Moby-Dick
/ˌməʊbi ˈdɪk/
/ˌməʊbi ˈdɪk/
- a famous novel about the sea (1851) by the US writer Herman Melville. It is the story of Captain Ahab's strong desire to find and kill Moby-Dick, a great white whale (= very large sea creature) that had once bitten off his leg. Many people remember the book's first words: ‘Call me Ishmael.’ Film versions were made in 1926 and 1930, both with John Barrymore as Ahab, and in 1956, with Gregory Peck.