Introduction

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# Introduction (Typee, Ch. 31) ## Overview This is the introductory section of Chapter 31 from Herman Melville's novel *Typee*. It is a text excerpt extracted from the file [typee.txt](arke:01KG89J1JYRSHWXR7JM0HYS9D4) and included in the [Melville Complete Works](arke:01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW) collection. The introduction sets the stage for a series of observations and anecdotes about the Typee people. ## Context This introduction belongs to [CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE](arke:01KG8AJRVD0X303G878V5E3HHT) of *Typee*, a novel contained within the [Melville Complete Works](arke:01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW) collection. The chapter and its introduction were extracted from the source text file [typee.txt](arke:01KG89J1JYRSHWXR7JM0HYS9D4). It is followed by the subsection [ . . . . . . . .](arke:01KG8AKFW22JXDK1G615HTS72C). ## Contents The introduction outlines the topics to be covered in the chapter, including the strange customs of the islanders, their chanting and vocal peculiarities, the king's reaction to hearing a song, the bestowing of dignity upon the author, musical instruments in the valley, the savages' admiration of a pugilistic performance, a swimming infant, the beautiful tresses of the girls, and an ointment for the hair. The narrator asks for the reader's patience as he strings together "odds and ends" of previously unmentioned details about the Typee people. He then describes a nightly custom in Old Marheyo's household, where the inmates gather to perform a low, monotonous chant accompanied by the tapping of sticks. The narrator reflects on the unsettling nature of this ritual and admits he never discovered its meaning or purpose. He also describes the unique sounds produced by the natives, noting the labial melody of the Typee girls' conversation and the rough, forceful utterances of the men when excited.

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2026-01-30T20:49:28.730Z

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Introduction (Typee, Ch. 31)

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9732

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2026-01-30T20:48:05.749Z

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01KG89J1JYRSHWXR7JM0HYS9D4

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CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE STRANGE CUSTOM OF THE ISLANDERS--THEIR CHANTING, AND THE PECULIARITY OF THEIR VOICE--RAPTURE OF THE KING AT FIRST HEARING A SONG--A NEW DIGNITY CONFERRED ON THE AUTHOR--MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN THE VALLEY--ADMIRATION OF THE SAVAGES AT BEHOLDING A PUGILISTIC PERFORMANCE--SWIMMING INFANT--BEAUTIFUL TRESSES OF THE GIRLS--OINTMENT FOR THE HAIR Sadly discursive as I have already been, I must still further entreat the reader’s patience, as I am about to string together, without any attempt at order, a few odds and ends of things not hitherto mentioned, but which are either curious in themselves or peculiar to the Typees. There was one singular custom observed in old Marheyo’s domestic establishment, which often excited my surprise. Every night, before retiring, the inmates of the house gathered together on the mats, and so squatting upon their haunches, after the universal practice of these islanders, would commence a low, dismal and monotonous chant, accompanying the voice with the instrumental melody produced by two small half-rotten sticks tapped slowly together, a pair of which were held in the hands of each person present. Thus would they employ themselves for an hour or two, sometimes longer. Lying in the gloom which wrapped the further end of the house, I could not avoid looking at them, although the spectacle suggested nothing but unpleasant reflection. The flickering rays of the ‘armor’ nut just served to reveal their savage lineaments, without dispelling the darkness that hovered about them. Sometimes when, after falling into a kind of doze, and awaking suddenly in the midst of these doleful chantings, my eye would fall upon the wild-looking group engaged in their strange occupation, with their naked tattooed limbs, and shaven heads disposed in a circle, I was almost tempted to believe that I gazed upon a set of evil beings in the act of working at a frightful incantation. What was the meaning or purpose of this custom, whether it was practiced merely as a diversion, or whether it was a religious exercise, a sort of family prayers, I never could discover. The sounds produced by the natives on these occasions were of a most singular description; and had I not actually been present, I never would have believed that such curious noises could have been produced by human beings. To savages generally is imputed a guttural articulation. This however, is not always the case, especially among the inhabitants of the Polynesian Archipelago. The labial melody with which the Typee girls carry on an ordinary conversation, giving a musical prolongation to the final syllable of every sentence, and chirping out some of the words with a liquid, bird-like accent, was singularly pleasing. The men however, are not quite so harmonious in their utterance, and when excited upon any subject, would work themselves up into a sort of wordy paroxysm, during which all descriptions of rough-sided sounds were projected from their mouths, with a force and rapidity which was absolutely astonishing.

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Introduction