Readings on Moby-Dick

Read the section you've selected as listed below. On our next class day, you'll be asked to take about 10 minutes to discuss the critical material with others.

Directions: In your group, discuss the reading that you chose to prepare for today. (If you are the only person in your group, explain the reading to another person.) The questions below will help you to think about the readings.

After you’ve discussed the reading, write a short paragraph or two summarizing and critiquing the article. You’ll then present your findings to the class and will hand in the paragraphs at that time. You can write your paragraphs in the space at the bottom of this page. If we run out of time, you can designate a group member to e-mail the paragraphs to me. These will be posted to a central webpage so that we’ll all have access to them.

1. What perspective on Moby-Dick does each writer provide? If more than one critic or review is considered, in what ways do the writers respond to or disagree with each other’s positions?

2. What are the most significant points in the essays or reviews that you read? To what extent do the analyses shed significant light on Moby-Dick? What issues do they avoid or fail to confront? Is the logic of the piece consistent?

3. In what ways does the criticism you have read differ from or enhance your own interpretation of Moby-Dick? Did your group agree with the interpretation that you read? Why or why not?

4. If you are reading older essays or reviews, how do the issues addressed reflect the concerns of the time? Would a modern review or essay on Moby-Dick discuss the same passages and make the same judgments (of the book’s treatment of religion or race, for example)?

If you weren't in class and didn't sign up, please e-mail me about which group you'd like to join.