Herman Melville's Moby Dick

It has been said that if you read every other chapter of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, it’s a rip-roaring adventure tale. The puzzle, of course, is what to make of all the other chapters.

Easily a contender to be the Great American Novel and hence one of the Great Novels simply, Moby Dick (1851) is a staggering work of the literary imagination. At its core is the strange being pointed to by the title and subtitle: a whale by the name of Moby Dick. But what exactly is a whale? As Melville teaches us or reminds us, the Bible has one answer to that question, Thomas Hobbes (among others) quite another. Melville seeks to recapture for his readers the awe-filled wonder of the natural world, the world constituted by sea, land, and sky. Such wonder might well lead one, in attempting to understand the world, either to “the divine Plato” or to the divine simply. In short, Melville’s novel is an attempt to reopen and explore the fundamental human question of the nature and existence of God in and through the story of Ishmael’s encounter with Captain Ahab and his nemesis.

Over six sessions, fellows will read the full text, paying particular attention to the most important themes that tie together the several parts of this bountiful novel.

Image: Sperm Whale, 1935

Prof. Bartlett on Aristotle's guide to the good life

This course meets via Zoom biweekly, from 3 to 5 PM ET. Fellows will receive a $150 stipend contingent upon participation in the course and completion of a brief response paper. All course materials will be provided.

Faculty

Robert C. Bartlett

Robert C. Bartlett is the Behrakis Professor of Hellenic Political Studies at Boston College. His principal area of research is classical political philosophy, with particular attention to the thinkers of ancient Hellas, including Thucydides, Plato, and Aristotle. He is the co-translator of a new edition of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics.

Preview the Syllabus by Week/Session

Tuesday, Jan. 2

Readings:

“Etymology,” “Extracts,” Chs. 1-19

Discussion Questions:

What motive or motives lead Ishmael to take to the sea?
What might Ishmael mean by “the ungraspable phantom of life,” which he also calls “the key to it all” (Ch. 1)?
What are we to make of the rather mysterious Bulkington (p. 17; consider also Ch.23)?

Thursday, Jan. 4

Readings:

Chs. 20-42

Discussion Questions:

Any thoughts on the sermon of Father Mapple (Ch. 9)?
What are we to make of the strange friendship between Ishmael and Qeequeg?
Write a brief treatment of the character of Starbuck (Ch. 26).
Ch. 41 bears the same title as the book: what do we learn about “the whale” from this chapter?

Monday, Jan. 8

Readings:

Chs. 43-60

Discussion Questions:

Comment on the discussion of “chance, free will, and necessity” in Ch. 47.
What are we to make of Fedallah (e.g., Ch. 50)?
What does the Town-Ho’s story (Ch. 54) add to the narrative?
What as Melville presents it is a chief characteristic of one who is “a philosopher” (Ch. 60)?

Thursday, Jan. 11

Readings:

Chs. 61-90

Discussion Questions:

Sharks appear in several chapters in this section of the novel: what are we to glean from their appearances (or mentions) here, from things “sharkish”?
What is the “interregnum in Providence” Ishmael perceives (Ch. 72)?
John Locke and Immanuel Kant make a rather surprising appearance in Ch. 73 (not to mention Spinoza and Plato in Ch. 75 [also Ch. 78]): what is Ishmael or for that matter Melville up to here?
Analyze Melville’s presentation (in Ch. 83) of the story of Jonah.
Comment on the “divine intuitions” mentioned in Ch. 85.

Monday, Jan. 15

Readings:

Chs. 91-106

Discussion Questions:

Comment on the character of Pip and his alleged madness (Ch. 93).
Comment on the import of “the doubloon” (Ch. 99).
What in context does Ishmael mean when he says that he has “undertaken to manhandle this Leviathan” (Ch. 104)?
What information does Ch. 106, entitled “Ahab’s Leg,” give us about the captain’s view of the world? And what might be the relation of that information to the man’s interest in, not to say obsession with, the whale?

Wednesday, Jan. 17

Readings:

Chs. 107-135, “Epilogue”

Discussion Questions:

Comment on the end of Queequeg (Ch. 110).
Can you shed any light on the rather enigmatic Ch. 122 (um, um, um!).
Comment on the “fatal pride” of Captain Ahab (Ch. 124).
What if anything do we learn about Ishmael—apart of course from his fate—in the “Epilogue”?

Alumni Spotlight

Amanda Wynter

Amanda Wynter has written for The Atlantic, and worked as an Atlantic Media Research Fellow at National Journal. She came to Political Studies from Georgetown University, where she majored in Government, with a minor in Political Philosophy.

“Hertog gives people the opportunity to think about politics for an extended period of time with other people who are also interested in doing the same thing. The mindset Hertog puts you in is specifically defined by developing a reverence for old texts while also looking at contemporary issues. The juxtaposition of those two activities is critical, and I don’t think students can get that in everyday college classes where you’re either focused on reading Plato in Ancient Greek or reading The Washington Post.”

Amanda Wynter

Current Position:

Product Manager, Google
Past:

FiscalNote, National Journal, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs
Education:

Georgetown University

HOW DID YOU FIRST HEAR ABOUT THE HERTOG FOUNDATION? WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO APPLY?

A friend of mine at Georgetown from political theory circles was an alum of Political Studies, and he suggested that the Program was something I would really benefit from and enjoy. At the time, I had recently transferred schools within Georgetown from security studies to political philosophy, and Hertog looked like a chance to delve deeper into the examination of big political ideas. That aspect of the Program was definitely attractive to me, and it proved to be really valuable.

TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR CAREER PATH.

Eventually I want to go to graduate school, and ultimately I see myself teaching at the university level. Political Studies was my first glimpse of what a life in academia would look like. Spending time around graduate students and other university students interested in entering the academy was certainly informative and influential.

Right now, I’m working for a research team that looks at government affairs from a business perspective. Since I was a government major in school, working in government affairs now lines up well. But it was my time at Hertog that really put me on the first path towards looking at politics writ large.

WHAT STICKS OUT IN YOUR MEMORY ABOUT YOUR EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE WITH POLITICAL STUDIES?

During Political Studies, I spent one of the weeks in the bioethics course. I found that really wrestling with questions of ethics and morality and the way that plays into policy was extremely valuable. I had never been exposed to such drastically different perspectives.

We had people there with views across the entire political spectrum, which I think is one of Hertog’s biggest accomplishments. Getting people who think completely different things into the same room and opening a dialogue is hard, but it was a hallmark of Political Studies. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people with whom to flesh out those ideas.

OVERALL, WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION OF POLITICAL STUDIES?

First and foremost, Hertog gives people the opportunity to think about politics for an extended period of time with other people who are also interested in doing the same thing. Though you have a similar experience in universities, the mindset Hertog puts you in is specifically defined by developing a reverence for old texts while also looking at contemporary issues.

The juxtaposition of those two activities is critical, and I don’t think students can get that in everyday college classes where you’re either focused on reading Plato in Ancient Greek or reading The Washington Post. Being able to do both at the same time, and furthermore, being expected to do both at the same time, is very important.

DO YOU THINK HERTOG PROGRAMS ARE BENEFICIAL FOR YOUNG PEOPLE INTERESTED IN JOURNALISM?

Hertog is great for people interested in journalism. The crux of journalism is writing about ideas, and Hertog gets you thinking about big ideas. Political Studies also gives you exposure to important organizations and the different parts of DC, which is definitely beneficial.

WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN 10 YEARS?

Hopefully by that time I’ll have finished a Ph.D. and won’t be struggling through lonely nights with Rousseau and ramen. The actual teaching part I would be willing to wait for—first, I want to either travel and explore cultures and political issues through different lenses, or work in a specific sector like education or technology.

Hands-on experience will give me better sense of how to look at certain topics, and thus enable me to teach others how to look at them. Whatever happens, I want to be reading good things, and talking to good people about them.