Like a giant bird of prey, the whaleship moved lazily up the western coast of South America, zigging and zagging across a living sea of oil. For that was the Pacific Ocean in 1821, a vast field of warm-blooded oil deposits known as sperm whales.
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There's something about survival narratives that always captures my total attention. Whether its the event itself, the fortitude and breakdowns of the people facing a hopeless situation, or just the fantasy of wondering how you yourself would fare under those circumstances continually fascinates me.
Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex clicks all my buttons for survival stories. His narrative recounts the events leading up to the historic sinking of the whaleship Essex in the 1819. What is unusual about this particular ship's sinking is that the Essex was repeatedly, deliberately rammed by a huge whale, sending twenty men into lifeboats for a three-month epic voyage of 3,000 miles. This true story was an internationally known tale in those days in a world centered on whaling, and indeed was an inspiration for Herman Melville to write Moby Dick which featured (spoiler alert) the sinking of a whaleboat by the white whale.
Did a whale actually cause the sinking of the Essex? To find the answer, Philbrick carefully documents the world of whaling at that time, with Nantuck Island as the center of the world's industry. Selecting crews, captains, cargo, setting out in small boats to harpoon and then be pulled by immense whales (the "Nantucket sleigh ride"), and all other aspects of the voyage are vividly brought to life under Phibrick's able hand.
What is the daily/hourly life like for ordinary seamen and officers? How do you actually go about finding, and killing a whale in the open sea? Philbrick weaves accounts of other whaling dangers, castaways, cannibals, and greedy owners. Soon you are immersed in this era, becoming completely at one with the crew of the Essex as they seek whales from New England around the tip of South America and all the way to the Hawaiian Islands.
But it is the episode with the giant whale and its encounter with the Essex that drives the story. Was it intentional or accidental? Eye-witness reports are absolutely riveting as the crew watches the whale approach the ship, while other crew members view the encounter from their whaleboats bobbing in the distance.
The harrowing wreckage is only the beginning of the survival story as the men take to poorly-equipped lifeboats and head toward what they think might be safe lands. They intentionally avoid some islands due to rumors of cannibals, so instead of a shorter route to closer islands like Hawaii they opt for a 2,000-mile voyage to perceived safety in friendlier lands. With little more than a sail and the will to survive, they leave the wreck of the Essex behind and slowly drift away.
... the cabin boy [later] asked, "How many warm hearts have ceased to beat in consequence of [this decision]?"I cannot ably describe Philbtick's gripping accounts from departure of the Essex to its sinking by the whale and then the long, long voyage of survival. If you have any interest in true-life adventures of man vs. the elements, then In the Heart of the Sea will keep you pinned to your chair for hours as you follow these men as they face death by so many forces.
The Essex disaster is not a tale of adventure. It is a tragedy that happens to be one of the greatest true stories ever told.
If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
Melville, Herman. Moby Dick: or The Whale
Truly an epic tale of whaling in the 1800's and one man's obsession with revenge on the great white whale that took his leg. A classic read that should not be avoided any longer!
Philbrick, Nathaniel. Why Read Moby-Dick?
Companion piece that explains the importance and history behind Moby-Dick to make it more understandable to common readers and allow them to experience the grandeur and excitement of the tale and that era.
Severin, Timothy. In Search of Moby Dick: Quest for the White Whale
Modern day search by the author to the Pacific to follow leads to the possible existence of a white whale as depicted in Moby-Dick. Fascinating accounts of natives in the region of such whales as well as the giant manta rays (some white) that they hunt by jumping onto their backs and spearing them. Wonderful read.
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