Ishmael wakes up in Chapter 4 (after having said in Chapter 3, “I… never slept better in my life.”) with Queequeg’s arm thrown over him in the most loving and affectionate manner. This leads Ishmael to say, “You had almost thought I had been his wife. This plays counterpoint to the hysterical scene the night before when Ishmael thought Queequeg would murder him with a tomahawk.
ISHMAEL’S CHILDHOOD NIGHTMARE
Ishmael’s painterly eye then ruminates how the counterpane, a patchwork quilt under which they slept, now nearly camouflages Queequeg’s tattooed arm. The experience of being pinned under Queequeg’s arm sends Ishmael back in time when he got sent to bed at 2 pm on the longest day of the year (June 21) by his stepmother because he had tried to climb up the chimney as he had seen a chimneysweep do. To be in bed for 16 hours drives him back downstairs to his stepmother, asking her to punish him with a beating but she sends him back to his room. He experiences a supernatural nightmare:
At last I must have fallen into a troubled nightmare of a doze; and slowly waking from it—half steeped in dreams—I opened my eyes, and the before sun-lit room was now wrapped in outer darkness. Instantly I felt a shock running through all my frame; nothing was to be seen, and nothing was to be heard; but a supernatural hand seemed placed in mine. My arm hung over the counterpane, and the nameless, unimaginable, silent form or phantom, to which the hand belonged, seemed closely seated by my bed-side. For what seemed ages piled on ages, I lay there, frozen with the most awful fears, not daring to drag away my hand; yet ever thinking that if I could but stir it one single inch, the horrid spell would be broken. I knew not how this consciousness at last glided away from me; but waking in the morning, I shudderingly remembered it all, and for days and weeks and months afterwards I lost myself in confounding attempts to explain the mystery. Nay, to this very hour, I often puzzle myself with it Now, take away the awful fear, and my sensations at feeling the supernatural hand in mine were very similar, in their strangeness, to those which I experienced on waking up and seeing Queequeg’s pagan arm thrown round me.
A SAVAGE DRESSES IN THE “WESTERN STYLE”
Ishmael locked down by Queequeg’s “bridegroom clasp..as though naught but death should part us,” called his name repeatedly until the sleeper awoke. Groggy but ever polite, Queequeg offers to dress and then leave the room so Ishmael can do the same. How he gets dressed was unusual to say the least, especially when he uses his harpoon to shave:
He commenced dressing at top by donning his beaver hat, a very tall one, by the by, and then—still minus his trowsers—he hunted up his boots. What under the heavens he did it for, I cannot tell, but his next movement was to crush himself—boots in hand, and hat on—under the bed; when, from sundry violent gaspings and strainings, I inferred he was hard at work booting himself; though by no law of propriety that I ever heard of, is any man required to be private when putting on his boots. But Queequeg, do you see, was a creature in the transition stage—neither caterpillar nor butterfly. He was just enough civilized to show off his outlandishness in the strangest possible manners. His education was not yet completed. He was an undergraduate. If he had not been a small degree civilized, he very probably would not have troubled himself with boots at all; but then, if he had not been still a savage, he never would have dreamt of getting under the bed to put them on. At last, he emerged with his hat very much dented and crushed down over his eyes, and began creaking and limping about the room, as if, not being much accustomed to boots, his pair of damp, wrinkled cowhide ones—probably not made to order either—rather pinched and tormented him at the first go off of a bitter cold morning
Seeing, now, that there were no curtains to the window, and that the street being very narrow, the house opposite commanded a plain view into the room, and observing more and more the indecorous figure that Queequeg made, staving about with little else but his hat and boots on; I begged him as well as I could, to accelerate his toilet somewhat, and particularly to get into his pantaloons as soon as possible. He complied, and then proceeded to wash himself. At that time in the morning any Christian would have washed his face; but Queequeg, to my amazement, contented himself with restricting his ablutions to his chest, arms, and hands. He then donned his waistcoat, and taking up a piece of hard soap on the wash-stand centre table, dipped it into water and commenced lathering his face. I was watching to see where he kept his razor, when lo and behold, he takes the harpoon from the bed corner, slips out the long wooden stock, unsheathes the head, whets it a little on his boot, and striding up to the bit of mirror against the wall, begins a vigorous scraping, or rather harpooning of his cheeks. Thinks I, Queequeg, this is using Rogers’s best cutlery with a vengeance. Afterwards I wondered the less at this operation when I came to know of what fine steel the head of a harpoon is made, and how exceedingly sharp the long straight edges are always kept.
CROSS-TALK BETWEEN CHAPTER 4 & A LITTLE CALLED PAULINE.
I see cross-talk between Chapter 4 and Tender Button Objects subpoem 46 “A little called Pauline.” in stanzas 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 based on certain words. In stanza 1, which mirrors the title, I see Ishmael’s supernatural nightmare—that little anything that is summoned up (called) makes Ishmael shake in fear (shudder). Who the little summoned (not called) religious figure (a Pauline Christian) might be I don’t know at this time but I know Melville makes reference to various religious figures in other chapters of Moby Dick, including religious figures named Paul.
Stanza 6 mentions a tight head which might be the embalmed head belonging to Queequeg. Stanza 7 seems to mix references to Alice Toklas and to Queequeg getting dressed and “shaved” by the window. Stanza 8 seems to summon the call of the sea that Ishmael is experiencing (a white man with his sight set on becoming a limey—seamen) as well as the counterpane quilt (stitch of ten). Counterpane (noted by both the words stitch and count) may be Melville’s way of subliminally suggesting an alternate window on the world. Fairy sea might be a homophone for Pharisee, which could be referring to the Apostle Paul (there are references in the New Testament that Paul was a Pharisee). Fairy sea might also be Stein pointing the finger at Ishmael and Queequeg as homosexuals. Stanza 9 might blend her union with Toklas (cow was code between Stein and Toklas for orgasm) with Ishmael referring to himself as Queequeg’s wife. Stanzas 10 and 11 with reference to leather and jam might be Queequeg trying to get his cowhide boots on while he is crammed under the bed. Melville makes Queequeg gasp and strain while Stein has him cough.
A LITTLE CALLED PAULINE.
A little called anything shows shudders.
Come and say what prints all day. A whole few water-melon. There is no pope.
No cut in pennies and little dressing and choose wide soles and little spats really little spices.
A little lace makes boils. This is not true.
Gracious of gracious and a stamp a blue green white bow a blue green lean, lean on the top.
If it is absurd then it is leadish and nearly set in where there is a tight head.
A peaceful life to arise her, moon and moon and moon. A letter a cold sleeve a blanket a shaving house and nearly the best and regular window.
Nearer in fairy sea, nearer and farther, show white has lime in sight, show a stitch of ten. Count, count more so that thicker and thicker is leaning.
I hope she has her cow. Bidding a wedding, widening received treading, little leading, mention nothing.
Cough out cough out in the leather and really feather it is not for.
Please could, please could, jam it not plus more sit in when.
There is probably more to see in other chapters of Moby Dick relative to “A little called Pauline.” but I’m stopping here.
dickbuttons 