In the Heart of the Sea (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Nathaniel Philbrick
- First Published: 2000
- Type of Work: History
- Time of Work: 1819 to 1900
- Setting: Nantucket, Massachusetts; the subequatorial Pacific Ocean; Henderson Island in the South Pacific; Valparaiso and St. Mary’s Island, Chile
- Principal Characters: George Pollard, Jr., Owen Chase, Matthew Joy, Owen Coffin, Charles Ramsdell, Thomas Nickerson, Benjamin Lawrence, Obed Hendricks
- Genres: Nonfiction, History
- Subjects: United States or Americans, Nineteenth century, Sea or seafaring life, Pacific Ocean, Cannibalism, Chile or Chileans, Ocean, Whales or whaling
- Locales: Oceans, Valparaiso, Chile, Chile, Nantucket Island, South Pacific
Were the account of the sinking of the whale ship Essex and the aftermath of that sinking fictional, readers might challenge the author’s credibility. That a ship 87 feet long with a 238-ton displacement and copper sheathing could be rammed not once but twice by a seemingly malevolent sperm whale apparently seeking revenge for the slaughter of three whales in his pod flies in the face of what is generally believed about these characteristically nonaggressive leviathans.
That such an attack would cause the ship to capsize might also convert readers to doubters. Yet...
[The entire page is 1923 words long]
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