Ahab's Leg — Moby-Dick

Captain Ahab leaves the Samuel Enderby in such a hurry that he hurts himself. He lands hard on a boat seat and cracks his ivory leg. Back on the Pequod he spins around to yell at the steersman and twists the leg again. It still looks strong, but Ahab no longer trusts it.

This is not the first time the leg has nearly killed him. Before the voyage, he was found lying unconscious on the ground. The ivory leg had shifted and almost pierced his groin like a stake. That painful accident explains why he hid alone among tombstones for a while before sailing. Friends in Nantucket kept the story quiet. Ahab also believes misery breeds more misery than joy breeds joy. He thinks every new pain grows from an older wound, all the way back to the gods themselves.

Even so, he acts practically. He calls the ship carpenter and orders a new leg made that night from the best sperm-whale jaw ivory stored on the voyage. The new leg must have its own fittings, separate from the old one he no longer trusts. He also orders the ship forge lifted from the hold and tells the blacksmith to start making any iron parts needed right away.