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Рай для Холостяков и Ад для Девиц
В книгу вошли рассказы и повести знаменитого американского писателя Германа Мелвилла, прославившегося великим романом "Моби Дик, или Белый Кит". Малая проза, ставшая для автора полем смелых экспериментов, побудила критиков сравнивать Мелвилла с Гоголем и Достоевским, а также называть предвестником творчества Кафки.
448 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1855
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About the author
Herman Melville
2,412 books4,546 followersThere is more than one author with this name
Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851); Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences in Polynesia; and Billy Budd, Sailor, a posthumously published novella. At the time of his death, Melville was no longer well known to the public, but the 1919 centennial of his birth was the starting point of a Melville revival. Moby-Dick eventually would be considered one of the great American novels.
Melville was born in New York City, the third child of a prosperous merchant whose death in 1832 left the family in dire financial straits. He took to sea in 1839 as a common sailor on a merchant ship and then on the whaler Acushnet, but he jumped ship in the Marquesas Islands. Typee, his first book, and its sequel, Omoo (1847), were travel-adventures based on his encounters with the peoples of the islands. Their success gave him the financial security to marry Elizabeth Shaw, the daughter of the Boston jurist Lemuel Shaw. Mardi (1849), a romance-adventure and his first book not based on his own experience, was not well received. Redburn (1849) and White-Jacket (1850), both tales based on his experience as a well-born young man at sea, were given respectable reviews, but did not sell well enough to support his expanding family.
Melville's growing literary ambition showed in Moby-Dick (1851), which took nearly a year and a half to write, but it did not find an audience, and critics scorned his psychological novel Pierre: or, The Ambiguities (1852). From 1853 to 1856, Melville published short fiction in magazines, including "Benito Cereno" and "Bartleby, the Scrivener". In 1857, he traveled to England, toured the Near East, and published his last work of prose, The Confidence-Man (1857). He moved to New York in 1863, eventually taking a position as a United States customs inspector.
From that point, Melville focused his creative powers on poetry. Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War (1866) was his poetic reflection on the moral questions of the American Civil War. In 1867, his eldest child Malcolm died at home from a self-inflicted gunshot. Melville's metaphysical epic Clarel: A Poem and Pilgrimage in the Holy Land was published in 1876. In 1886, his other son Stanwix died of apparent tuberculosis, and Melville retired. During his last years, he privately published two volumes of poetry, and left one volume unpublished. The novella Billy Budd was left unfinished at his death, but was published posthumously in 1924. Melville died from cardiovascular disease in 1891.
Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851); Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences in Polynesia; and Billy Budd, Sailor, a posthumously published novella. At the time of his death, Melville was no longer well known to the public, but the 1919 centennial of his birth was the starting point of a Melville revival. Moby-Dick eventually would be considered one of the great American novels.
Melville was born in New York City, the third child of a prosperous merchant whose death in 1832 left the family in dire financial straits. He took to sea in 1839 as a common sailor on a merchant ship and then on the whaler Acushnet, but he jumped ship in the Marquesas Islands. Typee, his first book, and its sequel, Omoo (1847), were travel-adventures based on his encounters with the peoples of the islands. Their success gave him the financial security to marry Elizabeth Shaw, the daughter of the Boston jurist Lemuel Shaw. Mardi (1849), a romance-adventure and his first book not based on his own experience, was not well received. Redburn (1849) and White-Jacket (1850), both tales based on his experience as a well-born young man at sea, were given respectable reviews, but did not sell well enough to support his expanding family.
Melville's growing literary ambition showed in Moby-Dick (1851), which took nearly a year and a half to write, but it did not find an audience, and critics scorned his psychological novel Pierre: or, The Ambiguities (1852). From 1853 to 1856, Melville published short fiction in magazines, including "Benito Cereno" and "Bartleby, the Scrivener". In 1857, he traveled to England, toured the Near East, and published his last work of prose, The Confidence-Man (1857). He moved to New York in 1863, eventually taking a position as a United States customs inspector.
From that point, Melville focused his creative powers on poetry. Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War (1866) was his poetic reflection on the moral questions of the American Civil War. In 1867, his eldest child Malcolm died at home from a self-inflicted gunshot. Melville's metaphysical epic Clarel: A Poem and Pilgrimage in the Holy Land was published in 1876. In 1886, his other son Stanwix died of apparent tuberculosis, and Melville retired. During his last years, he privately published two volumes of poetry, and left one volume unpublished. The novella Billy Budd was left unfinished at his death, but was published posthumously in 1924. Melville died from cardiovascular disease in 1891.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
November 29, 2014
(1855)
The collection I found this in only included 'The Tartarus of Maids.' I see that 'The Paradise of Bachelors' is variously referred to as either the first 'half' of the story, or a companion piece. Either way, I do find it rather odd to only present one, because 'The Tartarus of Maids' refers several times to the 'Paradise of Bachelors' in a way that is quite confusing to one who has not read it.
'The Tartarus of Maids' is a socially-motivated piece. The protagonist travels to a paper mill to place an order for his company, and takes the opportunity to tour the facility. While there, he observes the wan-ness and misery of the female workers, and describes their plight with sympathy.
The language is very poetic and evocative - it's a beautiful piece, and relevant as well, considering that unhealthy and unhappy working conditions in factories are still a problem in many places around the globe.
I also found it fascinating that this writing - as early as 1855! - points out the problem with calling working women 'girls.'
Too bad that apparently few people took this bit of Melville's writing to heart...
The collection I found this in only included 'The Tartarus of Maids.' I see that 'The Paradise of Bachelors' is variously referred to as either the first 'half' of the story, or a companion piece. Either way, I do find it rather odd to only present one, because 'The Tartarus of Maids' refers several times to the 'Paradise of Bachelors' in a way that is quite confusing to one who has not read it.
'The Tartarus of Maids' is a socially-motivated piece. The protagonist travels to a paper mill to place an order for his company, and takes the opportunity to tour the facility. While there, he observes the wan-ness and misery of the female workers, and describes their plight with sympathy.
The language is very poetic and evocative - it's a beautiful piece, and relevant as well, considering that unhealthy and unhappy working conditions in factories are still a problem in many places around the globe.
I also found it fascinating that this writing - as early as 1855! - points out the problem with calling working women 'girls.'
Too bad that apparently few people took this bit of Melville's writing to heart...
October 22, 2016
Remarkable! Two very fine stories.
October 15, 2024
The Tartarus of Maids was good but The Paradise of Bachelors....😴😴
May 2, 2023
when you realize it was a vagina all along
February 27, 2025
3.25/5⭐️
Overall the writing was nothing significant, until I had my lecturer discuss it.
I still stand by the fact the “Paradise of Bachelors” was exceptionally boring, I could not care less about a bunch of men eating food and drinking wine together✋😃
I did find “Tartarus of Maids” interesting on first read. HOWEVER, looking at critics’ for it increased its likability, like yes tell me all about how whiteness, sexuality and homosociality is presented!!
Would be 4 stars if it was just “Tartarus of Maids”🫣
Overall the writing was nothing significant, until I had my lecturer discuss it.
I still stand by the fact the “Paradise of Bachelors” was exceptionally boring, I could not care less about a bunch of men eating food and drinking wine together✋😃
I did find “Tartarus of Maids” interesting on first read. HOWEVER, looking at critics’ for it increased its likability, like yes tell me all about how whiteness, sexuality and homosociality is presented!!
Would be 4 stars if it was just “Tartarus of Maids”🫣
September 11, 2023
Very old english but a classic and interesting juxtaposition of class and gender nonetheless. Read for my honors seminar.
September 7, 2016
Two short stories that parallel each one, "The Paradise of Bachelors and The Tartarus of Maids" were originally displayed together on a diptych. Through close reading, one will realize this is more than just a story about industrialization and the depiction of unmarried men and women. Melville's use of metaphors displays sexual imagery with symbolism such as the Jericho horn in "Paradise" representing the male sex organ and the machine in the "Tartarus" is symbolic to the female reproductive organs.
A rather interesting story depending on how you read it.
A rather interesting story depending on how you read it.
October 8, 2020
I read these out of order; but the contrast is profound. "Tartarus," for those similarly uneducated in the classics, refers to the underworld. The comparison of the convivial London bachelor with ample education, affluence, wine and no cares or obligations with the somber factory girl isolated in the bleak mountains, ignorant, consumable, and with no family connections or life prospects is powerful.
February 20, 2023
"Non so dire se mi ha incuriosito di più il titolo o il sottotitolo, ma ho visto che anche durante l'incontro ci sono stati almeno un paio di occhi sgranati quando ho detto ""racconti doppi"".
Melville sceglie un modo molto simpatico per raccontare le cose, creando dei racconti speculari, anche se non sempre sono ben riusciti.
In assoluto ho preferito la seconda coppia di racconti, ""Il budino del povero"" e ""Le briciole del ricco"", da cui si può trarre spunto per discussioni infinite e anche molto attuali.
Nel primo racconto il protagonista è ospite di un ricco saccente che tramuta in meraviglia e grazia divina ogni disgrazia del povero, così ad esempio la neve molliccia e tiepida di marzo diventa ""il concime del povero"", il quale non potendo permettersi nulla di meglio approfitta di quest'acqua dal cielo. Ma la neve è davvero provvidenziale e si trasforma anche nel ""collorio del povero"", anche in questo caso il poveraccio non gode di medicinali migliori nè di cure mediche adeguate.
Il protagonista verifica di persona andando a trovare una coppia di poveracci che vivono in una casa diroccata, consunta, piena di umidità e dove la miseria è ben visibile in ogni pertugio. Eppure non esitano a offrire al loro ospite parte del loro misero pranzo composto da cibi rancidi, vecchi o scarti dei ricchi.
Nel secondo racconto invece si narra della magnanimità dei ricchi. A Londra ci fu un maestoso banchetto in onore di tutti i più importanti sovrani. Ebbene, nella loro infinita magnificenza, il giorno dopo furono distribuiti gratuitamente a una folla di cenciosi cittadini le briciole avanzate: carni spolpate, avanzi da di budini, croste di torte salate e altre cosette simili.
Invece trovo poco equilibrati i racconti finali, ""Il paradiso dei celibi"" e ""Il tartaro delle fanciulle"", perchè descrive due situazioni che non sono speculari, almeno a mio avviso. I celibi vivono nella zona di Londra chiamata Temple e si trastullano con lauti banchetti innaffiati da vini pregiati, mentre le fanciulle misere e nubili vengono assoldate in una cartiera che si trova nel bel mezzo di una montagna gelidissima... Per me aveva più senso parlare in entrambi i casi di celibi o nubili ricchi e dei loro diletti o della miseria di celibi e nubili... ma così... così sembra un racconto zoppo.
"
Melville sceglie un modo molto simpatico per raccontare le cose, creando dei racconti speculari, anche se non sempre sono ben riusciti.
In assoluto ho preferito la seconda coppia di racconti, ""Il budino del povero"" e ""Le briciole del ricco"", da cui si può trarre spunto per discussioni infinite e anche molto attuali.
Nel primo racconto il protagonista è ospite di un ricco saccente che tramuta in meraviglia e grazia divina ogni disgrazia del povero, così ad esempio la neve molliccia e tiepida di marzo diventa ""il concime del povero"", il quale non potendo permettersi nulla di meglio approfitta di quest'acqua dal cielo. Ma la neve è davvero provvidenziale e si trasforma anche nel ""collorio del povero"", anche in questo caso il poveraccio non gode di medicinali migliori nè di cure mediche adeguate.
Il protagonista verifica di persona andando a trovare una coppia di poveracci che vivono in una casa diroccata, consunta, piena di umidità e dove la miseria è ben visibile in ogni pertugio. Eppure non esitano a offrire al loro ospite parte del loro misero pranzo composto da cibi rancidi, vecchi o scarti dei ricchi.
Nel secondo racconto invece si narra della magnanimità dei ricchi. A Londra ci fu un maestoso banchetto in onore di tutti i più importanti sovrani. Ebbene, nella loro infinita magnificenza, il giorno dopo furono distribuiti gratuitamente a una folla di cenciosi cittadini le briciole avanzate: carni spolpate, avanzi da di budini, croste di torte salate e altre cosette simili.
Invece trovo poco equilibrati i racconti finali, ""Il paradiso dei celibi"" e ""Il tartaro delle fanciulle"", perchè descrive due situazioni che non sono speculari, almeno a mio avviso. I celibi vivono nella zona di Londra chiamata Temple e si trastullano con lauti banchetti innaffiati da vini pregiati, mentre le fanciulle misere e nubili vengono assoldate in una cartiera che si trova nel bel mezzo di una montagna gelidissima... Per me aveva più senso parlare in entrambi i casi di celibi o nubili ricchi e dei loro diletti o della miseria di celibi e nubili... ma così... così sembra un racconto zoppo.
"
February 9, 2025
Favorite lines:
It is a thing which every sensible American should learn from every sensible Englishman, that glare and glitter, gimcracks and gewgaws, are not indispensable to domestic solacement.
The ceiling of the room was low. Who wants to dine under the dome of St. Peter's? High ceilings! If that is your demand, and the higher the better, and you be so very tall, then go dine out with the topping giraffe in the open air. ahhahahaahahha short king
Almost all of them were travelers, too; for bachelors alone can travel freely, and without any twinges of their consciences touching desertion of the fireside.
Though the two objects did by no means completely correspond, yet this partial inadequacy but served to tinge the similitude not less with the vividness than the disorder of a dream.
Then, recurring back to them as they here lay all blank, I could not but bethink me of that celebrated comparison of John Locke, who, in demonstration of his theory that man had no innate ideas, compared the human mind at birth to a sheet of blank paper; something destined to be scribbled on, but what sort of characters no soul might tell.
It is a thing which every sensible American should learn from every sensible Englishman, that glare and glitter, gimcracks and gewgaws, are not indispensable to domestic solacement.
The ceiling of the room was low. Who wants to dine under the dome of St. Peter's? High ceilings! If that is your demand, and the higher the better, and you be so very tall, then go dine out with the topping giraffe in the open air. ahhahahaahahha short king
Almost all of them were travelers, too; for bachelors alone can travel freely, and without any twinges of their consciences touching desertion of the fireside.
Though the two objects did by no means completely correspond, yet this partial inadequacy but served to tinge the similitude not less with the vividness than the disorder of a dream.
Then, recurring back to them as they here lay all blank, I could not but bethink me of that celebrated comparison of John Locke, who, in demonstration of his theory that man had no innate ideas, compared the human mind at birth to a sheet of blank paper; something destined to be scribbled on, but what sort of characters no soul might tell.
January 4, 2023
Bon finalement Melville je ne suis pas sur que ça soit vraiment ma came. Du moins pour ces nouvelles, j'ai trouvé le style beaucoup trop descriptif à mon gout, d'une manière qui prend le lecteur par la main et ne lui laisse pas beaucoup de liberté. Les histoires étaient sympathiques mais pas bouleversantes non plus. Un aspect qui m'a bien plu est la composition du recueil qui fonctionne par doubles, le lien principal unissant deux nouvelles étant généralement le personnage principal et le sujet.
May 26, 2018
Tre racconti molto carini accomunati dalla stessa struttura duplice con una parte narrata in Inghilterra, l'altra in America. Il tema della povertà e il modo in cui ci si comporta tra e verso chi è più povero accomuna 2 dei tre racconti; Il paradiso dei celibi,invece, sembra inneggiare alla condizione del "maschio senza moglie" opponendolo alle fanciulle nubili, tristi, emaciate e sfruttate.... per fortuna che i tempi sono cambiati ^^
Magistrali come al solito le descrizioni dei luoghi.
Magistrali come al solito le descrizioni dei luoghi.
December 9, 2020
Ok, so I only read The Tartarus of Maids because that was all my book had in it. I'll probably have to read The Paradise of Bachelors too because TToM was extremely confusing and I really had no idea what was happening??
I knew there were these girls working in a paper factory and they were very "blank" and poor and in distress. And then this guy comes in, (he might be looking for paper? Who knows.), and he sees the girls' bad condition and is concerned and then he rides away.
It was a very weird short story. I don't know how I felt about this.
I knew there were these girls working in a paper factory and they were very "blank" and poor and in distress. And then this guy comes in, (he might be looking for paper? Who knows.), and he sees the girls' bad condition and is concerned and then he rides away.
It was a very weird short story. I don't know how I felt about this.
December 27, 2025
A well told story of the lives of the haves and have nots
A very good story that illustrates how the lives of the well off and poor have always been at different ends of the spectrum. The carefree lives of the bachelors are contrasted well with the hellish travails of the maids. How very fitting this story is in today’s K-shaped economy where you’re either thriving or struggling. A great read that’s well worth your time.
A very good story that illustrates how the lives of the well off and poor have always been at different ends of the spectrum. The carefree lives of the bachelors are contrasted well with the hellish travails of the maids. How very fitting this story is in today’s K-shaped economy where you’re either thriving or struggling. A great read that’s well worth your time.
January 10, 2026
Two odd stories to put together. The Paradise of Bachelors begins in London looking at the Templars and ends over a meal whilst The Tartarus of Maids revolves around a man going to a paper mill. The only link between both books is the second makes reference to the paradise of bachelors.
What is good about these works is that the reader gets a ,uch better insight of the versatility of Melville’s writing style.
What is good about these works is that the reader gets a ,uch better insight of the versatility of Melville’s writing style.
April 22, 2021
2 stars because I can appreciate it from a literary and socio-historical standpoint, but I did not enjoy reading it
February 10, 2022
what was that
May 5, 2022
Ahead of his time fr
February 2, 2023
read for class—
specifically, the tartarus of maids. i’m a little confused about what i just read but i’m very intrigued. honestly, i can’t wait to talk about it on friday!
specifically, the tartarus of maids. i’m a little confused about what i just read but i’m very intrigued. honestly, i can’t wait to talk about it on friday!
September 9, 2024
“But what made the thing I saw so specially terrible to me was the metallic necessity, the unbudging fatality which governed it.” I mean come on that’s incredible.
October 28, 2024
I really enjoyed this book!
March 26, 2025
I read the Tartarus of Maids in Darryl Jones' Horror Stories anthology. One of the finest descriptions of the horrors spawned from Adam Smith's diabolical mind.
November 6, 2025
4.5 stars
November 8, 2025
Very interesting short story!! Will be writing an essay on this one for class. I may read more of Melville now.
April 27, 2015
This is a short story, twenty pages or so, and is worth reading. In the beginning, you are introduced to luxury -- but at the end, you learn the cost of luxury.
It is beautifully poetic as well!
It is beautifully poetic as well!
Read
February 27, 2016bleak
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews