Ishmael (Moby-Dick) Ishmael (Moby-Dick) Ishmael is a fictional character in Herman Melville's "Moby-Dick" (1851). Ishmael, the only surviving crewmember of the "Pequod", is the narrator of the book. His importance relies on his role as narrator; as a character, he is only a minor participant in the action and the main protagonist is Captain Ahab. The Biblical name has come to symbolize orphans, exiles, and social outcasts. Because he was the first person narrator, most of the criticism of "Moby-Dick" either confused Ishmael with the author himself or overlooked him. From the mid-twentieth century onward, critics distinguished Ishmael from Melville, establishing the
Ishmael in Islam Ishmael in Islam Ishmael (, ) is the figure known in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as Abraham's (Ibrahim) son, born to Hagar (Hajar). In Islam, Ishmael is regarded as a prophet ("nabi") and an ancestor to Muhammad. He also became associated with Mecca and the construction of the "Kaaba." Stories of Ishmael are not only found in Jewish and Christian texts, such as the Bible and rabbinic "Midrash", but also Islamic sources. These sources include the Quran, Quranic commentary (tafsir), "hadith", historiographic collections like that of Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, and "Isra'iliyat" (Islamic texts about Biblical or ancient Israelite figures