BILLY BUDD, SAILOR BY HERMAN MELVILLE In December 1885, Herman Melville finally retired from his job at the New York Custom House. Unable to support himself through his writing, he had been working there for 19 years as a customs inspector. He was 66 years old, and he had not written fiction in almost 30 years, though he had been writing and publishing poetry steadily. At some point during the following two years, he began to work on a …
showed first 75 words of 5996 total

showed last 75 words of 5996 total
…call attention to its limitations by reproducing it at the end of Billy Budd suggests that was he approached the end of his writing career, Melville rediscovered the power of prose fiction. It is if the story of the young sailor Billy Budd was too potent to be contained within a brief ballad, as if it demanded the particular kind of subtle and detailed presentation that is possible on the in prose fiction. -Chris420ya 3/19/03