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Moby Dick And As I Lay Dying Comparison Essay

1047 Words5 Pages

Within the cultures of each of humanity's greatest civilizations, similar concepts of life and its essence can be seen. This occurs despite geographical isolation and surpasses even linguistic barriers. Which results in the creation of similarities in topics that range from birth to death and the difficulties of the experience that lies between those two points. In Herman Melville’s seafaring novel, Moby Dick, each chapter not only explore the dangers of whaling and the life of a sailor. But also scrutinizes deep into the underlying mindsets of each crew member on the diverse whaling ship, the Pequod. While in William Faulkner's work, As I Lay Dying, similar themes of duty and death are explored in the less aquatic setting of Mississippi. Which is done through the observation of the effects of Addie Bundren’s death on her family. In both novels, Moby Dick and As I Lay Dying, analogous social archetypes can be noted within the stories’ …show more content…

Jewel, unlike the rest of the family, is the sole child to receive his mother’s love and affection. This keenly contrast the treatment she give the rest of her family, as she either hates or utterly ignores her other children. When on the topic of Jewel, Addie tells Cora that, “He is my cross and he will be my salvation” (Faulkner). This clearly symbolizes that Addie places a great deal of trust within him, to a point where she is willing to risk her spiritual fate on his upbringing. In addition to this, Jewel is also the sole child of Addie that is not born of Anse’s lineage. Instead he is born from an illegitimate relationship that Addie has with Reverend Whitfield. Symbolically representing that Jewel is free of Anse’s corruption and has the most chance to grow beyond the life that he currently leads. Jewel, in conclusion, gains the role of an outcast due to the disparity between his upbringing and the childhoods of his

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