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BIOGRAPHY
Herman Melville (1819-1891). The death of his merchant father when Melville was twelve shattered the economic security of his family. The financial panic of 1837 reduced the Melvilles to the edge of poverty, and, at age nineteen, Melville went to sea. Economic conditions upon his return were still grim, and after a frustrating stint as a country school teacher, he again went to sea, this time on a four-year whaling voyage. He deserted the whaler in the South Pacific, lived for some time with cannibals, made his way to Tahiti and Hawaii, and finally joined the navy for a return voyage.

He mined his experiences for two successful South Sea adventure books, Typee (1846) and Omoo (1847). On the strength of these successes he married, but his next novel, Mardi (1849), was too heavy-handed an allegory to succeed. Driven by the obligation to support his growing family, Melville returned to sea adventure stories, with moderate success. But neither his masterpiece, Moby Dick (1851), nor his subsequent short stories and novels found much of an audience, and, in 1886, he accepted an appointment as customs inspector in Manhattan, a job he held until retirement.

He continued to write, mostly poetry, and lived to see himself forgotten as an author. Billy Budd, found among his papers after his death and published in 1924, led to a revival of interest in Melville, now recognized as one of America's greatest writers.