To be in the presence of a great leader is to know a blighted soul who has managed to make the darkness work for him. Ishmael says it best: "For all men tragically great are made so through a certain morbidness. Be sure of this, O young ambition, all mortal greatness is but a disease." In chapter 36, "The Quarter-Deck, " Melville show us how susceptible we ordinary people are to the seductive power of a great and demented man. Nathaniel Philbrick
About This Quote

A great leader can be a blight on the world, a man who is capable of doing great evil and terrible things while at the same time being able to make people believe he is doing good. In Moby Dick, Ishmael gives us a vivid description of such a person: "For all men tragically great are made so through a certain morbidness. Be sure of this, O young ambition, all mortal greatness is but a disease." That's why Ishmael says that the world is full of great men who have been crippled by madness.

Source: Why Read Mobydick?

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