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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 5 page paper which examines the
character of Captain Vere in “Billy Budd” by Herman Melville. The paper focuses on
Vere’s decision concerning Billy’s fate as it involves the ideals of Romanticism and the
Enlightenment thought. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: JR7_RAblly.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
Billys death, or more accurately, his execution, we are provided with a symbolic examination of different ideals in terms of society, those being the old Romanticism ideals and the Enlightenment
ideals. In the following paper we examine the decision of Captain Vere as it reflects these ideals. Captain Veres Decision Melvilles entire novel is one whose theme and
message are seen in the decision that faces Captain Vere as he decides the fate of Billy. This is not to say that the entire novel actually involves this decision,
but that the plot which unfolds and the end that comes, all lead up to and involve the decision made by Vere as it relates to Billy, the most innocent
and noble man aboard the ship. In better understanding this decision we look at the two forms of thought which seem to be presented in the story. Those forms of
thought are the ideals of Romanticism and Enlightenment. With the ideals of Romanticism we are faced with an approach that insists on the integrity of the individual, as well as
the system. In this approach one must understand that it is the integrity of the individual which truly holds society together, and the integrity of the individual that makes man
worthy. With the ideals of Enlightenment we are given a much more complex train of thought as one must also examine the good of a society, the importance of reason,
and the primary position possessed by law. In the case with Billy Budd we note that the story involves shipmates who are interested in mutiny. One man, in the dark
of the night, approaches Billy and hints at mutiny. Billy shows his loyalty and his honor in the following: "But Billy broke in, and in his resentful eagerness to deliver
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