Benito Cereno Character Analysis

When Captain Amasa Delano visits the San Dominick he notices the tension between Babo and Don Benito Cereno while Babo is shaving Benito Cereno’s beard, “not unaffected by the close right of the gleaming steel, Don Benito nervously shuddered” (Melville 74). The tension between Babo and Cereno is ironic because Captain Delano does not understand what is actually going on between the two characters, creating tension between Captain Delano and the ship as a whole. Babo appears as the servant performing a task for Cereno, yet Babo is actually the person who holds the power over Benito Cereno. The shaving scene displays tension and irony between the two characters because although Babo is serving Cereno, it is also Babo who controls Cereno. The close reading of the formal elements of tension and …show more content…
Captain Delano is first introduced to the fainting spells of Benito Cereno and brought to believe that Babo was helping Cereno, when in actuality, Babo was the one causing them. “The black with one arm still encircled his master, at the same time keeping his eye fixed on his face,” is an instance when Delano believes that Cereno relies on Babo for assistance (Melville 45). This scene strengthens the tension between Babo and Cereno and between Delano and the ship because the understanding of the situation differs between the two sets of tension. As Delano is lead to believe Babo is helping, Cereno becomes even more afraid of Babo when he stares at him. “Keeping his eye fixed on his face” is thought by Delano to mean that Babo is ensuring that Cereno is okay; in reality it is Babo giving Cereno a threatening look. When a slave hands Delano a knot, he is caught off-guard, “the old man threw the knot towards him, saying… ‘Undo it, cut it, quick’… Captain Delano stood mute,” tension between Delano and the ship builds as Delano is made uncomfortable (Melville