topbob's review against another edition
- 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
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.
Minor: Abandonment, Racism, Animal death, and Violence
willowbiblio's review against another edition
- 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
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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.
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
annilane's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Racism
oftalone90's review against another edition
- 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
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.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Violence, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail
Spoiler
the whale only appears in the last 3 chapters!isabella_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Racism
mindins's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Animal death
Minor: Cannibalism and Racism
franzi_m's review against another edition
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, and Animal cruelty
theologize's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Racism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, and Racial slurs
ccpetrikas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Gore
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
2.0
Graphic: Racism, Violence, Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, and Animal death
Moderate: Medical content, Cannibalism, Death, Slavery, and Alcohol
Minor: Antisemitism and Grief