It is the end of the eighteenth century, and the navy recruits the eponymous hero – the ‘Handsome Sailor’ – to its fleet. Accused of mutinous behaviour, Billy Budd is forced to defend himself, but his fearful, silent response soon gives way to a terrible act of violence. The consequences are disastrous, and nothing can prevent the force of judgment and eventual justice upon him. Discovered among Melville’s papers after his death and published posthumously in 1924, ‘Billy Budd’ is a powerful tale of guilt and innocence, crime and punishment, and the cost of adhering to duty.


十八世紀末，海軍徵召了一名英雄「英俊水手」到軍艦上。比利．巴德遭受不服軍紀的指控，因此只能替自己辯護，但是一場暴力的恐怖行動卻讓他的恐懼與緘默讓步。結果卻引發一場災難，使他無法獲得公正的審判。梅爾維爾去世後，這篇故事的手稿才被人發現，之後於 1924 年出版。比利．巴德的無辜與過失，犯罪與懲罰，以及他為盡忠職守所付出的代價，成了最有影響力的傳奇故事。