Herman Melville
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Major Issues Major Issues"Careful disorderliness" is a phrase used to describe whaling in Herman Melville’s most famous work, and it is a phrase which critics have used to describe the structure and content of Melville’s own literary works. Biographical and historical critics have traced Melville’s incorporation and transformation of experiences and events from his life and times, such as his years working at sea. Scholars have noted the difficulty in categorizing Melville’s writing: is it fictionalized fact, or factualized fiction? Voyages and quests figure largely in Melville’s work, which might also be read as fictionalized travel books. These journeys take place on many levels, of course. The huge shift in the critical reception of Melville’s work has been studied by critics. His self-conscious narratives are considered precursors to 20th century modernism and postmodernism. Author LinksThe Life and Works
of Herman Melville
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