White Jacket

In 1843, after years of voyaging in the South Seas, Herman Melville signed up as a seaman on the man-of-war UNITED STATES, headed for home. What he observed formed the basis for this expose of autocratic practices which meted out to white men on board the same treatment as black slaves received on plantations. Published in 1850, WHITE JACKET reflected deep-rooted tensions that led to the Civil War 15 years later.