Moby-Dick is narrated by a guy called Ishmael, who gets himself a post on a whaling vessel. For a while, the ship's captain, Ahab, remains mysteriously absent. However, when he reveals himself, it turns out that he's missing a leg—the result of an encounter with a whale known as Moby Dick.
While going about their daily business of whaling, Ishmael and the rest of the crew realize that Ahab has a vendetta against Moby Dick—and that he won't stop until he finds his nemesis and has revenge. Because this time it's personal.
The novel starts out with the following sentence: "Call me Ishmael." What sort of relationship does this establish between narrator and reader?
Why does Melville include so much background info on whaling? In what ways, if any, does this shape your attitude toward the novel and its narrator?