When did Moby-Dick begin to be widely recognized as a major American novel?

Moby-Dick was not widely recognized as a major American novel upon its initial publication in 1851; in fact, the public was largely unimpressed, and the book sold fewer than 4,000 copies.12

The novel began to gain critical esteem and wider recognition as an important work of American literature starting in the 1920s. Its status as a great American novel was further solidified in the mid-20th century, particularly as it became a staple of university syllabi in the United States. This shift in reputation was part of a broader reassessment of Herman Melville’s body of work, which led to his eventual consideration as one of the great American writers.3214