tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post9221565190089834833..comments2024-03-28T17:12:36.615-05:00Comments on Althouse: Hey, man, did you notice Dylan edited out the "man" interjection from Captain Ahab's speech?Ann Althousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-58901307733154750202020-05-18T06:14:48.500-05:002020-05-18T06:14:48.500-05:00Whew! I have a 1928 copy of Romances of Herman Mel...Whew! I have a 1928 copy of Romances of Herman Melville along with a library of good ole fashioned nineteenth century kick ass Authors that everyone today won't read because they don't understand the "Homoeroticism" as an aesthetic , and think that if Starbuck is too affectionate to Ahab they might turn Gay if they read it . I think that they never got past "Clifford the Big Red Dog" in English Lit. for a reason. My God , is English Lit. still a High School Major? But anyhow I looked up on Wikipedia the part of chap 36 about "be it the white whale principle , or be the white whale agent .." because I often use that phrasing , but with different words sometimes when I reply to say a reprehensible Baby Boomer that still believes men landed on the Moon. So I thought , when I saw the "man" missing I was perceiving another "Mandela Effect" so I looked in my old copy , and was relieved at the non Mandela effected book , but then I became agitated at who would edit Herman Melville. It must be a typo I thought. Then I read about the editing of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn the word "nigger" is changed to "slave" ? I'd rather be called a nigger than a slave. And of course it was a White Woman who is above us and knows what our arguably greatest Minds should not have written . Then I read that "Of Mice and Men" is no longer required , allowed or otherwise discussed in High Schools anymore because it could cause kids to bully the Retards. I don't know how many Retarded People you know , but I know a couple Down Syndrome dudes , and you ain't bullying those bastards unless you want to have all of your teeth removed rather gruesomely . They are as strong as five men , and will not tolerate a bully. OK I meandered big time here, but you get the point.UniBomberBearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09109212487642717188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-89139699157126897172017-06-07T04:26:26.216-05:002017-06-07T04:26:26.216-05:00That's just, like, your opinion, man -- thou d...That's just, like, your opinion, man -- thou damned whale.LordSomberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08483452672640797537noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-89871905892579112312017-06-06T21:50:31.198-05:002017-06-06T21:50:31.198-05:00Be interesting to see if book sales of Moby Dick s...Be interesting to see if book sales of Moby Dick surge after Dylan's lecture.Amexpathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04763282445910603419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-56191190047292426472017-06-06T20:03:31.580-05:002017-06-06T20:03:31.580-05:00You'd think Dylan more than Ahab would drop &q...<i>You'd think Dylan more than Ahab would drop "man" into a sentence. I hear it as beatnik style.</i><br /><br />Work !! tcrossehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13861315905142017219noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-79573535855883578022017-06-06T17:45:16.194-05:002017-06-06T17:45:16.194-05:00"I know almost nothing about Bob Dylan but I ..."I know almost nothing about Bob Dylan but I know a fair bit about Moby-Dick, probably because I've played Frank Muller's recording of it a hundred times. (That's the one to get, and I recommend it without reservation.)"<br /><br />Thanks for the push to get back to the recording I downloaded a while back.Ann Althousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-47114532987742739502017-06-06T17:36:54.178-05:002017-06-06T17:36:54.178-05:00Moby-Dick was assigned in my 12th grade honors Eng...Moby-Dick was assigned in my 12th grade honors English class in 1960-61. If I were to find that this classic has been removed from the curriculum of my alma mater, I would protest mightily! Yet, back in the day, I didn't read the book as assigned; I read an abridged version, about half as many pages. So far as I can recall from class discussions, papers, exams, etc., I didn't really miss anything. At some point in my adult life, probably after I retired from full-time employment, I decided to read the whole book. I got about a hundred pages past "Call me Ishmael", but that was it. Dylan's precis of the book in his lecture is very good. I think maybe those 12 minutes are really all you need.<br /><br />On the other hand, I think Dylan's summary of the Odyssey left out a lot of really good detail. Even if you also saw the Kirk Douglas movie.The Godfatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10575359417766667457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-67646115209339294292017-06-06T17:12:29.090-05:002017-06-06T17:12:29.090-05:00"As if I were Adam, staggering under the pile..."As if I were Adam, staggering under the piled centuries since Paradise."<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArFd_2-z9IoBillyTalleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11731812156816305835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-72939718817293416862017-06-06T16:39:06.148-05:002017-06-06T16:39:06.148-05:00Ahab is a Kantian.
Unlike the Right and Sperm Wha...<i>Ahab is a Kantian.</i><br /><br />Unlike the Right and Sperm Whales:<br /><br /><i>Does not this whole head seem to speak of an enormous practical resolution in facing death? This Right Whale I take to have been a Stoic; the Sperm Whale, a Platonian, who might have taken up Spinoza in his latter years.</i><br /><br />(This is one of the reasons why so many of us love Moby-Dick -- it contains some reference to almost everything in the universe. Althouse may know that there are two whole chapters full of detailed legal commentary, complete with citations in Latin: "Fast Fish and Loose Fish" and "Heads or Tails.") Robert J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12937384579138400443noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-29442644103948087292017-06-06T16:29:55.800-05:002017-06-06T16:29:55.800-05:00The thing about the great plagiarizers -- Shakespe...The thing about the great plagiarizers -- Shakespeare, T.S. Eliot, and Dylan, of course -- is that they always improved on the original.Earnest Prolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07784404737843553158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-82200186311382708532017-06-06T16:27:51.246-05:002017-06-06T16:27:51.246-05:00Ahab is a Kantian.Ahab is a Kantian.mtrobertslawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16545529878898998880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-49443350938689910012017-06-06T15:23:51.123-05:002017-06-06T15:23:51.123-05:00Captain Ahab is fighting God. Gutsy move Ahab.
Ay...<i>Captain Ahab is fighting God. Gutsy move Ahab.</i><br /><br />Aye, and it's not just God, it's all the gods, whom he addresses specifically and invites to take him on:<br /><br /><i>Now, then, be the prophet and the fulfiller one. That's more than ye, ye great gods, ever were. I laugh and hoot at ye, ye cricket-players, ye pugilists, ye deaf Burkes and blinded Bendigoes! I will not say as school-boys do to bullies--Take some one of your own size; don't pommel me! No, ye've knocked me down, and I am up again; but ye have run and hidden. Come forth from behind your cotton bags! I have no long gun to reach ye. Come, Ahab's compliments to ye; come and see if ye can swerve me.</i>Robert J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12937384579138400443noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-53473706670808498652017-06-06T15:11:53.941-05:002017-06-06T15:11:53.941-05:00Captain Ahab is fighting God. Gutsy move Ahab.Captain Ahab is fighting God. Gutsy move Ahab.traditionalguyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05706120413005530014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-56571707179987834272017-06-06T15:08:05.072-05:002017-06-06T15:08:05.072-05:00Do I understand your question, man, is it hopeless...Do I understand your question, man, is it hopeless and forlorn?Petehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04210441627504923976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-32055711999877245372017-06-06T15:07:06.691-05:002017-06-06T15:07:06.691-05:00Just started reading bio of poet RobertLowell, on ...Just started reading bio of poet RobertLowell, on opening page is a photo of a harpoon from the New Bedford Whaling Museum and this quote:<br /> "all men live enveloped in whale lines".dustbunnyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14379763339950671076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-44221482210458590332017-06-06T14:42:09.608-05:002017-06-06T14:42:09.608-05:00I'd strike the sun if it insulted me
When Dyl...<i> I'd strike the sun if it insulted me</i><br /><br />When Dylan quoted that line from MD, I thought of a verse from Tombstone Blues:<br /><br />The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly<br />Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry"<br />And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky<br />Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken" Amexpathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04763282445910603419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-59303613414051357832017-06-06T13:51:49.060-05:002017-06-06T13:51:49.060-05:00Engendering Romance... Think I'll wait for the...<i>Engendering Romance</i>... Think I'll wait for the price to come down a bit, somewhere south of toilet paper by weight.Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-49856864080091892772017-06-06T13:28:39.179-05:002017-06-06T13:28:39.179-05:00Emily Miller Burdick, not Ruth.Emily Miller Burdick, not Ruth.rhhardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06901742898653890646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-22633455050473204342017-06-06T13:14:39.085-05:002017-06-06T13:14:39.085-05:00Urban hipsters are given the task of sailing a squ...<i>Urban hipsters are given the task of sailing a square-rigged ship in search of whales... But here's the kicker — get ready — they are all nude! </i><br /><br />"And thus have these naked Nantucketers, these sea hermits, issuing from their ant-hill in the sea, overrun and conquered the watery world...."Robert J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12937384579138400443noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-53743931707856352752017-06-06T13:13:45.271-05:002017-06-06T13:13:45.271-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Roughcoathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12669030540648967376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-87600205880586872092017-06-06T13:11:44.178-05:002017-06-06T13:11:44.178-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Roughcoathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12669030540648967376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-53605651176384888062017-06-06T13:10:16.834-05:002017-06-06T13:10:16.834-05:00Moby Dick is supposed to represent a world without...Moby Dick is supposed to represent a world without women, somebody wrote. Maybe I can find the book...<br /><br />Ruth Burdick, _Engendering Romance_. Amazon has a hardcover for $6 if you're fast.rhhardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06901742898653890646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-54161158587648641722017-06-06T13:09:48.836-05:002017-06-06T13:09:48.836-05:00And if he strikes and hits, he'll be a Reality...<i>And if he strikes and hits, he'll be a Reality Winner.</i><br /><br />Here's a formula for a new hit Showtime series. I call it <i>Thar She Blows!</i> Urban hipsters are given the task of sailing a square-rigged ship in search of whales, which they'll tag with GPS monitors (for sciencey purposes, dontcha know?). They must live as 19th-century seamen lived, eat what they ate, and chase the whales in oar-propelled open boats. Sounds cool, no? But here's the kicker — get ready — they are all nude! Coppertone will jump at the chance to sponsor.Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-3329378327068090372017-06-06T13:04:54.662-05:002017-06-06T13:04:54.662-05:00Captain Ahab: "He tasks me; he heaps me; I se...Captain Ahab: "He tasks me; he heaps me; I see in him outrageous strength, with an inscrutable malice sinewing it. That inscrutable thing is chiefly what I hate; and be the white whale agent, or be the white whale principal, I will wreak that hate upon him."<br /><br />Kathy Griffin: "He broke me! He broke me! He broke me! I've always been bullied by old white guys."<br /><br />Captain Ahab/ Moby Dick.<br /><br />Kathy Griffin/ Donald Trump.<br /><br />Maybe that explains her weird obsession, Professor.FWBuffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15659814282551363901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-30242635840228365822017-06-06T12:58:48.021-05:002017-06-06T12:58:48.021-05:00And if he strikes and hits, he'll be a Reality...<i>And if he strikes and hits, he'll be a Reality Winner.</i><br /><br />And here I am trying to be all serious 'n stuff...Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-81102273171279725742017-06-06T12:44:30.718-05:002017-06-06T12:44:30.718-05:00I've been thinking about last sentences. I wa...I've been thinking about last sentences. I want to love Moby Dick's last sentence, but Melville ruins it with that thuddingly bad bit about devious cruising. People usually clean it up when they 'quote' it. Melville's style was a bit overweighted with bad-idea adjectives and linguistic oddities. Mitch H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/01630047498946143646noreply@blogger.com