Collaterale mostra "Moby Dick" "Le scie di Moby Dick"

·56 min·5 clips

Raola asks what relationship exists between a white whale and the Black Atlantic's history of slavery.

This episode features a lecture by Professor Federico Raola, a sociologist from the University of Genoa, as part of a series titled 'Nel cuore del mare' (In the Heart of the Sea). Raola begins by discussing a contemporary art exhibition about Moby Dick that inspired his talk, noting how the exhibition avoids allegorical interpretations. He shares his personal history with the novel, including a traumatic childhood reading during illness. Raola questions whether Moby Dick can be read as an 'aquatic novel' that uses land to speak about the sea rather than the reverse. He connects the white whale to the Black Atlantic and the Middle Passage, referencing the transatlantic slave trade that involved 16-18 million people. The lecture cites C.L.R. James's analysis of the Pequod as a prototype of the modern factory and Toni Morrison's work on whiteness as an ideological construct built on slavery. Raola discusses the 1851 Fugitive Slave Act and notes that Melville's father-in-law was Judge Shaw, who helped promulgate it. He explores linguistic aspects, including the Italian word 'balena' (whale) and its etymological connection to sudden flashes. The talk references Walter Benjamin's concept of capturing memory like a flash in moments of danger. Raola concludes by discussing Christina Sharpe's book 'In the Wake' and artist Laurie Anderson's work, suggesting that Moby Dick's traces connect to the afterlife of slavery. The lecture blends literary analysis, historical context, and personal reflection to examine why Moby Dick remains relevant.

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