On Symbolism of the White Whale in Moby
Dick
Zhao Cuiting
赵萃婷
Acknowledgements
I would like to take this chance to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Shu Jingwei, who is the lecturer in the Foreign Languages and Literature Department for her kindly assistance and valuable suggestions during the process of my thesis writing. His willingness to give his time so generously has been very much appreciated.
My gratitude also extends to all the teachers who taught me during my undergraduate years for their kind encouragement and patient instructions.
Last but not the least; I would like to offer my particular thanks to my friends and family, for their encouragement and support for the completion of this thesis.
First and foremost, I appreciate my country who gives me a comfortable learning atmosphere. Second, I would like to show my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Shu Jingwei, who has walked me through all the stages of the writing of this thesis. Without his illuminating instruction and patience, this thesis could not have reached its present form. I am also greatly indebted to all my teachers who have helped me to develop the fundamental and essential academic competence. My sincere appreciation also goes to all my classmates, who are my proud of my life. Last but not least, I want to thank all my friends, especially my three lovely roommates, for their encouragement and support.
The white whale likes a symbol of the labyrinth. From the people, macro features, small stationary objects almost always have multiple layers of symbolism. This paper begins with a brief introduction to the life of Melville and his writing style and content of the white whale, pave the way for the in-depth analysis of the context. The second part, the writer focus on symbolism from a general angle and narrow angle analysis, and proposed a theory of symbolism, revealing the function of symbolism in literature. The next three parts the writer has an in-depth analysis of the symbolism of the white whale: Beluga incarnation of evil, all-powerful all-knowing God and not to resist nature. Finally, the article has once stressed the importance of the application of symbolism
Contents
Abstract (English) ................................................................................. i Abstract (Chinese) ............................................................................... ii Introduction ......................................................................................... 1
A. Introduction to Herman Melville (1819-1891) ....................................... 3
1. His great success as a writer can be attributed to many factors. ....................... 3 2. Nathaniel Hawthorne exerts a profound influence on him. ............................... 3 3. His writing is consciously literary. ........................................................................ 4 4. His style is highly symbolic and metaphorical. .................................................... 4
B. Introduction to Moby Dick ....................................................................... 5
1. Symbolism makes Moby Dick a great success ...................................................... 5 2. Herman Melville was the celebrated author of several big 19th-century novels about the sea. .............................................................................................................. 5
Ⅱ.Extended meaning of Moby Dick ................................................. 6
A. Symbolism ................................................................................................. 6
1. Symbol ..................................................................................................................... 6 2. Symbolism ............................................................................................................... 6 3. Functions of Symbolism ......................................................................................... 7
B. Symbolism of Evil ..................................................................................... 7
1. Transcendentalism and Anti-transcendentalism ................................................. 7 2. The Nature of Evil .................................................................................................. 7 3. Symbols of Evil ....................................................................................................... 8
II. Symbolism of God .......................................................................... 8
A. View of God in Anti- transcendentalism ................................................ 8 B. The Symbol of God ................................................................................... 9
III. Symbolism of Nature .................................................................... 9
A. View of Nature .......................................................................................... 9 B. symbol of nature ....................................................................................... 9
Conclusion ........................................................................................... 10 Bibliography ........................................................................................ 11
Graduation Thesis of University of Science and Technology，Liaoning Zhao i
Abstract
Herman Melville has been considered as one of the greatest writers in American literature of the19th century. The success of this masterpiece is largely attributed to its adoption of symbolism. In light of this, it is both penetrating and comprehensive to study symbolism and to explore the symbolic elements in Moby Dick so as to bring about a deeper understanding of the author's penetration into humanity and liberalism.
At the beginning of the thesis, a brief introduction to the author, Herman Melville and Moby Dick is presented so as to pave the way for further exploration. In the following part, the focus is put on the analysis of symbolism in both broad sense and narrow sense. It begins with the analysis of symbol, which is an important means of symbolism. Furthermore, theories concerning symbolism are put forward, and in the end, the functions of symbolism in literature are displayed to full. The next three parts bring the thesis to highlight by probing into the symbolism of Moby Dick, the white whale, who stands for evil, God and nature from different perspectives. The thesis ends with reiterating the significance of symbolism adopted in Moby Dick.
The white whale likes a symbol of the labyrinth. From the people, macro features, small stationary objects almost always have multiple layers of symbolism. This paper begins with a brief introduction to the life of Melville and his writing style and content of the white whale, pave the way for the in-depth analysis of the context. The second part, the writer focus on symbolism from a general angle and narrow angle analysis, and proposed a theory of symbolism, revealing the function of symbolism in literature. The next three parts the writer has a in-depth analysis of the symbolism of the white whale: Beluga incarnation of evil, all-powerful all-knowing God and not to resist nature. Finally, the article has once stressed the importance of the application of symbolism
Key words: Moby Dick symbolism evil God nature