Ahab

Orson Whales is fairly apparent in its use of multiple media outlets to formulate a representational message. The connection between each media type is held in the popular nineteenth century novel Moby Dick. While the author, Alex Itin, uses the pages of the novel as a backdrop, he also uses another popular form of work connected with this context, a Led Zeplin song with the same title. With the combination of these two forms of media and his own artistic handiwork, Itin tells a tale in which anyone with some sort of cultural knowledge of Moby Dick would be able to correlate. These different artistic forms combine together for a both visual and auditory stimulation of Ahab’s hunt for the great white whale.

The multitude of media outlets are also used to form a more evocative meaning of the text. I believe my long and tiring studies of this novel in previous English courses has led me to formulate an evocative meaning that might be unseen to those that haven’t studied the novel. Itin uses these media forms to interpret the novel from, as it seems to me, Ahab’s own point of view. The pace at which the pages turn and the beat of the song flow together to stress each other while the artistic imagery and the words spoken to the song tend to mimic each other in tone as well. While with the first viewing in class I found myself more in awe over anything else at the way in which these media forms were drawn together, a second viewing gave me a greater sense of connection between the literal and physicalness of the media and its connection with this more interpretive meaning. The overall combination evoked a feeling of urgency, chaos, and a sort of more subtle loneliness. These evocative feelings I believe are meant to portray captain Ahab’s own emotions and flaws as a sailor. The images and sounds help bring to life the inner workings of Captain Ahab’s tragedy as well as provide us with a stimulating mixture of art and media.

“Orson Whales” combines different audio, video, text, and animation to create a multimedia collage depicting the flawed nature of man. What I found most intersecting is that the only original media used was the author’s hand drawn animation. All the other material was taken from previously established works.

Representational Meaning:

When the different pieces are combined as a whole, certain symbols and themes are established which make connections between the tragic heroes: Charles Foster Kane (Citizen Kane), Narcissus (Greek Mythology), and Captain Ahab (Moby Dick) and John Bonham (Led Zeppelin).

Led Zeppelin’s song “Moby Dick” is comprised mostly of a drum solo showcasing the mastery of percussionist John Bonham, whose life was tragically cut short due to the effects of alcoholism. Charles Foster Kane’s pursuit of money and material possessions ultimately lead to an unsatisfying life. The tale of Narcissus, which is about a young man who falls in love with the reflection of himself in a fountain and because he could not “grasp the mild tormenting image, plunged into [the fountain] and drowned” (this passage can be heard around 0:46). And Captain Ahab’s obsession with the great white whale and his thirst for revenge lead him to his own tragic demise.

Many symbols are used in the animation to punctuate the thread between the different works. Animation of the figure chasing after a bottle labeled with a dollar sign, looking at himself a mirror, plunging into the water, drowning and being swallowed by the whale are repeated throughout the piece in an attempt to illustrate the possible danger of each man’s unhealthy fixation.

All the plots of these individual stories are basically the same: Man discovers something, obsesses over it, and dies unsatisfied.

Evocative meaning:

The last audio passage heard over the video clip of Charles Kane walking down a mirrored hall addresses the inevitable fade of even the greatest of artworks. What the passage argues is that due to the constant change of cultural contexts and the decreasing/discontinued use of obsolete media, even the most celebrated works of art are at risk of being forgotten. The author is, in a sense, arguing that the only way for art to survive is to stay kinetic. Similar to the way that the digital sampler revolutionized the way people thought about music—by taking something old and using it a different way—all artwork can be kept relevant by continued reference and tendency towards change.

This is not a new practice either. In the opening line of Moby Dick, Melville makes a reference to a character in the Old Testament of the Bible (Ishmael, the rejected son of Abraham). This reference instantaneously adds depth to the character using the reader’s prior knowledge and providing Melville with the opportunity to expand ideas in new directions.

Technology has given artists and authors the opportunity to experiment not only with new forms of media, but the combination of old and new media as well. By embracing the artwork of the past as well as the technology of the future, we might not have to watch them “wear away into the ultimately and universal ash.”

Matt Z