Proof:

1.  Matt Kish and his Zak Smithesque project to draw a picture for every page of Moby-Dick.

2.  The Whale by Philip Hoare

3.  The poem in this weeks New Yorker by Robert Pinsky: “Whale”

4.  Bands naming themselves after Melville’s masterpiece.

Will Tilikum going on a murder spree have any effect on this trend?  I’m not sure.