# Moby-Dick and Democracy

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/history-as-it-happens-7112446/moby-dick-and-democracy
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/history-as-it-happens-7112446/moby-dick-and-democracy.md
Podcast: [History As It Happens](https://stenobird.com/podcast/history-as-it-happens-7112446)
Published: 2026-07-14T11:43:00+00:00
Episode link: https://historyasithappens.libsyn.com/moby-dick-and-democracy
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/historyasithappens/HH-FREE-565-260714.mp3?dest-id=2566565
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/history-as-it-happens-7112446/episodes/moby-dick-and-democracy
Duration seconds: 2718

## Resource

Subscribe now for ad-free listening, early access, and bonus content. Herman Melville's masterpiece Moby-Dick has something to teach us about democracy, citizenship, and the rule of law. A flop when published in the mid-nineteenth century, Moby-Dick has long been considered a quintessential American novel — an epic adventure story layered with allegory. In this episode, historian Michael Kimmage revisits the novel with a focus on the character Starbuck, the first mate who clashes with Captain Ahab over his mad pursuit of the white whale. Recommended reading: Citizen Starbuck, or Democracy and the Whale by Michael Kimmage (Liberties Journal) Subscribe: https://historyasithappens.supercast.com/

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## Transcript

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