rn, Melville decided that he did not desire a maritime career and began work as a schoolteacher in Greenbush, New York until it's closing when he began to teach in Brunswick. Melville would soon join the crew of the Acushnet, a whaling ship that had set sail January 3rd, 1841. The opening of the Acushnet's sails "...would prove to be for literature one of the most important voyages of all time."
             Melville would see much of the South Seas and would eventually escape from the Acushnet with a companion of his. They would eventually stumble upon a group of unfriendly cannibals known as the Taipis. His stay with the Taipis would inspire his first work Typee. Several months later, he would escape to another whaling ship, the Lucy Ann, where the crew would threaten mutiny. Melville's adventures in the South Seas would have great inspiration on his writings, especially with Typee, Omoo, and Moby Dick.
             On August 17th, 1843, Melville would enlist in the U.S. Navy and would begin the framework for White Jacket. Melville's absence wo
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