Tragedy: The Offspring of Obsession
Despite the negative psychological effects of tragedy, suffering has long been a common focus in classic literature. For example, in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, Shylock fixates himself on a revenge that he fails to attain, and in return, he loses his daughter, his wealth, and even his freedom to worship. But as Shakespeare presents it, Shylock's tragedy is amusing. In Herman Melville's Moby Dick, on the other hand, Captain Ahab's obsession with the White Whale is the source of his suf-fering, which, contrary to Shylock's, is significantly less than humorous.
Ahab's monomania arises out of his initial, violent encounter with the whale. Af-ter Moby Dick "reap[s] away Ahab's leg" (266) with his "sickle-shaped" (266) jaw, the White Whale, in the Captain's eyes, assumes the role of an "intangible malignity" (267) that Ahab "feel[s] eating in [him]" (267). Likened to Death in his cruel dismemberment of Ahab, Moby Dick personifies an elusive, indefinable evil that continues to eat away at the handicapped Captain throughout his journey for retribution. This unseen malice lingers in the void it creates within Ahab, insinuating itself into his every thought. The "final monomania seize[s] him" (268) as he returns to port after the encounter that forsakes him with a "torn body and gashed soul" (268). Then, "with ivory leg" (269), he embarks on his voyage for revenge. With his body mutilated and his spirit mangled, he is no longer whole, and he unconsciously fills the emptiness in him with an obsession for hunting down the White Whale. Furthermore, the whalebone leg that replaces Ahab's flesh and blood represents his unyielding compulsion, meaning that this staunch, almost religious devotion to revenge helps to support him. As unstable as it may be, it now forms the foundation for his existence, and without it, he could not function.
Though it serves as his crutch, this fixation acts as the impetus for the tragedy and suffering that befall Ahab after the incident. Briefly prior to the Pequod's departure, Ahab's ivory leg is "violently displaced" (667), inflicting him with another "agonizing wound" (667), and the injured captain recognizes that the "anguish of that then present suffering [is] but the direct issue of a former woe" (667). Taking into account his leg's symbolic nature, Ahab's affliction, both physical and emotional, results directly from his exclusive concentration on the White Whale. Rather than deterring him, however, his suf-fering only stimulates a greater need for vengeance. Moreover, because of the intensity of his monomania, Ahab's "tormented spirit…[is]…but a vacated thing, a formless som-nambulistic being" (292). His obsession, like the subconscious mind of a sleepwalker, controls him, imprisoning his soul. His spirit lies in torment, but as he cannot escape his fixation on the whale, he must endure the agony. Through his suffering, he becomes "a Prometheus; a vulture feeds upon his heart forever" (292). This carrion bird, or Ahab's obsession, eats away at the core of his being ad infinitum, torturing him, consuming him bit by bit. But unlike the mythical Titan, no wandering hero can free him from his tor-ment. Instead, he can rely only upon himself to break Moby Dick's hold and ease his pain.
But before he can do so, Ahab is forced to give up much of what makes him human. As the Pequod sets sail, he stands in his "grim aspect" (178) before his crew with a "crucifixion on his face" (178). He has already lost much, as his features show, but his grim countenance augurs future sacrifice. The thought of such sacrifice pains him, but he steels himself against the future, preparing to give up what he must to appease his obses-sion. With Moby Dick set firmly and exclusively in his sights, he "seem[s] ready to sacri-fice all mortal interests to that one passion" (305). So intent is he upon overcoming the White Whale that he would abandon all human pursuits only to do so. By compelling him to take such action, however, his obsession seems even to rob him of his humanity. Alone on the deck of the Pequod, Ahab smokes a pipe, a pastime that he feels is "meant for se-reneness" (186) but now "no longer soothes" (186), then he "tosse[s] the still lighted pipe into the sea" (186). His fixation on the whale is so overpowering, so all consuming, that it takes even his peace of mind, leaving him without a moment's respite. He sadly casts the pipe aside in reluctant acquiescence, sacrificing serenity with meager hopes of hastening his obsession's end.
Though Ahab eventually realizes the futility of overcoming Moby Dick, he still confronts the whale, ultimately sacrificing his life in a final, hopeless attempt to mas-ter his monomania. With his last breath he cries, "Thus I give up the spear!" (820), and as he throws it, the harpoon line wraps around his neck; he "disappear[s] into [the ocean's] depths" (821), forever bound to the object of his obsession: the White Whale. As he releases the spear, Ahab surrenders the outcome of his conflict to Fate, which ends his preoccupation by allowing the whale to take his life. His obsession controls him even as he dies, acting as the source of his ruin and forcing him to his end; as the sea swallows him, so his monomania consumes him. In death, he becomes like the tombless sailors whose sepulchral epitaphs line the walls of the Whaleman's Chapel, "refus[ing] resurrec-tions to the beings who have placelessly perished without a grave" (52). Ahab, like these sailors, can have no tombstone to mark where he met his demise; the White Whale denies him that as well. Furthermore, as a result of his vindictive monomania, his life after death, his resurrection, is forfeit. Considering his unwilling sacrifices and nearly constant suffering, this fate seems especially harsh; though he gives up his mortal life to free himself from obsession, he is cruelly refused his eternal rewards.
Rather, Ahab's fixation on Moby Dick brings him agonizing pain, perpetual torment, and a pitifully tragic death. He sacrifices much and yet still fails to overcome the monomania that consumes him; instead, it overcomes him. Like Ahab, humans of today must beware of obsession, whether with work, money, sex, or something else entirely. They, too, must learn of the destructive tendencies and life-stealing qualities of such staunch devotion if ever they wish to evade them.
Works Cited
Melville, Herman. Moby Dick. New York: Random House, Inc., 2000.
1,052 words / 5 pages
|
Home
