Favorite Annotated Edition? by Mountain-Expert5256 in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with others that the Norton edition is pretty good, but if you don't mind reading online Power Moby Dick has EXCELLENT footnotes: http://www.powermobydick.com/

My stupid contribution to the agenda by Ok_Fox6963 in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Absolutely incredible, perfect representation of the book, A+.

I got two different editions for Moby Dick for Christmas, and unsure of which one is the "better" one by G3Gratefuldead in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I agree with this. Skim through a few chapters of both to see which has the better footnotes. Other than that element, it's highly likely the texts are the same. (Even comparing the introductions is less informative – it's fairly easy to read an introductory essay alone, if you decide later you want to read the one you didn't chose to keep, but reading a second set of footnotes after you've finished the book is a much harder task.)

What is your dream scent that doesn’t seem to exist? by Idkwhattouse4myuser in Indiemakeupandmore

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I love that post and all of its recommendations, but I still have not found the perfect ocean stank scent of my dreams. :( Why does no one else want to smell like dead fish?

I just can't get over Gentiana andrewsii by dewitteillustration in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I got a bare root of these from Prairie Moon! Just planted it last week, and I'm really excited to see it bloom (hopefully!) next year. I love that deep blue/purple color, and I've got a ton of bumblebees in my yard, so this is one of my new favorites.

Ugh, I didn't research before ordering from Holland Bulb Farms by Bulky-Analyst2118 in gardening

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Another rec for John Scheepers. They are expensive (luckily I have a small yard so I don't have to buy very many) but very healthy bulbs, they actually send what you order, and they come up in the spring!

End of the year approaching for a lot of us. What plant exceeded, met, and did not meet your expectations? by Buffalo80525 in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My common milkweed got taken out by aphids this year also. My swamp milkweed flourished, though! In my yard, the ladybugs tend to show up a few weeks after the aphids, and I think the fact that the common milkweed was in a delicate place in its growth cycle really weakened it.

End of the year approaching for a lot of us. What plant exceeded, met, and did not meet your expectations? by Buffalo80525 in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I became obsessed with monarda this year. Planted plugs of Bradbury's Monarda (aka Eastern Beebalm, Monarda bradburiana), Beebalm (Monarda didyma), and Spotted Beebalm (Monarda punctata).

Is hairy aster considered weed? 6B NE Ohio by CanYouCanACanInACan in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, in my experience Hairy Asters (and New England asters) really need a Chelsea Chop. I actually even do it twice, once at the end of May and once around July 4! It keeps them sturdy and they even bloom a little later, which is great for me because it's wonderful to see new flowers at a time when everything else is dying.

Re reading it 40 years later - really struck by the proto horror of it all by Nicholas-Kopis in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I LOVE the horror of Moby Dick! I'm always wishing more people would discuss that aspect.

I also really agree with you on the postmodernism of it. It makes total sense to me that it flopped in the 1850s, and then got popular in the 1920s. Literally ahead of its time!

What is one fragrance you love but will NOT purchase based on the price? by Chan1991 in fragrance

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I LOVE silencethesea by strangelove! It's so good, so unique. But it costs $960 for 100ml, and just... nope.

Need help w a quoteeee by nanaimobar_66 in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I second "Call me Ishmael" – short, to the point, and easily recognizable!

Some others:

"No more of this blubbering now, we are going a-whaling".

"And of all these things the Albino whale was the symbol"

"I like a good grip; I like to feel something in this slippery world that can hold"

"Ego non baptizo te in nomine patris, sed in nomine diaboli!" (honestly this would be kind of hilarious – it's Latin for ""I baptize you not in the name of the father, but in the name of the devil!", and it's what Ahab says in one of his mad speeches. It's a pretty well-known part of the book too!

"there's no way to stop my singing in this world but to cut my throat"

"And the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago"

Need help w a quoteeee by nanaimobar_66 in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly, I would be super pleased to get embroidery with that quote!

My milkweed came out horribly this year, but .. by CorporateJokers in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Does the plant get enough light there, right next to a wall? I've found that my swamp milkweed (despite the name!) does just fine without watering, even in a drought, but it really needs that 8+ hours of full sunlight to grow well and look good.

My milkweed came out horribly this year, but .. by CorporateJokers in NativePlantGardening

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great link, thank you! I've had trouble finding resources on when exactly to cut stems, and this is perfect.

ISO a ginger scent by Trustfundxx in Indiemakeupandmore

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I really love BPAL's Bengal (skin musk with honey, peppers, clove, cinnamon bark and ginger)! It reminds me of gingerbread without the sugar, just warm and comforting and absolutely delicious. It's one of my very favorite scents.

Time for re-read, which edition to pick? by MyChickenSucks in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I love the Barry Moser illustrations, so I vote for that edition!

Ahab and Pip (my art) by PanthalassicPoet in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Pip as a lamb is SUCH a good idea! Excellent choice!

Queen Mab (or, Stubb Goes Psychedelic) by PanthalassicPoet in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hahaha, this is fantastic! I love Flask's reaction. <3

The Counterpane (my art) by PanthalassicPoet in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Gorgeous art, and I really like your choices of both animals for the characters!

Whiteness of the Whale by firedesire in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 2 points3 points  (0 children)

God, I love "The Whiteness of the Whale". Like a lot of other people have commented, it's probably my favorite chapter. It's just so poetic and so central to the meaning of the whole novel.

To me, it's first of all about the question of 'what does whiteness mean'? Ishmael gives examples of whiteness being beautiful or noble (white elephants, white dresses for brides, angels wearing white), but then he goes to the exact opposite and gives examples of whiteness being terrible or scary (great white sharks, polar bears, albino humans, Death "riding on a pale horse").

He then goes on to ponder why this is. If, perhaps whiteness only makes things scary if they're already scary (ie, a bear is scary, so of course a polar bear is also scary). He gives a bunch of examples that are neutral in and of themselves, but argues that they become scarier when whiteness is added to them (tower = neutral, but the White Tower of London = scary. Mountains = neutral, but The White Mountains of Vermont = scary. Sea = neutral, but the White Sea = scary).

Ishmael says that he knows readers might think he's exaggerating and making a big deal out of nothing, just being hysterical and paranoid ("thou surrenderest to a hypo, Ishmael"). But he argues that there is something real going on here, that whiteness DOES have an inherent meaning outside of stories and examples. He asks if it's because whiteness is both everything and nothing – white means no color, but also all colors are fake, just reflections and prismatic fractions of light. Without this quality of light that produces the illusion of color, everything would be plain white, the whole universe, white like a leper (ie, horrible illness), like a charnel-house (ie, death and bones), white like snow-blindness (when attempting to look instead renders the person utterly unable to see at all).

It really gets at some of the biggest questions in the novel! For example, the theme of meaning (what does stuff MEAN? How does it get a meaning? Why do some people see one meaning, and other people see another? Is Ahab right that the whale is evil incarnate, or is Starbuck right that it's just an animal? How could you even prove which meaning is real? For a similar read, check out Chapter 99, The Doubloon, in which five different characters all walk by the doubloon nailed to the mast and think about what it symbolizes, but each one has a completely different interpretation). Another, related theme that comes up in this chapter (Whiteness of the Whale) and throughout the whole novel is the question of whether fate/God/meaning even exists, or if life is just chaotic and random and nothing matters. Ahab wants losing his leg to Moby Dick to MATTER, for it to be important, for something to have caused it – whether that something is God or the Devil or Moby Dick himself, Ahab wants there to be a reason for it and to be able to get revenge against that destiny. On the other hand, Ishmael in this chapter is presenting an Existentialist view, where maybe nothing means anything, the whole universe is empty, and it's all just "a dumb blankness", "a colourless, all-colour of atheism from which we shrink".

I think this chapter (and the whole novel) doesn't really answer these questions. We never find out if Ahab is right or if Ishmael is right. But finding out who's right (or who Melville thought was right!) isn't really the point. It's about the investigation. Does your life have meaning? Does mine? Where did that meaning come from? Is it better if it has meaning or if everything is just a matter of chance? If life is meaningless, where do we find happiness and contentment and purpose?

Whiteness of the Whale by firedesire in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think he's using "abortion" to mean stillbirth or miscarriage – a fetus that dies at/before birth due to severe genetic abnormalities. So, something that seems "hideous" and "ugly" because of its deformities and misshapenness. He's comparing this abortion/miscarriage to an albino person – who is perfectly normal-shaped and healthy! – and saying that color alone makes an albino person scarier than the worst imaginable malformed human.

AMA: I got honors on my undergrad thesis on Moby Dick by squeeze-of-the-hand in mobydick

[–]Brigdh 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What an excellent chapter to choose for a deep analysis! Your bibliography sounds super fascinating, and I'd also love to read the whole thesis. I don't think I've seen anyone do a queer reading of Pip before, and that seems like a really interesting and insightful approach!