Abstract Ralph Ellison introduces his 20th century novel, "Invisible Man", with a quotation from Herman Melville's 19th century short story, "Benito Cereno". The paper shows why Ellison chose a white man's story as the first intertextual reference for his novel about the black man's struggle: Ellison chooses Melville specifically to demonstrate the connections between the two stories concerning the racial relations and the concept of freedom. The paper explains that these similar themes reflect the social attitude of the period in which the stories were published. "Benito Cereno", as an abolitionist piece, echoes this movement's social criticism against slavery and racism. The paper shows that Ellison immerses "Invisible Man" in the pre-civil rights Harlem; a period that overflows with racial tensions and strives to define the black man's role in the white America.
From the Paper "In the context of these social scenes, each author, through a different perspective, examines and defines the concept of blackness. Melville employs the point of view of the naive Amasa Delano, a Massachusetts captain of a slave ship in 1799, as he boards a Spanish slave ship taken over by Africans. Ellison, on the other hand, narrators his story with the voice of a young, unnamed black man. Through these two divergent points of view, Melville and Ellison each expose conceptions of blackness concerning blindness and a false sense of sight for both races."
Abstract This paper shows how the author's mind both reflects the cultural preconceptions of his day regarding race and attempts to challenge these preconceptions. In Melville's writings about a slave rebellion - a fictional dramatization of the Amistad mutiny, the way in which the author perceives race and the issues of slavery are examined.
From the Paper "The way in which Melville's tale unfolds at first seems like an example of realistic storytelling. It unfolds in a highly detailed, matter-of-fact fashion through a third person limited narration, then switches to a first person deposition. This initial technique of third-person narration is initially used create a sense of authorial and factual objectivity. However, quite early in the story, the idea that this omniscient narrator is still limited by notions of race becomes clear. ?Negresses, of whom there were not a few, exceeded the others in their dolorous vehemence,? observes the narrator. The reference to "Negresses" suggests women defined primarily by their race, and confirms the common cultural preconception of black women as vehement in a fashion that neither white women nor white men are."
Abstract The paper analyzes what Melville meant by promoting the message of "follow your leader" in his story, "Benito Cereno" in events which took place in 1799. It analyzes literal and figurative interpretations of this saying. The paper also deals with the concept of leadership in general and how it applies to the story.
From the Paper "A skillful author produces great literature by virtue of the fact that his or her writings can be understood and appreciated on many different levels. There is always the most basic level, the surface level in which the straightforward plot details are outlined and the message that is imparted is for the most part clear and non-debatable. A more experienced reader or critic knows that an appreciation for literature requires an expenditure of a certain degree of effort on the part of the reader himself in an attempt to attain the subtler messages that underlie the author's surface intentions. Most meaningful fiction is structured in such a way that with each new discovery or layer that is uncovered, one unearths a new meaning or reading. It is also necessary that the reader be cognizant of the fact that authors do not write in a vacuum. As removed as the author may be from society, society manages to seep in because of its overpowering pervasiveness and influence upon the author's sensibilities and outlook on life. For instance, authors have the ability to utilize their texts as social commentary and satire, and many often do. Herman Melville's Benito Cereno describes an account of a tale that took place in 1799, but certain aspects of the story, particularly the aspects regarding leadership, reflect attitudes of 1855 and the events that occurred during that period of time."
Abstract This paper explains that the story "Benito Cereno" by Herman Melville is a true story, reported in a book by the real Amasa Delano. The paper author feels that the story is interesting for the way Melville shapes it so that the reader is led to see the story in one way until a single moment causes a reversal and everything is seen to be the opposite of what was before. This paper comments that Melville made careful use of language and style, but the critics were not always accepting of his work.
From the Paper "Captain Amasa Delano is the intelligence serving as the focus of the story in "Benito Cereno." The reader learns as the captain learns, and sometimes the reader learns faster than does the captain. The reader can see early that something is wrong on the San Dominick, but Captain Delano accepts what Benito Cereno tells him until the evidence begins to mount that something is wrong. It is not that Delano is foolish but that he is trusting, and he does not understand the nature of evil until after his experience on the San Dominick."
Abstract This paper is a biography on Benito Mussolini focusing on the life of Mussolini as a young man who struggled to become one of the greatest dictators of the world. It focuses on how Italy was elevated to a prominent position under his leadership and how it again fell to the same position after over throwing Mussolini from his dictatorship.
Abstract This paper describes Herman Melville's literary style, his political beliefs that were reflected in his writings, and the circumstances of his life that contributed to his political beliefs. Particular emphasis is placed on Melville's novelette, "Benito Cereno", and how he conveys his feelings about the evils of slavery, as well as the need to correct those evils, in a a way that brings about change in the South at an acceptable pace.
From the Paper "The year Herman Melville's novelette "Benito Cereno" takes place may be 1799, but it represents the conflicting beliefs and actions that were occurring in the United States when the author actually wrote the piece in 1856. Although Melville's stories and novels mostly revolved around the sea, including his masterpiece Moby Dick, one of his sub-themes was the treatment or mistreatment of one person or persons against another. He was continually intrigued by the ambiguities that he perceived in all human experiences, and sought answers as to what caused human behavior?specifically good versus evil, violence against women, racism, and the alienation of the worker."
Abstract This paper explains that, while Herman Melville's "Benito Cereno", published just a few years prior to the Civil War and in the midst of a fierce national debate over slavery, is based on an actual event. Captain Delano's thoughts are embellished by Melville to make the theme of the story the institution of slavery. The author points out that the racism in the novel stands out because the black slaves are portrayed in an excessively evil manner. The paper concludes that Melville's failed attempt at writing an anti-racist novel is simply a result of the inability to see blacks in any other way than inferior because Melville was simply a product of his time.
From the Paper "Race is one of the most significant issues of the twentieth century and when dealing with older texts it is always a tricky issue, and many have argued that the novel is one shown from an abolitionist point of view because it is relaying a message to the whites how blacks can rebel when forced into servitude. Though some passages in the story are to be taken as a mocking towards the way southern whites thought of blacks, there are passages that simply cannot be taken as anything else then an insult because it was the reality of the times."
Abstract This paper examines different essays and criticisms of Herman Melville's "Benito Cereno" in order to try and establish what message Melville was trying to give regarding salvery. It attempts to show how although opinions differ, one thing that all the scholarly works are concerned with is that slavery and race are somehow linked and that Melville's violent tale of revolt on board a slave transport ship will remain one of his most controversial pieces.
From the Paper "Sidney Kaplan's 1956 essay "Herman Melville and the American National Sin" is one of the clearest examples of the first category of understanding Melville and slavery. Kaplan argues that this work is steeped in the atmosphere of the debate over slavery, but, "the image of Melville as subtle abolitionist in Benito Cereno may be a construction of generous wish rather than hard fact" (Kaplan 177). He supports this supposition by analyzing and interpreting each of the main characters. Delano is an unintelligent, naive character who learns about the existence of malign evil in the world. Kaplan profiles Cereno as a good, religious member of the Spanish gentry who is beaten by experience. Babo is the primitive, bestial character who teaches Delano about malign evil."
Abstract The paper portrays how Herman Melville's novels, "Moby Dick," and "Benito Cereno" are rife with vivid images that serve to further illuminate characters, events and places. The paper shows how Melville makes considerable use of color; whiteness and blackness are central to Melville's narrative in both novels. The paper discusses how white symbolizes all that is good, moral, virtuous and yet unattainable in contrast to the black surrounding us that symbolizes evil and death. The paper illustrates how in "Moby Dick" and "Benito Cereno," men are constantly confronted by things and choices that are either black or white, but together merge into a kind of grayness in which we all actually exist.
From the Paper "White was a powerful color in Herman Melville's world. The Victorians were obsessed with morality, with the idea of creating a more perfect world; one that was based on the highest principals, ethical and sacred. The ideas that were popular in Queen Victoria's rapidly industrializing Great Britain were equally fashionable in the growing United States. Whiteness symbolized goodness, purity, and virtue. A writer or artist would choose the color white to represent these and similar qualities. The great British Writer, Alfred Lord Tennyson, used the notion of whiteness to great effect in Idylls of the Kings, perfectly capturing the color's mythic associations."
Abstract This paper examines Benito Mussolini's march on Rome not as an attempt to control Italy, but as an intelligently conceived plan which went virtually unscathed which proved to be the greatest victory in Mussolini's political career.
From the Paper "Benito Mussolini's triumph of Italian Fascism had just begun in October of 1922 when he received a telegram from General Cittadini: ?His Majesty the King asks you to come immediately to Rome for he wishes to offer you the responsibility of forming a Ministry...?1 Previously to this offer, Benito Mussolini had created a party called the Partito Nazionale Fascista (that is, the Fascist party) which was meant to topple the weak Italian government and install a regime of militarism and anti-socialism. Mussolini's followers and sympathizers were mostly young men who had fought in World War I. "
Tags: axis, benito, fascism, italian, mussolini, war, world, ww2
This paper compares the ideological opposite perspectives of Karl Kautsky and Benito Mussolini: Political, historical, economic, social, religious views of Marxist and fascist.
3,150 words (approx. 12.6 pages), 14 sources, 1994, $ 111.95
From the Paper "The purpose of this research is to compare and contrast the ideological perspectives of Karl Kautsky and Benito Mussolini. The plan of the research will be to set forth the context in which the ideology of each figure emerged, to describe the tenets of their ideologies, and to discuss how and why they formed their political and social beliefs, with reference to specific issues, in particular their views of economics, governance, religion, and the position of the individual citizens vis-a-vis the state. The comparison between the ideologies will emerge in elaboration of Kautsky's views, followed by a comparative elaboration of Mussolini's.
Karl Kautsky (1854-1938) and Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) were at polar opposites of the ideological spectrum, with Kautsky espousing Marxist doctrine for most of his life and Mussolini... "
Abstract Analysis of Herman Melville's story. Basix in a true story. Difficulties critics faced with the story based on Melville's narrative choices. Theme of innocence and eveil, and spiritual suffering. Role of Captain Delano as central character of the story. Mystery of character of Don Benito. Unfolding of events. Climax. Use of symbols.
From the Paper "In the story "Benito Cereno" by Herman Melville, the author tells a story that had been told before, a true story reported in a book by the real Amasa Delano. The story is interesting for the way the author shapes it so that the reader is led to see the story in one way until a single moment causes a reversal so that everything is seem to be the opposite of what it has seemed until then. Critics have had some difficulty with this story because of this way of telling:
If we take Melville's rendering of it as a fable--of innocence and evil, or of spiritual obtuseness and spiritual suffering--we might indeed have to say that the narrative is awkward and negligent in composition, an that it really does not make its point (Berthoff 151)."
Abstract Benito Mussolini was the Fascist dictator of Italy from 1922 until 1943. He was very popular for most of the time he was in power, but by the time he was shot by Communists in 1945 he had become very unpopular and his death was welcomed. My goal in this paper is to take a look at his family, his education and how he became so power-hungry that he brought about his own ruin. I also will look at whether he had emotional illnesses and how they might have affected his thinking and craving for power.
Abstract This paper compares the ideas of Karl Marx and Benito Mussolini politically. The author takes us on a journey through the "Manifesto" of the Communist Party as well as "The Doctrine of Fascism."
Abstract This paper examines how, in history, there have been a myriad of political concepts and how many of the strongest philosophies have been modifications of previous ideas, reinforcing the good points and altering the flaws. In particular, it looks at how Fascism,as implemented by Benito Mussolini after World War I, attempted to correct perceived weaknesses in Enlightenment ideas. It shows how it also attempted to instill discipline and how, ultimately, although it wasn?t successful, it is conceivable that in a different time it could have been. It provides a comparison of Fascism and Enlightenment ideas, showing where they agree, where they differ, and where they build upon each other.
From the Paper "At its peak, countless writers and philosophers added to the new methods of thinking. Voltaire was one of the most popular. Like many of his contemporaries, he didn?t, "seek knowledge for [his] own personal joy, but rather planned for the aggrandizement of humankind in a longer sense" (Rogers 66). In A Philosophical Dictionary, he created a piece that is representative of his time period. Inside, he muses about astrology, authority, democracy, and equality. This nature of multi-faceted philosophy was what the Enlightenment was about. Furthermore, another notorious figure was Jean Jacques Rousseau, who penned works about taboo topics like gender roles and humans in society."
