Herman Melville: An Introduction

This unique introduction explores Herman Melville as he described himself in Billy Budd – “a writer whom few know.” Moving beyond the recurring depiction of Melville as the famous author of Moby–Dick , this book traces his development as a writer while providing the basic tools for successful critical reading of his novels. Using the extraordinary “Agatha” correspondence with Nathaniel Hawthorne as a key to Melville′s writing practices, beliefs, and inclinations, the volume introduces Melville as a writer who constantly reflected on his craft and experimented with new forms and genres. Arranged chronologically, the volume focuses on Typee, Moby–Dick , and Billy Budd , as well as other novels, short fiction, and poems, to explore Melville′s distinctive narrative style. A biography, summaries of key works, interpretation, commentary, and an extensive bibliography are all included.

Texts and Abbreviations. List of Illustrations. Acknowledgments. Preface. Part I: Introduction . 1. Melville’s Life. 2. ‘Agatha’ and the Invention of Narrative. Part II: Melville’s Early Yarns. 3. ‘Making Literary Use of the Story’: Typee and Omoo . 4. ‘A Regular Story Founded on Striking Incidents’: Mardi, Redburn , and White–Jacket . Part III: Writing New Gospel in Moby–Dick and Pierre . 5. ‘So Much of Pathos & So Much of Depth’: Moby–Dick . 6. ‘All Tender Obligations’: Pierre. Part IV: Turning a New Leaf: Short Fiction, Israel Potter , and The Confidence–Man . 7. ‘A Leaf from Professional Experience’: Short Fiction of the 1850s. 8. ‘Peculiarly Latitudinarian Notions’: Israel Potter and The Confidence–Man . Part V: Melville’s Later Career. 9. ‘Fulness & Veins & Beauty’: Battle–Pieces and Clarel . 10. ‘Different Considerations’: Late Poetry. 11. ‘Instinct with Significance’: Billy Budd. Afterword: ‘Restoring To You Your Own Property’: Owning Melville. Appendix: The ‘Agatha’ Correspondence. Notes. Bibliography. Index

Wyn Kelley is a Senior Lecturer in the Literature Faculty at MIT. She is the author of Melville′s City: Literary and Urban Form in Nineteenth–Century New York (1996) and editor of A Companion to Herman Melville (Blackwell, 2006) and an edition of Benito Cereno 2006, and has also written a number of essays on Melville. She is Associate Director of the Melville Society journal Leviathan .

“Read alongside Melville′s original writings, this book will be an excellent companion for a Melville course. Essential.” ( Choice , November 2008)