Moby Dick by Herman Melville Quotes

Moby Dick by Herman Melville Quotes Moby Dick, a famous novel by  Herman Melville, is a classic tale about a ship captains epic quest to find and kill a whale that bit off part of his leg on a previous voyage. The Intercollegiate Studies Institute calls Moby Dick  one of five books every American should read. This novel was first published in 1851 but didnt achieve acclaim until after Melvilles death. Quotes from the epic novel show why it has endured as an American classic. Obsession Ahab, the captain of the ship, is willing to risk everything his ship, his crew, his own life to seek revenge on the elusive whale. These quotes show the depth of his obsessive  ocean quest.  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹The riveting language still seeps into our culture; part of the third quote in this section was mouthed by  Ricardo Montalbn as his character chased Captain Kirk throughout the galaxy in the 1982 move, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. The path to my fixed purpose is laid with iron rails, whereon my soul is grooved to run. Over unsounded gorges, through the rifled hearts of mountains, under torrents’ beds, unerringly I rush! Naught’s an obstacle, naught’s an angle to the iron way!There is a wisdom that is woe; but there is a woe that is madness. And there is a Catskill eagle in some souls that can alike dive down into the blackest gorges, and soar out of them again and become invisible in the sunny spaces. And even if he for ever flies within the gorge, that gorge is in the mountains; so that even in his lowest swoop the mountain eagle is still higher than other birds upon the plain, even though they soar.Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but unconquering whale; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee.​ Madness Ahab implies that he is ordained by God to destroy Moby Dick, the white whale that he believes to be evil incarnate. Of note, as Ahab is explaining his obsession in the first quote here, he refers to his chief mate, Starbuck, who served as the inspiration for the name of the well-known coffee chain. What I’ve dared, I’ve willed; and what I’ve willed, I’ll do! They think me mad Starbuck does; but I’m demoniac, I am madness maddened! That wild madness that’s only calm to comprehend itself! The prophecy was that I should be dismembered; and Aye! I lost this leg. I now prophesy that I will dismember my dismemberer.All that most maddens and torments; all that stirs up the lees of things; all truth with malice in it; all that cracks the sinews and cakes the brain; all the subtle demonisms of life and thought; all evil, to crazy Ahab, were visibly personified, and made practically assailable in Moby Dick. He piled upon the whale’s white hump the sum of all the general rage and hate felt by his whole race from Adam down; and then, as if his chest had been a mortar, he burst his hot heart’s shell upon it.

The Xia Dynasty of Ancient China

The Xia Dynasty of Ancient China The Xia Dynasty is said to have been the first true Chinese dynasty, described in the ancient Bamboo Annals called the Ji Tomb Annals, dated to the late third century BCE; and in the Records of the Historian Sima Qian (called the Shi Ji and written about 145 BCE). There is a long-standing debate as to whether the Xia Dynasty was myth or reality; until the mid-20th century, no direct evidence was available to support stories of this long-vanished era. Some scholars still believe that it was invented in order to validate the leadership of the Shang Dynasty, for which there is abundant archaeological and written evidence. The Shang Dynasty was founded in about 1760 BCE, and many of the attributes ascribed to the Xia are different from those ascribed to the Xia. Legends of the Xia Dynasty According to the historical records, the Xia dynasty is thought to have lasted between about 2070–1600 BCE, and it was said to have been founded by a man known as Yu the Grea a descendant of the Yellow Emperor, and born about 2069. His capital was at Yang City. Yu is a semi-mythical figure who spent 13 years stopping a great flood and bringing irrigation to the Yellow River Valley. Yu was the ideal hero and ruler, said to have been assisted in his work by a yellow dragon and a black turtle. Many of the tales about him are cast in mythology, which doesnt necessarily rule out the possible reality of a sophisticated society predating the Shang. The Xia dynasty is said to be the first to irrigate, produce cast bronze, and build a strong army. It used oracle bones and had a calendar. Xi Zhong is credited in legend with inventing a wheeled vehicle. He used a compass, square, and rule. King Yu was the first king to be succeeded by his son instead of a man chosen for his virtue. This made the Xia the first Chinese dynasty. The Xia under King Yu probably had about 13.5 million people. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (the Shi Ji, started around the second century BCE (over a millennium after the end of the Xia Dynasty), there were 17 Xia Dynasty Kings. They included: Yu the Great: 2205–2197 BCEEmperor Qi: 2146–2117 BCETai Kang: 2117–2088 BCEZhong Kang: 2088–2075 BCEXiang: 2075–2008 BCEShao Kang: 2007–1985 BCEZhu: 1985–1968 BCEHuai: 1968–1924 BCEMang: 1924–1906 BCEXie: 1906–1890 BCEBu Jiang: 1890–1831 BCEJiong: 1831–1810 BCEJin: 1810–1789 BCEKong Jia: 1789–1758 BCEGao: 1758–1747 BCEFa: 1747–1728 BCEJie: 1728–1675 BCE The fall of the Xia is blamed on its last king, Jie, who is said to have fallen in love with an evil, beautiful woman and become a tyrant. The people rose up in rebellion under the leadership of Zi Là ¼, the Tang Emperor and founder of the Shang Dynasty. Possible Xia Dynasty Sites While there is still debate over how much the texts can be relied on, there is recent evidence has increased the likelihood that there really was dynasty predating the Shang. Late Neolithic sites which hold some elements suggesting Xia dynasty remains include Taosi, Erlitou, Wangchenggang, and Xinzhai in central Henan province. Not all researchers in China agree to the connection of archaeological sites with prehistoric semi-mythical polities, although scholars have noted that Erlitou in particular had a high degree of cultural-political sophistication at an early period. Erlitou  in Henan Province is a massive site, covering at least 745 acres, and occupations between 3500–1250 BCE; at its heyday about 1800, it was the primary center in the region, with eight palaces and a large cemetery precinct.  Ã‚  Taosi, in southern Shanxi, (2600–2000 BCE) was a regional center, and had an urban center surrounded by large rammed-earth walls, a craft production center for pottery and other artifacts, and a semicircular rammed-earth structure which has been identified as an astronomical observatory.  Wangchenggang in Dengfeng province (2200–1835 BCE) was a settlement center for at least 22 other sites in the upper Ying River valley. It had two connected small rammed-earth enclosures built about 2200 BCE, a craftproduction center, and many ash pits some containing human burials.  Xinzhai, in Henan Province (2200–1900 BCE) is an urban center with at least fifteen associated sites surrounding it, with a large semi-subterranean stru cture interpreted as a ritual structure.   In 2016, an international group of archaeologists reported evidence of a great flood in the Yellow River at a site called Lajia, dated about 1920 BCE, which they claimed provided support to the great flood in the Xia Dynasty legends. The Laija townsite in particular was found with several residences with skeletons buried within the deposits. Wu Qinglong and colleagues admitted that the date was several centuries later than the historical records state. The article appeared in Science magazine in August of 2016, and three comments were quickly received disagreeing with the dating and interpretation of the geological and archaeological data, so the site remains an open question like the others. Sources Dai, L. L., et al. An Isotopic Perspective on Animal Husbandry at the Xinzhai Site During the Initial Stage of the Legendary Xia Dynasty (2070–1600 BC). International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 26.5 (2016): 885–96. Print.Han, Jian-Chiu. Comment on Outburst Flood at 1920 BCE Supports Historicity of China’s Great Flood and the Xia Dynasty. Science 355.6332 (2017): 1382–82. Print.Huang, Chun Chang, et al. Comment on Outburst Flood at 1920 BCE Supports Historicity of China’s Great Flood and the Xia Dynasty. Science 355.6332 (2017): 1382–82. Print.Liu, Li. State Emergence in Early China. Annual Review of Anthropology 38 (2009): 217–32. Print.Wu, Qinglong, et al. Outburst Flood at 1920 Bce Supports Historicity of China’s Great Flood and the Xia Dynasty. Science 353.6299 (2016): 579–382. Print.Wu, Qinglong, et al. Response to Comments on Outburst Flood at 1920 BCE Supports Historicity of China’s Great Flood and the Xia D ynasty. Science 355.6332 (2017): 1382–82. Print.Wu, Wenxiang, et al. Comment on â€Å"Outburst Flood at 1920 Bce Supports Historicity of China’s Great Flood and the Xia Dynasty†. Science 355.6332 (2017): 1382-82. Print.