Father Mapple

Father Mapple is a fictional character in Herman Melville’s 1851 novel Moby-Dick. A former whaler, he now serves as a preacher at the New Bedford Whaleman’s Chapel.

The novel’s narrator, Ishmael, attends a service where Mapple delivers a sermon concerning the biblical figure Jonah. In the sermon, Mapple focuses on the story of Jonah being swallowed by a whale while emphasizing that the man did not turn against God.