Hermann Melville "Moby Dick"

The practical value of the course paper

The ocean of Moby-Dick is integral to the book‘s intricacy and ultimate success as a work of metaphysical art. Dan Beachy-Quick writes that in Loomings,‖ the meditation on water provides [. . .] the first philosophical depth Moby-Dick explores. The ocean prefigures in its symbolic complexity the difficulty of the book to follow‖. The sea and its rich symbolism provide the undulating foundations of the novel the beauty, chaos, instability, mystery, and rhythms of the ocean are among the elements that Melville reflects in his language and structure.