AMST 384 1st Edition Lecture 13Outline of Last Lecture II. Obama’ ProclamationIII. History of African AmericansIV. Nat Turner Revolt V. Fredrick DouglasVI. “Heroic Slave”Outline of Current Lecture VII. Story of Bentio CerenoVIII. Fictional historical eventsIX. Main Characters outlinedLecture: Herman Melville “Bentino Cereno” –Benito means goodness- Issues of race, segregation, and being blind to obvious because of these issues- What effect of fiction have on a recount of slavery? History?Not just fiction: Fictionalization of historical events- Madison Washington (creole incident in 1841 renarrated by Douglas in 1853)- Babo (ship called Tryal Mutiny in 1805 that was renarrated by Melville as having occurred on board of San Dominick) Melville’s Novella “Bentino Cereno”- Historical context: Middle Passage-slave shipso Business decision on how you can lay out bodies of slaves on a ship so that you get maximum amount of people on the shipo Transferring slaves away from homeo Forceable taking of people from Atlantic and many taken to Caribbean or Americao Crispus Attucks- wounded black, that symbolizes America patronism  Make tyrant not british king but Americano Cinque and Amistad Mutiny Cinque (slave) kills Captain Ferrer on ship These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute. Like in Benito Cereno, blacks can kill at anytime but don’t because he is killing for his liberty o “Am I Not A Man and a Brother?” all, blacks and whites, came from Adam and Eve- Richmond Slave Trailo Richmond Slave Trail  Designation Memory- memory on the landscape (sight of historic memory) This slave trail was when slaves left Richmond and go to oceans because there the land laws didn’t abide. Freedom. o Creole Incident (Madison Washington’s story)o How do Americans remember the horror of slavery?  Memory practices  Monuments o Painting: Robert Shore picture of San Dominick ship- destroyed and in bad shape to represent falling of slave/white history- Amasa Delano is a real person, descendant of Roosevelto Delano was reading “Voyages and Travels” and reads this story of Benito Cereno in it and decides to rewrite it. o Delano “they all looked up to me as a benefactor; and as I was deceived in them, I did them every possible kindness. Had it been otherwise there is no doubt I should have…”o Delano later received Reward of Merit- he said that his reward was helping helpless others- “When I take a retrospective view of my life, I cant find in my soul, that I have ever done anything to deserve such misery”o Delano is bitter- Melville rewrote Delano’s storyo Was anonymous and published in Putman’s Monthly, didn’t put name because wanted story to get out, didn’t go to college - Ambiguities in the story:o “Still, Captain Delano was not a little concerned at what he could not help taking for the time to be Don Benito’s unfriendly indifference towards himself” negative termso “Not without some undefined misgiving” Litotes-double negative- Uncertain pronoun reference o Captain Delano The blunt-thinking American’s eyes: he doubts his own doubts? Quotes: “A person of a singulary distrustful good nature, not liable, except on repeated excitement, blunt thinking, a man of such native simplicity as to be incapable of satire or irony, oblivious of anything but benevolent thoughts, drowning critiscm in compassion, laughed at his former forebodings, you are a child indeed” Why did he not do anything about his doubts?- White supremecy- Benevolent point of voice, believes in divine power of god and blinded to the evil reality in humans - Blinded to seeing what is there, that ironically saves his life “Once again he smiled at the phantoms which had mocked him, that yb indulgingthem even for a moment, that he should have betrayed his doubts” “But if that story on board was not true, what was the real truth?” “A Shadowy Tableau”- a drama of the prejudices of race, class, and nationality- people dressed up and stand as statues, static dramatic scene- Melville shows us drama on board:o Atufalo The knoto The shaving scene Moment of terror, the one in power is shaving Cereno’s neck (nervous)- Delano says “ a strange history and strange folks on board. But-nothing more”  Delano’s view of Cereno- Morbid, if had more energy could have taken control Delano’s view of Babo- Prejudices- “A black of small stature, in whose rude face like a shepherd’s dog”- Captain Delano could not but bethink him of the beauty of that relationship which could present such a spectacle of fidelity on the one hand and the confidence on the other”o Plays on the prejudice of Delano and power of Babo even thoughBabo is the servant - “Like most men of good heart, Captain Delano took to Negroes just as other men to Newfoundland dogs” o “When the scaled dropped from his eyes” when Delano figured out the truth about what was happening on the shipo Babo is interesting figure becauase he doesn’t say much but has all the power “Poor Babo here, in his own land, was only a poor slave” “Master will soon be himself”**Babo doesn’t use language, he orchestrates prejudices that deceives Delano What kind of character is Babo?-Homeland is Senegal and trying to return there but they have killed all the navigators -Babo can read the codes of the whites and use it against them-His threat to everyone aboard the ship is “ Keep faith with the blacks from here to Senegal, or you shall in spirit, as now in body, follow your leader”o Here the leader is Alexandro Arando (?)o Original figure head is Christopher Columbus and puts the bonesof Alexandro on the head of the ship o Who is the leader of this story?Delano?Cereno?Alexandro?Babo? Christ?o Who does Melville identify most with in the story?Narratively Amasa DelanoStory of Resurrecting a desire for black liberty and using any resources he has to overcome the system of