Whale's Eyes

I am closing in on the last few hours of reading Moby Dick's conclusion. I admit I am skimming the details that are slowing down the action. However, there is one detail that I paused at, and thought about. It is one of those things that is obvious, but I am not sure I ever really pondered it before. A whale, unlike humans, has eyes on the far sides of its head. In the case of a whale like Moby Dick, a Sperm Whale, the distance between those two eyes is enormous, the fields of vision diametrically opposed, and separated by a huge wall of blackness (the whale's block-like gigantic snout.) So what exactly does the whale see? Unlike us, with two eyes that merge one visual field complete with depth perception, the whale must see two completely different scenes simultaneously. And I don't see how there could be depth perception since that requires two sources of vision from different vantage points on the same object. Whale's don't have that. They see two totally different worlds at the same time.

This is mind boggling to me. The whale sees the separate world on either side of his body, but only a vast wall of darkness ahead. What a marvel is the brain that allows him to process these two disparate visions and not spend all day every day sitting on the bottom of the ocean saying, "Way cool!" until he drowns!

What if he sees an enemy approaching from the right and from the left? What a conundrum for the whale brain to respond to. Perhaps that is why God gave him no natural enemies...except Man. I am not loving the story of Moby Dick. It horrifies me to visualize the killing of these magnificent, intelligent, peaceful creatures.

I thought about how difficult it would be to not be able to look ahead, to only know what is going on to either side of you. I know they have other senses like sonar, but still, I can't imagine seeing like a whale. But the more I thought of it, the more sense it made. We humans are obsessed with moving forward, with single minded purpose, and often tunnel vision. Our very ocular structure is designed for linear, singular purpose. On the other hand, the peaceful whale takes in his surroundings. He considers "both sides of the story" simultaneously, and each has equal access to his brain. Somehow, the disparate become one within the whale skull, and harmonize. Maybe that is why the whale undulates through the ocean singing songs while we humans are continually engaged in conflict.

Psalm 34:14-15 (NIV)
Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. [15] The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry


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