Analysis of Benito Cereno by Melville - Essay Example

?Insert Analysis of Benito Cereno: Themes Benito Cereno is an important literary piece by Melville, which depicts slave insubordination at sea. The work borrows some scenes and structure from the 1817’s “Narrative of Voyages and Travels in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres” by Amaso Delano. The literature was initially captured in “Putnam's Monthly” in the mid-nineteenth century shortly before its publication in Melville's “The Piazza Tales”. The work is presumably a story of the challenges facing slaves and their resentment against the draconian treatment they were subjected to by their masters. In light of the standoff between traditional lifestyle and modernity, “Benito Cereno” portrays Melville's benign narrative management of Delano's past experiences of the early 1800s resentment by slaves. In the narration, Melville’s work features an immature protagonist who gets engrossed in the receding impacts of a serious rebellion, but falls short of identifying the cruelties that have been meted out against the slaves. The work is believed to be one of the author’s best stories due to its rich symbolism and carefully integrated scenes. As such, the story is recognized for its carefully crafted themes relating to poverty and lack of freedom for humanity in a society preparing to welcome modernity and its values. Background of the story “Benito Cereno” begins with a scene on an American naval vessel for merchandise. The ship is docked close to an abandoned island in the southern coast waters of Chile. Extending his sight on the horizon, Amasa Delano, the ship’s captain’s eyes catch an unusual vessel whose occupants appear to be in need of assistance. Delano sets out on his whaleboat craft laden with some supplies on it to the aid of the vessel, an old Spanish merchant ship known as the “San Dominick.” Once in the waters, Delano observes that the occupants are in danger and that the vessel has several black slaves, majority of whom seem to be surprisingly unmoved. The captain talks with Don Benito Cereno, the vessel’s weak captain, who lies that everything on board is in order. Delano sends his vessel back to secure more supplies, and remains on the aging Spanish vessel as he attempts to unearth the mystery surrounding his new friends, though Cereno remains silent about their experiences. After some prodding over time, Cereno opens up amidst his treatment by Babo, a Negro slave, saying that the vessel encountered harsh storm in the Cape Horn waters and has weathered challenges and ailments that have wiped out a significant number of the vessel’s crew and occupants, including slave master Don Alexandro Aranda. Delano notes that the weather has become fairer since then, and begins to wonder that the person may be hurting deep inside from some mental and physically illnesses. That day, Delano shares a meal with Cereno and his attendant, Babo, and notices that the Spaniard and Babo are inseparable. After dinner, the attendant shaves the anxious and restless Cereno. Eventually, Delano notices that Babo has been a beneficiary of grooming, at least judging by the small cut he was given by his boss. According to Melville (1), Delano's whaleboat makes its way back and, as the captain prepares to leave, Cereno, having been previously reluctant to have a joint ride with him aboard the “Bachelor's Delight,” fervently attempts to be part of the rare ride. A surprised Delano raises his eyes to see Babo clutching a sword. Once aboard Delano's vessel, Cereno tells Delano of the slaves’ resentment immediately the “San Dominick” embarked on the journey. The Americans then join a hunting mission for the stolen vessel, neutralize the mutineers, and channel the voyage to Lima, where the culprits are brought to book. Babo is executed, and Don Cereno is taken to a nearby abbey where he succumbs to death. Throughout the story the theme of discrimination versus freedom features prominently. Discrimination versus quest for freedom It is arguable that in “Benito Cereno” the author’s primary concern is the challenge, and negative impacts of horrors that some segments of humanity are forced to go through; and its clear portrayal in the stories surrounding slavery. The various concepts regarding the discriminatory aspects of the story attracts significant arguments with some recognizing the fact that whereas Melville's story is complicated and ambiguous, it depicts a critique of servitude and the structures of tyrannical discrimination that prompt men to act in a horrible manner towards their fellow human beings. An interconnected strain also comes out in the account of Melville's disparagement of colonial ideology as a relic and cautions against the eminent dangers linked to the common American notion in Manifest Destiny which came to bear around the mid-1800s. Focusing on Delano’s character, Melville's ideology is manifested in in the intricate use of the storyline and his depiction of the literature’s benign and immensely credulous main character who is incapable of understanding the sinful acts that Babo and his ilk of slaves have meted out against their former masters. The work also manifests as a benign critique of past narratives as an avenue through which truth about historical injustices come out, given Delano's incapacity and lack of enthusiasm to understand that a slave revolution has taken place on the San Dominick. And that a majority of its initial occupants have been casualties along the way. In light of this, Melville's depiction of Amasa Delano's past experiences as a literary piece that seems in itself to be an accurate narration brings out the concept of historical and moral reality, as well as the stark differences between facts and fictions of the past. Conflict between old and new The meeting of the historical order and the new, modern one stems from the important theme of discrimination and the quest for freedom in “Benito Cereno.” In light of this, Captain Amasa Delano personifies the nascent America’s finest and most unique concepts and beliefs relating to the then values of the American society. He cuts the image of a courageous, positive, honest, noble, and considerate person. Yet Delano’s meeting with Don Benito the depiction of San Dominick; who can arguably be seen as depictive of not only the Spanish colonial masters but also European powers that be. The colonialists represent the old order, thus portrays the likely problems with America’s new identity: the compassion and pitfalls befalling Amasa Delano’s life due to his incapacity to face such piety as the captain weathers the same in Babo and the slave rebellion. Conversely, the colonial powers had some qualities of modernity in their social, economic and political culture despite their draconian handling of their subjects. From one scene to another, Delano is depicted as one who lacks vision in relation to the challenges facing him. In the real sense, this may be Melville’s castigation of an immature and overly optimistic nation in its infancy, which still suffers from unclear vision with regard to its role and position in the increasingly modernizing world. This is especially true considering the fact as the accounts of the story roll out, the readership may well be getting treated to a unique American identity: despite its show of tremendous progress on economy, social and political spheres, it was still experiencing vicious social instability such as slavery and the unfolding Civil War. Meanwhile, it is not lost on many that Don Benito got well involved in slavery in which slave masters unleashed terror upon Babo, Atufal, and some of the ‘ethnically incorrect’ populations who were mainly people of color. The character is depicted as laying the blame squarely on the perpetuators of the old order even as he stares death in full despair. The story can thus be construed to mean a literary piece that advocates the defeat of racial discrimination. According Melville, Delano’s weakness is in the nascent American society in that he lacked strategy in his effort to rid the society of the retrogressive forces and entrenched repressive ideologies. Appearance of the old and the new environment versus reality is also an important aspect of the literary piece, featuring throughout the text. In light of this, the readers are kept in suspense, with the whole reality about the San Dominick’s sea movements coming out into open towards the end of the piece. The style creates room for Melville to enrich the storyline with adequate sense of irony. It is arguable, therefore that the paradoxes in this text in actual sense contribute immensely toward the exposure of deceptions in the life of slavery, thus highlight the modern thoughts about the issue. In light of the prevalence of slavery, it is arguable that the old order is most expected to triumph when it takes the form of innocence and predictability. This is evident in Babo’s character as a cunning architect of the revolt, who executes out the plan as a trustworthy and content servant whose is readily at the service of Cereno throughout the literature. Moreover, Cereno started his journey as the controller of the San Dominick, and his slaves, but when Delano notices their intention, the circumstances have completely changed. The slaves immediately step in the shoes of the controllers of the ship, with Babo assuming the most important role. For instance, during his master’s shaving scene, the reader is treated to Babo employing touches which evince the master’s hand. The scene arguably depicts the Negro as a Nubian artist putting the finishing touches on a white head of a statue. The servant temporarily observes his master as the product of his own gifted hands. In bringing out the inconsistencies of the old order versus the new order, Delano hides under the cloud of mystery, with Babo observing the movements of the vessel from the eyes of a community or societal segment craving for liberty. In the meantime, Delano is depicted as a slave travelling on the San Dominick together with Cereno. With these conflicting scenes, it is arguable that Delano readily yields, for the umpteenth time to the “attraction” of the aging Spanish ship with no sign of life ahead. The slave revolt, although shallowly presented throughout the literature as a manifestation of high degree of horror, the severity of the impacts can be construed as a yardstick upon which forces for liberation can use to advance past the status quo. In light of this, the text depicts the idea as the key pillar in the liberation of the slaves. Moreover, it acts as the key source of impetus within Delano; but the strength of the notion weathers the impact of revealing San Dominick’s captainship culminates in unbearable challenges and death fails to suffice in the literature. A keen reader is left speculating whether Delano has learnt enough through experience to an extent that he, and the nascent American society for which he survives, can shun the same relapse into spiritual servitude that the old order has dawned on the economically weak segments of the society. Criticism Despite the clear depiction of the theme of old order versus freedom inherent in the new order, the focusing of the storyline upon a revolt staged by slaves aboard a Spanish merchant vessel in 1799 exposes some ambiguities in the root of primary theme surrounding the developments. In light of this, readers may be easily affected by ambiguities revolving around racism and pro-slavery on the one hand, and anti-racist and abolitionist thoughts on the other hand. Conversely, when the text is placed in its immediate context, “Benito Cereno” mainly delves in human depravity and falls short of capturing racial issues at all. In the current world of terror and torturous acts to ensure national security, “Benito Cereno” is a story that cuts the image of perhaps the most noticeable of Melville's literary works: his is an account of desperate people possessed with the desire to carry out vengeful acts that their haters cannot comprehend. Although, the main source of the story is Amasa Delano's earlier literary work published in the early 1800s, it is notable that “Benito Cereno” is richer with important changes and deeper elaborations that transform it into a somewhat completely new literary piece. The crucial details that the captives have executed most or all of the key Spanish members spare for the captain Benito Cereno is tacitly told to the audience. The Spanish crew, and specifically the captain, eventually have no option but to act theatrically to highlight the superiority of the American resolve in Amasa Delano who at first approaches the aging Spanish vessel to lend a hand. This assistance places Americans on a higher pedestal as far as development and national identity are concerned, complicating the debate that some locals too are able to provide able assistance similar to that of the colonial masters. Though “Benito Cereno” is a third person narrative, the story is primarily told from Delano’s point of view, which basically shows rather than narrates to the reader the intrigues surrounding the challenges facing the liberators in their effort to reverse the old order. Conclusion The Melville’s text generally depicts forces of the status quo against the forces of progress and modernity. Whereas the forces of the old order are keen on perpetuating slavery, especially against the weaker ethnic groups who are mainly blacks and people of colour, the latter groups are struggling to reverse this trend. The forces of freedom seem to be winning the struggle, though at a heavy cost. The tense environment surrounding the aging Spanish merchant ship is in itself a stark symbolism of the weakening slavery under the strength of savage, revolting efforts of the forces of change. In a nutshell, the Melville’s indicates that despite the serious challenges facing the new order, freedom from slavery is unstoppable. Works Cited Melville, Herman. Benito Cereno. The Literature Network (1855). Web 14 July, 2013. Retrieved Read More