As a result, he faces an unfortunate death from the fury of the white whale. His tremendous overconfidence, or hubris, leads him to defy common sense. From the time that his leg is bitten off by the huge white whale called moby dick, captain ahab monomaniacally pursues his elusive nemesis. Character analysis of captain ahab in herman melvilles. Captivating and provocative, jeffrey fords ahabs return is a refreshing extension of melvilles character captain ahab and various themes and ideas from his novel moby dick. Captain boomer the jovial captain of the english whaling ship the samuel enderby. Character analysis in moby dick character analysis in moby dick research papers discuss the two dominant human characters captain ahab and ishmael. At the end of a long journey, captain ahab returns to the mainland to confront the true author of the novel mobydick, his former shipmate, ishmael. The character of ahab in mobydick from litcharts the. While ishmael narrates the novel, however, mobydick s main character is captain ahab, a whaling captain obsessed with a quest for revenge against the white whale mobydick who destroyed one of his legs. Mobydick characters from litcharts the creators of. When ishmael inquires about the captain, he is told that ahab is a man of few words but deep meaning. In a dramatic confrontation between elijah and ahab s false prophets, god proved to israel that he, not baal, was the true god 1 kings 18. This lesson explores captain ahab, one of the major characters in herman melvilles novel, mobydick.
On a previous voyage, the white whale moby dick bit off ahab s leg, leaving him with a prosthesis made out of whalebone. Moby dick is an old sperm whale andaccording to captain ahab the embodiment of evil. Character analysis of captain ahab in herman melvilles mobydick. Captain ahab becomes a man who became obsessed by a white wale that took his leg. Melvilles moby dick the megalomanic character of captain ahab. Ahab is going after the great white whale mobydick, who took ahab s leg in an earlier expedition. Captain ahab was a fictional character created by writer herman melville in his book mobydick, originally published 1851 during his lifetime, ahab was obsessed with hunting down the great white wale known as mobydick, to whom ahab had lost one of his legs. He is a grim, bitter, brooding, vengeful madman who has only.
Starbuck biography birthday, trivia fictional sailor who2. The jovial captain of the english whaling ship the samuel enderby. The monomaniacal captain of the pequod, ahab is a brooding, proud, solitary figure, deathly angry that the monster moby dick has eaten his leg. Captain ahab is a character on abcs once upon a time. Any how, young man, he wont always see me, so i dont suppose he will thee. Today, it appears he has much in common with modern american leaders. The crew is reluctant but believes strongly in ahab s leadership and will follow him to the ends of the earth, even as his psyche becomes fanatical and obsessive. Captain ahab is a fictional character and the main protagonist in herman melvilles mobydick 1851. Captain ahab, a character in the novel moby dick by herman melville, is a victim of his own negligent actions. Unlike its predecessor, fords reclaimed version of ahab is more relatable and in some ways more compelling than melvilles deranged and bitter watery autocrat.
Sudden shifts and changes are no bad preparation for political life. Ahab, the pequods obsessed captain, represents both an ancient and a quintessentially modern type of hero. He is the monomaniacal captain of the whaling ship pequod. By heavens man, we are turned round and round in this world, like yonder windlass, and fate is the handspike. He is the captain of the whaling ship the pequod and is out on a voyage to kill the great white whale named moby dick. Use this topic or have paper masters custom write a research paper, exactly how you need it to be on moby dick when writing a character. In moby dick, melville recounts a whaling journey on which the monomanical captain ahab chases moby dick, the gigantic white whale who once dismembered him and thereafter became his representation of everything evil in the world. The moby dick character captain ahab 842 words cram. Melville links ahab, captain aboard the doomed pequod, to this bizarre characterization of england by several means. Ahab is the central character in melvilles mobydick. Captain ahab is an overwhelmingly intimidating character in the story, and can probably be considered the most deranged of them all. The character of captain ahab in melvilles moby dick. This is a topic suggestion on a character analysis in moby dick from paper masters. Long before ahab s first appearance, there is an air of mystery about the captain of the pequod.
After a brief description of his physical appearance and traits, we will analyze a few. The whaling voyage of the pequod ends up as a hunt for revenge on the whale, as ahab impels the crewmembers to. As a reasonable and religious character, he stands in stark contrast to the obsessive captain ahab. Ahab is an enigma whose larger, darker, deeper part remains unhinted. One such character is the narrator of the story, ishmael. Character analysis of moby dick 724 words bartleby. Melville withholds ahabs appearance for well over 100 pages of. Captain ahab ghost command fandom powered by wikia.
Ahab s obsession with moby dick ultimately causes the death of the entire crew of the pequod, except for ishmael. Ahab is the tyrannical captain of the pequod who is driven by a monomaniacal desire to kill moby dick, the whale that had maimed him off the coast of japan during a previous whaling voyage. By far the most famous character in the novel, ahab is the captain of the pequod, who has abandoned. Ishmael is a pleasing character, who plays the role of the main character as well as narrator. Captain ahab is a fictional character in herman melvilles mobydick 1851, the monomaniacal captain of the whaling ship pequod. The ship is captained by ahab, a moody, capricious, and dictatorial man of advanced years who bears a scar that threads its way out from among his grey hairs and continuing right down one side of his tawny scorched face and neck, till it disappeared in his clothing, a slender rodlike mark, lividly whitish stretching from crown to sole that came upon him, not in the fury of any. Ahabs obsession with moby dick ultimately causes the death of the entire crew of the pequod, except for ishmael. Meet the dude whose name is synonymous with revenge. While ahab was still the obedient captain he once was, he was one of the most successful and higher rewarding captains. Character analysis of captain ahab in herman melville s mobydick ahab is the central character in melvilles mobydick.
Ahab places all of his hate on the whale, whom is later referred to as moby dick, because he lost a leg to him. Hes got an oldboy style vendetta against a dang whale, after all. Captain ahab, who led the illfated quest for melvilles great white whale, mobydick, may have been misunderstood. The crew is reluctant but believes strongly in ahabs leadership and will follow him to the ends of the earth, even as his psyche becomes fanatical and obsessive. Ahab is going after the great white whale mobydick, who took ahabs leg in an earlier expedition. A monologue from the book moby dick by herman melville. Many adjectives could be used to describe ahab s changing character, but three specific ones are as follows. On a previous voyage, the white whale moby dick bit off ahab s leg, and he now wears a prosthetic leg made out of whalebone. Captain ahab, fictional character, a onelegged captain of the whaling vessel pequod in the novel moby dick 1851, by herman melville.
Captain ahab of moby dick captain ahab in the novel moby dick is quite a character. The presence of the manxman aboard the ship serves as a reminder of great britain, and acts as a foil to ahab s own character. Ahab is the captain of the pequod, a grave older man reaching his sixties who has spent nearly forty years as a sailor, only three of which he has. Yet melvilles narrative, saturated with biblical names, imagery, tropes, and language, suggests fateful likenesses between captain ahab and king ahab of israel.
Like the heroes of greek or shakespearean tragedy, ahab suffers from a single fatal flaw, one he shares with such legendary characters as oedipus and faust. The narrator and sometimes protagonist of the novel, ishmael is a manhattan islander with an apparently chronic desire to sail, which leads him to new bedford and onto the crew of the pequod. Ahab vows revenge on the animal, even though others, like starbuck, warn him that no revenge is possible against a dumb animal. Ahab s one desire changes him from an obedient captain to a madman. He is a hero, whose actions are surrounded by the symbolic magnificence and whose fight with the white whale becomes a fight. While ishmael narrates the novel, however, mobydicks main character is captain ahab, a whaling captain obsessed with a quest for revenge against the white whale mobydick who destroyed one of his legs. He is the monomaniacal captain of the whaling ship.
Boomer lost his arm in an accident involving moby dick. Starbuck is a character in the 1851 novel mobydick by author herman melville. The captain looks like a man cut away from the stake, when the fire has overrunningly wasted all the limbs without consuming them, or taking away one particle. Ahab admits that he is not just hunting moby dick, but whatever lies behind the whale, and his quest.
But after their passing, both ahab and mobydick ended up as ghosts, living together forever on the phantom prison. The full history of roderick campbells transformation into ahab remains apparently unclear. Oct 30, 2014 the villain in herman melvilles mobydick isnt the monstrous white whale, but the man that wants to kill him. An analysis of ahabs character is very difficult because he has such a complex personality. Captain gardner, i seek the white whale, your own sons murderer. About the only things the two share in common are that they are both seamen and they both are on a hunt for a whale. He is a grand, ungodly, godlike man who has been in colleges as well as among the cannibals. Strong and steady, starbuck serves as first mate on the whaling ship pequod under the command of the mad captain ahab. Melvilles mobydick may well be the greatest novel ever written by an american. Ahab is the captain of the pequod, a grave older man reaching his sixties who has spent nearly forty years as a sailor, only three of which he has spent on dry land melville alludes to ahab as having a wife and son, but their existence seems of little significance to ahab.
He is a hero, whose actions are surrounded by the symbolic magnificence and whose fight with the white whale becomes a fight against the dark and terrible forces of nature. Captain ahab is a fictional character and the main protagonist in herman melvilles mobydick 1851, the monomaniacal captain of the whaling ship pequod. A bold and intriguing fabulist novel that reimagines two of the most legendary characters in american literature captain ahab and ishmael of herman melvilles mobydick. The captain of the whaling ship pequod, ahab, is a fascinating character. Ahabs lost leg is replaced by whale bone and ahabs splintering of the leg after a confrontation with another ship captain symbolizes ahabs decline into insanity. Hes got an oldboystyle vendetta against a dang whale, after all. Many adjectives could be used to describe ahabs changing character, but three specific ones are as follows. In this reality, rachel summers was ahab s pinnacle of hound creation, although she subsequently escaped into the current timeline, horribly mutilating ahab by throwing him. His monomaniacal hunt for moby dick dominates the novels plot.
Character analysis of captain ahab in herman melvilles moby. For ahab was not pulled into the oceans depths by a. The whaling voyage of the pequod ends up as a hunt for revenge on the whale, as ahab impels the. Captain ahab is based on the character of the same name from the novel mobydick. Ahabs one desire changes him from an obedient captain to a madman. Starbuck, as the first mate of the pequod, is one of the major characters in melvilles mobydick. As the only major africanamerican character in an american novel written in 1851, ten years before the beginning of the civil war, pip has special significance.
He is a foil for ahab, as the two men react in different ways to a similar experience. He debuts, with his only appearance, in the thirteenth episode of the seventh season and is portrayed by guest star chad rook. Charismatic and cruel, he lost his leg from the knee down to moby dick in a previous encounter and has dedicated his energies to seeking revenge, outfitting the pequod with a special crew and increasingly ignoring both economic and social norms in favor of his obsession. Ishmael the narrator of the novel is a keen observer, a young man with an open mind who is wary of ahab but, like most of the crew, swept away by the captain s charisma ahab the grand, ungodly, godlike man is a deeply complex figure, one of the most controversial in american literature. Mobydick or, the whale, ahab s wife, or the stargazer, and illustrated classics.
Moby dick characters of captain ahab and ishmael 123 help me. Moreover, melvilles own depiction of ahab in the book strongly suggests that of. Ahab blamed elijah for bringing trouble on israel 1 kings 18. Moby dick characters of captain ahab and ishmael 123. The characters of captain ahab and ishmael are almost opposites. This brief introduction reveals significant information. May 14, 2019 the captain of the whaling ship pequod, ahab, is a fascinating character. While ishmael narrates the novel, however, mobydicks main character is captain ahab, a whaling captain obsessed with a quest for revenge against the white whale mobydick who destroyed one of. Ahab vows revenge on the animal, even though others, like starbuck read full character analysis. Hes a queer man, captain ahab so some thinkbut a good one. However, while ahab s journey offers a multitude of allegorical insight, other remarkable characters are disregarded by researchers in favor of captain ahab. He became the leader of the governmentsanctioned hound program, commissioned to track down and capture mutants for internment. Captain ahab is a fictional character and the main protagonist in herman melville s mobydick 1851.
In moby dick, melville recounts a whaling journey on which the monomanical captain ahab chases moby dick, the gigantic white whale who once dismembered him and thereafter became his representation of everything evil in the. However, while ahabs journey offers a multitude of allegorical insight, other remarkable characters are disregarded by researchers in favor of captain ahab. His radical obsession with finding and killing the white whale known as mobydick causes ishmael and others of the crew to become frightened at his abnormal behavior. Trying to fathom captain ahab, the complex antihero of herman melvilles mobydick, only in relation to his scriptural namesake would be as futile as was his own quest to vanquish the white whale. Character profile for captain ahab from mobydick or, the. Captain ahab is the mysterious and obsessed captain of the pequod. The most important aspect of captain ahabs appearance is his leg, which was severed at the knee in a whaling accident. He is singleminded in his pursuit of the whale, using a mixture of charisma and terror to persuade his crew to join him. Captain ahab quotes in moby dick 1956 the character quotes. Ahab, the pequod s obsessed captain, represents both an ancient and a quintessentially modern type of hero. Late in the novel, ahab begins to reminisce about how stark and lonely his life has been. Ahab must reject pip, however, before he can carry out his vengeanceeven while crazy, pip has too many sensible things to say about the doom that ahab is going toward. Unlike ahab, boomer is glad to have escaped with his life, and he sees further pursuit of the whale as madness. Captain ahab captain ahab, the proud, defiant, megalomaniacal captain of the pequod.