Page 57 - Focus PT3 2020 - English

English Form 1 • 2 • 3 Answers
as a child is and prepares the Pequod for the battle. On the first the Pequod. He survives to tell the story of the supreme force of
day, Moby Dick rams into Ahab’s boat. Ahab and the other crew nature represented by Moby Dick.
are cast into the ocean but are later rescued by the Pequod. Moby
Dick disappears and returns the next day. On the second day, the The Elephant Man by Tim Vacary
harpooners successfully stab Moby Dick but its violent thrashing Formative Practice
destroys the boats and takes along Captain Ahab’s ivory leg.
On the third day, Ishmael together with Captain Ahab and his Practice 1
other crew takes the only whaling boat left while Starbuck takes charge 1. Dr. Frederick Treves
of the Pequod. Captain Ahab’s harpoon strikes Moby Dick just below 2. Merrick
his small black eye but the rope catches around him and pulls him to 3. The postman
his death. Thus confirming Fedallah’s prediction that only a rope can 4. The policemen
kill the captain. The whale smashes onto the Pequod and sinks the 5. Carr Gomm
vessel and pulling everyone in it except Ishmael. The story ends with 6. Queen Alexandra, the queen of England
the death of Captain Ahab and the complete destruction of the Pequod.
Ishmael stays adrift on the coffin that comes bobbing up when the Practice 2
Pequod sinks, keeping him safe till he is saved by the Rachel.
The ending seems appropriate in that it drives home the 1. Dr. Treves wants to see the Elephant man to assess the
message that no one can challenge nature and that the obsessed physical condition of the man for his research as a doctor.
captain is doomed to die. It is sad though that the captain has lived 2. Silcock is getting the Elephant man to demonstrate his ability
his life trapped in his obsession to destroy the ‘evil’ force. to move and is getting impatient as the Elephant man is not
moving fast enough.
Practice 6 3. Merrick attempts to speak loudly and clearly so that Dr Treves
The story Moby Dick is about Captain Ahab’s desire for can understand him as he has difficulty getting up the steps of
the cab.
revenge. We are told from the beginning of the story that Captain 4. Merrick is aware that his hideous look frightens people so he
Ahab lost his leg to a whale. In fact, this is used as a reason to deter requests to stay in a lighthouse where he is unlikely to been
Ishmael from signing up with the whaling vessel, the Pequod. Ishmael seen or in a home for the blind where blind people are not
however, signs up anyway probably because though he understands able to see how he looks.
the dangers of whaling he is not able to envision the extent of the
danger. Considering that Captain Ahab has lost his leg to the whale, it Practice 3
is understandable that he wishes to kill the brute for revenge. But, his
obsession with the desire to kill the brute to the extent of endangering 1. MERRICK
the lives of all aboard is insane and not justifiable. 2. DONATION
Moby Dick is a whale and not human though its tactic when 3. MISSHAPEN
attacking whaling vessels makes it seem almost as intelligent as 4. LIGHTHOUSE
humans. It is common at that period of time for whaling vessels to 5. QUEEN ALEXANDRA
attack whales for their oil that is highly priced, so it is not impossible for 6. THEATRE
whales to develop a defensive attitude when confronted with whaling 7. COUNTRYSIDE
vessels. It is a natural defensive reaction of whales to attack the 8. VICTORIAN
vessels. Captain Boomer of the Samuel Enderby lost his arm to the
white whale too but makes the decision to leave Moby Dick in the Practice 4
ocean. He refuses to join forces with Captain Ahab to kill the white In the novel The Elephant Man, the writer Tim Vicary deals with
whale. selfishness in human beings in a number of ways. First, we see the
Captain Ahab tells Starbuck that he has been whaling for forty selfishness of human beings in the character Silcock. He is portrayed
years. We are not told why he is so bent on killing Moby Dick. as a despicable man in that, he not only makes a living out of Merrick,
Captain Ahab calls the whale a devil and is determined to finish it off. but also treats him like an animal. He is impatient and cruel to Merrick
We can only infer that the obsession is driven by his desire to defeat and this can be seen from the squalid living conditions of Merrick. He
the whale that to him, symbolizes a force that is beyond ordinary is kept in a room that is dirty and foul smelling. Silcock is impatient
beings. It is not justifiable as this insane act costs him his own life as and cruel to Merrick and even resorts to hitting him like an animal.
well as the lives of those aboard the Pequod. He speaks angrily to Merrick asking him to walk and parade in front
of the doctor who has paid 12 pence to see him. He is dishonest
Practice 7 as after making money out of displaying Merrick’s deformities, he
Based on the novel Moby Dick, the character that I find abandons him.
interesting is the character Ishmael. Ishmael is the narrator or the The selfishness of the society during the Victorian era is
protagonist in the novel. We do not know how Ishmael actually looks also clearly reflected in the story. Silcock is able to make a living
like but we can feel his keen interest in whaling. Though he has been out of Merrick because people are willing to pay in order to see
forewarned that the Pequod is not like any other whaling vessel, the deformities on him. The society does not endeavour to help
Ishmael proceeds to sign up to join the vessel. the people with oddities who have been victimized. Instead, they
Ishmael’s chance encounter with Queequeg is interesting as it is continue to give support to scums of society like Silcock who have no
comical. He screams for help when a huge man with black lines all over conscience.
his face and body and wears no clothes except for a strange looking Selfishness is also seen at different levels of the society. Dr.
skirt appears in his room. When the barman dashes in to introduce Treves in a way helps to secure a home for Merrick because as a
Queequeg as his roommate, he wholeheartedly apologises for his doctor he has great interest in studying the medical condition that
behaviour. This chance meeting later develops into a close relationship he sees in him. To Dr. Treves, Merrick is an interesting specimen for
that sends home an important message which is friendship can be a medical research. The people who come to visit Merrick too only
developed despite differences in culture. The theme of friendship is appear to be kind on the surface but are selfish in their own ways
only developed in the bond between the duo and contrasted starkly as they too have their own selfish reasons to be with Merrick. The
with Captain Ahab’s relationship with all aboard the Pequod. theme of selfishness in human beings is explored through different
Through Ishmael, we are given a glimpse of the world of characters to expose their true intentions of ‘helping’ Merrick.
whaling and the whaling industry at that time. We learn of the difficult
lives of whalers and what the future holds for them and their families Practice 5
when they go whaling. He is the only surviving crew to tell the story of Merrick is found dead in bed in April 1890. He has attempted
how one man’s obsession with conquering nature killed all on board to sleep on his back like a normal person but his heavy head came

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Answers.indd 258 11/25/19 3:50 PM