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The Writings of Herman Melville, Vol. 1: Typee - A Peep at Polynesian Life
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The Writings of Herman Melville, Vol. 1: Typee - A Peep at Polynesian Life Paperback - 1992

by Melville, Herman

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paperback. Good. Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items. May be an ex-library book.
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Summary

Typee is a fictional, but heavily autobiographical book by Herman Melville. Based on his own three weeks as a captive on Nuku Hiva, Melville's protagonist spends four months trapped on the island. Melville also fleshed out the story with details provided by contemporary explorers. The book was his most popular during his lifetime and provided significant groundwork for later tales of European and Pacific cultures meeting.

First line

SIX months at sea!

From the rear cover

Typee (1846) is the first 'romance' of the semi-autobiographical account of life in the Marquesas Islands in the 1840s. A blend of personal experience and the narratives of explorers and missionaries, it influenced many later writers on the Paciflc, including Robert Louis Stevenson and Jack London. Melville himself deserted from a whaling ship in the islands and lived for four weeks among the inhabitants, observing and recording their way of life. Typee points up the wonders, the dilemmas, the 'fatal impact' of European encounter with the peoples of the Pacific. This edition offers an introduction that considers the book from a post-colonial perspective, and detailed annotation of Melville's allusions.

About the author

Herman Melville (1819-91) was an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist. His novels include Moby-Dick, Omoo, and The Confidence-Man, all published in authoritative editions by Northwestern University Press.