Moby-Dick
Assigned by 3 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1851
- Form
- Novel
- Language
- English
- Length
- Long · 650 pp300 to 700 pages
- Difficulty
- Difficult4 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendMoby-DickPenguin Classics, 2003Tom Quirk's edition of the Northwestern-Newberry text, with Andrew Delbanco's introduction and full notes.
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Ishmael, a restless schoolteacher, signs on to the Nantucket whaler Pequod with his new friend, the tattooed harpooner Queequeg. The ship's captain, Ahab, has lost a leg to a white sperm whale, Moby Dick, and reveals that the voyage's true purpose is revenge. The narrative alternates the hunt with chapters on the anatomy, history and meaning of whales, the whiteness of the whale, and the work of whaling. Ahab overrules his first mate Starbuck, ignores omens and other ships, and finds the whale, which destroys the Pequod. Only Ishmael survives, floating on Queequeg's coffin.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Moby-Dick are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
