Moby Dick; Or, The Whale

Harpooneer Head Story Exchange

Harpooneer Head Story Exchange Growing suspicious, the narrator questions the landlord about the harpooneer’s late hours. The landlord, in a chuckling manner, claims the harpooneer is out peddling his head because the market is overstocked. Enraged and disbelieving, the narrator demands an explanation and insists on knowing who the harpooneer is and whether it is safe to sleep with him, accusing the landlord of trying to put him in bed with a madman.

CHAPTER 3. The Spouter-Inn.

This chapter is set at the Spouter-Inn in New Bedford, where the narrator is assigned to share a bed with a mysterious, heavily tattooed harpooneer from the South Seas. After the landlord explains the harpooneer’s delayed arrival due to his trade selling embalmed human heads, the narrator inspects their shared bedroom, tries on the harpooneer’s unusual shaggy coat, and is later startled by the harpooneer’s entrance, strange pagan rituals, and intimidating appearance, leading to a brief tense standoff before the two agree to share the bed for the night.

Landlord Recounts Harpooneer’s Head-Selling Delay

The landlord explains that the awaited harpooneer is delayed because he has been selling embalmed New Zealand heads, and is waiting until after Sunday to avoid selling human remains on the Sabbath, having been stopped the prior week from taking four heads out of the inn. The narrator is disturbed by the idea of a head-peddling harpooneer, but the landlord reassures him the man pays rent reliably and urges him to go up to the assigned bedroom for the night, noting it is already Sunday so the harpooneer will not return.

Narrator Inspects the Spouter-Inn Bedroom

The narrator is led up to a small, cold bedroom furnished with a prodigiously large bed, minimal decor including a fireboard printed with a whale-striking scene, a lashed hammock in one corner, a seaman’s bag holding the harpooneer’s belongings, outlandish bone fish hooks on a shelf, and a tall harpoon standing at the head of the bed. The landlord places a candle on a repurposed sea chest that serves as a washstand and table before leaving the narrator alone in the room.

Narrator Tries On the Harpooneer’s Unusual Coat

While inspecting the room, the narrator finds a heavy, shaggy, damp coat resembling a door mat, edged with small tinkling tags similar to porcupine quills on moccasins and featuring a central slit. He tries it on, finds it weighs him down heavily, and is shocked by his own ridiculous appearance in a small wall mirror before quickly tearing it off and giving himself a kink in the neck.

Queequeg Enters the Bedroom

After lying awake in the uncomfortable bed for some time, the narrator hears a heavy footfall in the hall and sees a light under the door. The harpooneer enters carrying an embalmed New Zealand head, sets his candle in a far corner of the room, and begins unknotting the cords of the large seaman’s bag, keeping his face averted from the bed for several minutes.

Narrator Observes Queequeg’s Tattoos and Rituals

When the harpooneer turns toward the candle light, the narrator is shocked by his dark purplish-yellow skin and large black square marks across his face, initially thinking they are battle wounds before realizing they are tattoos and concluding the man is a South Sea islander who has been tattooed by cannibals. He watches the harpooneer remove a tomahawk, seal-skin wallet, and the New Zealand head from his bag, then take off his beaver hat to reveal a bald head with only a small scalp knot that looks like a mildewed skull. The harpooneer then retrieves a small hunch-backed wooden Congo idol from his coat, sets it up as a shrine on the fireplace, makes a sacrificial offering of shavings and ship biscuit to the idol while chanting in guttural noises, then bags the idol again carelessly before preparing for bed.

Tense Standoff Between Narrator and Queequeg

Terrified by the harpooneer’s strange appearance and pagan rituals, the narrator considers fleeing but is on the second floor and too frightened to speak. The harpooneer puffs tobacco smoke from his tomahawk, blows out the candle, and leaps into bed with the narrator, who cries out in shock. The harpooneer grabs his tomahawk, demands to know the narrator’s identity, threatens to kill him if he does not speak, and waves the lit tomahawk around the dark room, scattering hot tobacco ash on the narrator.