Returning to his detailed description of the whale, Ishmael describes the head of the sperm whale that can be equated to a boneless, but super hard mass, which the whale can use like a battering ram. It is this part of the head that contains the largest and the most pure quantity of sperm whale oil. For this reason, Ishmael refers to it as the Heidelburgh Tun. Next, Ishmael talks about the process of removing the oil from the head of the whale using buckets as collection tools.
While collecting the oil one day, Tashtego accidentally falls into the oil-filled head of the whale. During efforts to rescue the man, the hooks hanging the head from the ship break and the head, with Tashtego still in it, begins to sink. Queequeg rescues the man.....
This is a free excerpt of 135 words. This section contains 372 words. This
study guide contains 41,459 words (approx. 138 pages at 300
words per page).
Read the rest of this Literature Guide with our Moby Dick Access Pass.