25 years work in verse. Included here are pieces from his most important verse, but poems of lesser regard also appear in the interest of exploring Melville's artistic development and correlation to his novels. Included are selections from "The Battle Pieces", which commemorate the Civil War, "Clarel", an ambitious work of epic length about travellers to the Holy Land, "John Marr and Other Sailors", drawn from his experience as a seaman, and pieces he had in planning such as those about a group called the "Burgundy Club" and a collection of verses dedicated to his wife. This third edition includes a new postscript by Hennig Cohen and his commentary on the poems throughout the volume.

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