Chapter 126: The Life-Buoy
As the Pequod approaches the equatorial
fishing ground, the sailors think that they hear mermaids or ghosts
wailing. The Manxman says that these are the voices of the newly
drowned men in the sea. Ahab laughs at this nonsense, telling the
men that they have passed a seal colony in the night. Many of the
men are superstitious about seals, though, and Ahab’s explanation
helps little. The next morning, one of the Pequod’s
crew falls from a masthead. The life buoy that is thrown in after
him is old and dried out, and it fills with water and sinks. The
man drowns. Starbuck, Stubb, and Flask decide to replace the life
buoy with Queequeg’s coffin.
Chapter 127: The Deck
This chapter is written in the form of a theatrical dialogue
followed by a long soliloquy from Ahab. The carpenter grumbles about
having to transform the coffin into a buoy. Ahab, aware of the irony
of the substitution, calls the carpenter “unprincipled as the gods”
for going through with it. He calls Pip to him to discuss the “wondrous philosophies”
of the situation: since Pip’s experience in the ocean, the two have
been close companions.
Chapter 128: The Pequod Meets the Rachel
The Pequod, still looking for Moby Dick,
encounters the Rachel. Captain Gardiner of the Rachel, after
affirming that he has indeed seen Moby Dick, climbs aboard Ahab’s
ship and begs Ahab to help him find his son, whose whale boat was
lost in the chase after the White Whale. Ahab refuses, not wanting
to waste time that could be used in pursuit of Moby Dick.
Chapter 129: The Cabin
Now that Ahab knows that Moby Dick is near, he spends
much of his time walking the decks. One night, Pip tries to follow
him, telling Ahab that he won’t abandon him. Ahab tells Pip to stay
in the captain’s cabin, lest Pip’s insanity cause Ahab’s compassion
for the boy to distract him from his lust for revenge.
Chapter 130: The Hat
Ahab, shadowed everywhere by Fedallah, remains on deck,
ever watchful. The crew falls into a routine of stifled silence.
This continuous watch sharpens Ahab’s obsession, and he decides
that he must be the first to sight the whale. He asks Starbuck to
help him get up the main-mast and watch his rope. While Ahab is
up there, a black hawk steals his hat, which Ishmael considers a
bad omen.
Chapter 131: The Pequod Meets the Delight
The Pequod then runs into the miserably
misnamed Delight, which has previously encountered
Moby Dick, with the unpleasant result of a gutted whale boat and
dead men. As the Pequod goes by, the Delight drops
a corpse in the water. The Delight’s crew remarks upon
the coffin life buoy at the Pequod’s stern: to
them, it is clear that the coffin is a symbol of doom.
