A Study Guide for Herman Melville's "Benito Cereno"

By Gale and Cengage

A Study Guide for Herman Melville's "Benito Cereno," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Novels for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Novels for Students for all of your research needs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cengage Learning - Gale
• Release date: Jun 27, 2016
• ISBN: 9781535819329

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Benito Cereno

Herman Melville

1855

Introduction

Benito Cereno is arguably Herman Melville's most controversial story. Published in three installments between October and December of 1855 (and later in The Piazza Tales collection in 1856), Melville's fictionalized retelling of Captain Amaso Delano's encounter at sea with a Spanish ship overtaken by the slaves on board was disregarded for many years after publication—as was most of Melville's work—but today stands as one of the most complicated and thought-provoking stories ever written about race and slavery.

Benito Cereno is considered one of Melville's short novels. Melville had found fame with his earlier works but lost much of his reading audience because of the philosophical and intellectual style developments in his later works. By the time of the publication of Benito Cereno (1855), Melville was publishing exclusively through magazines, whereas the works of his earlier career were all published in novel form. Many of his stories deemed too intellectual by his contemporaries are today among the most studied stories in American fiction. Benito Cereno is an example of a work by Melville that was not appreciated in his lifetime but is now well regarded.

Many different interpretations have been inspired by Benito Cereno. According to some, the American Captain Delano is the hero, according to others, the mutinous slaves are the heroes, but all would agree Benito Cereno is as complicated as it is entertaining. Melville's fiction is not an easy read, but when read properly, his work is some of the most engaging and satisfying literature ever written. Copies of Benito Cereno are widely available for free online (http://books.mirror.org), and it has been printed in many collections including Billy Budd and Other Stories from Penguin Press and in The Piazza Tales from CreateSpace.

Author Biography

Melville was born in New York City on August 1, 1819. His family was among the most respected and distinguished in the city. His father, Allan Melville, was a lucrative wholesale merchant, and his mother, Maria Gansevoort Melville, was daughter to one of the richest men in Albany. In addition to being wealthy, Melville's family was also historically influential. Grandfathers on both sides were heavily involved in the American Revolution: General Peter Gansevoort was the hero of the defense of Fort Stanwix during the American Revolution, and Major Thomas Melville participated in the Boston Tea Party.

Melville's parents thought he might be a slow learner, and his father planned for him a future in commerce rather than a professional field. However, in 1830, Melville's father had to file for bankruptcy, disrupting the family's lifestyle. His father was able to