Moby Dick; Or, The Whale

Justification for Sovereign Whale Ownership

Justification for Sovereign Whale Ownership The chapter explores why the sovereign possesses the right to claim whales in the first place. While Bracton’s law established the division, the legal commentator Plowdon provides the reasoning: whales belong to the King and Queen “because of its superior excellence.” The narrator observes that “by the soundest commentators this has ever been held a cogent argument in such matters.” However, the chapter then poses a question to lawyers: “But why should the King have the head, and the Queen the tail?” This inquiry introduces the search for deeper justification behind the specific division itself.

Error in Queen’s Whalebone Tail Claim

Error in Queen’s Whalebone Tail Claim The chapter addresses William Prynne’s explanation for the Queen’s portion. In his treatise on “Queen-Gold” (queen-pinmoney), Prynne claimed the tail belongs to the Queen so her wardrobe may be supplied with whalebone. The narrator points out this reasoning is fundamentally flawed: the black limber bone of the Greenland or Right whale, largely used in ladies’ bodices, is located in the head of the whale, not the tail. The narrator calls this “a sad mistake for a sagacious lawyer like Prynne,” though he speculates that “an allegorical meaning may lurk here” given the mermaid-like image of presenting a tail to the Queen.

Royal Fish Classification Under English Law

Royal Fish Classification Under English Law The chapter concludes by noting that two fish are classified as royal under English law: the whale and the sturgeon. Both are royal property under certain limitations and nominally supply the tenth branch of the crown’s ordinary revenue. The narrator suggests by inference that the sturgeon must be divided similarly to the whale, with the King receiving the head, which is “highly dense and elastic” in that species. This leads to a closing reflection that “there seems a reason in all things, even in law,” suggesting the chapter has thoroughly examined the logic (or apparent lack thereof) behind these royal fish regulations.