The original narratives of the whaling disaster that inspired Moby-Dick. Melville's famous description of the sinking of the Pequod by the white whale--one of the most exciting moments in American literature--was based on a true story documented in 1821 by first mate Owen Chase in his Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whaleship Essex, and by his shipmate and captain in two separate accounts. Each account tells of a sperm whale's attack on the Essex in the South Seas, and of the crew's three-month struggle while stranded in small open boats. Of twenty men, eight survived. Six who died were eaten by their shipmates, one--the cabin boy--after lots had been drawn. The captain writes that he exclaimed, My lad, my lad, if you don't like your lot, I'll shoot the first man that touches you. The boy replied, I like it as well as any other. He was soon dispatched, the captain writes, and nothing of him left . . . my head is on fire at the recollection. This volume reproduces these gripping accounts, as well as Herman Melville's notes on the narratives. It sheds light on both our darkest impulses and our most ascendant selves, and gives rare insight into the workings of one of the most important literary minds of all time.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
On November 20, 1820, the Nantucket whaler Essex had its sides stove in by an angry sperm whale, sending the ship to the bottom. Three months later, a handful of the surviving crew made it home after being forced to resort to cannibalism to stay alive. Their story as recorded by Chase in 1821 was a gripping tale read by many, including a young Herman Melville. This edition reprints the original text along with a new introduction, maps, and a facsimile of Melville's notes on Chase's book.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From the Back Cover
Shipwreck of the Whaleship Essex is the gripping account of a ship's encounter with a great white whale and the crew's harrowing plight for survival on the open seas. This edition contains Owen Chase's original 1921 narrative, as well as two others written by the captain and a shipmate of the Essex. Each tells of a sperm whale's attack on the ship, the sinking of the Essex, and the three dreadful months that followed as the remainder of the crew were left stranded in a few small open boats in the South Seas. Of the twenty men that escaped the ship, eight survived; and they did so only by resorting to cannibalism.Capturing all the elements of an ancient and powerful tragedy, this book is a thrilling tale of survival - as well as a frightful examination of man's darkest impulses - which allows the reader a gruesome glimpse behind the theatrical veil of honor and bravery that history often ascribes to such men of the sea. An age-old gem of maritime lore, this volume has made its mark as an inspiration for one of the most legendary American novels ever written. (51/2 X 81/4, 176 pages, narrative reproductions, map)
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Incredible .. all because of the real Moby Dick!,
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This review is from: Shipwreck of the Whaleship Essex (Paperback)
This is an incredible real story of survival. Who can ever would have thought that a huge whale will struck the wooden ship with such ferocity, twice. Here you will learn what really thirst and hunger is, and what are the effects of that in the body in a prolonged situation. Three months they were in the sea, because of a bad decision of heading south to the coast of Chile instead of moving with the currents to the nearby Tahiti or other islands of the mid pacific. This book has the account of Chase, the captain and one of the shipmates that were left in Henderson Island (Google Earth: 24°20'43S & 128°18'01W). The few boat survivors were taken to Valparaiso (Chile) for recuperation before going back home. This is a great book and a story that you can also read in Nathaniel Philbrick's, In the Heart of the Sea, a book I read a few years ago. Enjoy!
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7
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- Black Sailors: Afro-American Merchant Seamen and Whalemen Prior to the Civil War (Contributions in Afro-American and African Studies) by Martha S. Putney in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Hudson's Merchants and Whalers: The Rise and Fall of a River Port, 1783-1850 by Margaret B. Schram in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Dead Letters to the New World: Melville, Emerson, and American Transcendentalism (Literary Criticism and Cultural Theory) by Michael McLoughlin on page 203, and page 211
- Castaway in Paradise by James C. Simmons in Back Matter
- Iron Men, Wooden Women: Gender and Seafaring in the Atlantic World, 1700-1920 (Gender Relations in the American Experience) by Margaret S. Creighton in Back Matter
See all 7 books citing this book
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