Herman Melville's contribution to a Biblical presence in Literature

What's in a name? The names of the characters are significant in the tale of Moby Dick. The names I will mention here are all biblical names and interestingly enough the meaning behind the name or the biblical character it represents matches the character in this novel by Melville. The symbolism deserves attention.

One of the characters, Ishmael, means "God hears." Ishmael's lot in life was to be a "wild donkey of a man" (Genesis 16:11-16). This refers to one who us not settled or someone who wanders all their life. In our novel, Ismael's opening words allude to his being restless and always in need of the next adventure. Ishmael was certainly not an evil person in this story and was indeed recognized as a Christian, but his love of adventure overshadowed his ability to reject the forces of evil at work in Ahab. In the movie of Moby Dick it is not clear how Ishmael felt about Ahab's pursuits of evil. We only see Ishmael standing in the shadows simply observing.

Starbuck is another of Melville's characters and represent a solid Christian who chooses to stand firm and not go with the flow. He is resolute about Pequod's purpose and mission in life. It appears he is the only one who is willing to speak out against Ahab. He is a strong Christian with a keen sense of right and wrong, and yet we see that his strong will is weakened by that very thing which makes him strong - his loyalty. He cannot conceive of harming Captain Ahab and the truth is that his loyalty to his captain becomes his undoing. I don't know if Melville had in mind to represent a picture of what happens when a man has two masters, but this is what I see in Starbuck, He tries to serve two masters, his faith in God and his loyalty to Ahab, and it destroys him.

The prophet, a ragged old man, came upon Ishmael and Queequeg with a grave message of doom. He told them of the evils of Ahab and warned them about shipping with him. He warned them in a prophetic voice that only one would return from that voyage. When Ishmael inquired about his name he said it was Elijah. This is significant since Ahab and Elijah are opposing personalities in the Bible. Certainly Melville was trying to express a poignant opposition of good and evil.

The biblical Ahab was a wicked king of Israel, noted as being probably the most wicked in the eyes of God. Elijah (1 Kings 17:1) who told of impending death denounced Ahab. In the same way Melville's Ahab was outrageously wicked and sought after destruction with all he had. His death was brought on by the very destruction he had sought.

Ahab seeks the devil himself and really cannot say what it is that drives him, but the audience knows because he is said to have had an "inner crucifixion" which is probably akin to the death of his soul. He determined to attribute his manner to a response to the injustices of life when it is truly hatred that drives him to his end. Ironically he found himself bound, during his life and in his death, to that thing he hated most. It may be that Melville wanted to reveal through Captain Ahab the self-destructing effects of revenge and hatred.

Of Course we must look at the character of Moby Dick. There are those who would say he represents Ahab's mother who gave him an evil name and then died leaving him to fend for himself - and in a very real sense, abandoning him. This conjecture may come from the fact that Ahab displays a cold-heartedness that would come from someone who has always been haunted with a sense of being unwanted.

It seems to me Moby Dick more likely represents God. In the opening scene when Ishmael was in the bar, Bulkington said to him, "If God ever wanted to be a fish, He'd be a whale." Certainly this representation makes sense as it displays the battle between good and evil and the hatred that evil expends toward God. Even Starbuck's comment about it being blasphemous to want vengeance on the whale seems to point toward this theory.

This story is indeed full of direct references as well as a symbolic presence of the Bible. To mention some may open some doors to discovery for the reader that may lead him or her into the mind of Melville. A few are listed below:

1. The chapel scene where the sailors attend before going to sea, and the story that is read about Jonah

2. Starbuck says, "I don't fear Moby Dick, I fear the wrath of God."

3. Ismael refers to Ahab as the wicked king whose blood the dogs licked up.

4. "The whale is but a mask; it is the thing behind the mask that eats at Ahab."

Think about it reader and then watch the movie or read the book. It really has a story to tell.

Moby Dick, while being an exciting novel, is also an accurate writing of the dangerous life of a whaler. The book was written as another whaling documentary until Melville met Nathaniel Hawthorne who convinced him to revise his book and form a complex novel that was of universal significance.

The writing of Moby Dick caused Melville to lose popularity, and when he wrote Pierre shortly afterwards people thought him to be mad. The readers loved the adventurous nature of the book, but were not prepared to deal with the duality of the meaning of life.