Moby-Dick Chapter 73 Summary

Summary

The chapter opens with the Pequod riding with a sperm whale’s head already fastened to her starboard side while lookouts sight spouts and patches of yellow brit indicating Right Whales. Although the crew normally scorns these “inferior” leviathans, two boats under Stubb and Flask lower and pursue a Right Whale sighted to leeward. After a dramatic struggle in which the towing whale nearly drags the boats into the ship and dives dangerously close under the keel, the crews manage by skillful seamanship to pay out line and keep the boats from being dashed to death. The exhausted animal is repeatedly lanced until it rolls, dies, and is secured by its flukes for towing.

While the men make fast and prepare to hoist the whale’s parts aboard, Stubb and Flask talk idly and at length, chiefly about Fedallah, the enigmatic Parsee aboard the Pequod. They trade tall tales and superstitions: Flask reports a mariner’s belief that a ship bearing both a sperm‑whale head and a right‑whale head will never capsize; Stubb spins grotesque and comic imaginings of Fedallah as the devil, speculating about his tail, age, and sinister bargains with Ahab. As the whale is brought abreast and the fluke chains are made ready, Fedallah stands near Ahab, his shadow merging with the captain’s; the men’s banter continues even as the ship groans under the twin burdens and the crew secures the carcass and its head-laden gear.

Key events

1. Lookouts spot Right Whale spouts; Stubb’s and Flask’s boats lower and give chase.
2. Boats are nearly dragged into the Pequod as the whale tows them under and around the ship.
3. Seamen pay out line, avoid disaster, and finally lance and kill the Right Whale.
4. Stubb and Flask strip and make fast parts for towing; prepare to hoist the head aboard.
5. Stubb and Flask converse at length, mocking and fearing Fedallah and discussing superstitions.
6. Fedallah stands near Ahab; his shadow seems to lengthen and blend with the captain’s.

Analysis

This chapter juxtaposes vivid whaleboat action with sailors’ folk talk to develop atmosphere and characterize the ship’s social world. The hunt scene demonstrates practical seamanship under life‑threatening strain and contrasts the ordinary utilitarian value of right whales (oil and bone) with the Pequod’s odd preoccupation with the sperm‑whale head already lashed to her side. The back‑and‑forth between Stubb and Flask functions as comic relief while also advancing darker thematic currents: their grotesque, scatological joking about Fedallah masks a genuine anxiety about mysterious powers aboard the ship and about Ahab’s dealings. Fedallah’s presence—calm, eyeing the whale’s wrinkles and standing in Ahab’s shadow—is symbolically charged; the image of his shadow lengthening the captain’s suggests influence, alliance, or ominous intimacy without explicit explanation. The sailors’ superstitions (the two heads preventing capsizing) underline the novel’s recurrent concern with fate, ritual, and the sailors’ attempt to impose meaning on dangerous, capricious seas. Stylistically the chapter interleaves action narrative with colloquial dialogue, letting vernacular speech reveal character and group psychology, while the detailed procedural account of making fast and towing grounds the scene in realism.

Important quotes

““I wonder what the old man wants with this lump of foul lard,””

StubbStubb expresses disgust at having to handle the Right Whale—calling it an ignoble leviathan while preparing it for towing.

““Do you suppose Fedallah wants to kidnap Captain Ahab?””

FlaskFlask voices the sailors' superstitious fears about Fedallah’s mysterious relationship with Ahab during their banter while towing the whale.

Characters in Chapter 73

• Stubb
• Flask
• Fedallah
• Ahab