Hey Ahab

When James writes that the tragedy of Moby dick is the sure
destruction of men of honor (such as Starbuck) in Ahab's quest for vengeance
(page 17) what he actually talks about (whether knowingly or not) is the way in
which Ahab takes over the narrative.
Up until the "Knights and
Squires" chapter it was obvious to the reader the Ishmael is not simply
the narrator but the main character – that Moby Dick would be the story
of his adventures as a sailor. But once he goes on the ship his narrative is
stolen from him – first by the far more memorable mates and harpooners, then by
the ever-present Ahab: from the moment he is on deck and on page it is his
ship, his quest, his story; the only reason Ishmael is presented to us is so
someone could survive the final confrontation with the whale and live to tell
the tale.
We all know that Moby Dick is
"realistic" – the object of endless research on whales and whaling as
well as the author's firsthand experience with life as a sailor. Yet it sins
against realism with its main character – for Ahab is like no man who is
expected to lead an expansive commercial quest, it is unlikely that ship's
owner would trust such a man: a Shakespearian figure, Miltonian even, whose
every saying is a speech and every sentence is exclamation. A man so obviously
mad it is surprise he is not bound and gagged. This figure sweeps aside the
realism of the story as he sweeps aside all other characters. He is admission
by Melville that while realism is well and good it cn never defeat a good dose
of melodrama.