Essay about The Character of Captain Delano in Benito Cereno

The Character of Captain Delano in Benito Cereno Captain Amasa Delano is an interesting embodiment of white complacency about slavery and its perpetuation. Delano is a human metaphor for white sentiment of the time. His deepest sensibilities of order and hierarchy make it impossible for him to see the realities of slavery. Delanos blindness to the mutiny is a metaphor for his blindness to the moral depravity of slavery. The examination of Captain Delanos views of nature, beauty, and humanity, allow us to see his often confusing system of hierarchical order which cripples his ability to see the mutiny and the injustice of slavery. After Delano believes that Benito Cereno cut his faithful slave on the cheek for shaving him†¦show more content†¦In the view of the captain everything, even nature herself can be fit into good order. But to insure that good order can exist there must be a prevention of misery. Captain Delano seeks to placate and to prevent misery in those lower than himself in his sense of order. The crucial lesson which the Captain cannot understand is that his conception of good order inherently causes misery in those he enslaves. The reason he wants to believe the lie of the San Dominick is because it validates his all important system of order and hierarchy. Delanos first description of Babo compares him to a shepherds dog. (p. 41) Not only did Delano compare him to something that was not human, but the assertion that Babo was a shepherds dog is important to understanding Delanos obsession with hierarchy and possession. Delano must understand everything in terms of its relationships and its place in his hierarchy. Delano describes the San Dominick as a Spanish merchantman of the first class, carrying Negro slaves, amongst other valuable freight. His first reaction to the fact that there were blacks on the San Dominick was to classify the blacks as valuable freight. He describes the black mothers as Unsophisticated as leopardesses; loving as doves.. (p. 63) After Captain Delano discovers that the blacks have mutinied, they are no longer dogs but wolves: Exhausted, the blacks now fought in despair.Show MoreRelatedEssay on Benito Cereno by Herman Melville561 Words   |  3 PagesBenito Cereno by Herman Melville In many stories, the main characters carry the plot of a story throughout the book. The author often expresses the message that he desires the reader to receive through their thoughts and actions. Yet, the minor characters often have a large affect on the outcome of the book, although it is not quite as obvious to the reader. By altering the thoughts or actions of the main characters, a seemingly minor player in a novel may actually, at closer examinationRead MoreRacism and Slavery in Benito Cereno, by Herman Melville1287 Words   |  6 PagesBartleby the Scrivener, and Benito Cereà ±o. His complex plot and unique character personalities make his works both interesting and compelling. In Benito Cereà ±o, we are introduced to the narrator Captain Delano as he and his crew encounter the ship, the San Dominick, in need of assistance. Upon climbing aboard he meets Captain Cereà ±o along with is crew and slaves, and is informed of their unfortunate events has left the ship without supplies. However, Captain Delano is not aware of what is actuallyRead MoreCaptain Delano s Disarrayed World1417 Words   |  6 PagesRishabh Bhatnagar Ms. Disher English 3 Honors 29 December 2014 Captain Delano’s Disarrayed World The character of Captain Delano in â€Å"Benito Cereno† is that of a good-natured and openhearted white man who is clever but naà ¯ve in his assumptions about his surroundings. Although Delano is identified as the major character with good traits, Melville stresses the man’s simplicity. He is constantly exposed to clues onboard the San Dominick, yet he does not recognize the underlying mutiny that has takenRead MoreThe Corruption Of Slavery During The 19th Century1571 Words   |  7 PagesOlivia Seeney Dr. Michael Crews ENGL 202 Lit of the U.S.: Beginning-Civil War 11 December, 2015 The Corruption of Slavery in Benito Cereno† â€Å"From the beginning of the â€Å"Melville Revival† in the 1920’s until late in the 60’s, when â€Å"Benito Cereno† had come to be seen as one of his masterpieces of short fiction, the critical consensus held that the story was one of evil (the blacks) attempting to destroy good (the whites) (Beauchamp).† However, as most of the events that occur through the story it isRead MoreEssay about Death on Board755 Words   |  4 PagesDeath On Board The story of Benito Cereno contains a vicious mutiny at sea aboard the San Dominick plotted and carried out by the valuable [human] freight (39) - the slaves. Subsequently, this insurrection is veiled in a calculated fa#231;ade to fool a na#239;ve American captain named Delano who is unable to believe in the malign evil in man (37). Delano remains complacent throughout his time on the San Dominick unaware of the many indications suggesting a much more sinister situationRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Good And Evil 1565 Words   |  7 PagesYajaira Andraschko Professor Murray ENC 1102- 07 03 November 2014 The Good and Evil in â€Å"Benito Cereno† Benito Cereno is certainly one of the most mysterious and notorious novellas of Melville. Full in symbolism and somewhat gothic in its analysis, that it has caused a great partition among the literary critics of Melville. Various critics have argued that the text defenses the association of slavery while others have argued that it sentences it. There are those who have not taken into considerationRead MoreBenito Cereno By Herman Melville951 Words   |  4 PagesBenito Cereno is a short story written by Herman Melville in 1855. This story is about a black crew’s desire for freedom. It was published around the same time the United States was reading itself for The Civil War. This short story is just one of several stories by Melville that contributed to the debate of slavery during his time. The San Dominick is the Spanish ship aboard which most the story’s events take place. By the time Captain Delano, portrayed as a dumbfounded racist, discovers it, theRead MoreAnalysis of Critical Essays on Benito Cereno1280 Words   |  6 Pagesof Critical Essays on Beni to Cereno nbsp; It is possible to divide the critics into two camps regarding Herman Melvilles purpose in writing Benito Cereno. Joseph Schiffman, Joyce Adler, and Sidney Kaplan all argue that Melville wrote the story to make a comment on slavery. On the other hand, Sandra Zagarell and Allan Emery contend that Melville goes beyond slavery and is pointing out other flaws in mid Nineteenth century American notion. nbsp; Benito Cereno tells the story of aRead MoreFrederick Douglass Narrative And Benito Cereno1577 Words   |  7 PagesBetween Frederick Douglass Narrative and Benito Cereno Early American Literature reflects many conflicting differences in the presentation of slavery during that time period. Through the two chosen texts, the reader is presented with two different perspectives of slavery; Frederick Douglass’s narrative provides a look at a slave’s life through the eyes if a slave while Benito Cereno showcases the tale of a slave uprising from the viewpoint of the slave owner.. Benito Cereno’s work shows the stereotypicalRead MoreAnalysis Of Benito Cereno And The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman1675 Words   |  7 Pagesthe reader an advanced understanding of the text. Two literary works, Benito Cereno by Herman Melville and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman use stereotypes as a literary technique to deepen the plot, but are used in each story in a particularly different way. Literature is a good mechanism to help explore cultural stereotypes and exploit the positive and negative consequences associated with them. In Benito Cereno, Melville encaptures a typical American sailor who is blindly trusting