lily1792’s Blog

In these four chapters of Moby Dick, three new major characters were introduced. The Captains. First, there is the mysterious Captain Ahab, who is said to have lost a leg on a whaling voyage and is in hideaway for now, and Ishmael cannot meet him. Then there is Captain Bildad, and old orthodox quaker who is attatched to his bible, and then the younger fiestier Captain Peleg, who has quite the temper. Ishmael and Queequeg are about to embark on a whaling voyage on the Pequod. From my perception, Ishmael is entering this whaling trip blindly. As I read this, I got the uneasy sense that Captain Bildad and Captain Peleg are letting meeting Captain Ahab go until the last minute so no one is scared off the ship. I think that maybe these two, fighting, co-captains are just stand-ins. They are afterall, owners. Also, reading this, you get the uneasy yet exciting feeling that Captain Ahab is either going to horrible, or wonderful.