Billy Budd, Sailor (1924)

by Herman Melville

Other authors: See the other authors section.

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In 1797, young Billy Budd is impressed into naval service. It is a perilous time for a British Royal Navy still reeling from mutinies and marauding French ships. When Billy is forcibly transferred to HMS Bellipotent, he evokes the wrath of John Claggart, the ship's Master-at-arms. Claggart falsely accuses Billy of conspiracy to mutiny, a charge that will have a profound effect on the fates of both seamen.… (more)

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English (44) French (1) German (1) Italian (1) Spanish (1) All languages (48)

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The most interesting part of this book to me was the conflict between doing “real” justice, one the one hand, and doing what is required of us or what is instrumental to our goals on the other(s?).

Negatives: didn’t love the voice of the narrator, kind of dry (in the text I mean, not just the audiobook reader). I was not compelled by this book and probably would have gotten sleepy if I’d read a physical copy of it. That is a big plus of audiobooks, though.

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jammymammu | Jan 6, 2023 |

9781405072274

archivomorero | Jun 27, 2022 |

8481300578

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8481300578

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archivomorero | Jun 22, 2022 |

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▾Other authors

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Melville, Herman	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Busch, Frederick	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Ceni, Alessandro	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Di Biagi, Flaminio	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Freeman, Frederic Barron	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Hayford, Harrison	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Moering, Richard	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Palm, Johan M.	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Plomer, William	Introduction	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Sealts, Merton M., Jr.	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Weaver, Raymond M.	Editor	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Publisher Series

AMSCO Literature Series

Amstelboeken (98)

Audio Classics Library

Centopaginemillelire (79)

Elävä maailmankirjallisuus (18)

Enriched Classics

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I Libri dell'Unità (Storie di mare, 5)

Loomingu Raamatukogu 1966 (26)

Penguin Popular Classics

Simon and Schuster Enriched Classics

Tor Classics

Wereldbibliotheek-vereniging (1950)

Is contained in

Pierre, Israel Potter, The Piazza Tales, The Confidence-Man, Uncollected Prose, Billy Budd by Herman Melville

Works of Herman Melville by Herman Melville

Billy Budd and Other Stories by Herman Melville

Billy Budd, Bartleby, and Other Stories by Herman Melville (indirect)

Six Great Modern Short Novels by James Joyce

Four Great American Classics by Willard Thorp

(show 12 more)

Has the adaptation

Billy Budd: based on the novel by Herman Melville by Louis O. Coxe

Billy Budd [adapted - graphic novel - Pocket Classics] by Herman Melville

Beau Travail [1999 film] by Claire Denis

Is abridged in

Trial and Error: An Oxford Anthology of Legal Stories by Fred R. Shapiro

Has as a study

New Essays on Billy Budd (The American Novel) by Donald Yannella

Has as a commentary on the text

Herman Melville's Billy Budd, Benito Cereno, Bartleby the Scrivener, and Other Tales (Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations) by Harold Bloom

Critical Essays on Melville's Billy Budd, Sailor by Robert Milder

Has as a student's study guide

CliffsNotes on Melville's Billy Budd & Typee by Mary Ellen Snodgrass

Herman Melville's Billy Budd (Monarch Notes) by Edward R Winans

Herman Melville's Billy Budd and Typee (Barron's Book Notes) by David Laskin

Billy Budd - Herman Melville (SparkNotes) by Jim Cocola

(show 3 more)

A Study Guide for Herman Melville's "Billy Budd" by Deborah A. Stanley

CliffsNotes on Melville's Billy Budd by Cliff

Herman Melville's Billy Budd, Benito Cereno, & Bartleby the Scrivener (Bloom's Notes) by Harold Bloom

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▾Common Knowledge

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Canonical title

Billy Budd, Sailor

Original title

Billy Budd, Foretopman

Alternative titles

Billy Budd, Sailor (an inside narrative)

Original publication date

People/Characters

Captain Edward Fairfax Vere

John Claggart

Important places

Liverpool, Merseyside, England, UK

Important events

Nore Mutiny (1797 | the Great Mutiny)

Related movies

Billy Budd (1962 | IMDb)

Billy Budd (1980 | IMDb)

Billy Budd (1988 | IMDb)

Billy Budd (1998 | IMDb)

Awards and honors

1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006 Edition)

Western World's Greatest Books - Project Gutenberg

ABA Journal 25 Greatest Law Novels Ever (6)

Epigraph

Dedication

Dedicated
to

JACK CHASE
Englishman

Wherever that great heart may now be
Here on Earth or harbored in Paradise

Captain of the Maintop
in the year 1843
in the U.S. Frigate
United States

First words

In the time before steamships, or then more frequently than now, a stroller along the docks of any considerable seaport would occasionally have his attention arrested by a group of bronzed mariners, man-of-war's men or merchant sailors in holiday attire, ashore on liberty.

Quotations

The Chaplain is the minister of the Prince of Peace, serving in the host of the God of War - Ares.

Forty years after a battle it is easy for a noncombatant to reason about how it ought to have been fought. It is another thing personally and under fire to have to direct the fighting while involved in the obscuring smoke of it.

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

English

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

▾Book descriptions

In 1797, young Billy Budd is impressed into naval service. It is a perilous time for a British Royal Navy still reeling from mutinies and marauding French ships. When Billy is forcibly transferred to HMS Bellipotent, he evokes the wrath of John Claggart, the ship's Master-at-arms. Claggart falsely accuses Billy of conspiracy to mutiny, a charge that will have a profound effect on the fates of both seamen.

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