Herman Melville, Moby-Dick

Introduction

Early reviews

The 'Melville revival'

The 1940s : Moby Dick and the 'American Renaissance'

The 1950s : 'myth criticism' and the growth of American studies

Formalist approaches, humanist readings

Cultural materialism and 'reconstructive' readings

Deconstructive reading, 'post-humanist' critiques and 'new Americanists'.