Herman Melville alludes to the Romantic theme that the corruption of man is always conquered by the power of nature, therefore in the realization of his inevitable death by foolishly challenging nature, Stubb wishes to divulge in one last sexual act, as represented by his exclamation of cherries. In order to fully comprehend the significance behind cherries one must first analyze the events leading up to Stubb's delirious exclamation. In this scene, the men are in pursuit of the great white whale, resulting in their ship getting whipped around and the men going overboard. Stubb eventually accepts his fate as he alludes that he is beyond the help of any powerful force. He states, “Look ye, sun, moon, and stars! I call ye assassins of as good
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By chasing the whale he realizes the foolishness in pursuing such an idiotic act that ultimately causes their demise. This is best shown through his remarks to Ahab, “Why fly ye not, O Ahab! For me, off shoes and jacket to it; let Stubb die in his drawers! A most mouldy and over salted death, though;- cherries! cherries! cherries! Oh, Flask, for one red cherry ere we die!” (344). In accepting his own death, Stubb realizes there is nothing to save him now and the possessions of clothing, among others, are no longer essential. This connects to dark romanticism in which present individuals are prone to sin and self destruction. In this case, greed in their pursuits of the whale in hopes of money. As Stubb is approaching his death he wishes for one final pleasure as he shouts about the fruit, cherries! Stubb’s purpose for choosing the fruit, cherry is actually a sexual allusion. Cherries are a universal symbol of sex as it is widely accepted among the world. One of the first references was by Thomas Campion, a 15th century English poet, in his poem “Cherry-Ripe” where he compares a virgin to the delicious fruit. He states, "There is a garden in her face
By chasing the whale he realizes the foolishness in pursuing such an idiotic act that ultimately causes their demise. This is best shown through his remarks to Ahab, “Why fly ye not, O Ahab! For me, off shoes and jacket to it; let Stubb die in his drawers! A most mouldy and over salted death, though;- cherries! cherries! cherries! Oh, Flask, for one red cherry ere we die!” (344). In accepting his own death, Stubb realizes there is nothing to save him now and the possessions of clothing, among others, are no longer essential. This connects to dark romanticism in which present individuals are prone to sin and self destruction. In this case, greed in their pursuits of the whale in hopes of money. As Stubb is approaching his death he wishes for one final pleasure as he shouts about the fruit, cherries! Stubb’s purpose for choosing the fruit, cherry is actually a sexual allusion. Cherries are a universal symbol of sex as it is widely accepted among the world. One of the first references was by Thomas Campion, a 15th century English poet, in his poem “Cherry-Ripe” where he compares a virgin to the delicious fruit. He states, "There is a garden in her face