Historical Uses of Right Whale Baleen
The same baleen that forms these blinds in the whale’s mouth has traditionally furnished ladies with busks and other stiffening contrivances. The bone reached its peak fashion during Queen Anne’s time when farthingales were all the rage. The narrator wittily notes that modern umbrella users still shelter under these same jaws, as the umbrella functions as a tent spread over bone that once adorned aristocratic corsets.
Right Whale Mouth Organ Analogy and Tongue
Standing inside the Right Whale’s mouth, the colonnades of bone arranged in methodical ranks suggest the pipes of the great Haarlem organ. The tongue serves as the carpet to this organ—a rug of softest Turkey quality, glued to the mouth’s floor. This particular tongue is fat, tender, and yields approximately six barrels of oil.
Sperm vs Right Whale Head Anatomy Contrast
The chapter establishes that the Sperm Whale and Right Whale have almost entirely different heads. The Right Whale lacks the Sperm Whale’s great well of sperm, has no ivory teeth, and possesses no long, slender lower jaw mandible. Conversely, the Sperm Whale lacks the Right Whale’s bone blinds, huge lower lip, and has scarcely any tongue. The Right Whale also has two external spout-holes while the Sperm Whale has only one.
Sperm and Right Whale Death Expression Contrast
The narrator urges observers to look their last at these venerable heads together, knowing one will soon sink unrecorded in the sea, with the other following shortly. The Sperm Whale’s expression shows a prairie-like placidity born of speculative indifference to death—a Platonic temperament possibly drawn to Spinoza in later years. The Right Whale’s expression, with its enormous practical resolution in facing death, suggests a Stoic character.
The original text of this work is in the public domain. This page focuses on a guided summary article, reading notes, selected quotes, and visual learning materials for educational purposes.