Melvilles Benito Cereno as a reflection on Racism

Perspective of Delano 5 3. Language Use and Choice of Words 7 4 Conclusion 8 Bibliographie 9 Declaration of Academic Integrity 10 1 Introduction Racial stereotyping is something that has been around for many years. It can be found throughout the times of the Civil war, the reconstruction period, and the civil rights movement up until the present day. Herman Melville's Benito Cereno is a novel that can be regarded as a thoroughly composed work of art. Throughout the novel, there is evidence of racial stereotyping given that the story was compiled during a period of slavery. Also, the atmosphere of the story tends to disguise the truth from the reader, something that makes it easy to believe that Benito Cereno is a reflection of racism. Herman Melville’s story is a study on how stereotyping and racial beliefs have fueled and justified slavery.

The paper seeks to clarify the justification of slavery during the period in which the story takes place and will further provide a brief chronological survey by looking at the historical background. In a next step, I will investigate how slavery is justified in Benito Cereno. How this is processed in the story is based on the perspective of Delano. This came through the curse that God put on Cain. God also put a mark on Cain which was a symbol of protection from being killed. The mark placed on Cain was used by many people to justify acts of racism, discrimination and slavery. Thus, it is believed that God commanded slavery even before it came into reality. Also, in Genesis 9:20-27, the concept of slavery is evident in the story of Noah and his son Ham.

The wealthy merchants and farmers in Britain seemed to benefit highly from the production of sugar. The planters became part of the government, and thus they saw an opportunity to influence the policies that could impact the colonies. Thus, the rise of the sugar sector led to the rise of the slave trade. Furthermore, the proslavery supporters used feelings and sentiments as well as logic and reason to convince people of the benefits of Caribbean slavery and the slave trade. Also, they warned of the dangers of resisting slavery such as the anti-slavery movements (Dumas 2016: 90). Before the American Revolution in the 1770s, there was no need for slave-owners to come up with arguments to justify slavery. Wherever slavery was present, society accepted that others were treated submissively and badly. With the emergence of the Second Continental Congress, “slavery come under the attack of religious groups,” and the masters had to provide “public defense “for slavery.

Finkelman 2007: 96) To be black and to be an African slave became “the most undesirable thing” (Wilson 1996: 54) to be. The economic engine of slavery helped in fueling the prosperity of America. Americans who supported the idea of slavery believed that the slaves were better off in the United States, since “Slaves enjoyed the blessings of Christianity and the support and protection of their masters” (Schneider and Schneider 2007: 250). “There is a farther consideration which has a plausible appearance, and may be thought to carry some weight; it is, that the merchant only purchases those who were slaves before, and possibly may, rather than otherwise, render their situation more tolerable“ (Thompson 1772: 541). Here, Thompson points out that Africans were already enslaved before they were sold to Americans, so they might have ended up in far worse circumstances, because “such a trade is taking the advantage of the ignorance and brutality of unenlightened nations, who are encouraged to war with each other“ (Thompson 1772: 542 ).

The ideologists of proslavery argued that maintaining slavery was vital to the economy of the nation. Most of the times, they referred to the way British colonies greatly deteriorated after the emancipation of the slaves. Several laws had been published during this time that provided a legal lens towards slavery. The salves owners had no restrictions on the limit of work they could command from their slaves as long as they provided enough food and shelter (Morgan 1975: 308). The Bible and the natural order of the universe all supported slavery (Finkelman 2007: 97). The story of Noah and the curse of Canaan serve as an argument to justify slavery on the biblical defense. Also, the theory of Polygenism serves as a key to understand the existence of slave labor in the 18th and 19th century.

The historical defense of slavery was built upon Plato and Aristotle. They both argued that “slavery was an integral part of any great society” (Finkelman 2007: 102). The Republic of Rome and the Grecian democracy had been slaveholding societies so why not transfer this hierarchical order if this is “natural and universal“ (Finkelman 2007: 100) “Slavery had been an accepted social and economic institution in all of the great nations in the world“ (Finkelman 2007: 99). It was very common among the Egyptians to command a very high price for Negro slaves, because African slaves were “luxury slaves” (Finkelman 2007: 103). Investigation of Slavery in Benito Cereno 3. He ranked slaves lowly and believed that their relationship to their master should not be very close since they had darkness within them and thus they were capable of worsening situations. The text passage where Delano wants to buy Babo can serve as another example to demonstrate his view on slavery which is undoubtedly racist.

Melville 1855: 2424) Instead of treating him like a human being, Delano treats Babo like Merchandise which is easy to sell and trade. He tries to exchange a person for money, which shows that he values and treats blacks as less humanely and rather like animals or goods. On the basis of Delano's point of view in this explicit example, one can prove how blacks were seen and treated during the time the novel is set. According to Delano, blacks are naturally inferior and submissive. Such beliefs propel him into a situation that is beyond his understanding. Furthermore, he considers the degree of authority that Babo exercises aboard the ship as mandatory to his role of a servant. He believes that, [w]hatever special orders were necessary, their delivery was delegated to his body-servant, who in turn transferred them to their ultimate destination, through runners, alert Spanish boys or slave boys, like pages or pilot-fish within easy call continually hovering around Don Benito.

Melville 1986: 42-43). Every baby, whether human or animal, needs the care of its parents in order not to be defenseless. Delano seems to see this phenomenon differently at least in terms of the black race. This incident prompted him to remark that he must reconsider his prejudices. Delano’s way of thinking about Blacks in this example can be used to serve as another comment on race. Language Use and Choice of Words Through the metaphors that Delano uses on the black slaves aboard the ship, he is depicted as a passive racist rather than an active and violent one. —> explain this quote! Besides, Delano thinks that blacks are too stupid to organize anything powerful. Delano goes ahead to describe the Africans as “unsophisticated Africans. ” This quote demonstrates how Delano perceives the African slaves.

Besides, Delano thinks that blacks are too stupid to organize anything powerful. Delano goes ahead to describe the Africans as “unsophisticated Africans” (Melville 2011: 57). As a consequence, the characters Melville chooses tend to reinforce the evils of slavery and slave trade. An examination of Delano's perception of beauty, nature, and humanity reveals to the readers his often unclear system of hierarchical order which undermines his ability to perceive the mutiny and injustice of slave trade and slavery. Therefore Herman Melville’s Benito Cereno illuminates how stereotyping and racial beliefs held by the whites have helped to fuel and justify acts of slavery in the novel and in the real world. Bibliographie Finkelman, Paul. “The Significane and Persistence of Proslavery Thought. nytimes. com/2015/04/03/how-the-slave-trade-built-america/ (accessed July 25th, 2018) Melville, Herman. Benito Cereno. Norton Anthology of American Literature.

Vol. New York: Facts on File, Inc. Steverson, Delia. “’Everything Gray’’: Polygenism and Racial Perception in Herman Melville's Benito Cereno. ” The Journal of American Culture 40. Shima, Alan. Racism: From Slavery to Advanced Capitalism. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage, 1998. Declaration of Academic Integrity Hiermit erkläre ich, dass ich die vorliegende Arbeit mit dem Titel: selbst angefertigt und alle von mir benutzten Hilfsmittel und Quellen angegeben habe; alle wörtlichen Zitate und Entlehnungen sind als solche gekennzeichnet. Ort/Datum Unterschrift.