Herman Melville （1819—1891） was an American writer， essayist1 and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby Dick. His first three books gained much contemporary2 attention （the first book， Typee， becoming a bestseller）， but his popularity declined3 precipitously4 in the mid-1850s and never recovered during his lifetime.
　　When he died in 1891， he was almost completely forgotten. It was not until the early 20th century that his work won recognition， especially Moby Dick， which is considered to be one of the great American Novels and a treasure of world literature.
　　Moby Dick was first published in 1851. The story tells the adventures of sailor Ishmael， and his Captain Ahab. Ishmael soon learns that Ahab has one purpose on this voyage： to find Moby Dick. Last time， the whale destroyed Ahab’s boat and bit off his leg， which now drives Ahab to take revenge5.
　　赫尔曼·梅尔维尔（1819—1891）是一位美国作家、散文家和诗人。他最著名的小说是《白鲸》。他的前三本书受到了当时的广泛关注（第一本书《泰比》成为了畅销书），但他的声望在19世纪50年代中期急剧下降，在他有生之年未再恢复。
　　当他在1891年去世时，他几乎完全被人遺忘了。直到20世纪初，他的作品才获得认可，尤其是《白鲸》，被誉为美国伟大的小说之一和世界文学的瑰宝。
　　《白鲸》于1851年第一次出版。这个故事讲述了水手以实玛利以及他的船长亚哈的冒险经历。以实玛利很快了解到亚哈在这次航行中有一个目的：找到“白鲸”。上一次，鲸鱼摧毁了亚哈的船，咬断了他的腿，这驱使着亚哈去复仇。
　　【Notes】
　　1. essayist [■] n. 随笔作家，散文家
　　2. contemporary [■] adj. 发生（属）于同时期的
　　3. decline [■] vi. 下降;衰落
　　4. precipitously [■] adv. 陡然地
　　5. revenge [■] n. 报复;复仇