Melting in materiality

In the chapter "A squeeze of the hand", Ishmael reaches a conclusion that seems to mark his drawing away from transcendentalism: "I have perceived that in all cases man must eventually lower, or at least shift, his conceit of attainable felicity; not placing it anywhere in the intellect or the fancy; but in the wife, the heart, the bed, the table, the saddle, the fireside, the country; now that I have perceived all this I am ready to squeeze case eternally". It seems that the sexual event has caused Ishmael to overcome, at least momentarily, his fear of the nothingness beyond the surface, as he realizes that man must not search for meaning in his own secluded mind, but in the "other", such as the wife (this can be symbolic, not necessarily a female wife) or in materiality, in tangible objects. Now that so much pleasure has been gained from pure physicality in the sperm squeezing scene, Ishmael cannot favor mind over body, or thought over action.

In his article, Martin credits Queequeg for this shift that has prevented Ishmael from becoming another Ahab, whose state of isolation leads to destruction. Ishmael, represented by the "head" is joined to Queequeg, the "heart and body". Martin claims that the sperm squeezing scene shows the development of an individual who extends his sensuousness beyond the self and takes the hand of his fellow men; it's a shift from self to community. Martin's claim of shared sexuality as a way for men to unite is convincing, yet it seems that prior to holding the hands of others and engaging in mutual masturbation, Ishmael is simply fascinated by the pure materiality of sperm itself: "I squeezed that sperm till I myself almost melted in it". As Ishmael is overwhelmed by this immersion in materiality, it seems that this initial scene in itself holds the power to shift him from a meditative state to a sphere in which pleasure and meaning can be gained from the surface layer.

This is, to borrow a term used in pornographic films, Moby Dick's "money shot"- the moment of ejaculation that marks the climax of the sexual act. Linda Williams, a film studies professor, notes how the money shot represents maximum visibility, as opposed to simple shots of genitals in primitive pornographic films that would offer evidence of penetration. The money shot's significance lies in its showing the authenticity of the orgasm; when these shots were first used, viewers were enraptured by the material evidence of enjoyment. Similarly for Ishmael, squeezing the sperm is a direct engagement with this materiality; this evidence of bodily pleasure is devoid of performativity, and I think that the quality of its concreteness is what pleasures Ishmael so, and what instigates his shift from spirit to body.

With the risk of undermining everything I have just said, Ishmael's conclusion in itself is paradoxical, considering that the bodily act itself has caused him to muse once more, only this time he is musing about no longer musing.