Moby-Dick Ch. 89: Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish

Herman Melville

Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish

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Summary

Ishmael explains the fishery's property laws. When one ship harpoons a whale and another ship finally catches it, fights break out. To stop that, whalemen follow two simple rules. Rule one: a fast-fish belongs to whoever is still connected to it. Rule two: a loose-fish is fair game for anyone who catches it first.

A whale counts as fast if it is tied to a boat by any line, even a thin one, or if it bears a waif pole showing someone intends to claim it. Honorable crews sometimes make exceptions, but others fight with fists. Ishmael tells about a court case in England. One crew harpooned a whale, then had to flee for their lives and leave their boat and lines behind. Another crew killed the whale and kept it. The first crew sued. Lawyer Erskine compared the whale to a wife who was abandoned and then taken by another man. Judge Lord Ellenborough gave the boat back to the first crew because they left it to survive. But he gave the whale, harpoons, and lines to the second crew because the whale was loose when they caught it.

Ishmael says these two rules explain much of human law. Whoever holds something often owns it, whether the thing is a widow's money, a worker's labor, or a nation's land. America in 1492 was a loose-fish until Columbus planted a flag for Spain. Ishmael ends by telling the reader that we are all fast-fish and loose-fish too, caught between being owned and being up for grabs.

In this chapter: Terms Characters Key Quotes Modern Story

Why This Matters

Knowing When the Prize Is Still Yours

Heroic first strike does not count if the line goes slack and someone else lands the kill. Ishmael's two-line whaling code and Erskine's court win show possession, not effort, deciding ownership.

Before you celebrate starting a project, document what keeps it fast to your team.

Coming Up in Chapter 90

Next Ishmael tells a strange English law. When a whale is caught on the coast, the king gets the head and the queen gets the tail. A duke once seized a whale from poor fishermen with four words: It is his.

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Original text

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Chapter 89

Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish

Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish. The allusion to the waif and waif-poles in the last chapter but one, necessitates some account of the laws and regulations of the whale fishery, of which the waif may be deemed the grand symbol and badge. It frequently happens that when several ships are cruising in company, a whale may be struck by one vessel, then escape, and be finally killed and captured by another vessel; and herein are indirectly comprised many minor contingencies, all partaking of this one grand feature. For example,—after a weary and perilous chase and capture of a whale, the body may…

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Critical Thinking Exercise

10 minutes

Stay Fast

What project did you lose because you let the line go slack while someone else closed?

Consider:

•Waif visible?
•Abandonment?
•Who captured loose?

Journaling Prompt

Write about maintaining connection after the first strike.

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Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish

Summary