in Boston.

It was so interesting to read about him and also read some of the comments about him. Here's some of the cool stuff I found:

In 1842, Charles Dickens visited Boston and went to the Seamen’s Bethel to hear Taylor preach. In 1847, Taylor served as chaplain of the frigate Macedonian, which provided relief to Ireland during the famine. In the 1850s, the beloved singer Jenny Lind went to the Seamen’s Bethel when she was in Boston.

Dickens was not the only writer who was interested in Taylor. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “How puny, how cowardly, other preachers look by the side of this preaching! He shows us what a man can do.” Walt Whitman said of Taylor, “I have never heard but one essentially perfect orator.”

Taylor may have served as a model for Father Mapple. The European writers Harriet Martineau, Anna Jameson, and James Silk Buckingham also heard Taylor preach and included him in their American travel books.

Ok - Sorry, this comment is running long, but I have to talk about the Sermon, which I've always heard was a stopping point in Moby Dick because it was so boring.

Oh my gosh, I loved it! So much passion from this preacher, doing what the best preachers do best, that is, bringing scriptures to life, making them relatable and accessible to their audience. And it doesn't originate from show or acting, the best orators and preachers really felt what they were saying. They were in touch with the fire within themselves. They bared their souls. Yes, there is a honing of the skill, the performance, but it stems from something sincere and original.

I really felt that in the Melville's sermon. When you read the Book of Jonah and compare it to Melville's sermon, what a difference! Melville took that Biblical story, adapted and portrayed it exactly how a preacher would do it. Adapting the story and the message to his congregation. It wasn't dry and spare, it was vivid, it had momentum, it built suspense, portraying the emotions of the people. It was everything a sermon should be, in the best traditional sense of those old Methodist preachers.

No matter what your religious affiliation, if any, you can appreciate the work of art that is this sermon.

Did I say I loved it?

Here's a final little blurb I wanted to quote with regard to Father Taylor:

Taylor became one of Boston’s most popular and best-known preachers, and he was known everywhere as “Father Taylor”. The Boston orator and statesman Edward Everett said Taylor was a "walking Bethel". A contemporary encyclopedia noted that he “mingled nautical terms and figures in his discourses, and by his wit, pathos, and imagination controlled the moods and wrought upon the feelings of his hearers in a remarkable degree.” The notable Unitarian minister Henry W. Bellows said of Taylor: "There was no pulpit in Boston around which the lovers of genius and eloquence gathered so often, or from such different quarters, as that in the Bethel at the remote North End, where Father Taylor preached. ... He was, perhaps, the most original preacher, and one of the most effective pulpit and platform orators, America has produced."

This book - it's amazing. It glows with fire and intensity. It's just so great.

Thanks for letting me run on :).

Christopher wrote: "Paula wrote: "Abraham Lincoln and Joshua Speed."

Good one! I am going to quote the 'roommates' part of Herndon's Life of Lincoln, and everyone can compare and contrast.

... He came into my store,..."

Thank you for quoting this. So many friendships are simply, and beautifully, that. Not every sincere feeling has a sexual base.

I have to pull out these volumes again.

Mark wrote: "From Mark's wife:
Happy New Year! My resolution is to stop dawdling and pay attention to this book! I am way behind.
Mark recommended MB to me when we started dating, and I demurred on the grounds ..."

Hi Susan! Yes I had the same reaction to the Afghanistan reference. And I like what you said...that we like Queequeg because Melville likes him. What a great character.

I'm going to reread the sermon tonight. I thought it would be boring, but it's really fascinating.

Roman Clodia wrote: "Also, picking up on Christopher's and Paula's points about the historicisation of male friendship, during the Renaissance male friendship was valued above the love between men and women.

Montaign..."

It's so reminiscent of what I read of the close friendship of Abraham Lincoln and Joshua Speed. Lincoln rented/shared a room (and bed) with Speed and they became close friends. Their later letters were those of dear friends who shared the most intimate details with each other of their hopes and fears. My understanding is that men of that era in the U.S. were perfectly comfortable in expressing their feelings towards their dearest male friends.

Apparently no one thought there was anything more than friendship between Lincoln and Speed. It was only in the 20th Century, when people viewed the past through the more sexualized lenses of their present, that a different interpretation surfaced, with Carl Sandburg saying the friendship had something of the lavender about it.

Tracey wrote: "Dianne wrote: "Chapter 1 - Loomings

From the first line, "Call me Ishmael," we are all invited to have a close relationship with the narrator. It is remarkable how that one line alone can set the ..."

Tracey, I agree with you that "Call me Ishmael" implies that this is not his real name. Given its Biblical underpinnings, I think he chose it deliberately. But why? Perhaps best to express how he feels about himself now? After the end of his story?

Chapter 3

I, like everyone else, love this chapter. Right away, we, with Ishmael, are brought face to face with a portent of what lies ahead: the painting. But Melville is not heavy handed about it. Instead, his light humor is brought to the fore:

"...it was only by diligent study and a series of systematic visits to it, and careful inquiry of the neighbors, that you could any way arrive at an understanding of its purpose."

More things for me to learn: Hyperborean, monkey jacket, "turning flukes". I loved the, again, almost Dickensian depiction of the inn, Peter Coffin, Jonah, the bartender. I was interested in the little details, for example, the clever fraud of the bar glasses, the seamen grouped around skrimshander, all the other nautical details in the room.

There is so much humor in this chapter. The boy cramming himself with dumplings, in danger of nightmares all night, which causes Ishmael great concern as he whispers "Landlord, that ain't the harpooner, is it?"

Of course the best part is the running joke throughout the chapter - Ishmael's concern about his unknown bedfellow, Coffin's awareness of it, and his glee in pulling Ishmael's leg about it. Unable to conceal a constant grin, all the while knowing Ishmael has nothing to fear from Queequeg. It makes the ultimate (and very funny) meeting between the two even more hilarious!

And then to finish it off with simple words of wisdom, which we wish everyone could keep in mind:

"What's all this fuss about...the man's a human being just as I am..."

Christopher wrote: "Dianne wrote: "Melville portrays a close relationship between men that is not typical in western culture."

It depends on what you mean by "not typical."

It is certainly at the heart of The Iliad-..."

I actually did a bit of reading on this topic back when I read Team of Rivals. What Melville describes is the warmth of love and affection men commonly and openly expressed for each other during his time and place (not to say this was new to his time). It wasn't until the 20th Century that a different interpretation was cast upon the openess and depth of feeling men were comfortable with expressing.

I've always thought men have been dealt some difficult cards when it comes to friendship. We women can hug our female friends, share the most intimate secrets, cry at separations, express our love through actions and words, and it's all ok, nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, if a man expresses himself in the same way? Well, he must be gay. As if a man can only have emotions for another human being (other than a family member) if he is gay. It's an isolating prejudice.

Chapter 2

I consider myself to be a fairly well-read person; however, I find myself glad to have my iPad at the ready in order to look up references or terms I have either never heard of, or I don't possess the same level of in-depth knowledge as does Melville.

I knew of Tyre, but obviously not to the same degree as Melville. So my iPad was available to transport me there.

Pea Coffee. Never heard of that. iPad dragged out again. Interesting to read about, but no thank you to a cup of that. A mere two sentences later... Euroclydon wind. Never heard of that. Picked up iPad again. Very interesting.

Lazarus, ok, yeah, I know the story, but wait. Lazarus and Dives? Dives? back to the iPad. Ah, dives is another term for "rich man".

On the negative side, I'm not perhaps as smart as I think I am. On the plus side, I'm getting smarter :-).

The whole chapter, the wandering past warm, cozy inns in search of cheaper lodgings, heading down dark, cold avenues, the humorous encounter with the black church, finally encountering the Spouter Inn, whose proprietor is Peter Coffin...it's all so Dickensian!

Dianne wrote: "Julie wrote: "The Spouter Inn, Peter Coffin - almost Dickensian!"

good catch Julie! It is!"

I was going to say the same thing!

Dianne wrote: "Haaze wrote: "It looks like one of your law books, Dianne! ; -)"

aaah! flashback! don't traumatize me!"

It looks a bit like my copy of The Disconnected (Atay). I need to get back to that one soon.

I want to know what book that is!

Dianne wrote: "Happy New Year! Here's to a year full of fabulous chunksters together!

"

I want to read that book 🙃👍🏻

Cheesecake, chocolate, Chunksters..."ch" words that are made to go together 🤗. Happy New Year to you!

Christopher wrote: "Sorry, we need a better picture of Queequeg:

"

These are great!

Everyman wrote: "Paula wrote: "I'm writing from my iPad, which seems woefully unequal to the task, but I don't want to stir from my comfy armchair and the glow cast by my Christmas tree.

Anyway, I will do the best..."

It's a good question. I suppose that's one of the reasons why I assumed Ishmael was a schoolmaster. A thoughtful, sensitive, educated person, leading a solitary existence, perhaps reading a great deal, who feels the need to tell his story in writing, might well have accumulated such knowledge.

I love the two by two reference. So evocative of that isolated Ark upon those storm tossed waters, and Noah never really knowing if dry land would ever really manifest.

Tracey wrote: "Dianne wrote: "Chapter 1 - Loomings

From the first line, "Call me Ishmael," we are all invited to have a close relationship with the narrator. It is remarkable how that one line alone can set the ..."

I rather think Ishmael is an assumed name. And it makes me wonder why he feels he needs one.

I'm writing from my iPad, which seems woefully unequal to the task, but I don't want to stir from my comfy armchair and the glow cast by my Christmas tree.

Anyway, I will do the best I can.

Why have I never read this book? What has been wrong with me all these decades? It is a book I could have read and reread many times and still found small gems that eluded me in previous readings.

First and foremost, Melville's prose. It is perfection. Clean, clear, intelligent, elegant. And the way he orchestrates every word, sentence, and paragraph. Just take the first chapter, we know we are in the hands of a master.

What do we know of Ishmael? We know he identifies himself as a wanderer, perhaps a little lost in himself and his surroundings, prone to depression, which he copes with by following the tug of his longings to the sea.

We know he is an intelligent, educated man. Look at the myriad of references to history, myth, geography, philosophy, and of course the Bible (as is obvious from the name he has chosen for himself). In just the first chapter, we find references to Cato, Narcissus, Seneca, the Stoics, the Fates, Patagonia, the Persians, the Greeks, Pythagoras. And, he doesn't parrot something he heard, no. He understands the references and allusions he makes. He deeply understands them. And his humor. It isn't the humor of a rough, uncultured man. It is refined and deftly expressed. And beautifully timed. His Pythagorean maxim joke is something you almost miss, or puzzle over. But when you catch it, how much you appreciate this man.

I love the sense of movement in the first chapter when Ishmael describes the longing that all creatures have for water. There is action and movement in each paragraph: "Circumambulate the city", "Thousands upon thousands of mortal men fixed in ocean reverie", "But look! Here come more crowds", "Take almost any path", "Should you ever be athirst in the great American desert", "Go visit the prairies in June".

He takes us on an evocative grand tour of America in two pages, filled with movement, excitement, discovery, and searching. Always a restless searching.

Who is this man? Has Ishmael been lording it as the country schoolmaster, making the tallest boys stand in awe of him? His words persuade me that he is. "The transition is a keen one, I assure you, from schoolmaster to a sailor, and requires a strong decoction of Seneca and the Stoics to enable you to grin and bear it. But even this wears off in time."

With regard to the title of Chapter 1: Loomings. I think Ishmael gives us the interpretation in the last paragraphs, where he talks of the Fates as the invisible police officer who has the constant surveillance of him, where the Fates sometimes make the decisions we think we are making ourselves.

And that last sentence, so filled with the portent of what lies ahead:

"...the great floodgates of the wonderworld swung open, and in the wild conceits that swayed me to my purpose, two and two there floated into my inmost soul [an allusion to Noah's Ark?], endless processions of the whale, and, mid most of them all, one grand hooded phantom, like a snow hill in the air."

The white whale. The first allusion to the great Moby Dick.

Mark wrote: "Hi All, I'm Mark. - )
I'm friends with some of the members here and recognize some others too.
Moby Dick is a family favorite at our house! I was wondering if it wouldn't break too many rules to le..."

I think that would be wonderful. Welcome!

Dianne wrote: "on that note, it might be fun to have a trilogy only nomination sometime. or tetralogy. any series, I am thinking."

That's a cool idea!