Billy Budd, Foretopman (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Herman Melville
- First Published: 1924
- Type of Work: Novella
- Genres: Long fiction, Historical fiction, Allegory, Sea story, Novella
- Subjects: Class conflict, Religion, God, Eighteenth century, Christianity, Good and evil, Symbolism, Ships, Sailing or sailors, Sea or seafaring life, Adventure, Mutiny
- Locales: England, Oceans
Billy Budd, Foretopman was written during Melville's final years. He may have begun it after reading “The Mutiny on the Somers” in The American Magazine in June, 1888. Melville's cousin Guert Gansevoort had been a lieutenant on the U.S. brig-of-war Somers in 1842 and had been a member of the military court that condemned a young seaman accused of mutiny. Melville may have wanted an opportunity to reinterpret the situation.
The manuscript was discovered after his death, and it was not published until 1924. Many critics have suggested that Billy...
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See Also:
Herman Melville (Cyclopedia of World Authors)Herman Melville (Poetry)Herman Melville (Short Fiction)Herman Melville (Long Fiction)Herman Melville (Dictionary of World Biography)
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