Captain Ahab portrayed as monomaniacal in Moby Dick Essay

Monomania, as defined by the Ameri nookie inheritance Dictionary, is the pathological obsession with i subject or idea. In Herman Melvilles novel Moby Dick, an obsession causes monomania in its main character. Through his actions, words, thoughts, and what others animadvert about him, Captain Ahab is truly monomaniacal.Ahab is monomaniacal through his words and thoughts. guggle non to me of blasphemy,man Id strike the sun if it insulted me. This shows Ahabs stupidity because only he would have the nerve to say that no offspring who it is, great or small, he would stand up to them this includes Moby Dick. Ahab often smokes a pipe, scarce he realizes some social occasion and says What business have I with this pipe? This thing that is meant for sereneness, to send up mild uninfected vapors among mild white hairs, not among torn iron-grey locks same(p) mine. Ill smoke no more. He admits that he is not a peaceful man, which is quite monomaniacal. another(prenominal) event that shows Ahabs monomania is when he talks directly to a dead whales head, saying Speak, thou vast and hoary head, mighty head and tell us the secret thing that is in theeO head thou hast seen enough to split the planets and make an doubter of Abraham, and not one syllable is thine His obsession leads him to even say that he allow pay someone to kill Moby Dick just for the sake of revenge. Whosoever of ye raises me that aforesaid(prenominal) white whale, he shall have this gold ounce, my boys When Ahab finally meets Moby Dick, his monomania hits its high up point as his last words before his death atomic number 18 Sink all coffins and hearses to one common pool And since neither can be mine, let me then tow to pieces, while still chasing thee, though tied to thee, thou damned whale Thus, I give up the spearCaptain Ahab is not only monomaniacal through his words, but through his actions, also. In one incident, Ahab holds Starbuck at gunpoint just because he asked if he could have a crew of men fix a leak. Is that not an action of a madman? Ahab also breaks the ships compass at one point in the story so that the crew learns how the ship moves. He also refuses to recognize the warnings that are presented during gams he dismisses them without any thought or hesitation because his obsession makes him blind to the existence and stupidity of the search for Moby Dick. Ahab also has no respect for hisfellow sailors, as he has manipulated them quite often. Everyone on the Pequod, especially Ishmael, thought that they were going on a normal whaling voyage, not a suicidal chase for a deadly white whale.If someone is to be called monomaniacal, not only one point of view can confirm that. The thoughts of fellows crew members on the Pequod often comment on how they feel about Ahab. Ishmael describes Ahab as creation A grand, ungodly, god-like man, Captain Ahab doesnt speak muchAhabs been in colleges, as well as among the cannibals been used to deeper wonders than the wav es fixed his fiery slam in mightier, stranger foes than whales. Queeqeug gives his two cents worth when he says More than formerly did he put forth the faint blossom of a look, which, in any other man, would have soon flowered out in a smile. Obviously, Ahab did not like to smile, which is something that happy people do. Finally, Stubb comments that The sea had derisively kept his finite body up, but drowned the infinite of his soul. He says that Ahab has pointless his soul in pursuit of Moby Dick, and that if it was not for the sea and the white whale, Ahab would not be monomaniacal.Ahab is monomaniacal through what he says, what he does, and what other count on of him. He not only manipulates his fellow sailors, he also acts like a madman because of his obsession with the pursuit of Moby Dick. Captain Ahab is seemingly monomaniacal despite what he thinks of himself.