Herman Melville
Uncategorized May 18th. 2010, 4:08pmHerman Melville
 |
 Moby Dick by Herman Melville 1997 Paperback  US $24.95
|
 Herman Melville Moby Dick 2001 New Trade Paper US $10.80
|
 Herman Melville Moby Dick 1981 New Mass Market US $3.46
|
 Billy Budd and Other Stories by Herman Melville US $9.99
|
 Moby Dick Or the Whale Melville Herman and Phi 9780142000083 NEW Book US $18.20
|
 BILLY BUDD AND OTHER STORIES by Herman Melville 1989 US $4.99
|
 Moby Dick by Herman Melville 2001 Paperback Anniversary US $11.62
|
 Omoo by Herman Melville 1968 Paperback US $16.95
|
 Moby Dick The Worlds best reading by Herman Melville US $2.76
|
 MOBY DICK by Herman Melville 2003 LARGE SOFTCOVER US $4.99
|
 Blooms How to Write about Herman Melville NEW US $59.82
|
 NEW Moby Dick Melville Herman Philbrick Nathaniel US $10.32
|
 BAR NOTES HERMAN MELVILLES MOBY DICK OTHER WORKS US $1.09
|
 Typee Oxford Worlds Classics by Herman Melville US $5.95
|
 MOBY DICK NATHANIEL PHILBRICK HERMAN MELVILLE PAPERBACK NEW US $15.59
|
 Pierre or The Ambiguities Volume Seven Scholarly Edition Melville by Herman US $10.50
|
 Herman Melvilles Moby Dick NEW by Peter Fish US $12.11
|
 Moby Dick Melville Herman 9780486432151 NEW Book US $9.78
|
 Billy Budd and Other Tales by Herman Melville US $3.50
|
 Redburn by Herman Melville 1972 US $8.00
|
 Herman Melvilles Billy Budd Typee NEW US $12.51
|
 Herman Melville Moby Dick 1999 New Mass Market US $4.19
|
 Typee Herman Melville 1987 Paperback Reprint US $4.00
|
 NEW Moby Dick Melville Herman Renker Elizabeth US $5.99
|
 NEW John Marr and Other Poems Melville Herman US $15.97
|
 MOBY DICK OR THE WHALE BY HERMAN MELVILLE NEW US $24.50
|
 NEW Moby Dick Melville Herman Delbanco Andrew INT US $9.03
|
 NEW Some Personal Letters of Herman Melville and a Bibl US $15.27
|
 ISRAEL POTTER by Herman Melville 1998 LARGE SOFTCOVER US $9.99
|
 Typee Herman Melville Paperback Free Shipping US $3.99
|
 NEW Herman Melville Higgins Brian EDT Parker US $61.29
|
 Moby Dick Herman Melville hardcover book US $6.64
|
 Bartleby and Benito Cereno by Herman Melville US $1.00
|
 Herman Melvilles Moby Dick NEW US $59.82
|
 Moby Dick by Herman Melville Alfred Kazin US $8.55
|
 Herman Melville NEW US $59.82
|
 NEW The Shorter Novels of Herman Melville Melville H US $15.34
|
 The Happy Failure Stories NEW by Herman Melville US $13.59
|
 Moby Dick NEW by Herman Melville US $15.18
|
 Herman Melvilles Moby Dick NEW by Peter Fish US $15.68
|
 Moby Dick NEW by Herman Melville US $26.48
|
Herman Melville
The Late Great Whale
Their graceful undulating bodies traversing the water as deliberate as a Prima Ballerina jetes through the air. From the majestic Blue to the fearsome Killer, they are the rulers of all the oceans. They have inspired the likes of Herman Melville to write about man and his pursuit of a malevolent cunning creature in Moby Dick, and organizations such as Greenpeace to prevent the gratuitous slaughter of an endangered species. They have inspired movies that capture the human spirit to be free in Free Willy, and the realization of organizations like the IWC to police and regulate the harvesting of an extraordinary animal. These creatures known as Whales patrol the oceans, contrasting the prides of the Serengeti, with the elegance depicted in Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and the melodic rhythms of Bizet's Carmen. And when feeding, one replaces the imagery of a great white shark slashing, tearing, and ripping its prey to pieces with the passive meshed strainer of a toothless blue whale.
As the master of the oceans the whale has no natural enemies---other than man, and as a result of man's insatiable appetite to exploit and profit from these creatures an entire industry developed toward those ends called---"Whaling."
Where once the rowboat and hand-held harpoon brought a selected minority of whales to a heartbreaking death, before long, modern whaling with its steamboat, and later diesel-driven engines and explosive harpoon armaments opened the hunt for the faster and less sought after species. This innovation permitted the whalers to sail into waters once thought to be forbidden. The abundance and concentration of available species, as in the larger blue whale, were astounding in numbers. So much so, that half of the world catches was taken from these areas between the years of 1910 and 1925. Compound this with lengthy gestation periods that last as long as eleven months for baleen whales to more than one year for toothed whales, and the long maturation process—recovery of this specie can only be determined in the long view.
And to what end is this hunt for such magnificent animals? What driving force targeted some of the largest creatures, historic or prehistoric, for eventual extinction? Clearly, the motivator was economic and the commodity was principally oil and whalebone. Whale oil was used in the manufacture of soap, clothing, linoleum, paint, lighting, and steel industries.
The ritual of the hunt is standard and changes little from period or location. The whale is pursued and harpooned; and similar to the bloodletting and fatigue of the bull caused by the matador's cutlass, the whale, too, submits from exhaustion to the chase, where the coup de grace of lances are conveyed. Sufficiently immobilized, the whale is either pulled aboard or alongside the ship, or dragged to shore for dissection.
Another practice employed in the capture of whales (mainly pilot whales) is to herd them onto a beach. Used primarily in Europe, the hunters form a semicircle with their boats behind a school of whales and guide them to shore.
As the various forms of whaling disappear due partially to the shifting demands for mineral oil as opposed to blubber oil, where does this leave the survivability of the present day whale? Demand may have diminished in most parts of the world, but there still exists intransigent countries, such as, Norway and Japan that continue to whale in spite of world condemnation. More importantly, however, the definitive question is what the global response will be, if any, to the world problem of whaling as it relates to regulation and conservation.
From an economic point of view unlimited whaling became a zero-sum game for all involved once left unchecked would cause the eventual elimination of an entire species. The offending nations had to regulate themselves for their own economic good. These circumstances were harbingers of subsequent quotas and various whaling acts, and then ultimately evolved into the I.W.C. (International Whaling Commission). The purpose of the I.W.C. as paraphrased in its preamble was to maintain the industry in a flourishing condition. The I.W.C. classifies and protects certain species by sex, size, location, and length of season; however, there exists an escape clause for those parties that feel they are too adversely affected by regulations—effectively defanging the I.W.C. where it truly needs teeth to wield power.
The political dimensions of the problem, as it relates to conversation and enforcement, are the weak links in the chain. Officially, the majority of nations sign on to this regulatory concept until their Ox is gored. Then it becomes a matter of self-interest before world interest. The clear global response (through the I.W.C.) is containment of the problem through censure, denunciation, and sanctions. Within all bureaucracies, however, by the time the problem is identified the damage (often irreparably) has been done. This is why committed renegade groups, such as, Greenpeace apply direct pressure with creative solutions. These private interdictions result in risky confrontations often providing the time an organization like the I.W.C. need to react.
www.gregschineseschool.com
www.gregschineseschool.blogspot.com
www.thebayareaeffect.info
About the Author
herman melville...?
does anyone have a good idea for my introduction sentence on my biography papter about herman melville?
Think what made Herman Melville's life different to you than any other. Then write it down.
Read as much as you can about Melville. The idea will come to you. Then it will be truly your own.
