1. On the beginning of the third day of the chase, the entire crew of the Pequod is crazed on the idea of catching Moby Dick. "The morning of the third day dawned fair and fresh, and once more the solitary night-man at the fore-mast-head was relieved by crowds of the daylight look-outs, who dotted every mast and almost every spar" (419). What does the crew's obsession with catching the enigmatic white whale say about Ahab's capabilities as a leader? With the entire crew's focus being on one whale, instead of catching as many whales as possible, what questions and concerns can be raised about Ahab's ability to be the captain of a whaling ship?
2. "'Give Way!' cried Ahab to the oarsmen, and the boats darted forward to the attack; but maddened by yesterday's fresh irons that corroded in him, Moby Dick seemed combinedly possessed by all the angels that fell from heaven" (422). In the bible, after falling from heaven for disobeying God, the angel Lucifer becomes Satan. By stating that Moby Dick was possessed by the devil, what themes is Melville referring too? Is he alluding to the theme of slavery by connecting white aspects of the whale with the cruelty and wrongfulness of Satan? Or is Melville attempting to cap off the book with the religious battle between Ahab, who see's himself as godlike and all-powerful, and Moby Dick, the whale with the power of the devil? If the latter is the case, what is Melville getting at when Ahab is slain and Moby Dick remains unbeaten?
3. In the last lines of chapter 135, Melville introduces the theme of change into the epic novel. What is Melville, or Ishmael, arguing when he says, "the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago" (427)? In the footnotes it states that by using the time frame of five thousand years, Melville is talking about the time of Noah's flood. Does knowing that this is about Noah change the message of the last few lines? What religious themes could be tied into the conclusion of this tale?
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