Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is the foundation of American culture. Melville captures the essence of this idea in Moby Dick as the main character; Ishmael takes an endeavor at sea. Moby Dick reveals America's amenability through the parallels of Ishmael and Queequeg, two characters who were very disparate. Ishmael was an average American while Queequeg's demeanor displayed something other and different from an average American. Through their difference, Ishmael was still pliable in their connection. Although America seems glorious, Herman Melville depicts an underlying darkness that contradicts America's good reputation. The link between Ahab and Moby Dick delineates this darkness. Ahab has a quest to capture this whale for unhealthy reasons. Ahab says to Starbuck, "It was Moby Dick that dismasted me. It was that accursed white whale that raised me ¦ and I'll chase him round Good Hope  (page #) Here Herman Melville points the reader to the notion that Ahab is a cursed man with an obsession to capture Moby Dick through a grave cost. It was in Ahab's will to possess/sustain revenge on Moby for taking his leg. "The accursed thing is not always what least allures  states that the evil figure, in this case Moby Dick, is what is most yearned for. Applying this quote, makes the reader fully aware that though in Ahab's mind, Moby was a malicious entity, he still wanted to catch Moby. Ahab felt entitled to have power over Moby Dick. The simple fact that Moby could be was the dominant figure in their relationship angered Ahab; He needed to feel superior and in charge. It is prominent in American culture to feel required to appear strong, stronger than all else in some sense. It is less popular in American culture to want to be submissive, refusing to submit to higher powers. In schools, students exemplify this concept through academics, and sports, where the most popular and "powerful  kids in school are the ones who play sp