Herman Melville ranks among one of the greatest American authors. He wrote some of the best literature works ever. He blended adventure, symbolism, fiction, and fact into all of his creations. Melville's personal experiences in faraway places also helped him develop his novels. Due to his literature works and sea travels, Melville is one of America's greatest writers and poetess of all time.
             His life began in New York City on August 1, 1819. He was born to Allan and Maria Gansevoort Melville. His farther was a merchant from New England. He was also involved in the felt and fur import business. His mother came from an old, socially prominent New York Dutch family (Clendenning 1). The first eleven years of his life were very difficult for him. Herman suffered from extremely poor eyesight caused by a bout of scarlet fever. He was able to attend Male High School despite his difficulties.
             In 1831, his father died after suffering a financial and mental breakdown and the family soon moved to Albany, New York (1). Melville tried to support the family by working a number of various jobs. He worked as a clerk in his brother's hat store, worked in his uncle's bank, taught school near Pittsfield, Massachusetts (1). However, by the mid-1830's Melville had shipped out on the merchant ship, St. Lawrence, to Liverpool, England, as a cabin boy. He described this adventure in the novel Redburn. Melville later returned to America and continued to seek out ways of helping his family. He never could find work so, in January 1841, He returned east and sailed out on the whaler Acushnet on a voyage to the South Seas.
             In June of the following year, the ship anchored in what is now known as the French Polynesia. His adventures here, somewhat romanticized, became the subject of his first novel, Typee (Melville 1). In August of that same year, he registered with the crew of the Australian whaler Lucy Ann. Soon after the shi...