美国与文学读书报告.docVIP

外国语学院《美国文学》课程 The relation between Human and Nature of Moby Dick 论《白鲸》小说人与自然的关系 指导教师：许晓琴教授、博士 学生姓名： 李 丹 班 级：09级英语本科班 完成日期：2012年月日 The relation between Human and Nature of Moby Dick Basic Information Name of the book: Moby Dick Publishing house: Bantam classics Publishing time: 1981-02-01 ISBN: 0553213113 Reading date: Winter vacation, 2012 Introduction to the author Herman Melville (August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick. His first three books gained much contemporary attention (the first, Typee, becoming a bestseller), and after a fast-blooming literary success in the late 1840s, his popularity declined precipitously in the mid-1850s and never recovered during his lifetime. When he died in 1891, he was almost completely forgotten. It was not until the Melville Revival in the early 20th century that his work won recognition, especially Moby-Dick, which was hailed as one of the literary masterpieces of both American and world literature. He was the first writer to have his works collected and published by the Library of America. Herman Melville was born in New York City on August 1, 1819, the third of eight children of Allan and Maria Gansevoort Melville. Part of a well-established and colorful Boston family, Melvilles father spent a good deal of time abroad as a commission merchant and an importer of French dry goods. The authors paternal grandfather, Major Thomas Melvill, an honored participant of the Boston Tea Party who refused to change the style of his clothing or manners to fit the times, was depicted in Oliver Wendell Holmess poem The Last Leaf. Herman visited him in Boston, and his father turned to him in his frequent times of financial need. Melvilles roving disposition and a desire to support himself independently of family assistance led him to seek work as a surveyor on the Erie Canal. This effort failed, and his brother helped him get a job