The Great White Whale and Its Many MeaningsHerman Melville, in his epic novel Moby-Dick, uses the symbolism of the color of the great white whale to demonstrate his theme of duality. However, Captain Ahab tragically had one mind set on Moby Dick, as he believed that the whale was the symbol of evil in the world and must be destroyed. On the other hand, Ishmael sees that the color white can mean many diverse and opposing things. It would be dangerous to fixate on a single meaning. In the chapter The Whiteness of the Whale, Melville explains the importance of duality of meaning in the world, as opposed to man's (and Ahab's) desire to see only one meaning in a thing. Melville uses the symbol of the color white to show us that no one thing means only one thing. Instead, the color white and the meaning of all things depends on the experiences and perception of the person looking at that object. Ahab saw the white whale only as the symbol of all evil in the universe, which ultimately leads to his downfall. The day Ahab threw his harpoon into the white whale and Moby Dick ate his leg, Ahab decided that the Great White Whale meant only one thing, evil. From then on, Ahab decided that there was something unusual about this whale, as if it had hidden all the evil in the world within him. Ever since Moby Dick attacked Ahab, he had harbored a savage vengeance against him.....