Melville, Herman (1819-91), American novelist, a major literary figure whose exploration of psychological and metaphysical themes foreshadowed 20th-century literary concerns but whose works remained in obscurity until the 1920s, when his genius was finally recognized. Melville was born August 1, 1819, in New York City, into a family that had declined in the world. The Gansevoorts were solid, stable, eminent, prosperous people; the (Herman's Father's side) Melvilles were somewhat less successful materially, possessing an unpredictable. erratic, mercurial strain. (Edinger 6). This difference between the Melville's and Gansevoorts was the beginning of the trouble for the Melville family. Herman's mother tried to work her way up the social ladder by moving into bigger and better homes. While borrowing money from the bank, her husband was spending more than he was earning. It is my conclusion that Maria Melville never committed herself emotionally to her husband, but remained primarily attached to the well off Gansevoort family. (Humford 23) Allan Melville was also attached financially to the Gansevoorts for support. There is a lot of evidence concerning Melville's relation to his

He probably wished that his writing would be more popular among the readers, although he professed his own demise with Bartleby's atrophy. The expression of accepted failure was prevalent in Scrivener. Yet this did not make Melville any less desirous of fame and popularity. He still strove to deliver excellence in his works in any way possible. Every writer in history has had to find a place for himself in the mind of his readers before reaching a level of maturity and respect in this profession. The quality of work is judged solely on the readers perception of the work and nothing else. Melville was desirous of hitting the right cord with the readers and his audience. He wanted to be able to capture the attention of his audience and leave an impact on their minds, so that the tale would be remembered long after it had been read. With Moby Dick, he used the powerful tool of imaginative fantasy to capture the attention of his readers. The story incorporated the extraordinary, action, adventure, revenge, suspense...in fact every ingredient necessary for commercial success. But it didn't prove to be so. The book is appreciated not as a classic work and Melville has received much more fame in the present time frame. In Scrivener, he drew a picture of a man very similar to himself. A man sick of working, finally declines rapidly to reach his demise. However, in Herman Melville's 'Benito Cereno' reveals the author's disgust with Emersonian transcendentalism through the self-delusions of the protagonist. Cereno personifies nature, seeing it as a benevolent force that acts deliberately for the good of humanity. Melville makes it apparent that such idealism offers no practical use in a world that is as much evil as good, and will likely be a burden. Cereno is Melville's strongest example of his suspicions for the American idealist. In this one case through his expression of disgust towards the idealists and their idealism, he has portrayed the image of a hard core idealist who is converted to a realist through the experiences that he goes through. This also drew on his seafaring days as experience and he struggled to bring across the death of the idealist and the birth of the realist. But at the end of the day, whatever emotions he possessed about the nature of idealism and idealistic thought, still form an integral part of him. Whether or not the reader understands the general aura of wanting to achieve something from his creations, yet Melville still strove to be a commer

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Approximate Word count = 1673
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)