Herman Melville’s final work before his death, Billy Budd, is the tale of a young sailor who gets picked up for mandatory military service on a Navy vessel called the Indomitable. Billy is generally well liked among the crew, but police captain John Claggart is less than taken with him. This comes as a shock to Billy, whose youthful, innocent view of his surroundings is shattered when Dansker, another member of the crew, reveals to him that Claggart has it out for him. He is particularly confused because Claggart treats him well, and has been known to refer to him as “the sweet and pleasant young fellow” (36).
This contradiction with Claggart’s external and internal motives sets the stage for Billy’s main dilemma, which looks extremely mild in comparison to the world issues that are taking place in the time period in which the novel takes place in. In a world where war is rampant and crews are on the verge of mutinying all throughout the Navy, Billy’s issues with the mysterious judgment of his superior seem to pale in comparison, yet that is what troubles him most so far in the novel. This goes to further illustrate Billy’s naiveté when it comes to the unfortunate realities of the world, especially during times of conflict. This, coupled with his occasional, crippling stutter, seems to be the only major character flaw that Billy has, making him fit the profile of a tragic character whose flaw will be his undoing in the end.
VARGISH, THOMAS "The Authority of Crises." War, Literature & the Arts: An International Journal of the Humanities 20.1/2 (2008): 121-137. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 23 Nov. 2009
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