Billy Budd, Sailor

By Herman Melville

Herman Melville's final masterpiece, found unpublished on his desk at his death.

Billy Budd, Sailor would emerge, after its publication in 1924, as one of Melville's best-loved books--and one of his most open, with its discussion of homosexualty.

In it, Melville returns to the sea to tell the story of Billy, a cheerful, hard working, and handsome young sailor, conscripted to work against his will on another ship, where he soon finds himself persecuted by Claggart, the paranoid master-at-arms. As things escalate beyond the naive Billy's control, tragedy looms on the horizon like Melville's great white whale, and the story become Melville's final, sublime plunge into the classic tussle between civilization and chaos, between oppression and freedom, as well as the book in which he discusses homosexuality most openly.

One of the major works of American literature.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Dec 6, 2016
• ISBN: 9781612195865

Herman Melville

Herman Melville (1819-1891) was an American novelist, poet, and short story writer. Following a period of financial trouble, the Melville family moved from New York City to Albany, where Allan, Herman’s father, entered the fur business. When Allan died in 1832, the family struggled to make ends meet, and Herman and his brothers were forced to leave school in order to work. A small inheritance enabled Herman to enroll in school from 1835 to 1837, during which time he studied Latin and Shakespeare. The Panic of 1837 initiated another period of financial struggle for the Melvilles, who were forced to leave Albany. After publishing several essays in 1838, Melville went to sea on a merchant ship in 1839 before enlisting on a whaling voyage in 1840. In July 1842, Melville and a friend jumped ship at the Marquesas Islands, an experience the author would fictionalize in his first novel, Typee (1845). He returned home in 1844 to embark on a career as a writer, finding success as a novelist with the semi-autobiographical novels Typee and Omoo (1847), befriending and earning the admiration of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Oliver Wendell Holmes, and publishing his masterpiece Moby-Dick in 1851. Despite his early success as a novelist and writer of such short stories as “Bartleby, the Scrivener” and “Benito Cereno,” Melville struggled from the 1850s onward, turning to public lecturing and eventually settling into a career as a customs inspector in New York City. Towards the end of his life, Melville’s reputation as a writer had faded immensely, and most of his work remained out of print until critical reappraisal in the early twentieth century recognized him as one of America’s finest writers.

Reviews for Billy Budd, Sailor

[kristelh_15 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Rating 3.67ReviewThis work was published after the author's death and was unfinished. It therefore has a lot of publications. I listened to the audio which was considered complete. It did choose to not change the name of the ship and went with the original name. The work is also controversial in some think it a religious paean and some a jaded satire. As in Melville's other works; we have conflict, conflict of the individual with society. Billy Budd, the young naive sailor, an innocent. We have Claggert the Master at Arms who is intelligent and devisive and Captain the Honorable Edward Fairfax Vere. Billy Budd is taken from a merchant marine ship and inscripted or made a part of a press gang. He went from a ship called Rights of Man to a 74 Gun frigate. He went willingly without fuss. This is conflict of the individual with government which strips him of his rights. On the ship Billy is a favorite except with Claggert. Why Claggert takes a dislike to Billy, we never really know. Billy has a stutter. In Melville's work, he lays the blame to the devil leaving his mark. So the conflict is more than with societal or an autocratic government. Billy Budd is said to be a Christ figure. Billy does not know his father and answers, "God knows"The works of Melville are also historical.Great Mutiny at NoreFrench Revolution and NapoleonAdmiral Sir Horatio Nelson, the national hero who commanded the British fleet at the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar. Another conflict that occurs is for Captain Vere who knows that Billy is an innocent but he is forced to follow law over conscience. And a conflict of good and evil. Billy being the good or innocent and Claggert the evil. Billy is innocent and cannot see the danger he is in. There really is no winner in the these conflicts and maybe evil actually wins over innocence. Thus the debate at the end between Purser and surgeon represent faith vs skepticism. And this same debate still exist with readers whether Melville is writing a Christian allegory or a satire. A quick read and the audio was well done. I will read it again as it is very quick.

[citizenjoyce · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In 2018 this novella is quite dated. The heart-wrenching decision to follow the letter of the law no matter how immoral the punishment has no meaning in tump America where the idea is that regardless of how moral a law might be there is no need to follow it if it interferes with personal desires. Melville would be shocked.

[benuathanasia · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Boring. Like most of Melville's work it's so crammed with technical asides that there's little to no room for decent story telling.

[auntieknickers · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Slightly handicapped by its being over 40 years since I read this book, but there's a reason it's a classic and has even been made into an opera. Much to say about evil and innocence. Highly recommended.

[glennbell_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This is a very disappointing book. Herman Melville is considered an excellent writer and there is a sense in which the prose is well written but the plot and the symbolism is poor. The implausibility of a sailor being accidentally killing his accuser in front of the Captain of the ship because of his fainting during his accusing makes the story worthless. Furthermore, the decision to have him executed even though they knew him not guilty of murder is improbable. The symbolism of the Christ-like death of Billy is silly. I understand that Herman must have been a rather religious person and he stole his themes from the Bible. Frankly, this book is not worth reading and I regret the time I wasted reading it.

[tadad_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I know it's a classic. I don't care. Melville is just not to my taste. There's nothing wrong with the themes of the novel, nor the plot. I just don't like the writing.

[jcamilo_720582 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Although well know for Moby Dick, the truth is that Melville left us a few minor materworks such as Billy Budd. An allegory about Jesus? Or just a rant against physical punishment in the Navy? Just like his whale, it is possible to find different meanings in this book.

[ashryan_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Billy Budd tells the story of an impressed sailor wrongfully accused of mutiny. I don't want to spoil what happens from there, but Melville examines themes of whether morality is a matter of intentions rather than consequences and whether the law can take this into account and fully serve justice, and whether innocence is enough to guarantee happiness in this life or whether hatred and envy can triumph over goodness. It's not as obscure as Moby Dick, though Melville does end it on that note, and while it doesn't have as much humor or grandeur (of a sort) as Moby Dick it fares pretty well in that regard considering its much shorter length. It's also not as polished, since it was an unfinished manuscript rather than a final draft, but I thought it was a powerful and well-told story, and on the whole I personally enjoyed it more than Moby Dick.

[lisamaria_c · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I felt ambivalent about Moby Dick; I loved the grandeur of some of the language and beauty of some of the prose, but hated the lengthy digressions. With Billy Budd, a novella published after Melville's death, I also feel ambivalent, but here my problems are more integral, not just a matter of cutting away what I see as blubber. I've seen this described as allegory: like allegory, it often can come across as all too heavy handed. Billy Budd is the Christ-figure of almost pure good; Claggart is painted very much as a Satanic figure who hates Billy for his virtues. Captain Vere is a more complex figure. Given his position in this drama it would be easy to see him as Jehovah, as God the father, yet Melville speaks of his "mental disturbance." The narrator is intrusive--and he does things like say "for a literary sin then divergence will be"--and then goes on digressing. The narrator has a tone of omniscience, relates things only an omniscient narrator would know--then demurs he has complete knowledge and presents things as his guesses. The narration often struck me as ponderous, high-strung, melodramatic, and in describing Billy (described every several paragraphs as the "Handsome Sailor") so very, very gay. And yet there are some piercing psychological insights--and some really beautiful touches. (In the context of what was happening, the simple sentence "Billy ascended" was powerful and chilling.) Not a story I'd call a favorite, but worth reading.

[whitreidtan · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

When a friend of mine from high school couldn't sell this book back at the end of the year and threatened to throw it out instead, I happily offered to take it off of his hands and save it from the bin. I mean, I have always been a fan of free books and I prided myself on being able to read and enjoy literature that frustrated and bored others. It turns out I should have let him throw the book in the trash can no matter how free it was. If Ahab had been real (and yes, I know that this is not Moby-Dick, which I, in fact, read long ago, and Ahab plays no part here), I would have begged him to take off his wooden leg and beat Melville around the head until he was too insensible to write any more of his dreadfully boring and tormenting works. In case I'm being too subtle, this is a roundabout way of admitting that I loathed this novella and short story collection and it took me well over a year to work my way through it, forcing myself all the way, unwilling to let it defeat me. The longest section of the book is the novella, Billy Budd. The story of a sweet, comely, exceedingly strong, and perfect sailor who in a moment of passion, accidently kills his accuser and therefore must be condemned to hang as per naval law, the tale is full of digressions and philosophical weavings and quite honestly, I was ready to hang this paragon of virtue myself by the end of it all just to be finished. Interpreting Billy as Adam, sinning through no fault of his own but doomed to be punished heavily for that sin or as a Christ figure, making the ultimate sacrifice in order that goodness might triumph over evil, did nothing to make the story more appealing or enjoyable. Perhaps I just don't like allegories, having had this visceral reaction to others as well. But the other stories in the collection were almost as tedious as Billy Budd with the slight advantage that they were shorter. And while I fully appreciate Melville's place in the American literature canon, I'd be happy to be the one to light the fuse and blow him away over the yardarm. (And yes, before any smug and pretentious defenders of literature come out of the woodwork, I do know the difference between canon and cannon and made a deliberate choice here.)

[charlie68_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A short but deep account of the life of Billy Budd. Well-written and charmingly expressed.

[engpunk77 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I remember really liking this one in college. I had to read closely for clues to who the mutineer really was...a few images come to mind, but I remember really liking it.

[bradkautz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Billy Budd is a short novel by Herman Melville. It was written towards the end of his life and was unfinished at the time of his death, being discovered amidst his papers and published by his biographer. It is a gem of writing. It is compact in the telling of the central elements of its story but rich in its use of language to give the reader a sense of being physically present as the story unfolds. There are three principal characters and just one brief moment when they are all together. Suspense builds as the pivotal moment approaches, and the way in which it unfolds is completely unexpected. I found this story to be compelling and thought-provoking.

[rajivc_18 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I like this book though, like "Lord Jim", that I recently read, I had to get used to the writing style all over again. The sentences are long, and need concentration in order to understand. Yet, in this book, they convey an almost lyrical, poetic quality to the story, and you feel the emotion and the atmosphere of the scenes that Melville creates.The tragedy of Billy Budd does stay on - an abandoned child, illiterate, good-looking, almost innocent in his persona, condemned to death for one mistake made in panic, over a charge that was patently false, and made with malicious intent. Is this an allegory on life as well? As an old coach once said, 'Life is not fair. Neither is it fair. It is what it is'. Having said that, innocent die and the world forgets those who are not in positions of power. This is clearly demonstrated in the epilogue.The book could have been written in a style that is angry and bitter. Yet, the lyrical quality of the writing makes the tale even more poignant.

[joririchardson · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I disliked this flatly written, inexpressive book. Every description and event seems very removed, and is recounted in a far off, stiffly written style. I also disliked Melville's depiction of the main character, Billy Budd "The Handsome Sailor" as painstakingly perfect. He is described as if the paragon of human nature and physical appearance. Billy's only flaw is that he develops a stutter when alarmed. I have never liked main characters like this, partly because they are boring to read about, and also partly because they always seem amazingly unrealistic.The storyline is about a perfectly honorable sailor - the hero Billy Budd - falsely accused of betraying his beloved captain, which ultimately ends in his execution.That was another thing I did not like about the plot - the evil character of Claggart is victorious in the end.I suppose that if you don't mind the haughtily excessive wording of needless descriptions, Melville's writing is admittedly detailed and well worded.It is very short - but don't expect on being able to breeze through it. Difficult reading due to a lack of dialogue and, as said, endless description and old fashioned wording.I would not recommend this book - read "Moby Dick" instead!

[soylentgreen23 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

'Moby Dick' is one of the most intense, amazing books I've ever read, but until recently it was the only thing of Melville's that I'd worked through. 'Billy Budd' appears on the 1001 list, and I found a copy, so I thought, why not?It was a struggle at times to see the plot for the words, so to speak; Melville's prose is not the refined English that one would expect from a more modern writer. It's full of excuses for why the story is being written, why characters are introduced, why places and scenes were chosen or visited. Nowadays this is all extraneous, and rightly so.The stories themselves were interesting though, and once I got used to Melville's style again I did quite enjoy myself.

[pinkpandaparade_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Reading Herman Melville's book for the second time, I found that it made an interesting perspective on the law and human judgment, and how they sometimes come into conflict.Throughout life and history, laws have been around to define the boundaries between right and wrong, and providing appropriate punishment for those who overstep these boundaries. Most would say that the definitions for these boundaries are reasonable and easy to abide to. Sometimes, though, these definitions come into question. In Billy Budd the law defining the firm criteria of what constituted mutiny--the martial law--was contested by one of the ship's officers, the virtuous and seemingly flawless Billy Budd. The punishment facing him was death by hanging.Billy Budd was well-loved by all his workmates (except Master-at-Arms Claggart) and was called the "Handsome Sailor". On the ship, the Bellipotent Billy finds himself in an interesting situation as an envious Claggar is intent on framing Billy for treason.What makes Billy's breaking of the law different is the unique circumstances surrounding it. One of the characters, Captain Vere, makes no apology for this and instead justifies the punishment by saying that law can sometimes contradict human nature, and one must always show allegiance to the king and their duties as crew members. Though he mentions human nature, established law takes precedence in conflicts. Still, because humans make these laws, there is the possibly of human error and judgment. The law in this novel shows how the leaders keep order in society. Crew members made half-hearted attempts to refute him, but none could deny the existence of that law, so plain in existence and so straightforward in content.As with all of Melville's work, this was not an easy reading. There are the author's distinctive character descriptions and his digressions, but that does not mean that the book is entirely inaccessible. Some editions of this book have other stories included, as well as readers' supplements and bibliographies. There are a couple of movie editions of this book, including one with Terence Stamp and Peter Ustinov, as well as an opera.

[indygo88 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I wasn't familiar with the story of Billy Budd, and not being much of a classics reader, I think the abridged audiobooks are good enough to give the reader an idea of what the story's about. But the reader of this particular very abridged version read fast, which makes following the story a little difficult. I haven't read Moby Dick either, but I'm not sure I truly appreciate the prose of Melville. I found him rather wordy, especially near the beginning, & it wasn't until midway through the story that I felt like I was becoming engaged. And then near the end, my interest waned again. Maybe it was the abridgement -- I don't know. It didn't end as I'd expected, which took me by surprise, & wasn't particularly an uplifting note to end a book on.

[corinneblackmer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A classic of homosexual writing that exhibits how Melville idealized the youthful Christian sailor Billy Budd as a Christ figure and abhorred the sodomite Claggert.

[laserwraith_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The first half of the book was very very slow. *Everything* had to be explained with a long allegory, it seemed. And then, sometimes the allegory needed explaining. But after the half-way point, things got a bit better. Their was some more action.

[timpaul_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A good friend introduced me to an alternative reading of this novel, in which the narrator is obsessed with upholding the heroic myth of Billy Budd. Every incident is spun out by the narrator to show Billy in the most positive light possible, and Claggart as his evil opposite. If you look closely at the text for the 'facts' of the story though there's not a shred of evidence to support this romantic view of Billy.In fact, reading between the lines, it's possible to read Claggart as a basically decent man stuck in an impossible situation, and Billy as a charismatic psychopath with a tyrannical grip on his shipmates.A benefit of this interpretation is that it makes sense of the circumlocutions of the narrator's dialogue, as he turns somersaults trying to maintain the myth of The Handsome Sailor.It's also an appropriately cynical response from an author near the end of his life, looking back at the success of his earlier, more romantic, adventure stories.

[kanarthi-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A densely written work which explores the nature of good and evil in human souls. The writing is like a beautiful tapestry. You won't get through it quickly, but each sentence is worth savoring. Make sure you get a version with good annotations, as there are many historical and cultural references.

[schmechi · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Herman Melville schildert die tragische Geschichte von Billy Budd, einem zum Kriegsdienst gepressten Matrosen, der seinen Dienst dennoch vorbildlich versieht. Seine Hingabe, Beliebtheit und Schönheit erweckt die Missgunst eines Vorgesetzten, der ihn in eine Falle lockt und der Meuterei bezichtigt. Aufgrund eines angeborenen Sprachfehlers unfähig sich zu verteidigen, schlägt Billy Budd zu und tötet den Vorgesetzten. Das Kriegsgericht unter Kapitän Vere gerät nun in eine Zwickmühle zwischen moralischen Bedenken und militärischer Pflicht. Bezeichnend ist eine Aussage Veres, die ich stellvertretend für das Dilemma des Gerichts zitieren will: "Von einem Engel Gottes erschlagen. Aber der Engel muss hängen."Der Kurzroman strotzt - wie bei Melville üblich - von historischen Exkursen, Metaphern und Symbolik ist aber dennoch flüssig zu lesen. Letzlich bleibt der Leser aber dennoch etwas unbefriedigt, zumal die Handlung selbst nicht wirklich zu überzeugen vermag.