Moby Dick Herman Melville

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2 Moby Dick Herman Melville Level Headwords Retold by C.S. Woolley

3 Moby Dick Herman Melville First published 2017 by Foxton Books London, UK Copyright Foxton Books, 2017 ISBN: Interior illustrations by Mihail Zablodskiy Cover illustration and design by Alexander Solovyov Retold by C.S. Woolley All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Foxton Readers are a series of carefully graded books aimed at ESL / EAL learners of beginner to advanced levels. They are based on a comprehensive grammar and vocabulary framework to match each ability level and to ensure each learner progresses. They are not only suitable for ESL / EAL learners but can also be used with native speakers of primary school age. Printed and bound in Turkey by Onka Printing Ltd. Printing press certificate number: 20419

4 CONTENTS Introduction... 4 About the Author... 5 Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Glossary Activities Answer Key... 51

5 INTRODUCTION Captain Ahab is a mad captain. He wants to kill the White Whale. The White Whale is called Moby Dick. No sailor or whaler has been able to kill Moby Dick. He s a strong whale with a bad temper. He has lots of harpoons stuck in his skin from all the men that have tried to kill him. Captain Ahab has tried to kill Moby Dick before. Moby Dick took off Captain Ahab s leg. Captain Ahab has to use a peg-leg now. Captain Ahab wants revenge on the White Whale. He has a good crew on his ship. Ishmael is a sailor on the ship. He tells the story of Captain Ahab and Moby Dick. 4

6 ABOUT THE AUTHOR Herman Melville was born in New York City in He was an American novelist and a short story writer. His father was a successful merchant. However, when he suddenly died in 1832, the family suffered from financial difficulties. In 1839, Herman Melville became a cabin boy on a merchant ship. This is when his sea adventures began. In 1851, Melville wrote Moby Dick based on his years of experience aboard whaleships and the real-life disaster of the Essex whaleship. His other titles include Typee and Omoo. He became famous after his death in

7 CHAPTER 1 Call me Ishmael. I didn t have any money. I went to sea. I liked being a sailor. I wanted to be a sailor on a whaling ship. I wanted to go to the Cape Horn and the Pacific Ocean. All sailors know the story of Jonah. A whale ate him. He was bad luck to the ships he sailed on. A man who brings bad luck to a ship is called a Jonah. I went to New Bedford. I wanted to sail on a whaling ship from Nantucket. I stayed in an inn called the Spooner Inn. They didn t have enough rooms. I had to share my room with a cannibal. His name was Queequeg. The first night he tried to kill me. I stopped him. I made friends with him. Queequeg came from Rokovoko which is an island. It has many savages. His father was a High Chief. His uncle was a High Priest. sailor (n) a person who works on a boat or ship as part of the crew whaling (n) the activity or practice of hunting whales cannibal (n) a person who eats the flesh of human beings savage (n) someone who is cruel and very violent 6

A ship landed on Rokovoko. Queequeg tried to get on the ship. They said, No. Queequeg got a canoe. He paddled out to sea. He waited for the ship to leave the island. He climbed onto the ship.

8 A ship landed on Rokovoko. Queequeg tried to get on the ship. They said, No. Queequeg got a canoe. He paddled out to sea. He waited for the ship to leave the island. He climbed onto the ship. The captain tried to throw him into the sea. Queequeg didn t let him. The captain let Queequeg stay on the ship. They made him hunt whales. I had to share my room with a cannibal. His name was Queequeg. land (v) to reach a place by plane or ship 7

9 Queequeg thought, Christian men are not happy. They re bad men. They re wicked. They re worse than my father s people. He left his island a long time ago. I asked him, Why don t you go back? Your father must be dead. You ll be the new king. No, not yet. Christians made me dirty. I need to be clean to be king. I ll sail on the four oceans. I am a harpooner now, he said. I want to go to sea on a whaling ship, I said. Where are you going? he asked. I m going to Nantucket. I ll find a ship, I said. I ll come with you. We can sail on the same ship, he said. It was nice to have a friend. He was a very good harpooner. wicked (adj) very bad or unpleasant harpoon (n) a long weapon used especially for hunting large fish or whales harpooner (n) someone who uses a harpoon 8

10 GLOSSARY blacksmith (n) a person who makes or repairs things made of iron cabin (n) a small room on a ship where passengers live or sleep cannibal (n) a person who eats the flesh of human beings chase (v) to follow by running or driving after someone or something to catch them disappear (v) to stop being visible, to no longer exist, to vanish equator (n) the imaginary great circle around the earth s surface frightening (adj) scary, making you feel afraid harpoon (n) a long weapon used especially for hunting large fish or whales harpooner (n) someone who uses a harpoon hump (n) a large round part on the back of an animal such as a whale or a camel land (v) to reach a place by plane or ship logbook (n) a written record of activity, events, or travel mate (n) a friend lookout (n) a person who watches an area and warns others lower (v) to bring or move something down, to reduce pitchpole (v) to turn end over end sailor (n) a person who works on a boat or ship as part of the crew savage (n) someone who is cruel and very violent Ship ahoy! (expression) used by sailors for calling to people on other ships swear (v) to use offensive words whaling (n) the activity or practice of hunting whales whisper (v) to speak very quietly so that other people cannot hear you wicked (adj) very bad or unpleasant 40

11 ACTIVITIES

12 COMPREHENSION CHECK Test-1 Are the following sentences True (T) or False (F)? 1. The narrator is called Ishmael. T / F 2. Ishmael didn t want to go to sea on a whaling ship. T / F 3. Queequeg was a cannibal. T / F 4. Nantucket is the best place to find a whaling ship. T / F 5. Ishmael and Queequeg joined the crew of the Pequod. T / F 6. Starbuck was the captain of the Pequod. T / F 7. The Pequod chased after Moby Dick. T / F 8. The White Whale was called Moby Dick. T / F 9. The Pequod found Moby Dick straight away. T / F 10. Moby Dick wasn t a dangerous whale. T / F 42

13 Test-1 GRAMMAR CHECK Put these words in the correct order so that the sentences make sense. 1. good / Queequeg / a / was / harpooner / very 2. the / killed / one / of / other / whales / Flask 3. he / a / looked / bronze / like / statue 4. Ahab / Captain / got / about / angry / leg / his 5. wanted / canoe / Queequeg / to / die / in / the 6. nice / very / ambergris / smells 7. cabin / the / had / of / in / his / captain / charts / lots 8. to / gave / Bildad / orders / the / crew 9. the / they / made / whale / a / circle / round 10. whale / the / wanted / bite / to / the / boat 46

14 VOCABULARY CHECK Test-1 Fill in the blanks with the words below. fixed loud horrible disappeared carpenter gently leak chased sail whispered 1. The mechanic tried to fix the..., but it was too late. There was too much water on the ship. 2. A... makes things from wood, or repairs things that are made of wood. 3. I... the roof by myself after that terrible storm. 4. They... to the nearest island to get some food. 5. She didn t take the medicine because it tasted He lifted the baby... and gave her a kiss. 7. Put this in your pocket, she... softly. 8. The police... the thief for an hour and then caught him. 9. Six climbers... in the storm and the search team couldn t find them. 10. Listening to... music is not good for our ears. 48

15 ANSWER KEY COMPREHENSION CHECK Test 1 1. True 2. False 3. True 4. True 5. True 6. False 7. True 8. True 9. False 10. False Test 2 1. e 2. j 3. a 4. h 5. i 6. b 7. d 8. f 9. c 10. g Test 3 1. Captain Bildad 2. Captain Ahab 3. Queequeg 4. Starbuck 5. Captain Ahab 6. Starbuck 7. Ishmael 8. Captain Ahab 9. Starbuck 10. Captain Ahab Test 4 1. New Bedford 2. Captain Ahab 3. A harpoon 4. Starbuck, Flash and Stubb 5. Moby Dick 6. Whale Oil 7. Ambergris 8. Starbuck 9. Queequeg 10. Spermaceti Test 5 1. h 2. a 3. e 4. c 5. f 6. d 7. b 8. g 9. i 10. j GRAMMAR CHECK Test 1 1. Queequeg was a very good harpooner. 2. Flask killed one of the other whales. 3. He looked like a bronze statue. 4. Captain Ahab got angry about his leg. 5. Queequeg wanted to die in the canoe. 6. Ambergris smells very nice. 7. The captain had lots of charts in his cabin. 8. Bildad gave orders to the crew. 9. They made a circle round the whale. 10. The whale wanted to bite the boat. 51

CHAPTER 7. Queequeg jumped in to save the trapped man. He cut a hole in the whale s head with his sword. He pulled the trapped man back onto the ship.

CHAPTER 7. Queequeg jumped in to save the trapped man. He cut a hole in the whale s head with his sword. He pulled the trapped man back onto the ship. CHAPTER 7 We cut the whales up. We had to get the spermaceti from the head. Two men sat in the head to get it. Spermaceti smells very sweet. They filled buckets with it. The hooks holding the whale s head