Moby Dick or The Whale

A whale of a bore!

'Call me Tomás. Some days ago -never mind how long precisely- having little or no schoolwork to do, and nothing particular to interest me on TV, I thought I would read a little and see the literary part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation.' The novel I am currently reviewing starts in quite a similar fashion as this, and while this may be the only interesting part of my review, in the same manner the start of Moby-Dick is the only part of the book that enjoys the very desirable of characteristic of not putting you to sleep. Granted. Melville writes well. The elaborate construction of his sentences and the use of figurative language are excellent. No question about that. Admitted. Moby-Dick has to be the most detailed account ever, and the situations in it are narrated quite vividly. I do not argue it. But, oh, fair reader, for crying out loud! This has to be the most dreadfully boring book ever written. Honestly, do you care THAT MUCH about whales and whaling, so as to read hundreds of pages on every single aspect of them. For, it is quite necessary to make that clear, only a small portion of Moby-Dick is a real novel, that is, a fictional narration. The rest is a bunch of essays on everything that you always wanted to know about whaling. Well written, yes, but absolutely painful! What kind of a person has the patience to endure all that! I mean, the book does start in quite an interesting fashion, but after a while... 'the length of that particular bone of a whale ranges between' 'the best way of tying the knot on such and such part of a whaling boat' 'so-and-so's picture of a whale was inaccurate because'...And he went on and on and on, forever! OK, whales are big, whales are formidable. I don't care! Get on with the story, please. How I managed to get to the end of it, I don't know. Of course, Moby-Dick has to be one of the most anti-ecological books ever written and Melville commits the huge biological blunder of considering whales to be fish, but I will not make any complaints in that sense, considering the time at which the book was written. But, seriously, I don't remember ever reading a book as boring as this one, and am quite astonished at the fact that there are people who honestly say they like it. Well, the fact that the book is so techically well written is the only reason I am not giving it just one star.

4 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

Just say no

this book is horable. at my school every year juniors must read this horible book. every year juniors wine how horible the book is. all it is is a group of essays on differents parts of whaling. great to read if you enjoy reading encyclopedias. less than half this book is actual fiction or a story happening progressing the book along. i beg you not to read this book it is just horable but if you do you must i repeat you must read macbeth. why you ask. you will know when you read about Ahab.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

It's a ponderous chain...

It's hopeless. I'm absolutely trapped and captivated by Moby Dick. A while ago I bought a cheap copy out of deference to what I understood to be an American classic. When I was about halfway through, it hit me, and I knew I'd have to start it again as soon as I finished. I don't know if Melville intended it to be this way, but the book itself is a metaphor for a multi-year whaling voyage. You've got to be patient, just like a whaling crew. Melville chats about seemingly unrelated things, just like a crew would chat as it was anticipating its next whale. Wouldn't a crew become frustrated as it's waiting for something to happen? It's not a page-turner, so Tom Clancy fans beware. It's a vast, utterly expansive book that is best read while smoking your favorite pipe. Don't go back and re-read the parts that confuse you, you're going to have to read it again anyway to capture the whole thing. Once I had my Moby Dick epiphany, I began poring over all the special editions that have been produced over the years. I finally settled on this U of C, Barry Moser edition. It's perfect. Moser's illustrations are spooky, but not overbearing. None of the captions are specific to the story which still allows you to use your imagination. For instance, there's a beautiful cut of a whaler, but it's not labeled, 'The Pequod', it's just called, 'Whaling Ship.' It's a huge block of a book too, which perfectly fits the scale of the story. The only book that has had a more profound effect on me than Moby Dick is my King James Bible. Strangely, therein lies a clue to Melville's work. Why does Melville speak in parables so as to confuse some? Because it has not been given to them to understand.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

OK

Some typos but still readable. This is ONLY Volume 1.

good book

this is a good book it has good details ans a good number of stars

Kite511

This book is very good. Everyone should get it, especially because it is free. The book itself is also great.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Excellent reading

Should have read this years ago. The book itself was not in as good condition as stated, but still an excellent book to read.

One of the best American novels ever written

Moby Dick is one of those rare novels that captures a particular historical moment while, at the same time, remaining timeless. Gripping drama, tense action, compelling characters and a setting so rarely glimpsed in history - the period in America between the Revolutionary and the Civil Wars. It was a time when America was discovering itself as the characters are discovering themselves. And it was the height of an industry of which, like slavery, we are all still a little ashamed. Whaling was a profitable, dangerous, and engaging occupation for a young man in those days. But when the Captain of your ship is obsessed with taking vengeance on his tormentor it would be an experience you could never forget. Assuming, of course, that you survived. Complicated, compelling, beautifully written, and always a classic, Moby-Dick is a must-read for any American lover of literature.

ohmygosh

Who am I to criticize Melville? But after reading, and chuckling, over some of my peer reader's reviews, I'm compelled to balance stars. I'm neither a critic nor literary scholar. I'm just someone who loves good literature, classic or not. Granted, Moby is long and detailed, but I contend it's all necessary and part of the story's framework. The themes are skillfully packaged in abstruse metaphors. And I agree that I had to use lexical aids to get through some of the dated vernacular. I even put down my cheap paperback for a Norton critical edition, but it was worth it. The language is beautiful and artistic. Read a benign chapter to a child and watch their expressions change as their imagination takes over their visage. Moby provides insight into today's archetypes found in pop-culture's 'Spongebob' or 'Pirates of the Caribbean'. Perhaps Moby isn't for everyone. Those who aren't interested in ages long past, historically accurate depictions of bloody exploitation, or ocular criticism of social hypocrisy, should probably stick to the bestseller lists. Entertain your brain. Every chapter is a piece of Melville's puzzle. When taken holistically, it all fits. Slow your monkey mind. Mindfully read. Open your eyes. Moby is still relevant today, especially to you good folks who think you live on that fabled 'City on the Hill'.

...greatest literature of this or any century

Visiting the melville home in mass...put it all in perspective for me...not necessary for first time readers. Sat at his desk, and looked at Mt. MANSFIELD.Perhaps it was the inspiration for this great work. Amazing on so many levels.If nothing else, the rich and highly evolved vocabulary is awesome and inspiring. DON'T watch the MOVIE before you read the work...least your brain be fried, and your heart be stopped...

Terribly overrated

This is literally the most boring book I have read in my life. The writer goes on for entire chapters describing things like the colour green, and spewing similar drivel. Do not read this book unless you are some academic madman bent on sadism.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

It isn't christmas

Great, but one star was eaten by the white sperm whale.

Well written but...

The story Moby Dick was well written and I would suggest to anyone who likes long and very detailed books. If thats you then read it. You may very well enjoy it! As for myself it was too long of a book and too much detail. I was not impressed with the general idea of the story. It pretty much bored me. But don't take my word on it. If you're thinking about reading it then I encourage you to because you may like it.

The Anatomy Of A Whale

WAY to long in descriptions. If Ol Herm was alive today he'd own a whale watching business out Provincetown. Otherwise a great book. Took a long time to get through.

Long and exhausting

I realize that lovers of literature generally credit this book as the first great, American novel. Even with such credit attached to it, I found this book to be wordy and tedious. Now, it wouldn't be fair for me to criticize too much because I never finished the story. It could very well have become more interesting as one progressed further in the pages, but I could not find the energy to continue reading after more than ten pages that rambled on about the ' whiteness of the whale!' Melville overkills on description. He compares the whale to the whitest alabaster, to ivory, to bone, to snow, to ice and then on and on until you want to scream that you are fully aware that the whale is white, thank you very much!!! Whew! Anyway, I would like to add that I realize that Melville was writing in the early nineteenth century, and that many who read his book lived inland and would never see the ocean in their entire lives. I assume that is the reason for all the over-description. As for the positives, Queeqeg and Ahab are fascinating characters. Beyond that, this book rambles way too much. Save yourself a headache and rent the movie!

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The Famous White Whale

Moey Dick is a fasinating story about the famous White Whale who took the leg of a revengous captian Ahab. The captian is certain that he willl hunt down the whale and kill him as revenge. This stroy tells the tale of alife frok the eyes of school teacher who decides to go off on this adventure for fun but little does he know this fun vaction will turn into a dangerous fight over a whale.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Classic but...

I have nothing against Herman Melville. I have nothing against Ishmael. I have nothing against the Pequod, or Ahab, or Moby Dick himself. But I do have a lot against the endless facts about whales that occupy a huge majority of this book. It's just one thing after another. Only about one-third of the book is the story. The rest is a practical encyclopedia about whales and their habits. He should have written "Whales for People Who Like Endless Facts about Them" or something else of that nature, so that poor little school children could just read a good story without unnecessary details riddling the plot line. No doubt, this book is a classic: I'm the last person to say otherwise. But "classic" doesn't always mean "interesting". The positive characteristics of this book are undeniable. I just had a hard time getting through it. A VERY hard time.

Call Me Ishmael

Aye, Moby Dick is a well spun yarn, told by a sailor with a keen intuition and an eye for detail. Melville writes like a poet and sets sail a story larger than the sea. The whales are made magnificent through his lyrical descriptions and massive researches into their physical anatomy. The characters are in a way so flawlessly constructed that at the end of the novel we remember them all. We can also recount their physical traits and emotional tendencies. There is Queequeg, a tattooed savage who is a universal symbol of discrimination. We believe at first that this man painted in frightening colors with a physique strong enough to crush bones can only cause evil, until we see the inner makings of his heart, and discover the innocence which makes him a better man than the others. Told in first person, the story recounts the experiences of a sailor who has decided to enter into the whaling business after dull service as a hand on a merchant vessel. He befriends Queequeg, a veteran whaler, and gives him first choice of a ship for embarkation on the narrator¿s first voyage in hunt of leviathan. They make the terrible decision in signing on as hands aboard the Pequod and become victims under the whims of a monomaniacal commander, Captain Ahab, who uses them as instruments in his fervid hunt of a white Sperm Whale coined with the name of Moby Dick. The realistic dialogue is marked with flamboyant epitaphs and through the way the characters speak and act, we see them lift from the pages and become real people. The story is always exciting and never holds a dull moment. Although Melville¿s style is difficult to read at first, after a hundred pages his words begin to flow smooth as silk as the mind softens to his dialect and we soon discover the masterpiece in his work. Regarded as the greatest sea novel ever written, the story throws the reader into the boat, makes them row closer and closer towards the climax. When we come in sight of the white whale, we take firm grip on the oars and start paddling with reckless abandon until the prow slams into Moby Dick¿s massive jaws. Be prepared for the last one hundred pages, for it will knock you into the water with its awesome suspense. Recommended: Entire unabridged text that include three of his other novels in the Library of America Edition

As the first great American novel, it falls below expectations

Okay, I realize that this is a very old book, and that the language of the book was written to speak to people of that time period, but it is way too lengthy and repetitive to be enjoyable. I can't critique the book any further beyond the segment entitled " The Whiteness of the Whale, " so I will just end my review by saying that after ten pages and countless analogies, I quite understood that the blooming whale was white! I had to take two headache pills just to get through what I read, which after the first few chapters wasn't much. Melville goes overboard with description, and it detracts greatly from your interest in the story.

Great Book. Movie was good too.

The other day I saw a documentary about how Moby Dick was based on true story of whalers who's ship was sunk by a whale. The book was changed and made into fiction however. Melvill is a fabulous writer.