The Whiteness of The Whale
What the white whale was to Ahab, has been hinted; what, at times,he was to me, as yet remains unsaid.
Aside from those more obvious considerations touching Moby Dick,which could not but occasionally awaken in any man's soul somealarm, there was another thought, or rather vague, nameless horrorconcerning him, which at times by its intensity completely overpoweredall the rest; and yet so mystical and well nigh ineffable was it, thatI almost despair of putting it in a comprehensible form. It was thewhiteness of the whale that above all things appalled me. But howcan I hope to explain myself here; and yet, in some dim, random way,explain myself I must, else all these chapters might be naught.
Though in many natural objects, whiteness refiningly enhancesbeauty, as if imparting some special virtue of its own, as in marbles,japonicas, and pearls; and though various nations have in some wayrecognised a certain royal preeminence in this hue; even the barbaric,grand old kings of Pegu placing the title "Lord of the WhiteElephants" above all their other magniloquent ascriptions of dominion;and the modern kings of Siam unfurling the same snow-white quadrupedin the royal standard; and the Hanoverian flag bearing the onefigure of a snow-white charger; and the great Austrian Empire,Caesarian, heir to overlording Rome, having for the imperial color thesame imperial hue; and though this pre-eminence in it applies to thehuman race itself, giving the white man ideal mastership over everydusky tribe; and though, besides, all this, whiteness has been evenmade significant of gladness, for among the Romans a white stonemarked a joyful day; and though in other mortal sympathies andsymbolizings, this same hue is made the emblem of many touching, noblethings- the innocence of brides, the benignity of age; though amongthe Red Men of America the giving of the white belt of wampum wasthe deepest pledge of honor; though in many climes, whiteness typifiesthe majesty of Justice in the ermine of the Judge, and contributesto the daily state of kings and queens drawn by milk-white steeds;though even in the higher mysteries of the most august religions ithas been made the symbol of the divine spotlessness and power; bythe Persian fire worshippers, the white forked flame being held theholiest on the altar; and in the Greek mythologies, Great Jove himselfbeing made incarnate in a snow-white bull; and though to the nobleIroquois, the midwinter sacrifice of the sacred White Dog was by farthe holiest festival of their theology, that spotless, faithfulcreature being held the purest envoy they could send to the GreatSpirit with the annual tidings of their own fidelity; and thoughdirectly from the Latin word for white, all Christian priests derivethe name of one part of their sacred vesture, the alb or tunic, wornbeneath the cassock; and though among the holy pomps of the Romishfaith, white is specially employed in the celebration of the Passionof our Lord; though in the Vision of St. John, white robes are givento the redeemed, and the four-and-twenty elders stand clothed in whitebefore the great-white throne, and the Holy One that sitteth therewhite like wool; yet for all these accumulated associations, withwhatever is sweet, and honorable, and sublime, there yet lurks anelusive something in the innermost idea of this hue, which strikesmore of panic to the soul than that redness which affrights in blood.
This elusive quality it is, which causes the thought of whiteness,when divorced from more kindly associations, and coupled with anyobject terrible in itself, to heighten that terror to the furthestbounds. Witness the white bear of the poles, and the white shark ofthe tropics; what but their smooth, flaky whiteness makes them thetranscendent horrors they are? That ghastly whiteness it is whichimparts such an abhorrent mildness, even more loathsome than terrific,to the dumb gloating of their aspect. So that not the fierce-fangedtiger in his heraldic coat can so stagger courage as thewhite-shrouded bear or shark.*
*With reference to the Polar bear, it may possibly be urged by himwho would fain go still deeper into this matter, that it is not thewhiteness, separately regarded, which heightens the intolerablehideousness of that brute; for, analysed, that heightened hideousness,it might be said, only rises from the circumstance, that theirresponsible ferociousness of the creature stands invested in thefleece of celestial innocence and love; and hence, by bringingtogether two such opposite emotions in our minds, the Polar bearfrightens us with so unnatural a contrast. But even assuming allthis to be true; yet, were it not for the whiteness, you would nothave that intensified terror.
As for the white shark, the white gliding ghostliness of repose inthat creature, when beheld in his ordinary moods, strangely tallieswith the same quality in the Polar quadruped. This peculiarity is mostvividly hit by the French in the name they bestow upon that fish.
The Romish mass for the dead begins with "Requiem eternam" (eternalrest), whence Requiem denominating the mass itself, and any otherfuneral music. Now, in allusion to the white, silent stillness ofdeath in this shark, and the mild deadliness of his habits, the Frenchcall him Requin.
Bethink thee of the albatross, whence come those clouds of spiritualwonderment and pale dread, in which that white phantom sails in allimaginations? Not Coleridge first threw that spell; but God's great,unflattering laureate, Nature.*
