21
“All men live enveloped in whale-lines . . .
though seated before [their] evening fire.”
– Herman Melville
Issue 21
February 23, 2016
These words, slightly edited, are from Moby Dick (which, by the way, is about much more than a big, ill-tempered white whale). Melville is talking in this passage about the whale-line, a 2/3 inch thick rope with the harpoon at one end, the next several yards passing down the center of the whale boat, bow to stern over the arms and oars of the rowing crew, and the rest of the line coiled up in a tub in the rear of the boat. When the harpoon is thrown from the front of the boat and fixed in the whale, the animal will ‘sound’ or dive with the line trailing behind—very fast—between the sailors rowing the whaleboat. Imagine it! Sometimes that line will entangle a wrist or an arm and yank the doomed sailor down into the sea after the diving whale. A head could be ripped off. It is a very dangerous time.
And it is, for Melville, an image of life. Though we be comfortably resting before our fire, who knows? Any moment may be our last moment. The thought, vividly put by Melville, is nothing original. We all know it, at least intellectually. In bed, on a trip, going to work—we all live enveloped in whale-lines.
One need not say ‘be prepared to meet thy maker’ to think a little about a sudden, unexpected exit from a busy life. Beyond that, though, think about the scene after that unexpected exit. You have left your life, but what about the life you have left?
Have various people had moments of happiness because of you? Have you brought comfort and relief to someone? Has your, perhaps sacrificial, act ameliorated someone’s stress or sorrow? Or have some had to endure unnecessary pain and suffering because of you? Have you helped or hurt when you have had the choice? Have you tried to get more than give? Granted the final tally is not open to us, and all know that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Still, we can always make an effort, as we sail towards the unpredictable end of our voyage, near or far from whale-lines, to be guided by the virtues rather than the sins of the world.
