Herman Melville (August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, essayist and poet. During his lifetime, his early novels were popular. He wrote about his travels in the South Seas where he lived among the natives of the Marquesas Islands for several weeks. Later in his life his popularity declined. The publication of the novel Moby-Dick was responsible for his drop in popularity. The novel was more philisophical and experimental than his earlier works, and was thus more difficult to read. Although the book initially received mostly negative reviews, Moby-Dick is now considered one of the greatest novels in the English language. The first line of the book ("Call me Ishmael") may be one of the most famous in American literature. Although Moby-Dick never made Melville rich, it did secure him a reputation as a great American writer.
Modified from wikipedia.com.