Herman Melville, p.1, Faith and Dying with a Smile

"Faith, like a jackal, feeds among the tombs, and even from these dead doubts she gathers her most vital hope."

In everything that Melville writes there is a heavy feeling of death, of shadow, and darkness, but he always makes sure that the dark tunnels have some kind of light. Moby Dick is a dark novel, but there is a lot of humor in it as well. Few have read this book, and some would say that is a tragedy. I say, sucks to be them. And if you have read it and do not love it, then there is no hope for you. Stop reading. I'm only sort of joking, at the least you should feel badly about yourself.

Death being a major theme of Moby Dick it is easy to see why people are uncomfortable with the book, but as I read it death became to me what it was for those sailors on The Pequod that worked a job where death was always with them. Always a possibility, and a quick one that left no body. The ocean as a grave is more final then dirt, and in their case often more sudden. That is life, no matter who you are death could be any number of unfortunate random occurrences. Or, is there more to life than chaos, but some kind of order, fate, destiny, to everything?

"Methinks we have hugely mistaken this matter of Life and Death. Methinks that what they call my shadow here on earth is my true substance. Methinks that in looking at things spiritual, we are too much like oysters observing the sun through the water, and thinking that thick water the thinnest of air. Methinks my body is but the lees of my better being"

It is almost cliche to say, but death is no end it seems. That depends, I suppose, on what you believe, but even believing death is not an end does not make it less sad or less frightening to most.