The BBC Top 100 Books- Moby-Dick
16:01
I cannot express how happy I was to read the last word of this book. I was in Cornwall on holiday and everyone was waiting for me so we could go out for the day. But I had about 5 pages left, so I announced, "I need silence!" and hurried off to sit at the bottom of the stairs and read in peace. When I was finally done, I took a celebratory selfie (look how happy I am!).
Moby-Dick by Herman Melville tells the story of a whaling ship captained by one monomaniac Captain Ahab, who is on a desperate quest to chase and kill the infamous white whale who was responsible for the loss of his leg. The tale is recounted by Ishmael, a seaman on board the Pequod (the ship), during the lengthy quest. Captain Ahab is blinded by his need for revenge, meaning that he will do anything it takes to hunt down the whale, which has been named Moby-Dick by those who have encountered him.
It's not that it's a bad book, (I can see why it's a classic) it's just that it was such a struggle. When I first started reading (it feels like years ago now), there were parts that I found really funny and clever. Throughout the book this did continue, as Ishmael often tells his story with a brilliantly dry humour and insight. However, I'm ashamed to say that I think a lot of the references flew straight over my head. If I wanted to, I could spend time researching and studying the deeper meanings of events and descriptions in the book, which I hope to do someday so that I can fully appreciate this 'masterpiece'.
It is described as "one of the most expansive feats of imagination in the whole of literature".
While the descriptions often created vivid and detailed images in my head, I found them overly extensive and sometimes quite hard to follow. There were many occasions when I had to re-read whole chunks, because by the time I'd got to the end, I'd forgotten what happened at the beginning of the sentence! As I was reading, I was reminded of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which I studied for A Level English. This is an epic poem, which gives you some idea of the style of Moby-Dick.
I'm finding it really hard to say that I didn't enjoy reading a classic novel, as I feel as though this makes me ignorant. But I guess everyone has their own tastes, and maybe a massively long tale about a man chasing a whale is not really my thing. Of course, I'm not so ignorant that I think Moby-Dick is as simple as this- Melville's exploration of obsession and monomania is thorough and intricate and raises many questions about human nature.
When I finally reached the closing pages, it almost felt as though the previous 660 had been a painfully long introduction to this final scene. However, without the build-up, the outcome would undoubtedly have meant absolutely nothing. So if you want to know what happens, don't just read the last few pages because, a) that's cheating and b) you won't care.
Am I glad that I've read it? Yes, definitely. It's the kind of book that just has to be persevered with and finished. Don't let those whales defeat you!
Harriet x
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