Queequeg and Coverdale

What I found interesting about Queequeg’s coffin, in chapter 110, ‘Queequeg in his coffin’, was that it reminded me of Coverdale’s melodramatic response to his illness in The Blithedale Romance. Although both characters actions were similar; both were convinced they would die, so prepared for death, they seemed shockingly different. I think it reflects the differences in their characters. While Coverdale is a drama queen, Queequeg is wise and realistic.

Coverdale was dramatic, that fact is clear. He hugely overplayed his illness, and this illness gave an early clue to his character. It hinted at his dramatization, and had implications for the novel as it cast doubt on his entire narrative. Coverdale is convinced he is going to die, despite what others tell him, and talks of his “weakly condition”. Queequeg reacted to his illness differently, being realistic about the idea of death and suffering quietly, much unlike Coverdale. Coverdale drags his illness out for a long time, unlike Queequeg’s illness which only lasts a few days and is contained in one short chapter. In strong contrast to Coverdale, Queequeg remains strong despite his illness, as Ishmael describes; “a wondrous testimony to that immortal health in him which could not die, or be weakened” (Melville, 364).

While Coverdale’s illness displays his dramatic personality, Queequeg’s illness has the opposite effect. It displays him as person who is realistic; he knows that recovery is unlikely on a whaling ship with scarce access to medical care. It shows the strength of his character that he can come to terms with the fact of his death, rather than using his illness for attention and sympathy the way Coverdale does.

Queequeg wills himself back to health, contrasting to how Coverdale gets better despite his negative assumptions. Coverdale, if anything, does the opposite of willing himself back to health by wallowing in his illness and imagined death sentence.

Queequeg’s illness also takes on another meaning, which Coverdale’s does not. It may have been a form of foreshadowing, although Queequeg did not die from that particular illness, preparing a coffin somewhat foreshadowed the tragic ending of Moby-Dick. Preparing a coffin could also represent Queequeg’s wisdom. He knows death is inevitable in the hunt for Moby Dick, and has already come to terms with what is likely.

Even the people around each character emphasize the differences in their charachters. Ishmael looks on at Queequeg’s illness with awe. While Hollingsworth tries to convince Coverdale his illness is not so bad, as he tells him “You are not going to die, this time, … You know nothing about sickness, and think your case a great deal more desperate than it is” (Hawthorne, 43).