The Ship’s Navel
The chapter concludes with a meditation on the doubloon as the ship’s navel, with all the crew “on fire to unscrew it.” The passage explores dual dangers: unscrewing invites consequence, yet leaving it nailed signals desperation. The narrator recalls his father cutting down a pine tree that contained a silver wedding ring, drawing a parallel to how future generations might “fish up this old mast” and find the doubloon with oysters grown into the bark. The closing lines embrace chaotic, folksy imagery—God “goes ’mong the worlds blackberrying”—before breaking into a sudden call for cook, hoe-cake, and Jenny, returning abruptly from philosophical contemplation to the ship’s lively, irreverent atmosphere.
第一百章 Leg and Arm.
This chapter recounts the encounter between the Pequod and the Samuel Enderby, a London whaler. The meeting brings together two captains—Ahab with his ivory leg and Captain Boomer with his ivory arm—who share a connection through their parallel encounters with Moby Dick. The chapter explores themes of obsession, the exchange of stories between whalemen, and the contrasting attitudes toward the White Whale, culminating in Ahab’s abrupt departure after learning of the whale’s recent sighting.
Meeting the Samuel Enderby
The Pequod hails the Samuel Enderby, an English whaling vessel from London. Ahab, in his quarter-boat, calls out asking if they have seen the White Whale. The two captains—Ahab with his ivory leg and the English captain with his ivory arm—both bear physical reminders of their encounters with Moby Dick, creating an immediate bond between them.
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