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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
Nothing like I expected. Had all the riveting, rollicking adventure of a modern-day blockbuster--interspersed with long digressions into natural history, cultural phenomenon, and philosophy. Hard to make your way through the entire book--but so worth it.
I decided to read more classics this year as one of my reading goals. As many times as I’ve heard bits and pieces of this one, I had never actually read it. An enjoyable enough read, and interesting to notice some of the differences between books written so long ago and books written now.
There is not much to say unsaid about Moby Dick. It is an excellent book and i thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It does suggest that, if at all possible, one should temper one's impulses toward embarking on a monomaniacal self-destructive fool's errand against something so unyielding as, say, the universe at large. But it also suggests, just as truthfully, sometimes that is not an option.
I would say that, if there is a short-coming, it is Ishmael. I do not know Ishmael and I do not believe him as a narrator. If he had that much free time on the Pequod, I have to think that someone would have put him to work, or alternately, thrown him over the side to distract the sharks.
That all being said, I'm glad to have read it. Perry Lentz would definitely have rather I read it eight years ago, but at 30, I can actually appreciate it for the hell of a book that it is rather than rushing through it to write a paper he wouldn't have liked anyway.
I would say that, if there is a short-coming, it is Ishmael. I do not know Ishmael and I do not believe him as a narrator. If he had that much free time on the Pequod, I have to think that someone would have put him to work, or alternately, thrown him over the side to distract the sharks.
That all being said, I'm glad to have read it. Perry Lentz would definitely have rather I read it eight years ago, but at 30, I can actually appreciate it for the hell of a book that it is rather than rushing through it to write a paper he wouldn't have liked anyway.
Very good, although its one of the few classics I wouldn't object to an abridged version of.
Personally I only like parts of the books like the beginning of Ishmael meeting Queequeg, and the cook preaching to the shark, hilarious scenes, and I can even get and enjoy bits of Melville’s humor and sarcasm here and there. I also like some of the Independent tales told Ishmael (or Melville?) as a narrator. However, as I approached the latter part of the book, it gets a bit repetitive and uneventful until the very end when they met Rachel. On the other hand, I also understand why this book is liked by other writers: it contains so many genres in one book, travelogue, naturalist writing, short play, poetry, folklores, action thriller, etc. I would have been jealous as a writer to see a peer can manage so many styles in one book. And to the end, I one hundred percent rooted for Moby Dick to win.
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm TRYING to read this book...I want to like this book...I'm wading through it like I'm hip deep in molasses.
I know: I must be some kind of anti-'merican for giving the book one star - okay, I gave it two. Trouble is, this book's tedium was too much for me. Heaven knows I tried, but somewhere around the halfway point, I realized that the pain wasn't worth it. The great American novel was not something I could bear (years later I would find the exact same problem with Ahab's Wife). Maybe I'll try again some time, but for now I remain the pinko commie who couldn't finish Moby Dick.
This book is most unfortunate. It's exceedingly long and contains a lot of encyclopaedic material which in itself is interesting but adds nothing to the story. Presumably its sheer size is supposed to symbolise both the scale of North America and of whales themselves, and the idea of slaughtering the largest animals on the planet would presumably appeal to some kind of stereotypical idea of American culture being all about the gigantic, but I simply refuse to believe that that can really be much to do with real American culture.
Above all, however, this book has as its topic the murder of beautiful and quite possibly intelligent life forms which are now, thanks to the activity of whalers, on the brink of extinction, and glories in it, and I don't care if my attitude is anachronistic, but this book is practically a celebration of genocide.
Above all, however, this book has as its topic the murder of beautiful and quite possibly intelligent life forms which are now, thanks to the activity of whalers, on the brink of extinction, and glories in it, and I don't care if my attitude is anachronistic, but this book is practically a celebration of genocide.