Captain Vere In Billy Budd

Throughout the exciting tale in the novel Billy Budd by Herman Melville, the complex character Captain Vere is developed in two different ways: he is portrayed as a martinet or strict disciplinarian and as a gentle fatherly figure. I can guess these different portrayals of Captain Vere apply in the corresponding different situation. I think both of these portrayals fit Vere’s character well in different situations. Some of the ways Vere shows these two personalities are through how he interacts with other characters in the book and what he does. An example of a way Captain Vere was introduced to be a strict disciplinarian was when the narrator first describes Captain Vere in chapter six page 22 “He had seen much service, been in various
That adolescent expression previously noted as his, taking on something akin to the look of a slumbering child in the cradle when the warm hearth-glow of the still chamber at night plays on the dimples that at whiles mysteriously form in the cheek, silently coming and going there.” This passage from the book illustrates the effect Captain Vere has on Billy; Billy views him as a son would view a father. The narrator says he doesn’t know what went on in the room with Captain Vere and Billy Budd, but I can infer Vere must have talked about Billy’s upcoming demise and possibly apologized but explain this punishment is the law and it is the captain’s job to uphold the law. Billy reacts to this by staring at Vere like Vere had inspired him like a father does to a child. Billy reacts to Vere’s visit by seeming calmed and at peace; Vere could be compared to Abraham and Billy could be compared to Isaac when Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac, because it was God’s orders. When Vere shares his feelings of fatherly responsibility to Billy, he comforts Billy and displays he has another side of his personality instead of only being a