Herman Melville

First published in 1851, Melville's masterpiece is, in Elizabeth Hardwicks words, "the greatest novel in American literature." The saga of Captain Ahab and his monomaniacal pursuit of the white whale remains a peerless adventure story but one full of mythic grandeur, poetic majesty, and symbolic power. Filtered through the consciousness of the novel's narrator, Ishmael, MODY-DICK draws us into a universe full of fascinating characters and stories, from the noble cannibal Queequeg to the natural history of whales, while reaching existential depths that excite debate and contemplation to this day. Introduction by Elizabeth Hardwick.

Unjustly accused of plotting mutiny, Billy Budd and his accuser are called to give account to the captain. Unable to answer due to a speech impediment, Billy Budd lashes out and accidentally kills his accuser, setting in motion a court martial that sets his life at stake. 166 pages, softcover.

G. Thomas Tanselle, editor. Moby-Dick, Melville's great masterpiece, is presented in the authoritative Northwestern-Newberry text. This epic tale appears along with two other stories of the sea: Redburn, about a young man's initiation into the sailor's life, and White-Jacket, a semi-autobiographical account of experiences in the Navy.

"Ambiguites indeed! One long brain-muddling, soul bewildering ambiguity (to borrow Mr. Melville's style), like Melchisedeck, without beginning or end - a labyrinth without a clue - an Irish bog without so much as a Jack o' th'-lantern to guide the wanderer's footsteps - the dream of a distempered stomach, disordered by a hasty supper on half-cooked pork chops." So judged the New York Herald when Pierrre was first published in 1852, with most contemporary reviewers joining in the general condemnation: " a dead failure," "this crazy rigmarole." and "a literary mare's nest." Latter-day critics have recognized in the story of Melville's idealistic young hero a corrosive satire of the sentimental-Gothic novel, and a revolutionary foray into modernist literary techniques. As William Spengemann writes his introduction to this edition, "For anyone who, being aware of the culture of modernity, is curious about its origins, Pierre ranks with Coleridge's 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner,' Carlyle's Sartor Resartus, Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter, and the poems of Emily Dickenson as one of the privileged places where the dead past can be seen giving way inexorably to the living present."

Part satire, part allegory, part hoax, The Confidence-Man is a slippery metaphysical comedy set on April Fool's Day aboard the Mississippi steamer Fidele. Through the conversations of his confidence men Melville explores America and American values and plays with theories of trust.

Typee (1846) is the first 'romance' of the semi-autobiographical account of life in the Marquesas Islands in the 1840s. A blend of personal experience and the narratives of explorers and missionaries, it influenced many later writers on the Paciflc, including Robert Louis Stevenson and Jack London. Melville himself deserted from a whaling ship in the islands and lived for four weeks among the inhabitants, observing and recording their way of life. Typee points up the wonders, the dilemmas, the 'fatal impact' of European encounter with the peoples of the Pacific. This edition offers an introduction that considers the book from a post-colonial perspective, and detailed annotation of Melville's allusions.

Within the taut power structure of life aboard ship, the young Redburn suffers the bullying and brutality of officers and men, and encounters below deck the dominating presence of the sickly and manic Jackson.

This old-time favorite is now written in a way that makes it easier for the children to understand. Each chapter also has a vocabulary list and focus places for the children to mind. At the end of each chapter it also has a comprehension check for the children to take.

This episode in the Masters of American Literature DVD Series, The Melville Legacy,explores the life and works of Herman Melville (1819-1891), one of America's most renowned 19th century authors. In his novels, Typee, Omoo, and Moby Dick, Melville demonstrates his mastery of the epic sea story, the latter considered by many to be the preeminent American novel. This DVD offers students and teachers a complete overview of the life, times and writing of Herman Melville, focusing on Moby Dick. Divided into five chapters, each program is intended for class and group discussion. Grades 8-12. 30 minutes on DVD.