In no world but a fallen one could such lands exist.
This is one of the most interesting lines in Melville’s “The Encantadas.” He is describing the physical nature of the islands themselves, but the comment could be equally applied to the inhabitants, like the buccaneers, the Creole king, and the terrible hermit Oberlus. The Enchanted Isles are almost the anti-innocence, a representation of mankind’s worst tendencies.
However, in Melville innocence itself is not necessarily a particularly good thing. He shows the bright side of the tortoise, but he can’t help but show the other side as well. So characters like Amasa Delano communicate a distinctly mixed message. This brand of innocence is largely composed of ignorance and naïveté, leading Delano to misinterpret everything he sees. His innocence isn’t the least uplifting, and allows the mutiny to go on much longer than it should have.
The Chola widow might be called the counterpart to Delano’s character. Though the tragedies that befall her on the island destroy her innocence quickly enough, she retains a certain dignity that we don’t see elsewhere in these two stories, and she leaves the sailors impressed with her courage rather than annoyed with her ignorance. Unlike the other characters, she isn’t actually corrupted by the islands. Perhaps this is Melville’s best-case scenario for innocence in a fallen world.
INteresting comment on the Chola widow, also Innocence is often destructive.
ReplyDelete