Moby-Dick
I’ve always been intrigued by obsessive personalities. Not surprisingly, I’m a big fan of the TV hit series, House M.D. Hugh Laurie’s character, Gregory House, embodies what it means to be obsessive. So… what does that mean? According to Messrs. Merriam and Webster, obsessive means “excessive often to an unreasonable degree.” If you know anything about the show, it’s very obvious that House epitomizes this idea. He crosses the line on a regular basis, displaying a blatant disregard for everything moral and legal and a generally apathetic attitude toward everyone he encounters.
If you’re not so well acquainted with House, I’ll give you a brief overview. The head of the diagnostic department at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey, Greg House is defined by his compulsive need to “find the answer” to every medical dilemma. Sacrificing what most people consider to be inherent values, House usually leaves a wake of emotional and literal devastation behind him. Publicly, his actions suggest that relationships aren’t important to him, an idea which is reinforced when he talks about the sparse contact between he and his parents. (Later on, we know this to be false.) Through conversations between House and others, the show implies that his harshness with people is due to his injured leg, a malady which causes him constant pain which he alleviates with large amounts of Vicodin (a pain med slightly stronger than Tylenol). House’s leg pushes him to his cold temperament, one which might be described as inhuman. At times, it seems as though House has given his soul over to evil. The irony in this is that the pain from his leg actually reveals his human side, that is, the remnants of his soul.
To me, the show is riveting. Over time, I’ve found that I’m not alone. It seems that in today’s culture, we are fascinated by evil. Between the evening news telling us about the violent shooting that took place and the whirlwind of profanity created by the cast of the Jersey Shore, we are bombarded with tales of evil. And answer me this: do you turn the TV off when these things come on? No. If anything, you turn up the volume.
So, what if I told you that there exists a novel–one which you’ve undoubtedly heard of–that epitomizes this idea exactly…�and was written in the 19th century? Crazy, right? Not so much.
When he wrote Moby-Dick, Herman Melville undoubtedly intended his work to be appreciated. However, I highly doubt that he expected this one novel to become so revered, so often referenced, so awe-inspiring… 159 years later! It is a work that is timeless because of the extent to which its themes are inherently pertinent to humanity. In other words, we’re never going to stop thinking about, attempting to destroy or (unfortunately) embracing evil.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Moby-Dick, here’s a three-sentence plot summary. Man’s leg gets bitten off by whale. Man becomes obsessed with revenge upon whale. Man eventually destroys his boat and whole crew (minus the narrator) in trying to kill whale. What’s important is how uncannily similar this “man” (Ahab) is to House.
Ahab is introduced to us as captain of the Pequod, a whaling vessel from Nantucket. It seems that Melville chooses to leave Ahab’s character a mystery for the moment so, we understand very little about him. However, it is quite evident that he is a psychologically complex character. When he makes his first appearance, he begins his relationship with the crew with the offer of a reward: “Whosoever of ye raises me a white-headed whale with a wrinkled brow and a crooked jaw…shall have this gold ounce, my boys!” Bribing people one has just met to help with one’s insane task is far from normal.
When House’s team deserts him, he is forced to create a new one. He selects 20 candidates, and from the start, offers them a reward to solve the case–the opportunity to stay in the running. On the surface, this seems like an obvious comparison to make (they both offer rewards to get what they want). However, it says something about both of them in a psychological sense. They both manipulate circumstances and others to achieve their goals, without regard to the consequences. Ahab is fully aware that in trying to find and capture Moby-Dick, members of the crew may be injured or killed. However, his obsession pushes this fact aside. The same is true of House.
What is so scary about the two is how similar their obsessions are. House wishes to eradicate everyone of their sickness or disease, a desire which is only waiting to be unfulfilled. Likewise, Ahab wants to destroy Moby-Dick, who, to him, represents all evil in the world. Ishmael tells us that it seems that Ahab’s fatally dogmatic ways originated from the unbearable agony caused by the loss of his leg. Do you see where I’m going? The similarities are striking.
The clip I’ve provided here gives a little insight into the character of House–his obsession, defense mechanisms, the inner workings of his mind. Ahab, while different, is very much the same. His inhuman tendencies are separated by moments in which the good part of his soul shines through, just like House. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTYpb8n4jCA
Beyond psychological comparison, House and Ahab share many emotionally related subjects. Towards the beginning of the book, Ahab denies any sort of relationship with his parents, just like House. However, we later find out that he has a wife and child waiting for him at home. As the show House progresses, we discover that he (House) is in love with his boss, Dr. Cutty. Why is this important, you ask? Both Ahab and House have deep relationships but allow their obsessions to totally control them, even if it affects these people. To have such a desire so deeply rooted that one ignores love is incredibly interesting–probably because it’s a psychological condition that we rarely see in real life.
It seems to me that a character idea that is this trans-historical (props to Dr. Crumley for that word) definitely makes Moby-Dick worth reading, whether you find psychologically complex personalities interesting or not. However, it’s also true that anyone who likes House or has any interest in how the mind works would find Moby-Dick to be absolutely riveting. Fans of Dexter Morgan of “Dexter,” Gil Grisham of “CSI” (Las Vegas), and other “left-brained” characters will love Ahab. In today’s world, one which seems to be leaning farther and farther to the left in terms of our minds, Moby-Dick provides a compelling tale with thought-provoking characters and eerily current plot ideas.
In other words, you should read it.
