Benito Cereno
November 14, 1985
A review of "Benito Cereno" by Herman Melville.
Copyright © 1997 Property of Deborah K. Fletcher. All rights reserved.
"Seguid vuestro jefe." For many men, this advice would indicate an ascendance from meanness to glory, as the leader of much of the modern world is Jesus. He rose from the son of a lowly carpenter to the recognized Son of God. The conception that "follow your leader" implied a descent from discovery to corruption is precisely opposite to the religious idea.
When Melville wrote "... mindful of their higher master; while serving, plot revenge," he could as easily have been making a commentary on the modern Christian as on the eighteenth century Negro. In Benito Cereno, the Negroes professed to follow their master, and serve him, while in reality plotting his death. Similarly, modern Christians often profess to follow the teachings of their Master, while spending much of their time hating, lying, cheating, and in many other ways denying His teachings.
If the analogy hold true, then Benito Cereno was cast in the Christ role, the Negroes in the role of modern Christians, and Amasa Delano in the role of the true, innocent Christian. When Don Benito responded "The Nego." to Captain Delano's question of what had cast such a shadow over him, it was like Christ's sorrowful admission that his followers had betrayed him.
The suggestion that nature is the higher master also bears credence. When nature is affronted by mankind's habitual misuse of its resources, it reacts violently, claiming revenge on those who sought to destroy it.
As before, the characters of Benito Cereno may be cast in roles. In this case, Don Benito represents nature, the Negroes represent the bulk of humanity, destroying nature, and Captain Delano represents the innocent members of humanity, who do not see the causes of the destruction, only the tragic effect on nature's countenance.
In this drama, the response "The Negro." is nature's admission that mankind has done this to it, which admission is spoken in confidence to those of humanity who have not schemed to destroy it.
If Benito Cereno was the moral commentary that it could easily be taken to be, then Melville was a writer centuries ahead of his time. The moral implications of Benito Cereno are applicable in today's world. On the surface, it is a simple maritime horror mystery. Its deeper meaning, however, seems to be that of a society which is traditionally acceptable in appearance - long suffering, yet still surviving - but which is corrupt and deceitful in reality. This is the appearance that is often given by modern society; moral, God-fearing, and righteous to all but the most critical eyes, but vice-gripped and corrupted when seen by the eyes of the truly righteous - those who are innocent in the ways of the world.
Herman Melville has accomplished a greatness in the writing of Benito Cereno. Whether taken as a mystery tale, or as a lesson in mankind's morality, it is a great American literary monument,
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