Martin-Klumpp, Melville Post, "Innocence: All or Nothing?"

In “Benito Cereno,” Delano represents the idea of American innocence. He is a naïve, trusting fellow, but at the same time very practical. He represents the dichotomy Melville saw in his own time about ideals and business. For example, he is very generous in bringing provisions to the ‘stranded’ boat, but blames Cereno for the poor condition of the boat. Time and time again, Delano refuses to examine what is occurring beneath the surface on Cereno’s ship because he simply accepts the social hierarchy and refuses to question it; Delano cannot see that former slave Babo is behind it all. Yet at the same time, if Delano had figured things out, he would have been killed on the spot. It is Delano’s innocence that spares his and Cereno’s lives. The white man’s ‘innocence’ is still the theme that pervades at the end with the deposition. They blame the savagery of the slaves rather than accept responsibility in creating the slave trade. Thus, the white man never has to deal with or question the real problem.

In “The Encantadas, or Enchanted Isles,” Melville presents a mysterious picture, which is quite the opposite when one immediately thinks of islands. It is certainly not an innocent place and corrupts nearly everyone in the travel narrative. The perfect examples of this are Oberlus and the Creole King. They both attempt to create their own world where they rule, but everything quickly falls into anarchy. Even the Chola Widow, who is perhaps considered the most innocent inhabitant, is forced to leave the majority of her dogs behind, knowing that they face certain death. Therefore, she has lost some of her innocence by inhabiting the islands.

These two stories present the two sides of Melville’s concept of innocence. “Cereno” seems to have it all and the “Encantadas” nothing.