Why Melville Matters Now

This celebratory symposium was held November 17 and 18th, 2006 at the Albany Academy campus and its environs where Melville lived and attended school from 1830-31. The conference considered the enduring relevance of the author's life, work , and influence from the perspectives of the humanities, arts, the sciences, and new technologies.

Herman Melville's work lives on to "tell the tale," beause the questions he posed are the same issues that inspire contemporary writers, artists, and thinkers today -- the vexed relations between humans and their environment, racial and social injustices, caitol punishment, psychological alienation, and the new frontiers of science and globalism.

The symposium, sponsorred by the Albany Academies in cinjunction with the The Center for Humanities, Arts, and Technosciences (CHATS), State University of New York at Albany, brought together scholars, artists, actors, historians, and archivists to present papers and panels. In addition, the symposium included artistic performances and installations, archival gallery exhibits, and a 24-hour marathon reading of Moby Dick. Readers included William Kennedy, Andy Rooney, visiting writers at local cultural institutions, celebrities, community members, local university faculty and students and the Academies' alums, faculty and students. Participants were able to take a self-guided tour of Melville's Albany connections, a route that included Lansingburgh, Pittsfield and Arrowhead, and the original Albany Academy building, where Melville attended school, and they were also able to attend special art exhibits based on Melville-inspired works.