How is symbolism reflected in Moby Dick, the first American prose epic by Herman Melville?
【正确答案】：(1) IT TURNS OUT TO BE A SYMBOLIC VOYAGE OF THE MIND IN QUEST OF THE TRUTH AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE UNIVERSE, A SPIRITUAL EXPLORATION INTO MAN’S DEEP REALITY AND PSYCHOLOGY.(2) THE PEQUOD IS THE MICROCOSM OF HUMAN SOCIETY AND THE VOYAGE BECOME A SEARCH FOR TRUTH. THE WHITE WHALE, MOBY DICK, SYMBOLIZES NATURE FOR MELVILLE, FOR IT IS COMPLEX UNFATHOMABLE, MALIGNANT, AND BEAUTIFUL AS WELL. FOR THE CHARACTER AHAB, HOWEVER, THE WHALE REPRESENTS ONLY EVIL. FOR THE AUTHOR AND READERS AND ISHMAEL, THE NARRATOR, IT IS STILL A MYSTERY, AN ULTIMATE MYSTERY OF THE UNIVERSE, INSCRUTABLE AND AMBIVALENT, AND THE VOYAGE OF THE MIND WILL FOREVER REMAIN A SEARCH, TO A DISCOVERY OF THE TRUTH.
【题目解析】：教材460页第二段和461页第一段。《白鲸》不仅仅是海上生活的生动描述，而且也象征追求宇宙真理的心路历程。船皮夸德成了人类社会和追求真理历程的缩影。白鲸则象征着自然，复杂，不可方物，也很美丽。但对埃哈布，白鲸则代表着邪恶。对作者以及读者和叙述者伊什梅尔来说，白鲸是个秘密，宇宙的终极秘密，难以识别，模糊不清。
