Melville, Herman (1819-1891) - An American author who used his experiences
at sea as the basis for his writings. Melville received little literary
attention during his career, and it was not until thirty years after his
death that he began to be recognized as one of America's greatest writers.
Benito Cereno (1856) - The story of an African slaver, generally thought to
be the best of Melville's shorter works. It is a parable of slavery, written
at the dawn of the civil war, about a black crew's desire for freedom.
