What is the symbolism of Starbuck and Moby Dick?

Often, readers of Melville's Moby Dick focus on the relationship between Ahab and Moby Dick, as the entire novel arguably revolves around this relationship. However, it's worth considering the significance of the relationship between Starbuck (one of my personal favorite characters) and the Whale. Though a lot can be said about these two characters, I believe Starbuck's relationship to the whale essentially symbolizes the relationship between order and chaos.

First of all, Starbuck is a...

Often, readers of Melville's Moby Dick focus on the relationship between Ahab and Moby Dick, as the entire novel arguably revolves around this relationship. However, it's worth considering the significance of the relationship between Starbuck (one of my personal favorite characters) and the Whale. Though a lot can be said about these two characters, I believe Starbuck's relationship to the whale essentially symbolizes the relationship between order and chaos.

First of all, Starbuck is a devout Christian man who often serves as a contrast to Ahab's monomaniacal self-obsession. Starbuck believes in a higher power, in an ordered universe watched over and cared for by a benevolent deity. God has a plan for everyone and, because He is a benevolent God, this plan is pretty generally a good thing.

The Whale, however, is chaos. It is generally accepted that the Whale represents the unknowable immensity of the universe. The fact that this quality is personified through the brute power of a massive whale speaks to the chaotic quality of this meaninglessness.

It is clear, therefore, that Starbuck and the Whale represent opposite ends of the existential spectrum: Starbuck represents order and meaning, while the Whale represents chaos and meaninglessness. Understanding this relationship, the end of the book becomes more disturbing. Starbuck is, after all, killed by the Whale, along with the rest of his crew mates (except the lucky Ishmael). It would not be a stretch to posit that this event signifies the triumph of chaos over order.