Billy Killed Claggart

Billy Budd by Herman Melville is a nautical gospel written in a voice of omniscience and skepticism. The book takes place on the high seas following the Nore mutiny and chronicles the rise and eventual fall of Billy Budd. Billy is always noted by the narrator as someone far more attractive than his peers but never pretentious or condescending, he is a Christ figure in the novel. In the beginning of the story Billy transfers to a military ship where he is quickly loved by everyone, except (with out Billy’s knowledge) by one man, John Claggart. Claggart is opposite of Billy in all physical aspects and accuses Billy of mutiny leading to Billy’s execution. The main purpose of the book is to question people’s sense of justice. Was Billy killing Claggart because of his accusations self defense? Did Billy’s otherwise innocence and intention grant him not guilty? At what point can exceptions be made? Melville also includes a strong commentary on his perception of Christ. Billy is not perfect, but instead endowed with a heavy speech impediment and a below average intelligence. He is well liked for his innocence and part of this comes from his simple mindedness. These descriptions give the impression that Melville views …show more content…
The captain chooses the law over his own feelings. He locks away all that his conscience is telling him and does what he would do to any other man. This suggests that there are two ways to carry out law, one by the captain and the other by the reader. The captain sees the law devout of any emotion, an order; this coming as a surprise considering that his very name implies he is a dreamer and wanderer, likely to veer off course.The reader sees it purely in context. The entirety of the story is a case made by a defense attorney for Billy and makes it clear how hard it must have been for the captain to separate his emotions from the