Melville-Herman Melville The DoverReader

Despite the early success of his tales of adventure in the South Seas Herman Melville (1819–1891) suffered a reversal of fortunes with the 1851 publication of Moby-Dick. The great epic now recognized as a masterpiece was scorned by an uncomprehending nineteenth-century audience. Melville's preoccupation with metaphysical and philosophical issues and his use of symbols and archetypes foreshadowed elements of latter-day literature and modern readers rejoice in his groundbreaking explorations of timeless questions.Along with excerpts from Moby-Dick this anthology presents the complete text of Melville's classic of travel and adventure literature Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life. Additional features include the short stories Bartleby the Scrivener The Paradise of Bachelors and the Tartarus of Maids and The Encantadas or Enchanted Isles.