# Tashtego — Moby-Dick character guide > Tashtego in Moby-Dick by Herman Melville. **Role:** minor **Also known as:** the Gay-Header, mad Gay-Header, Tash **First appearance:** 0027-xxiv-the-advocate ## Who they are A skilled Native American harpooner from Gay Head, who serves as Stubb's boat-steerer on the Pequod. ## In the story ### [Knights and Squires](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xxvii-knights-and-squires) An unmixed Indian from Gay Head, described as an inheritor of proud warrior hunters. He is Stubb's harpooneer, with a lithe, powerful build and 'Antarctic' glittering eyes. ### [Ahab](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xxviii-ahab) Mentioned indirectly; his senior, an old Gay-Head Indian, offers a superstitious account of how Ahab received his scar in an 'elemental strife at sea.' ### [XXXIII: The Specksnyder](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xxxiii-the-specksnyder) Implied as one of the harpooneers subject to the hierarchical customs and quartering arrangements described. ### [The Cabin-Table](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xxxiv-the-cabin-table) One of the harpooneers who feasts with frantic democracy; he threatens Dough-Boy with a fork to hasten service and playfully prepares to 'scalp' him. ### [The Quarterdeck](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xxxvi-the-quarterdeck) First names the white whale as 'Moby Dick,' asking if it 'fantails' curiously before sounding. ### [Midnight, Forecastle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xl-midnight-forecastle) Quietly observes the white sailors' idea of fun; comments cynically on the fight, drawing a parallel between brawling men and gods. ### [XLVII: The Mat-Maker](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xlvii-the-mat-maker) The mad Gay-Header; gives the thrilling cry 'There she blows!' from the masthead, acting like a prophet announcing the whales and breaking the ship's dreamy stillness. ### [XLVIII: The First Lowering](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xlviii-the-first-lowering) His keen eyes spot the whales first; he cries the warning that sends Stubb's boat into the chase. ### [LII: The Albatross](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lii-the-albatross) Implied to be one of the six lookouts aloft during the encounter. ### [LIV: The Town-Ho’s Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/liv-the-town-ho-s-story) Received the secret story from a Town-Ho sailor and revealed it in his sleep, passing it to the Pequod's crew. ### [The Line](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lx-the-line) Implied as a harpooneer engaged in the critical task of preparing the line. ### [LXI: Stubb Kills a Whale](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxi-stubb-kills-a-whale) The harpooner in Stubb's boat; he throws the initial harpoon and steers during the intense chase. ### [LXVII: Cutting In](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxvii-cutting-in) Implied as one of the attending harpooneers who could wield the boarding-sword, though not explicitly named. ### [LXXII: The Monkey-Rope](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxxii-the-monkey-rope) Along with Daggoo, mans a stage and uses whale-spades to kill sharks menacing Queequeg, though their zeal nearly endangers him. ### [LXXIV: The Sperm Whale’s Head—Contrasted View](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxxiv-the-sperm-whale-s-head-contrasted-view) Mentioned as one of the 'accomplished dentists' who works on extracting teeth from the sperm whale's jaw. ### [LXXVIII: Cistern and Buckets](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxxviii-cistern-and-buckets) The harpooneer who falls into the spermaceti cistern of the whale's head while baling it out, requiring a dramatic rescue. ### [LXXXI: The Pequod Meets the Virgin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxxxi-the-pequod-meets-the-virgin) One of the three harpooneers who simultaneously strikes the whale. ### [LXXXIV: Pitchpoling](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/lxxxiv-pitchpoling) Plants the initial harpoon in the fleeing whale, setting the stage for Stubb's pitchpoling maneuver. ### [XCIII: The Castaway](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xciii-the-castaway) In the heat of the hunt, he is ready to cut the line to free the boat from the whale, showing the crew's ruthless pragmatism. ### [XCVI: The Try-Works](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xcvi-the-try-works) Implied to be one of the 'pagan harpooneers' and 'Tartarean shapes' working at the try-pots. ### [XCVIII: Stowing Down and Clearing Up](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/xcviii-stowing-down-and-clearing-up) Implied as a key harpooneer and crew member participating in the intense physical labor of processing the whale and cleaning the ship. ### [CXII: The Blacksmith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/cxii-the-blacksmith) Implied as one of the 'headsmen' frequently invoking Perth's services on deck. ### [CXIII: The Forge](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/cxiii-the-forge) One of the three harpooneers who willingly gives his blood to temper the harpoon's barbs. ### [Midnight Aloft.—Thunder and Lightning](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/cxxii-midnight-aloft-thunder-and-lightning) Working on the yard during a storm, his muttered complaints blend practical labor with a superstitious or weary reaction to the tempest. ### [CXXV: The Log and Line](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/chapters/cxxv-the-log-and-line) Likely the 'grizzly Manxman' based on canonical aliases; handles the reel, warns about the line's condition, and mutters about the 'daft ones' at the end. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/characters/tashtego - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/moby_dick_se/characters