--- product_id: 12608977 title: "Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001" brand: "herman melvilleharrison hayfordmerton m. sealts jr." price: "117.29 DT" currency: TND in_stock: true reviews_count: 4 url: https://www.desertcart.tn/products/12608977-billy-budd-sailor-phoenix-books-paperback-illustrated-september-1-2001 store_origin: TN region: Tunisia --- # Illustrated Edition Classic Literature Timeless Story Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001 **Brand:** herman melvilleharrison hayfordmerton m. sealts jr. **Price:** 117.29 DT **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > 🌊 Set Sail on a Literary Adventure! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001 by herman melvilleharrison hayfordmerton m. sealts jr. - **How much does it cost?** 117.29 DT with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.tn](https://www.desertcart.tn/products/12608977-billy-budd-sailor-phoenix-books-paperback-illustrated-september-1-2001) ## Best For - herman melvilleharrison hayfordmerton m. sealts jr. enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted herman melvilleharrison hayfordmerton m. sealts jr. brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Quality Paperback:** Durable and stylish, perfect for your bookshelf or coffee table. - • **Perfect for Book Clubs:** Engage in thought-provoking discussions with friends and colleagues. - • **Stunning Illustrations:** Each page is adorned with captivating artwork that brings the story to life. - • **Published by Phoenix Books:** Trust in a publisher known for reviving literary treasures. - • **Dive into a Nautical Classic:** Experience the gripping tale of Billy Budd, a sailor caught in moral dilemmas. ## Overview Billy Budd, Sailor is a celebrated novella by Herman Melville, published in an illustrated paperback edition by Phoenix Books. This timeless story explores themes of innocence, justice, and the complexities of human nature, making it a must-read for literature enthusiasts and casual readers alike. ## Description Full description not available ## Images ![Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001 - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51rTXtEwAFL.jpg) ![Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001 - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51sCL7HKmyL.jpg) ![Billy Budd, Sailor (Phoenix Books) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2001 - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31sK00E1XZL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Yeah *by A***R on Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2019* Quick delivery great products new perfect condition ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars ... requirement and was pleasantly surprised how much I truly enjoyed reading it *by J***K on Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2016* I had to read this book for a college English requirement and was pleasantly surprised how much I truly enjoyed reading it! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars The greatest American novel? *by R***N on Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2014* No. It is surpassed by "Moby-Dick" and surely a few others. But if we revise the question to, "The greatest American novella?", then an affirmative answer can be justified. (What is the competition?) BILLY BUDD is an extraordinary work of fiction written at the end of the life, and first published thirty-three years after his death, of an extraordinary writer. In style and tone, as well as length, it is vastly different than "Moby-Dick". Yet it too is very complex, and it is deeply moving, even more so than "Moby-Dick".Billy Budd was a foundling and a happy, handsome, innocent youth who went to sea, sailing on the "Rights of Man", a merchant ship. He is impressed by a man-of-war of the British Navy, the "Bellipotent", where he becomes a foretopman. It is 1797, and the British Navy, recently roiled by several mutinies, is at war with the French. Almost everyone in the crew likes Billy, except the master-of-arms, Claggart, who Melville presents as the evil antithesis of Billy and who harbors a peculiar malice for him. Claggart goes to the captain of the ship, Vere by name, and reports that Billy is inciting mutiny. Captain Vere is quite skeptical, but duty is duty and he calls Billy to his cabin where he has Claggart repeat his charges and then asks Billy to respond. Billy, stupefied, is unable to speak due to his stutter; in frustration, he strikes out at Claggart and kills him with one blow.That summarizes the story through the first two-thirds of the novella. Now the question is, how should Captain Vere handle the matter? That takes up the rest of the novella, along with a brief epilogue of sorts. The issues raised are knotty, and the story is as tragic yet seemingly inevitable as in Greek tragedy.BILLY BUDD, perhaps even more so than "Moby-Dick", resists a summary interpretation that can be stated with complete assurance. (Melville underscores this when he writes, near the end of the work, "Truth uncompromisingly told will always have its ragged edges.") Many say that BILLY BUDD is an allegory. I won't quibble with that, but . . . an allegory of what? It can be seen as a political allegory of sorts, given that the American nation proceeded from the "Rights of Man" of Thomas Paine to the "Bellipotent" ("war power") of the Civil War and then the Gilded Age where the rights of the common man were negligible and trammeled by a mechanical system of justice. But just as readily it can be seen as an allegory of "The Fall", in which Satan (in the guise of Claggart) insinuates his way into an Eden of innocence, only now it happens in a world where there is no God. BILLY BUDD implicates such dichotomies as military justice (or justice under the law) versus natural justice; sanity versus insanity; civilization and its "moral obliquities" versus primordial innocence. (One popular gloss of the book elevates to prominence the theme of homosexuality or homoeroticism; despite Benjamin Britten's version of the story in his opera of the same name, I don't believe that reading finds much support in the text.)Near the end of his draft manuscript, Melville wrote, and then excised, "Here ends a story not unwarranted by what sometimes happens in this [an indecipherable word] world of ours--Innocence and infamy, spiritual depravity and fair repute." Perhaps the best "summation" of BILLY BUDD is that of E. M. Forster, who wrote that it "reaches straight back into the universal, to a blackness and sadness so transcending our own that they are undistinguishable from glory."BILLY BUDD is a classic work that delves into the conundrums of the collective human experience. Should you undertake to read it, do make an effort to do so with either the Northwestern-Newberry edition or the Hayford-Sealts edition. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.tn/products/12608977-billy-budd-sailor-phoenix-books-paperback-illustrated-september-1-2001](https://www.desertcart.tn/products/12608977-billy-budd-sailor-phoenix-books-paperback-illustrated-september-1-2001) --- *Product available on Desertcart Tunisia* *Store origin: TN* *Last updated: 2026-06-20*