Moby-Dick Chapter 39 Summary

Summary

Stubb occupies the fore-top, working on a brace and speaking aloud to himself in a tone that mixes buffoonery and inward calculation. He repeatedly laughs—an affected, almost ritualized ha! ha!—and explains that laughter is his chosen response to strange or troubling things: a way to make the unmanageable tolerable. While he mends, he reviews a recent scene he partially witnessed between Starbuck and an unnamed dominant figure, suggesting that Starbuck looks overwhelmed in the same way Stubb once felt. Stubb claims a comforting fatalism—"it’s all predestinated"—and seems to find relief in the idea that fate removes the burden of resisting or reshaping events.

The monologue alternates between mock-song and plain speech. Stubb toys with roles—calling himself "wise Stubb"—and adopts a jaunty, almost theatrical air to stave off fear: he imagines his home and beloved in lighter terms, sings a brief stanza, and forces a cheerful mask. He acknowledges Starbuck's authority when a call comes down, answering deferentially yet with continued levity. The scene is a compact character study: Stubb uses humor, fatalism, and small rituals (mending, singing, laughing) as defenses, but his words also register a recognition of fate's power over others, notably Starbuck, whom he believes is already "fixed" by some stronger influence. The chapter ends with Stubb finishing his work and preparing to obey the call from above, still keeping his ironic, smiling posture intact.

Key events

1. Stubb is alone in the fore-top mending a brace.
2. He bursts into repeated laughter and explains laughter as his response to strangeness.
3. Stubb reflects on a recent interaction he partially witnessed between Starbuck and a stronger figure.
4. He claims a fatalistic view—everything is predestinated—and takes comfort in it.
5. Stubb sings a brief stanza and imagines his home life before answering a call from below.

Analysis

This short chapter functions as a concentrated character vignette that reveals Stubb’s coping mechanisms and establishes tonal contrast with more solemn figures. Through a continuous soliloquy, Stubb presents laughter as both a philosophy and a performance: it conceals anxiety, asserts control by reframing danger as predetermined, and permits him to move forward with buoyant disregard. The chapter thematically advances ideas of fate and resistance; Stubb’s fatalism—"it’s all predestinated"—echoes wider concerns about individual will versus larger forces aboard ship. His casual remarks about Starbuck being "fixed" foreshadow interpersonal tension and hint at the presence of a dominating influence without naming it, creating suspense through implication. Stylistically, Melville stages the scene as a theatrical aside (Stubb solus), blending colloquial banter, song, and inward confession; this mix deepens characterization and mimics sailors’ oral culture. The physical act of mending a brace underlines a motif of maintenance and small duties amid grander, uncontrollable currents, and the chapter’s compressed focus keeps the reader’s attention on the psychological posture—comic, stoical, or evasive—that sailors adopt at sea. Overall, the chapter uses voice and small domestic touches to humanize Stubb while contributing to the novel’s exploration of fate, authority, and the performative self.

Important quotes

“Ha! ha! ha! ha! hem! clear my throat!—I’ve been thinking over it ever since, and that ha, ha’s the final consequence.”

StubbStubb explains that laughter is his final, wise response to odd or troubling things and begins his soliloquy.

“Be sure the old Mogul has fixed him, too.”

StubbStubb reflects on Starbuck’s demeanour, suggesting an overwhelming influence has already affected him.

“We’ll drink to-night with hearts as light, To love, as gay and fleeting As bubbles that swim, on the beaker’s brim, And break on the lips while meeting.”

StubbStubb breaks into a jaunty stave, using song to maintain a cheerful façade and imagine lighter domestic scenes.

Characters in Chapter 39

• Stubb
• Starbuck