When Folio fans were asked to choose their ‘greatest American novel’ to mark this year’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, there could be only one: the epic story of one man’s obsessive quest to slay a white whale. Moby-Dick has become the perfect novel for our times – whether that time is the 1880s, the 1940s, the 1990s or the 2020s. This is a novel about imperialism, the foundation of America, slavery, queerness, friendship, what it means to be human, the climate crisis (yes, really) – and that’s just for starters.

‘It sprawls,’ says The Washington Post’s Pulitzer-winning critic Michael Dirda, who wrote the introduction to Folio’s lustrous new book. ‘The abundance and diversity of the novel’s actions, characters and themes imbue the book with an inexhaustible richness. It is open to multiple interpretations, and two of its essential and complementary puzzles will never be definitively resolved: is Captain Ahab villain or hero? Is the white whale a creature of evil or simply an innocent animal preyed upon by humans?’

Folio Editor James Rose agrees that Melville’s humour is worth highlighting for those daunted by the book’s size and reputation, particularly the opening scenes set in New Bedford and Nantucket. ‘Look for the humour,’ he says. ‘There are detailed chapters on whaling and navigation, and you can skim these in order to focus on the plot of the obsession, but these are all different layers. Unlike The Great Gatsby or The Grapes of Wrath, which are essentially rooted in their era, Moby-Dick could have been written today. It’s on rereading that you find more of the detail, the humour and the life.’

In 2022, filmmaker Wu Tsang’s silent film, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, focused on the subtextual relationship between the book’s narrator Ishmael and fellow traveller Queequeg. Drawing on the writings of the historian and journalist C. L. R. James, this is Moby-Dick as a book about totalitarianism, class and the conflict inherent in American capitalism, with the whaling ship as a ‘floating factory’.

But Moby-Dick’s scale and powerful central metaphor have allowed people to take whatever they want from the book, whether it’s commentary on the war on terror of the early 2000s or insights into man’s rapacious relationship with the natural world. Artist Mu Pan, who provided intricate illustrations for the new Folio limited edition, became fascinated by whales and whaling after seeing In the Heart of the Sea, the 2015 blockbuster based on Nathaniel Philbrick’s book about the whaling ship disaster that inspired Melville to write Moby-Dick. Reading Moby-Dick, Mu was struck by the visual narrative, likening passages to scenes from classic movies, such as the final moments of Terminator 2.

So, what are the qualities that make it distinctively American? Miranda Collinge, Deputy Editor of Esquire, says every sentence is overloaded with ideas, reflecting a society trying to assert itself. ‘Even the idea of the Great American Novel is important as a way of establishing America as an independent cultural force. There’s also that energy, a gung-ho exuberance we connect with America; the idea of setting forth is a foundational principle of America, with a sense of creating your own identity – with Ishmael a classic example of a fluid self.’

Jarred points to the risk-taking prose and self-awareness – post-modern before the term was even conceived. ‘You cannot be an American writer without understanding where Melville sits in our tradition,’ he says. ‘It’s in the looseness and freeness and playfulness, the constant literary shenanigans, but still telling a story. That’s what I love about the American tradition – the freedom to play, to approach the seriousness of literature with a sense of fun.’

All this, and we haven’t even touched on the chapter about the whale’s foreskin. Or the significance of the mysterious, prophetic Parsee harpooner Fedallah. Or the tragedy of cabin boy Pip. Or the way the multiracial crew reflects the make-up of America itself. The book is a haunting social commentary, populated by some of the most enduring characters in literature.

Why read Moby-Dick? Why would you not? ‘I’ve gone slightly mad writing about it, and have been obsessed with the name of one character – Peleg,’ says Miranda. ‘If you expand that obsession over one word to the whole book, there is a lot to get into. There’s unbelievable insight into the human condition that transcends time. And then there’s the central image of a crazed man in pursuit of the whale, which can be applied to almost anything. It is one of those books that gets hold of you and will never let you go.’

Words: Peter Watts
Illustrations: Mu Pan from Moby-Dick (Limited Edition)