Writings of Herman Melville
2 total works
Almost from the time of its publication early in 1846, Melville's first book, based on his own travels in the South Seas, has been recognized as a classic in the literature of travel and adventure. From the beginning, however, there have been problems with the text. Due to disparities between the American and English editions, and revisions Melville had to make at his publisher's request concerning its racy style and attitude toward missionaries, the book has circulated in two versions.
This scholarly edition is based on collations of all editions published during his lifetime, incorporating many authorial readings that have often been omitted and some that have been misprinted in all previous editions. This edition is an Approved Text of the Center for Editions of American Authors (Modern Language Association of America).
This scholarly edition is based on collations of all editions published during his lifetime, incorporating many authorial readings that have often been omitted and some that have been misprinted in all previous editions. This edition is an Approved Text of the Center for Editions of American Authors (Modern Language Association of America).
Although he surprised the world in 1866 with his first published book of poetry, ""Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War"", Herman Melville had long been steeped in poetry. This new offering in the authoritative ""Northwestern-Newberry"" series, ""The Writings of Herman Melville"", with a historical note by Hershel Parker, is testament to Melville the poet. Penultimate in the publication of the series, Published Poems follows the release of Melville's verse epic, ""Clarel"" (1876), and with it, contains the entirety of the poems published during Melville's lifetime: ""Battle-Pieces"", as well as ""John Marr and Other Sailors"", with ""Some Sea-Pieces"" (1888), and ""Timoleon"" Etc. (1891). As with the other volumes in the ""Northwestern-Newberry"" series, the aim of this edition of Published Poems is to present a text as close to the author's intention as surviving evidence permits. To that end, the editorial appendix includes a historical note by Hershel Parker, the dean of Melville scholars, which gives a compelling, in-depth account of how one of America's greatest writers grew into the vocation of a poet; an essay by G. Thomas Tanselle on the printing and publishing history of the works in Published Poems; a textual record that identifies the copy-texts for the present edition and explains the editorial policy; and substantial scholarly notes on individual poems.