NCHS AP English Language

Archetypes and Ishmael Catherine Samson

Who are we? What makes us who we are? Why do we behave the way we do? Our archetype directs our behaviors, our actions, and our character. Our archetype is part of our unconscious that we inherit from the human race. It is made up of images, pictures, ideas, and thoughts about art, religion, and the way we live. These images and thoughts are gathered from the entire human race and are passed to us similarly to the way genetics are passed down. We are not necessarily aware of our archetype and how it affects our behaviors. Our archetype is our being at its most primitive state, before any outside influences or experiences affect our character our behaviors. Our most innate behaviors come from our archetypes. One can see what kind of ideas Ishmael's archetype holds when reading Moby Dick and seeing Ishmael's behavior and knowing his thoughts.
First of all, Ishmael has an innate desire to go to sea which he cannot really explain. He simply describes how almost everyone is drawn to water at some point in their lives. This attraction to the water probably comes from his archetype, his innermost unconscious. People have always been drawn to water unconsciously because of the prenatal connection to the mother's womb. This attraction has been passed down to Ishmael as part of his archetype. Second, the reader gets a better understanding of Ishmael when we see how he interprets the painting at the Spouter-Inn. He sees the painting of a whale and takes a different view of the art than another person might. Ishmael describes the painting as making time flow rather than stopping time by its mysteriousness as another viewer might say. Ishmael has a different view on this piece of art which may stem from his archetype. Also, Ishmael's religious ties and opinions possibly come from his archetype. He claims himself to be Presbyterian, a Christian. However, whenever he speaks of Christians, it is usually in a negative tone. He seems to believe that Christians are not as faithful or spiritual as they claim to be. Ishmael seems to admire Queequeg's pagan religion for his devotion to it. He seems more favorable to the pagan religions than to his own Christian faith. Some part of his archetype could be calling him to Christianity but his personal experiences try to show him something different. Ishmael's archetype affects his actions, his behaviors, as well as his thoughts. Our archetypes determine what kind of a person we will become, yet we have no control over them. The human race has control over our archetype and therefore, also control over what kind of person each of us will be.

Catherine Samson

posted by NCHS AP English Language III @ 10:17 PM