Melville, Herman, 1819-1891
Name Entries
person
Melville, Herman, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Melville
Forename :
Herman
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
authorizedForm
rda
Мелвил, Герман, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Мелвил
Forename :
Герман
Date :
1819-1891
rus
Cyrl
alternativeForm
rda
Melṿil, Herman, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Melṿil
Forename :
Herman
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
ميلڤيل, هرمن, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
ميلڤيل
Forename :
هرمن
Date :
1819-1891
ara
Arab
alternativeForm
rda
Meville, Herman, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Meville
Forename :
Herman
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
麥爾維爾, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
麥爾維爾
Date :
1819-1891
chi
Mand
alternativeForm
rda
Tarnmoor, Salvator R., 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Tarnmoor
Forename :
Salvator R.
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
メルヴィル, ハーマン, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
メルヴィル
Forename :
ハーマン
Date :
1819-1891
jpn
Jpan
alternativeForm
rda
Melvill, German, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Melvill
Forename :
German
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
Мелвилл, Герман, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Мелвилл
Forename :
Герман
Date :
1819-1891
rus
Cyrl
alternativeForm
rda
Virginian spending July in Vermont, 1819-1891
Name Components
Forename :
Virginian spending July in Vermont
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
Melville, Hermann, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Melville
Forename :
Hermann
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
מלוויל, הרמן, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
מלוויל
Forename :
הרמן
Date :
1819-1891
heb
Hebr
alternativeForm
rda
Melvil, Cherman, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Melvil
Forename :
Cherman
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
Mai-erh-wei-erh, Ho-erh-man, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
Mai-erh-wei-erh
Forename :
Ho-erh-man
Date :
1819-1891
eng
Latn
alternativeForm
rda
מלויל, הרמן, 1819-1891
Name Components
Surname :
מלויל
Forename :
הרמן
Date :
1819-1891
heb
Hebr
alternativeForm
rda
Genders
Exist Dates
Biographical History
Herman Melville (b. Aug. 1, 1819, NY, NY–d. Sept. 28, 1891, NY, NY) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. His best known works include Typee (1846) and his whaling novel Moby-Dick (1851). His writing draws on his experience at sea as a common sailor, exploration of literature and philosophy, and engagement in the contradictions of American society in a period of rapid change. He developed a complex, baroque style; the vocabulary is rich and original, a strong sense of rhythm infuses the elaborate sentences, the imagery is often mystical or ironic, and the abundance of allusion extends to biblical scripture, myth, philosophy, literature, and the visual arts.
Melville was born in New York City, the third child of a merchant in French dry goods and his wife. He briefly became a schoolteacher before he took to sea in 1839 as a sailor on a merchant ship. In 1840, he signed aboard the whaler Acushnet for his first whaling voyage but jumped ship in the Marquesas Islands. He returned to Boston in 1844 after further adventures. His first book was Typee (1846), a highly romanticized account of his life among Polynesians. It became such a best-seller that he wrote the sequel Omoo (1847). These successes gave him the financial basis to marry Elizabeth Shaw, daughter of a prominent Boston family, but the success proved hard to sustain. His first novel that was not based on his own experiences was Mardi (1849), a sea narrative that develops into a philosophical allegory—but it was not well received. He received warmer reviews for Redburn (1849), a story of life on a merchant ship, and his 1850 description of the harsh life aboard a man-of-war in White-Jacket, but they did not provide financial security.
In August 1850, Melville moved his growing family to Arrowhead, a farm in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where he established a profound but short-lived friendship with Nathaniel Hawthorne, to whom he dedicated Moby-Dick. This novel was another commercial failure, published to mixed reviews. Melville's career as a popular author effectively ended with the cool reception of Pierre (1852), in part a satirical portrait of the literary culture at the time. His Revolutionary War novel Israel Potter appeared in 1855. From 1853 to 1856, Melville published short fiction in magazines, most notably "Bartleby, the Scrivener" (1853), "The Encantadas" (1854), and "Benito Cereno" (1855). These and three other stories were collected in 1856 as The Piazza Tales. The Confidence-Man (1857) was the last prose work that he published. He moved to New York to take a position as Customs Inspector and turned to poetry. Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War (1866) was his poetic reflection on the moral questions of the American Civil War.
eng
Latn
External Related CPF
https://id.loc.gov/authorities/n79006936
https://catalog.archives.gov/id/10580574
https://viaf.org/viaf/27068555
https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q4985
https://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n79006936
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Languages Used
eng
Latn
Subjects
American literature
Publishers and publishing
American poetry
Authors and publishers
Copyright
Manuscripts, American
Ocean travel
Presidents
Television scripts
Voyages and travels
Wine
Nationalities
Americans
Activities
Occupations
Teachers
Authors
Customs inspectors
Lecturers
Novelists
Poets
Publisher
Sailors
Legal Statuses
Places
New York
AssociatedPlace
Death
New York
AssociatedPlace
Birth
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<conventionDeclaration><citation>VIAF</citation></conventionDeclaration>