Peequad and Captain ABA: A Rhetorical Analysis

The following sample essay on “Peequad”: reveals arguments and important aspects of this topic.

It is packed with rhetoric from Captain ABA, who ICC is successfully used in order to arouse his crew and inspirit them for his irrational mission of revenge. Through brief stage directions, rousing speech, dialogue, and narration, Melville drama ties this chapter, and makes it one of the most significant and memorable chapters in the novel l. Through employing these rhetorical techniques, Melville also foreshadows future even TTS and gives the reader insight on the reality of the situation the men are in.

This chapter begins with a very short piece of stage directions: “(Enter ABA: T en, ally’. Despite it’s seeming insignificance, Melville choice to employ the use of stag e directions for the first time here is an extremely intuitive decision. So why did he just decide to use them now? This signifies something out of the ordinary is about to happen. After a long f coco on Seamless private thoughts and his own adventure at sea, stage directions signify a chain GE in plot.

They brace the reader for the great turning point that is about to occur in the novel .

Peequad

In addition, the use of stage directions has an emotional appeal, because It can make the reader fel as though they are witnessing the story unfold as if they are watching a dramatic play. Also, t he use of stage directions promotes Mob Dick as a tragedy, which is one the two types of dry match plays.

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Tragedies “focus on a major calamity or death, raising questions about society , relationships, morality and the meaning of life”. This arouses interest in the reader by forest widowing future events. In a tragedy, things are bound to go awry, so this connection made by Melville gives insight to the probable future of the crew.

Through including short directions, although only riffle, Melville serves to both interest and include the audience in the unravel ling plot and to foreshadow to contribute to building suspense throughout the novel. Captain ABA largely uses appeals to the crews emotions through his diction and language in this chapter. The use of pathos is essential to persuade his crew t o search for Mob Dick and to avoid any mutiny or rebellion. Before even proposing his plan, Ah ABA instantly sets them up by asking them a multitude of questions. For example, he asks “What do ye do when ye see a whale, men? Naturally, the crew replies as they are expected to. By poss. Eng things as questions rather than orders, the men are instantly more prepared to listen a ND obey Abs’s commands. Melville even notes that “they themselves became so excited at s such seemingly purposeless questions. ” Abs’s speech of the pain Mob Dick has inflicted on him is illustrated by loaded language that not only is used to arouse the crew, but to appeal me continually to the audience. As ABA presents them with his plan to capture and kill Mob Dick, he receive s little opposition.

However, Struck, being most rational, questions why a voyage meant to make a refit has evolved into a mad hunt for just one whale for the sole purpose of vengeance. ABA refutes his sensible argument through using a logical fallacy known as Bands agony. He claims that the rest of the crew has happily complied to going after Mob Dick. ABA replies, “The crew, man, the crew! Are they not one and all with ABA, in this matter of the whale? ‘ None of the other men had “happily complied,” but rather, nobody had the sense or c our age to speak up like Struck.

Despite this, Struck immediately submits to ABA without Hess taxation. Through Abs’s rhetoric, a highly charismatic yet extremely domineering side of ABA I shown. This strong character development adds a completely new element to the story. T he audience is now made aware of the premise of the rest of the story. As Abs’s insanity is begin inning to be revealed, the looming disaster of the Piqued is foreshadowed. Also, ABA use s appeals to sympathy, which also influence the crew and the reader as well to feel that his need to revenge is more reasonable.

ABA clever use of language and rhetoric in this chapter hell as to set the stage for the rest of the novel. In the Quarter Deck, dialogue is a prominent feature, being strung throughout the entire chapter. Since this chapter’s main point is for ABA to reveal the true purpose of the voyage, dialogue is essential. It serves to not only add interest to the chapter, but to g eve the reader a more hellbender view of the events occurring. The reader can not only be e exposed to Seamless response, but the reactions of the entire crew. Again, similar to stag e directions, this connects the story to a tragedy format.

While preceding chapters were chaff lull of Seamless personal thoughts and accounts, this chapter is a sudden switch to more of a dramatic play format. This maintains the audience interest by keeping variation in how the s Tory is narrated, while effectively increasing the suspense that begins to build from this chapter r on. Also, had Abs’s plan been simply told through Siamese retelling it, the reader would view the voyage completely differently. Siamese himself was brainwashed by ABA into believing his need for revenge is somewhat understandable.

Although he has more insight than others, he is still relatively oblivious to the fact that Abs’s plan can only lead to doom and disaster for the entire crew. By hearing the events of this chapter through dial guy, and directly seeing how ABA presents his plan, the audience has an advantage over the men by being able to see through his manipulation. In all, dialogue is an extremely important com anent of this chapter which gives the reader a better understanding of the situation the Pee quad and the crew is really in. In addition, imagery is a component that is used in the chapter, and continue d throughout the entire novel.

In this scene, circles are especially emphasized. ABA sesame bless the crew into a physical circle, while also pulling them into his own imaginative sphere of his win perverted vision of revenge against Mob Dick. Melville illustrates that ABA stands “while e his three mates stood at his side with their lances, and the rest of the ship’s company formed a circle round the group. ” This symbolism is shown again when he ABA says “Round with it, ROR ND! ” and again when he exclaims, “Advance, ye mates! Cross your lances full before me. Well done! Let me touch the axis. ” By now ABA has successfully bound the entire crew to him.

He stands in the center of this circle he has fabricated, while the men radiate around him chug HTH in this sphere of is imagination. This is representative of how the men have now become .NET angled in Abs’s deranged obsession. Without much choice, they are forced to submit to ABA as he controls each of them. This circle imagery really solidifies how ABA has completely maniple dated them to gain control over them. A circle is also representative of ABA himself because he is complete in him elf and does not listen or pay attention to anything outside the realm Of this circle who ICC encompasses his infatuation with avenging Mob Dick.

He is so focused on this that anything g else has no significance to him.