Herman Melville

Herman Melville (1819—1891) is a writer best known for writing one of the greatest American novels — his ambitious 1851 masterpiece Moby-Dick. He wrote many novels during his early career, often based on his own experience at sea and other travels. It was not until well into the twentieth century that the reputation of Moby-Dick began to grow.

One fascinating resource for Melville scholars online, is Melville’s Marginalia. It is an archive of books owned or borrowed by Melville which influenced his work. The most referenced book there is his well-annotated copy of The New Testament and The Book of Psalms — a volume he clearly often had at his side while writing. The following paragraph comes from the introduction, to this resource by Brian Yothers (University of Texas at El Paso).
-----In reading Romans 14.22, Melville paused to underline this
-----sentence: "Hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God."
-----And in the top margin, he inscribed an elliptical response:
-----"The only kind of Faith—one's own" (274.2:4-5). This and
-----other marginalia in the New Testament and Psalms constitute
-----a compelling chapter in Melville's spiritual autobiography
-----and contribute greatly to our understanding of his own kind
-----of faith and how it related to his personal life.

In 1863 Herman Melville moved to New York City, where he had been born, and from then on he focussed on writing poetry. In 1866 his collection Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War, which reflected on the American Civil War appeared. This was followed by Clarel: A Poem and Pilgrimage in the Holy Land (1876). His novella Billy Budd was published posthumously in 1924.

The Martyr

Good Friday was the day
-----Of the prodigy and crime,
When they killed him in his pity,
-----When they killed him in his prime
Of clemency and calm—
----------When with yearning he was filled
----------To redeem the evil-willed,
And, though conqueror, be kind;
-----But they killed him in his kindness,
-----In their madness and their blindness,
And they killed him from behind.

--------------------There is sobbing of the strong,
-------------------------And a pall upon the land;
--------------------But the People in their weeping
-----------------------------------Bare the iron hand:
--------------------Beware the People weeping
-------------------------When they bare the iron hand.

He lieth in his blood—
-----The father in his face;
They have killed him, the Forgiver—
-----The Avenger takes his place,
The Avenger wisely stern,
----------Who in righteousness shall do
----------What heavens call him to,
And the parricides remand;
-----For they killed him in his kindness,
-----In their madness and their blindness.
And his blood is on their hand.

--------------------There is sobbing of the strong,
-------------------------And a pall upon the land;
--------------------But the People in their weeping
-----------------------------------Bare the iron hand:
--------------------Beware the People weeping
-------------------------When they bare the iron hand.

Entry written by D.S. Martin. He is the author of five poetry collections including Angelicus (2021, Cascade) ― a book of poems written from the point-of-view of angels. His books are available through Wipf & Stock.

Jay Parini

Jay Parini has authored dozens of books. His New and Collected Poems 1975—2015 appeared from Beacon Press in 2016. His novels often look into historic characters, such as The Passages of H.M. (about Herman Melville), and The Last Station (about Leo Tolstoy); the latter was adapted into an Academy Award nominated film. He has written many literary biographies, such as of John Steinbeck and Robert Frost. His book Jesus: The Human Face of God (2013) invites readers into his personal quest for knowing Jesus. He has also written non-fiction books such as Why Poetry Matters (2008).

Parini has been on the faculty of Middlebury College in Vermont since 1982. The film version of his novel Benjamin’s Crossing which he and his wife, Devon Jersild, adapted into a screenplay, is to be released in 2018.

His Morning Meditations

My father in this lonely room of prayer
Listens at the window
In the little house of his own dreams.

He has come a long way just to listen,
Over seas and sorrow, through the narrow gate
Of his deliverance.

And he dwells here now,
Beyond the valley and the shadow, too,
In silence mustered day by dawn.

It has come to this sweet isolation
In the eye of God, the earliest of mornings
In the chambered skull, this frost of thought.

This post was suggested by my friend Burl Horniachek. Posted with permission of the poet.

Entry written by D.S. Martin. His latest poetry collection is Ampersand (2018, Cascade). His books are available through Amazon, and Wipf & Stock including the anthologies The Turning Aside, and Adam, Eve, & the Riders of the Apocalypse.