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verychristina's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It's Moby Dick. Way more humor than I expected, Ishmael at the start of the novel is a proto-edgelord who goes out to sea because he's feeling so mentally unwell that he's being tempted to knock strangers' hats off their heads into the street.
I found all of the stuff on the mechanics of whaling quite interesting, but I also understand why people skip a lot of it!
The ending was very abrupt.
The audiobook was a great companion for mundane moments.
I found all of the stuff on the mechanics of whaling quite interesting, but I also understand why people skip a lot of it!
The ending was very abrupt.
The audiobook was a great companion for mundane moments.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
tkivinen's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
This book made me realize that I don't care about whaling the slightest bit.
It is drawn out, mostly very boring, and jumps from genre to genre. The language is so archaic it desperately needs modernization.
It is drawn out, mostly very boring, and jumps from genre to genre. The language is so archaic it desperately needs modernization.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Gore
dannecingqueen's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Blood, and Colonisation
machen27's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I do not need to sing the praises of this classic, and certainly I believe it deserves that title. Instead, I will offer some advice: this is probably one of the stranger books that I have read. There will be tangents on whale taxonomy. Tangents on chowder. And in-between? Yes, an epic about the ways vengeance and hate will destroy you. My advice is to embrace this strangeness; it is all Moby Dick.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racial slurs, and Racism
It's a book about whaling so don't be surprised that it features significant cruelty and violence against animals. It's also a book from the mid -19th century with its associated ideas about "savages."seapotatohowisitalrtaken's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Gun violence and Murder
Minor: Alcohol
erebus53's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.25
This was a book club read, that is a classic that I wanted to take a look at for a while. I find it hard to review because it's a gigantic piece of work, it's written over a hundred years ago, and it's a complex mess of merits and flaws.
The book is a whale of a tome. It's much more heavy on information, philosophy, history, and poetic prose than it is in plot. It takes a long time for anything to happen and we first have to wade through treatises on whales in art, whales in myth, the art of whaling, the cetology and nomenclature, how to live in boats, the status of whalers, the uses of whale bodies and the reliance of society on those resources, the runnings of ship-board politics, the phrenology of whales, legal precedent in the matters of whale ownership, and the gorier bits of how whales are processed after their demise. More than half the book is the "kernel of truth" around which the story is told, interwoven to make it seem realistic (we could use the word "verisimilitude" - Melville did; in fact it's best to bring a dictionary on your voyage with the Piquod).
As a historical classic (published in 1851) this entire account is peppered with things that I found affronting. The most personable character in the book is a Polynesian from an un-named archipelago, whose name is Queequeg. (Right there that breaks my belief in the narrative because there's no way that's a Polynesian name.) When we first encounter him he is selling desiccated Māori heads. This is distressing to me, as my family is descended from White seal and whale boat people in New Zealand / Aotearoa, so this depiction of brutality against the indigenous Māori, the indifference to selling sacred parts of the body to people in other countries, is a somber affair. This is obviously part of a portrayal to make Queequeg seem, dichotomously, the barbaric, cannibal heathen, but also an affectionate, devout and gracefully capable man. All the characters in the tale seem similarly profiled, and caricatures of Race and age. The labels used are all indicative of the prevailing attitude of White people, and of a sense of racial superiority. It's "a sign of it's time".. and it's horrible.
There are musings on mono-mania and infatuation.. or what today we would call obsession, compulsivity, hyper-focus.. and prepossessing passion. This book could aptly be described as an exploration of the madness of whalers. I can't help but correspond this single-mindedness of purpose with that of the author who pens an 800-page adventure novel about whaling. The tale of obsession is clearly allegorical, being an extreme to which most men wouldn't go (going to sea for 3 years at a stint to hunt giant sea-game, in a high-risk high-reward endeavour), that hyperbolically illustrates the bravery, and folly, of being prepared to go to great lengths in pursuit of a goal (while leaving your women and children to their own matters). Cowardice and the desire to remove oneself from shame are also portrayed by way of dark comedy. The description of phantom-limb experiences in amputees is interesting and one of the more relevant observations I noticed, as are the accommodations made for those with missing limbs on a ship.
Whales. *deep sigh* Just..
I found some of the narrative about the hunting of whales to be very distressing. Melville states that he does not consider whales to be anything but big fish, and he denies that the actions of whalers are diminishing whale populations, saying that they just move on, and always have more places to hide; that seeing fewer of them just means that they escaped that area. The ignorance makes me angry, but he didn't have the facts. I think that some of the narrative is designed to be very unsettling; there are poetic musings about how the fat of whales is used as fuel for the ovens that render the fat, or cook whale flesh; that whales are used to consume themselves. Likewise, there is no scruple when recounting the hunting of nursing mother whales, or utilising the skin of a whale's dork to make a butcher's coat. Rather, these musings are incorporated into darkly humorous stories, but I am not sold on this humour. It's clever, but vile.
The cutest parts of the book are dialogues that are written in the form of plays. These allow the characters to be developed and fluff around with some interesting wordplay. It provides some levity and gravity that might be otherwise lost in between rants. I feel like it also humanised characters who otherwise would not be fleshed out. I don't know that the characters are particularly loveable, but you at least get to know them a bit as people.
In all, I feel somewhat whelmed by the sheer scope of the book. It's huge, and wordy and uses archaic turns of phrase. I can see why reading this is an ordeal that people sometimes brag about, but at the same time, I didn't find it entertaining. The "science" as it was has been surpassed wholly, and so this is entirely a historical snapshot of the understanding of whales in times gone by. It calls into stark detail my position in the world.. as the Privileged daughter of a conquering culture. It informs my understanding of the importance of fossil fuels in replacing oils that were once acquired by hazardous oceanic hunting. All in all, it leaves me feeling a little sick.
The book is a whale of a tome. It's much more heavy on information, philosophy, history, and poetic prose than it is in plot. It takes a long time for anything to happen and we first have to wade through treatises on whales in art, whales in myth, the art of whaling, the cetology and nomenclature, how to live in boats, the status of whalers, the uses of whale bodies and the reliance of society on those resources, the runnings of ship-board politics, the phrenology of whales, legal precedent in the matters of whale ownership, and the gorier bits of how whales are processed after their demise. More than half the book is the "kernel of truth" around which the story is told, interwoven to make it seem realistic (we could use the word "verisimilitude" - Melville did; in fact it's best to bring a dictionary on your voyage with the Piquod).
As a historical classic (published in 1851) this entire account is peppered with things that I found affronting. The most personable character in the book is a Polynesian from an un-named archipelago, whose name is Queequeg. (Right there that breaks my belief in the narrative because there's no way that's a Polynesian name.) When we first encounter him he is selling desiccated Māori heads. This is distressing to me, as my family is descended from White seal and whale boat people in New Zealand / Aotearoa, so this depiction of brutality against the indigenous Māori, the indifference to selling sacred parts of the body to people in other countries, is a somber affair. This is obviously part of a portrayal to make Queequeg seem, dichotomously, the barbaric, cannibal heathen, but also an affectionate, devout and gracefully capable man. All the characters in the tale seem similarly profiled, and caricatures of Race and age. The labels used are all indicative of the prevailing attitude of White people, and of a sense of racial superiority. It's "a sign of it's time".. and it's horrible.
There are musings on mono-mania and infatuation.. or what today we would call obsession, compulsivity, hyper-focus.. and prepossessing passion. This book could aptly be described as an exploration of the madness of whalers. I can't help but correspond this single-mindedness of purpose with that of the author who pens an 800-page adventure novel about whaling. The tale of obsession is clearly allegorical, being an extreme to which most men wouldn't go (going to sea for 3 years at a stint to hunt giant sea-game, in a high-risk high-reward endeavour), that hyperbolically illustrates the bravery, and folly, of being prepared to go to great lengths in pursuit of a goal (while leaving your women and children to their own matters). Cowardice and the desire to remove oneself from shame are also portrayed by way of dark comedy. The description of phantom-limb experiences in amputees is interesting and one of the more relevant observations I noticed, as are the accommodations made for those with missing limbs on a ship.
Whales. *deep sigh* Just..
I found some of the narrative about the hunting of whales to be very distressing. Melville states that he does not consider whales to be anything but big fish, and he denies that the actions of whalers are diminishing whale populations, saying that they just move on, and always have more places to hide; that seeing fewer of them just means that they escaped that area. The ignorance makes me angry, but he didn't have the facts. I think that some of the narrative is designed to be very unsettling; there are poetic musings about how the fat of whales is used as fuel for the ovens that render the fat, or cook whale flesh; that whales are used to consume themselves. Likewise, there is no scruple when recounting the hunting of nursing mother whales, or utilising the skin of a whale's dork to make a butcher's coat. Rather, these musings are incorporated into darkly humorous stories, but I am not sold on this humour. It's clever, but vile.
The cutest parts of the book are dialogues that are written in the form of plays. These allow the characters to be developed and fluff around with some interesting wordplay. It provides some levity and gravity that might be otherwise lost in between rants. I feel like it also humanised characters who otherwise would not be fleshed out. I don't know that the characters are particularly loveable, but you at least get to know them a bit as people.
In all, I feel somewhat whelmed by the sheer scope of the book. It's huge, and wordy and uses archaic turns of phrase. I can see why reading this is an ordeal that people sometimes brag about, but at the same time, I didn't find it entertaining. The "science" as it was has been surpassed wholly, and so this is entirely a historical snapshot of the understanding of whales in times gone by. It calls into stark detail my position in the world.. as the Privileged daughter of a conquering culture. It informs my understanding of the importance of fossil fuels in replacing oils that were once acquired by hazardous oceanic hunting. All in all, it leaves me feeling a little sick.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Alcohol, Colonisation, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Cannibalism, and Murder
Minor: Child death and Religious bigotry
topbob's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I have a hard time pinning down my thoughts on Moby Dick. The vast number of exhalations on whaling do vary drastically in regard to my interest level. I do think that ultimately the reader's experience with Moby Dick will ultimately come down to their reading endurance, and general interest in the ideas of the novel. Still, there are many aspects of Moby Dick that you would be hard-pressed to refrain from praising.
Characters
The characters in Moby Dick are incredible. They are well distinguished from each other, and Melville dedicates a lot of thought to the motivations of the characters. Moreover, the interpersonal relationships of the characters are also captivating in that they are shared between great characters. While I feel that the latter half of the novel broadens its scope outside of the individual for the most part, it makes up for this broadened scope with the "Gam" chapters that see our beloved characters meet other whaling ships.
Moments of tension
I could name a few instances where Melville cleverly builds to a climactic moment. These instances generally surround Moby Dick, and they are well executed.
(Maybe)
Spontaneous banger lines. Just sudden gems from Melville thrown out randomly. They can be easily missed by the careless reader, and I think these make up most of Moby Dick's brilliance.
Characters
The characters in Moby Dick are incredible. They are well distinguished from each other, and Melville dedicates a lot of thought to the motivations of the characters. Moreover, the interpersonal relationships of the characters are also captivating in that they are shared between great characters. While I feel that the latter half of the novel broadens its scope outside of the individual for the most part, it makes up for this broadened scope with the "Gam" chapters that see our beloved characters meet other whaling ships.
Moments of tension
I could name a few instances where Melville cleverly builds to a climactic moment. These instances generally surround Moby Dick, and they are well executed.
(Maybe)
Spontaneous banger lines. Just sudden gems from Melville thrown out randomly. They can be easily missed by the careless reader, and I think these make up most of Moby Dick's brilliance.
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Racism, Violence, and Abandonment
willowbiblio's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
"Starbuck saw the old man; saw him, how he heavily leaned over the sides; and he seemed to hear in his own true heart the measureless sobbing that stole out of the center of the serenity around."
-----------
This started out really strong for me, but fairly soon after our cast set sail on the Pequod it became really boring. I enjoyed the exploration of friendship between Ishmael and Queequog. To me that was the most interesting part of the book. 80-90% of this was hyper-specific information dumps about whaling and whaleboats, which I have zero interest in. Had this been more character driven maybe I would have enjoyed it more.
The narrative itself kind of went nowhere, which was ironic given that they were literally out at sea. Nothing much was said or explored other than Ahab's continual comparison to the devil and weird monologues saying nothing from him and others.
I was reminded of Ulysses when the POV shifted from Ishmael, because Melville adopted a sort of playwright style similar to the complete shift that occurred in Ulysses. That was actually quite entertaining.
The butchering and death wasn't for me. Maybe I just didn't "get" this.
-----------
This started out really strong for me, but fairly soon after our cast set sail on the Pequod it became really boring. I enjoyed the exploration of friendship between Ishmael and Queequog. To me that was the most interesting part of the book. 80-90% of this was hyper-specific information dumps about whaling and whaleboats, which I have zero interest in. Had this been more character driven maybe I would have enjoyed it more.
The narrative itself kind of went nowhere, which was ironic given that they were literally out at sea. Nothing much was said or explored other than Ahab's continual comparison to the devil and weird monologues saying nothing from him and others.
I was reminded of Ulysses when the POV shifted from Ishmael, because Melville adopted a sort of playwright style similar to the complete shift that occurred in Ulysses. That was actually quite entertaining.
The butchering and death wasn't for me. Maybe I just didn't "get" this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
annilane's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
My assessment of this book is obviously skewed by the 170 odd years of distance between us, but I am able to appreciate the quality of narrative of information in this novel. There’s a lot of information that is relevant to the story but not actually important, really, and since I read it on audiobook I found rather boring, since I think I’m print there are diagrams to accompany, for example, the chapters outlining every species of whale whose existence was known at that time. I loved Queequeg, and otherwise had a bit of a hard time telling all the men on the ship apart. Overall I would recommend, because there’s lots of information about whales which is cool, and in general if a book’s popularity has somewhat survived over 150 years, it’s probably worth noting. There were some messages throughout the story that I think a lot of people can learn from.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Racism
oftalone90's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Not sure what Miss Honey was thinking letting Matilda read this tome….
It’s BIZARRE.
Melville’s style switches, Jekyll and Hyde-esque. There are the parts that tell the story of the hunt for Moby Dick (which are well written, few and far between and odd. If I’d have been told Melville was on hallucinogenic drugs when writing these bits, I wouldn’t be surprised) and then there are the parts that would be better placed in a non-chron about whales. Who cares about cetology, or fossils, or why sperm whales are called sperm whales?
I only got through this book by listening to it on The Big Read. I’d never have made it through if I actually had to read it all. Chop out the unnecessary bits and it would be less than 200 pages.
It’s BIZARRE.
Melville’s style switches, Jekyll and Hyde-esque. There are the parts that tell the story of the hunt for Moby Dick (which are well written, few and far between and odd. If I’d have been told Melville was on hallucinogenic drugs when writing these bits, I wouldn’t be surprised) and then there are the parts that would be better placed in a non-chron about whales. Who cares about cetology, or fossils, or why sperm whales are called sperm whales?
I only got through this book by listening to it on The Big Read. I’d never have made it through if I actually had to read it all. Chop out the unnecessary bits and it would be less than 200 pages.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail