Moby-Dick Moby-Dick Moby-Dick; or, The Whale is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship "Pequod", for revenge on Moby Dick, the white whale that on the ship's previous voyage bit off Ahab's leg at the knee. A contribution to the literature of the American Renaissance, the work's genre classifications range from late Romantic to early Symbolist. "Moby-Dick" was published to mixed reviews, was a commercial failure, and was out of print at the time of the author's death in 1891. Its reputation as
Moby-Dick (opera) for the opera), who is a loner and newcomer to whaling. Dawn breaks and the call is made for "All Hands!" The crew raises the ship's sails. Starbuck, Stubb, and Flask talk about Ahab, whom no one has seen since the Pequod left Nantucket. After the crew sings of whales, wealth and home, Captain Ahab suddenly appears. He tells them of Moby Dick, the white whale that took off one of his legs. He then nails a gold doubloon to the mast and promises it to the man who first sights Moby Dick. Ahab explains that the real reason for