Published 1851.
Background, the Essex at wiki. I read this while looking up "stove boat" in Chapter VII.
Chapter I
NYC landmarks
- the Battery, southern tip of Manhattan, has been there "forever"
- Corlears Hook, the Lower East Side
- Coenties Slip, now the heart of the Financial District
- along Whitehall: a street in south Manhattan about four blocks long
Sounds like he may have taken other sailing trips; this time he wants to go on a whaling expedition.
Chapter II
December.
NYC to New Bedford (Massachusetts) where he hoped to catch a packet ship to Nantucket, original home of the whalers, though New Bedford now the home of American whaling. A great simile: Nantucket is to New Bedford is as Tyre was to Carthage.
He would have to spend two nights in New Bedford before catching the next packet ship.
A lot of references to the Bible. Spends some time on Euroclydon, the Mediterranean east wind that blew Paul off course, mentioned in Acts. Paul ends up on island of Malta on way to Rome.
Looking for a place to stay overnight; not much money. Stumbles into a black church. Finally ends up at the "Old Spouter" near the waterfront.
Melville notes that the first whale beached in America was on Nantucket. See notes in Chapter III.
Chapter III: The Spouter Inn
Nathan Swain is mentioned. See this website. From that site, in case the site is lost:
The Swain Family has had an adventurous life in America. Our branch of the family arrived in Massachusetts in the early 1600s and then moved on to Nantucket in 1659 with the purchase of the island from Thomas Mayhew. They lived there as sea-faring whalers until the mid-1700s when a large group from the island sailed to North Carolina.
My direct line to the Swains comes from my mother, Darlene Artman Hagen, for whom I must credit the knowledge provided in these pages. Her mother, Ethel Swain Artman, was the last in our line to carry the Swain name.
In 1634, Richard Swain arrived from England on the ship True Love. He later had his wife, Elizabeth, and children, including his son John, sent over on another ship. He settles in the New England area, namely New Hampshire and Massachusetts. He was a planter and bought and sold land around the area of Salisbury, Massachusetts. He was a freeman, meaning that he could vote and he was a leader in the community.
In 1659, he sold everything and moved to Nantucket island with his son John. He and eight other men bought the island from a man named Mayhew. The ten moved to Nantucket because they were tired of Puritan rule.
Richard, so the story goes, gave shelter during a rainstorm to some Quakers and was punished by the Puritans. The island became mostly Quaker. The ten men brought ten more men over (caftsmen) and gave them half shares of the island. After a short time, the poor soil was not god for farming so they looked elsewhere to support their families.
After a whale had beached itself on Nantucket, they took up whaling. At one time Nantuket was the whaling capitol of the world, providing most of the whale oil to London and elsewhere. Only after the discovery of kerosene did Nantucket quickly die. But during the high time of whale oil, Nantucket grew with big houses and big ships. In the south seas where the sea captains went looking for whales, north of Samoa is an island named Swain. There is also a reef north of the coast of Australia named Swain's reef. Ships would leave for three to four years filling their barrels with whale oil before returning and many lost their lives on the sea.
Around 1760, Nathaniel Swain and his wife Bethiah Macy (a descendent of the Macy's Department Store Macy) left Nantucket and moved to Guilford county, North Carolina to escape the problems of the Revolutionary war.Note the name Macy. Elsewhere, a whaler named Macy (who had a tattoo on his wrist) founded the department store with that name, and the Macy star was based on Macy's tattoo.
Meets the 6-foot black New Zealander harpooner; shares a bed/room with him: Queequeg. [It's interesting to learn that a New Zealander is a Muslim.]
Chapter IV
The next morning; detailed discussion of Queequeg getting up in the morning and going through his routine.
Chapter V
Breakast; Melville describes the scene. Queequeg most comfortable. Monkey-jackets mentioned.
Chapter VI: The Street
A nice description of the New Bedford waterfront. Many black sailors; many sailors from other countries. It would be interesting to see a demographic study of New Bedford today, the descendants -- their backgrounds.
Opulent houses due to all the whale oil wealth. But very limited in its wealth. Hints that this wealth is due to one commodity -- whale oil -- which could change at any time.
Chapter VII: The Chapel
Oh, that's right. Ishmael arrived in New Bedford on Saturday, so he will go to church on Sunday. We visited that church when we visited New Bedford.
Chapter VIII: The Pulpit
Describes the pulpit and Father Mapple.
Chapter IX: The Sermon
The sermon; Jonah and the whale; a great chapter.
Chapter X: A Bosom Friend
Ishmael reads/explains a book (and pictures) to Queequog.
Chapter XI: Nightgown
In bed together.
Chapter XII: Biographical
Sunday night in bed with Queequog; Queequog tells Ishmael his story. Queequog, from the south Pacific, stole aboard an American whaling ship. Trained as a harpooner. Wants to join Ishmael on his adventure out of Nantucket. Ishmael agrees.
Among today's readers, this would be a "creepy" chapter, the two men in bed together.
Chapter XIII: Wheelbarrow
Great, great chapter. I could see this in a movie. Queequog saves the packet boat, the Moss, with a ripped sail; and then saves a man thrown overboard. A great, great chapter.
Chapter XIV: Nantucket
A great description of Nantucket; how important it is to whaling. He sounds genuinely thrilled to have gotten to Nantucket. [A great description of Nantucket and yet Nathanield Philbrick says Herman Melville did not visit Nantucket until a year after the publication of Moby-Dick, published in 1851: "
Mentions quahogs (a type of clam).Herman Melville chose Nantucket to be the port of the Pequod in Moby-Dick, but it would not be until the summer of 1852—almost a year after publication of his whaling epic—that he visited the island for the first time. -- link. ]
Chapter XV: Chowder
Pot-luck (dinner) at the Try Pots inn on Nantucket. Recommended by proprietor at the Spouter's Inn in New Bedford where they stayed over the weekend. The little packet ship, the Moss, landed quite late in the evening. [Trypots were the pots in which the whalers boiled the blubber to capture the oil.]
Chapter XVI: The Ship
A long chapter. Ishmael selects a ship from three, each of which are planning 3-year voyages. Selects the Pequod. Meets with the two owners, retired whalers: Peleg and Bildad. Ishmael will be paid in "lays." He was hoping to get 275th or even perhaps a 200th piece of the profits. Bildad said 777 but Peleg wrote down 300. The larger the number, the smaller the piece of the profit.
Does not meet Captain Ahab, but learns that he has one leg, and is peculiar. Moody but a good sailor.
On his way back to see Queequeg.
Chapter XVII: Ramadan
Queequeg, a Muslim, observing Ramadan, "Fasting and Humiliation."
Ismael is a Presbyterian. Very tolerant. Mentions Yojo -- a small idol used by Queequeg.
"Plum-pudding voyage: a short whaling voyage in a schooner or brig, confined to the north of theline, in the Atlantic Ocean only.
Full 24 hours of prayer it seems. Finally, the chapter concludes with Ishmael and Queezog sailing to board the Pequod.
Chapter XVIII: His Mark
Upon walking unto the wharf, toward the whaling boat, Captains Peleg and Bidad yelled to Ishamel and Queequeg. Once their religion was established, allowed to join the crew on board ship.
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