Flask

Flask commands the third whale-boat of the Pequod as one of the ship's three harpoon-wielding mates, standing alongside Starbuck and Stubb in the hierarchy of the hunt. Born in Tisbury, Martha's Vineyard, Flask carries the practical, unflinching spirit of a seasoned whaler who has somehow escaped the superstitious awe that grips more reflective men. Where others see danger and majesty in the sperm whale, Flask sees only a problem to be solved—an attitude born not of courage but of an almost willful blindness to peril. His good humor and lack of reverence make him a reliable, if unremarkable, officer; he neither shrinks from the chase nor is tormented by it. Stubb whispers to him on deck during Captain Ahab's first monomaniacal stirrings, and together they represent the crew's unthinking response to their captain's growing obsession. Flask's role is to execute orders and maintain the practical momentum of the hunt, asking straightforward questions ('What was it, Sir?' when confronted with the great squid) and accepting answers without the burden of deeper contemplation.