And doubtless, my going on this whaling voyage, formed part of the grand programme of Providence that was drawn up a long time ago. It came in as a sort of brief interlude and solo between more extensive performances. I take it that this part of the bill must have run something like this:"Moby Dick" was published in 1851. The first Anglo-Afghan War had already ended ten years before. I'm not sure a "surge" is going to accomplish what its advocates hope it will accomplish; Afghanistan is fairly impervious to outside control.
"Grand Contested Election for the Presidency of the United States
"Whaling Voyage by One Ishmael"
"Bloody Battle in Affghanistan"
« Humor Deficit Alert, Part 173 | Main | The Feds Vs. Gotti (Again) » Herman Melville on the Situation in Afghanistan05 Aug 2008 10:31 am
There's a great moment early in "Moby Dick" that speaks to the timelessness of trouble in Afghanistan. Very early in the book, as Ishmael ponders his unhappiness, and considers the benefits of a sea voyage -- "driving off the spleen, and regulating the circulation," that sort of thing -- he imagines, grandiosely, his place in the world. Melville writes:
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