Ok, I've read many classics in my life and liked some, reveled in some, and loathed a few.
I'm afraid this one falls into the third category.
Yes, there are great lines in the book.
Yes, it is Herman Melville's magnum opus.
Yes, I am probably a philistine for my opinion.
I don't care. I still loathed it.
The story of one mans obsessive need to destroy the creature that bit his leg off was, to me, full of "sound and fury, signifying nothing".
Read it because you should.
Enjoy it if you like.
Suffer through it, so I'm not alone in my pain.
If I lived near New York, I would scrawl rude words on old Hermans' headstone.
It's a classic.
With one of the best lines ever written,
"From hells' heart, I stab at thee, for hates sake, I spit my last breath at thee..",
Herman harpoons the reader.
Unfortunately, I had to read almost two thousand pages to get to that line and, in the end, come to grips with the fact it was screamed at a whale.
Really, Herman???