Benito Cerreno

Equiano wrote to help show society the evils that lie in slavery. He used writing, to tell the truth of conditions of life for slaves, making readers feel every word he used through their senses: “The stench of the hold, while we were on the coast, was so intolerably loathsome, that it was dangerous to remain there for anytime” (Equiano 364). While they both wrote with different purposes in mind, Rowlandson and Equiano managed to paint a picture so vivid that it invoked emotions that edified society.

“The Autobiography of a Runaway Slave” revolves around the life of Esteban Montejo: who once set his life is the Caribbean island of Cuba; in which this story provides readers with another distinctive approach to teaching the lives of slavery. As the narration progresses through this writing, readers consequently have many opportunities to annotate how the abolition of slavery played a great role in his personal life. Evidently, whether it is intentional or unintentional, the narrator frequently mentions the ending of slavery, as he substantially detailed “…till slavery left Cuba,” (Barnet 38); “… I got to know all these people better after slavery was abolished,” (Barnet 58); and “It was after Abolition that the term ‘effeminate’ came into

Equiano wanted desperately to be free of the spirits and the magic he believed was causing the ship to move, in fact he wished "much to be from amongst them" but the crew kept the Africans so "quartered it was impossible for any of us to make our escape." What Equiano experienced was nothing to what was to come and what also pushed many Africans to want to die instead of become slaves. Equiano wrote, "This wretched situation was again aggravated by the galling of the chains, now become insupportable" combined with the filth of the toilets which were a drowning hazard for the children, the cries of the woman and the dying portray a situation of "horror almost inconceivable." Equiano thinks of the fishes and other "inhabitants of the deep" being much happier than himself,

In Herman Melville’s mysterious novella, “Benito Cereno”, Captain Amasa Delano observes, what appears to be, a distressed Spanish slave ship navigating into the harbor of St. Maria. Disregarding the opposition from his crew, Captain Delano leaves his ship, Bachelor's Delight, and approaches the foreign vessel, San Dominick, via a whaleboat. In addition to offering water and provisions to the vessel in distress, Captain Delano encounters—who appears to be in command of the vessel—Don Benito Cereno, and his “faithful” negro servant Babo. Throughout the novella, Captain Delano witnesses many suspicious behaviors from Benito Cereno, Babo, and the other slaves on board. Although Captain Delano has mixed feelings about Benito Cereno, in which he often views him as a “paper captain” who has “little of command but the name”, Captain Delano fails to latch onto his intuition of who is truly in command of the ship until it’s almost too late.

Equiano’s luck soon shifted when he was once again kidnapped and sold as a slave, this time he would have to endure the notoriously dreadful journey across the sea to America. Knowing that this was a pivotal point in his life and that he would become a gudgeon to the harshness of slavery, Equiano attempted to prepare himself for what lay ahead. However, the sight of the inhumane acts he witnessed on the African coast, while being transported, were new to Equiano and instilled fear into his consciousness.

The works of Herman Melville and Frederick Douglass are both centered on the topic of slavery. Although both texts are similar in the sense that they focus directly on the theme of slavery, the functions of each work differ drastically. The differences in the works stem from both the style of the text, and the way that this style functions in accordance with the reader. Although Herman Melville’s Benito Cereno is drawn from an actual event, Melville embellishes and alters the event in the style of prose. The prose style used by Melville invites the reader to question the story while understanding that the majority of the work is fictional. The confusion of Captain Delano is brought onto the reader, and therefore engages the reader because of the limited point of view the story is told in. Frederick Douglass’s Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass tells of actual events that occurred using twentieth and twenty-first century plain style. This style of writing does not ask the reader to question what he is saying, but feel his emotions as they read the narrative. Although readers may understand both works to be stories about slavery written differently in terms of style, I argue that the way the texts are written sets up the readers interpretation of them. Melville and Douglass differ because Melville’s work invites the reader to think, whereas Douglass’s work invites the reader to feel.

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 stereotypical attitude towards African-American slaves and the immorality of that outlook according to Douglass’s narrative. Cereno portrays the typical white slave owner of his time, while Douglass’ narrative shows the thoughts of the slaves. The two stories together show that white Americans are oblivious to the ramifications and overall effects of slavery. These texts assist a moralistic purpose in trying to open up America’s eyes to the true nature of slavery by revealing it’s inhumanity and depicting the cruelty that was allowed.

After reading the story of Benito Cereno a main idea that is apparent would be natural slavery. In the story, Captain Delano discovers a ship that would appear to be ran by Benito Cereno. However, Cereno was not in charge due to the slave revolt against his ship. With assuming that the Africans on the ship were slaves, Delano was fooled multiply times into believing Cereno was in charge. This exploits the idea of natural slavery. With Delano already assuming the African’s on the ship were slaves, he is justifying the idea that he naturally thought they were slaves.

In Benito Cereno, Captain Delano’s attention is brought upon by the many clues and events that take place on the San Dominick shortly after he steps aboard. The first clue he comes upon while approaching the ship is that majority of the people on the boat are black. While also boarding the ship Delano sees that there is not much order since the black slave’s kind of do as they please. The black slaves are also witnessed by Delano demanding the whites around. Cereno, who Delano thinks is the captain of the ship, is kind of demanded around by two black slaves, one named Babo and the other named Atufal. While on the ship Delano witnesses many things that just don’t seem right, including another incident where a black person is assaulting a white

Captain Amasa Delano is an interesting embodiment of white complacency about slavery and it's 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. Delano's blindness to the mutiny is a metaphor for his blindness to the moral depravity of slavery. The examination of Captain Delano's 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.

A major example of the grayness in this story is in this excerpt: "The morning was one peculiar to that coast. Everything was mute and calm; everything gray. The sea, though undulated into long roods of swells, seemed fixed, and was sleeked at the surface like waved lead that has cooled and set in the smelter 's mould. The sky seemed a gray surtout. Flights of troubled gray fowl, kith and kin with flights of troubled gray vapors among which they were mixed, skimmed low and fitfully over the waters, as swallows over meadows before storms (Melville)." Captain Delano believed that blacks were kind-hearted and humble people and may have had good intentions, but he still found nothing wrong with the slaves aboard the San Dominick. He even thought Babo as an ideal servant for Captain Cereno, saying he was submissive, yet happy (Richards). Delano may have good thoughts about the slaves he still believes nothing is wrong with the idea of them and that kind of thinking settles more on the bad side of things. While Benito Cereno and Babo on the other hand are what really create the gray in the story. Benito Cereno was a captain of a slave ship, so there was no question that he was in favor of slavery also considering that he had a personal slave servant. Babo was a slave on this ship, he was enslaved, like all the other slaves, for no reason other than that the whites thought they

The ignorance of Captain Delano in Benito Cereno can be accredited to his racist convictions that guide his perception of the ship’s perilous situation. However, is Delano at fault for his racism? When rethinking the racism in Benito Cereno under the context of Althusser’s theories on ideology, racism is an ideology forcibly implemented on the subject through the social institution of slavery. Delano’s actions and thoughts throughout Benito Cereno prove that his racism is a result of a socially imposed ideology and challenge the modern ideals of racism that place the blame for racist attitudes entirely on the racist subject. Delano is the subject of a racist ideology and has been forced into that ideology through the social apparatus of slavery

Herman Melville is known greatly in the world of literature for his enigmatic works, such as "Bartleby the Scrivener", and "Benito Cereño". His complex plot and unique character personalities make his works both interesting and compelling. In "Benito Cereño", 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 Cereño 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 actually going on behind the fake story he is told. The slaves aboard are the ones in charge holding the Spaniards hostage and forcing them to take them

Certain events are elaborated upon which further developed Equiano's character. Among them are the encounters that the author had aboard Captain Pascal's ship. As mentioned before, Equiano's life differed greatly from the typical slaves. Due to the fact that he spent most of his time traveling across the Atlantic, he and every other man, regardless of race, was under direct and clear orders. All had a function to fulfill aboard ship, and if a free man or a slave failed in his assigned task, they would be penalized. Furthermore, due to the fact that ships usually consisted of all-male groups, the sailors all shared the rough life of having to prove their masculinity and deal with everyday competition of strength and courage. Equiano was quick to learn this and before long he was called upon deck and paired with

"Benito Cereno" tells the story of a slave revolt on a ship at sea. Schiffman, Adler, and Kaplan argue that Melville wrote the story as a comment on slavery. Schiffman and Adler contend that Melville's novella is a clear indictment of slavery. Kaplan takes the