Chapter 117, "The Whale Watch," to Chapter 124, "The Needle."
By ERIC WAGNER
Special guest blogger
Chapter 118 suggests Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle when Ahab says to his quadrant, “Thou canst not tell where one drop of water or one grain of sand will be tomorrow noon.” Or perhaps it just suggests the limits of science.
In the late 1980s I heard Ray Bradbury talk about his experience writing the screenplay for the John Huston film of Moby Dick. He felt a little apprehensive as he began the project since he had not read the novel before. He went to the library and picked up a copy, and he felt relief as he leafed through it. He thought, “This is just Shakespeare and the Bible.” These do not seem like the only influences on Melville, but they certainly seem like big ones. When Starbuck stands outside the cabin of the sleeping Ahab and imagines Ahab bound in chains, it made me think of the fate of Iago in Othello, especially in the Orson Welles film. (Of course, Bob Wilson loved Welles’ stage production of Moby Dick Rehearsed.)
I think of the Bible when reading the prophecies in Moby Dick, especially the prophecy about how Ahab will die. I wonder when reading the Bible how Pharoah knew about the coming of Moses, leading him to murder the Jewish infants. If one treats the Bible and Moby Dick, one can see the authors creating prophecies which may or may not come true.
Next week: Please read Chapter 125, "The Log and Line," to Chapter 130, "The Hat."
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