Response Journal Week 9-Amani

Just from reading the description of the daunting task Matt Kish is in the process of doing, I’m impressed. The text of Moby-Dick is hard enough to read, never mind illustrating each page into a creative piece of art. I wasn't able to attend Matt Kish’s presentation on Monday so I will respond to the few chapters we read this week.
Ishmael's description of the whale in these chapters just reiterates the immensity of whales in Moby-Dick. In "Fossil Whale," Ishmael discusses the the huge mass that a whale possesses. He concludes that the mass of the whale cannot be measured solely with the bones found in the whale's skeleton. The bones of the whale don't account for the flesh and meat that are held on the whale when it is it alive. Therefore, the mass of a whale is unknown to humans. The whale's mass represents it's magnitude and power. Because it's mass can never be discovered by humans, it's power is beyond human comprehension.
In “Does the Whale's Magnitude Diminish?-Will He Perish?,” Ishmael talks about the possibility of the whale becoming extinct. Because it is has been growing larger and larger and is more and more frequently hunted, there are speculations that the whale may die out. Ishmael disagrees. He explains that the population of the whale hasn't decreased. His explanation for this is that they have such a large place to live and move around: the sea. The explanation that Ishmael provides allows for the characterization of the whale as indestructible.
The following chapter “Ahab's Leg” is about Ahab needing a new leg. This could be a seen as a an milestone in Ahab's life. It may be Ahab's point of realization that is necessary in Aristotle's definition of a tragedy. Ahab says that his old leg is worn out and needs to be replaced. Maybe this is the point where Ahab realizes that he is worn out, but he perseveres. Ahab is experiencing hamartia, which means to miss the mark. He has now become out of balance. However, Ahab always seemed to be out of balance. Maybe his point of realization occurred before Ishmael's first encounter with him.