Oh, no, I tried it once and gave up very quickly. Unconditional surrender due to insurmountable problems of understanding. But I'd give it a go if Benedict read it to me. 

I had avoided it for long because "Men hunting fish" /whale sounded too much like Hemingway to me  .
It turned out to be a wonderful eccentric book. I read it three times already.
One could in quite some ways also compare the friendship Ishmael/Queequeg to Sherlock/John.

Last edited by Harriet (September 4, 2012 8:42 pm)

I think it's from the canon but the association is nice anyway. Maybe I should give the book another try. And your address - I realised only now, that's a great one. 

Davina, what about "Dressed to Krill" or "To Krill a Mockingbird"?

Spermwhales like Moby Dick don't eat Krill. They have teeth unlike baleen whales, and eat squid.
Do your research! Read the book and you will know everything

Thanks for the hint to canon! 

Last edited by Harriet (September 5, 2012 10:31 am)

But apparently krill is what Benedict is talking about. I'm not so knowledgeable about whales.

Davina wrote:

But apparently krill is what Benedict is talking about. I'm not so knowledgeable about whales.

Oh, I missed that 
However, the krill chapter (#58) describes baleen whales eating krill.
And I have to admit, Melville's knowledge about whales is enormous but outdated
and it is not the best source to learn about them.

But Melville is so funny:

“Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off--then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can."

"Be it said, that though I had felt such a strong repugnance to his smoking in the bed
the night before, yet see how elastic our stiff prejudices grow when love once comes to bend them. 
For now I liked nothing better than to have Queequeg smoking by me, even in bed,
because he seemed to be full of such serene household joy then. 
I no more felt unduly concerned for the landlord's policy of insurance."

Last edited by Harriet (September 5, 2012 2:12 pm)

I saw this on Pinterest and had to post it here

In this RT article you'll find a clip with Benedict reading from "Moby Dick":

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2012-09-25/exclusive-hear-benedict-cumberbatch-read-aloud-from-moby-dick