As Tommo tells the story of his journey into the interior of the Marquesan forest, he can't stop using hyperbole and exclamation to describe his surroundings and his experience with the Typee. Of course, we can imagine why. Here's a guy who has—up until a few days ago—been bored to tears on a ship. Of course he's seen a bit of Polynesian culture in earlier adventures, but he's just never been this...in it before.
The drama of his emotion is some of the most strongly stated in the book, leading us to wonder: is Tommo's emotion (despite his protests) "overdrawn," or has it been dulled by time and travel? Was it an even bigger deal for Melville?
Also: there's something else going on in the awe and amazement that makes us feel like Melville might have had some other intentions too. By making these highs so high, what effect does it have on the sense of Otherness we see in the Typee?
Questions About Awe & Amazement
- Everything's always the most, the best, or the darkest with Tommo. Does this narrator's use of hyperbole amplify, or water everything down?
- If you take out the awe and amazement Tommo feels with Fayaway, what do we know about her?
- How does the extreme beauty of the nature around Tommo affect his sense of being held captive?
- Are you an exclamation-point lover? Or do they make you roll your eyes? Could you care less?
- What does it do for you as a reader, encountering exclamation points in the pages of classic literature?
Chew on This
Melville's use of hyperbole makes the Typee tribe members seem a lot different than they actually are.
The use of exclamations and hyperbole is simply Tommo trying to make up for the moments where words inevitably fail him.