It's a nineteenth-century novel, Josephine, and most of those were written
by nineteenth-century people. If you want something PC, avoid any book
written before 1990. (And for a *really* nasty book, try _Wuthering
Heights_.) In any case, from his own starting point, he's rethinking the
civilized / savage distinction, just he is the relationship between hunter
and hunted. You seem to have missed all the comedy, all the ironies, all the
epistemological agonizing. It's not a defence of whaling, or an adventure
story, still less an uplifting moral tract (though it plays at being all of
those things and more). Surely, even if you don't like the book, you can see
that what he's doing is at least incredibly complex. The style, the tone,
the angle of approach, changes with practically every chapter. But thanks
for the provocation -should get things moving a bit.
Best wishes
Matthew
----- Original Message -----
From: "Printmaker" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, August 10, 2001 12:00 AM
Subject: Book Review- Moby Dick
> Ok there will be some bagging here so the sensitive may wish
> to dip out now.
> (Carefully putting tongue in cheek.)
>
> After the nth reference to Moby Dick on Star Trek, we were
> puzzling Why? There was the obvious parallel of ships
> charting the great unknown led by 'Captain my Captain!' -
> and then the penny dropped, its one of the great _american_
> novels. Of Course, nuff said!
>
> Anyway, I decided I better read the bloody thing and see
> what the fuss was about.
>
> Not very PC is it? First there's all the superstitious
> nonsense about the pagan savages and cannibals, followed by
> a bed scene ... well its the closest thing to a bed scene,
> pity its two blokes, (er sorry one bloke and one savage). A
> woman did pop up eventually, poor token thingy - and she
> wasnt even a blonde waiting to be rescued - but then she was
> a wowser, who being a good housewife, provided the entire
> ship with hot toddys to revive themselves. And they,
> ungrateful devils, poured it all overboard coz it was
> alcohol free. Well at least _she_ was put in her place.
>
> Then we have a group of provincial entrepreneurs who put
> their enterprise (every pun intended) in the hands of a
> raving looney and dont even notice his mental state - or
> lack of it. And the stowaways!
>
> But all is ok as we are assured that these monsters of the
> deep are just big fishys in a most astounding piece of
> scientific research which compares them to folios and
> quartos. Just exactly what did he think "penum intrantem
> feminam mammis lactantem" meant one wonders? (not even going
> to comment on 'sperm' whales)
>
> *fell asleep for a while here*
>
> And then we get to the bit where the big fishys get hacked
> to bits in gory splendour. Yeah yeah I know its a boy book
> with all that manly stuff: gotta put in a bit of death and
> destruction somewhere. And the precurser of the car chase.
> Wot can I say! Well - I have to admit to some thoughts
> concerning the bravery of these poor sods - or were they all
> insane?
>
> The only good bit was when the whale won! (I always used to
> cheer for the Indians when I was a kid.)
>
> And I was eternally grateful for the afterward that pointed
> out the spiritual moral to the tale. Wot, A spiritual
> message? In all those godly bits I must have missed it, -
> NOT!
>
> Pity someone couldnt give this a bit of a re-write like they
> are doing with Narnia (vandals!) and bring it into the 21st
> century.
>
> *sigh*
>
> Well there were one or two nicely written passages in there,
> but you do have to dig for them, dont you?
>
> Ok bagging finished now.
>
> Josephine
>
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