Getting underway

A rather lengthy M-D post follows. Hope you're all ready.

From Chapter 16 - The Ship:

"..in many things, Queequeg placed great confidence in the excellence of Yojo's judgment and surprising forecast of things; and cherished Yojo with considerable esteem, as a rather good sort of god, who perhaps meant well enough upon the whole, but in all cases did not succeed in his benevolent designs."

I think we're getting one of our first bits of foreshadowing here. That's all I'm going to say until any first-timers are done with the book.

"Her ancient decks were worn and wrinkled, like the pilgrim-worshipped flag-stone in Canterbury Cathedral where Beckett bled."

Isn't it humbling to think about the amount of people who must have passed over the flag-stone, for it, a stone, to grow wrinkled and worn?

From Chapter 19 - The Prophet:

"Nothing about the silver calabash he spat into?"

Now I know what a calabash is. :)

From Chapter 21 - Going Aboard:

"It was nearly six o'clock, but only grey imperfect misty dawn, when we drew nigh the wharf. "There are some sailors running ahead there, if I see right," said I to Queequeg, "it can't be shadows.."

Another little bit of foreshadowing.. and then a few lines later, with that weirdo, Elijah..

"But he stole up to us again, and suddenly clapping his hand on my shoulder, said - "Did ye see anything looking like men going towards that ship a while ago?"

Struck by this plain matter-of-fact question, I answered, saying, "Yes, I thought I did see four or five men; but it was too dim to be sure."

"Very dim, very dim," said Elijah. "Morning to ye."

Something's not quite right on that foggy, dim morning. Elijah knows something, but how much? And when will it be revealed to Ishmael and the crew? Also, I love Elijah's 'morning to ye'.

From Chapter 22 - Merry Christmas:

"Spring, thou chap with the red whiskers!"

That's totally me that Peleg's talking about. :D

"Come, come, Captain Bildad; stop palavering, - away!"

Another vocab word, palavering.

From Chapter 25 - Postscript:

"In truth, a mature man who uses hair-oil, unless medicinally, that man has probably got a quoggy spot in him somewhere. As a general rule, he can't amount to much in his totality."

I thought that this was a funny one. So did Degolar, it would seem. As an aside, Kelly and I caught a bit of "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" on tv the other night, and George Clooney's character used hair-oil quite a bit, much to the displeasure of his fellows. (Dapper Dan, if memory serves)

From Chapter 26 - Knights and Squires:

"But were the coming narrative to reveal, in any instance, the complete abasement of poor Starbuck's fortitude, scarce might I have the heart to write it; for it is a thing most sorrowful, nay shocking, to expose the fall of valor in the soul.. ..That immaculate manliness we feel within ourselves, so far within us, that it remains intact though all the outer character seem gone; bleeds with keenest anguish at the undraped spectacle of a valor-ruined man."

It is sad, and heart-wrenching to see a noble man fall. Not noble, as in rich, but in quality of character. The same can be said when seeing someone you always knew as strong, and in control, suddenly being dependant on others..

Moby-Dick06 (technorati tag)