Herman Melvilles Billy Budd - Innocence is More Important that Wisdom :: Billy Budd Essays

Herman Melvilles truncheon Budd - Innocence is More eventful that Wisdom In truncheon Budd, the author, Herman Melville, presents a question that stems directly from the lord sin of ouAdam and Eve Is it better to be innocent and ignorant, but full and righteous, or is it better to be experienced and knowledgeable? Through this work, Billy Budd,Melville is telling us that we emergency to strike some kind of ease between these two ideas we need to have morality and virtue we need to be in the world, but not of the world. To illustrate his theme, Melville uses a few characters who are all very different, the most important of which is Billy Budd. Billy is the focal point of the book and the single person whom we are meant to train the most from. On the ship, the Rights-of-Man, Billy is a cynosure among his shipmates a leader, not by authority, but by example. All the members of the bunch look up to him and kip down him. He is strength and beauty. Tales of his prowess are recit ed. Ashore he is the champion, afloat the spokesman on every suitable occasion always foremost(9). Despite his popularity among the crew and his hardworking attitude, Billy is transferred to another(prenominal) British ship, the Indomitable. And while he is accept for his looks and happy personality, ...hardly here is he that cynosure he had previously been among those minor ships companies of the merchandiser marine(14). It is here, on the Indomitable that Billy says good-bye to his rights. It is here, also, that Billy meets prank Claggart, the master-at-arms. A man in whom was the mania of an evil nature, not engendered by vicious training or corrupting books or licentious reinforcement but born with him and innate, in short a depravity according to nature(38). hither then, is presented a man with a personality and character to contrast and scrap with Billys. Sweet, innocent Billy immediately realizes that this man is someone he does not wish to cross and so after seeing Claggart whip another crew-member for neglecting his responsibilities, Billy resolved that never through remissness would he soak up himself liable to such a visitation or do or omit aught that might merit even verbal crush(31). Billy is so good and so innocent that he tries his hardest to keep on out of trouble. What then was his surprise and concern when ultimately he comprise himself getting into petty trouble occasionally about such matters as the stowage of his bag.