Self In Herman Melville's Benito Cereno

Self is called into question as Captain Delano, of Herman Melville’s Benito Cereno, faces himself in situations unlike any he has approached before. This concept of self shapes the way in which Delano acts once aboard the San Dominick and how he tackles the obvious uneasiness that his peers face. While aboard the San Dominick, Captain Delano is required to look at himself in a completely different way than he has ever done so before and he does this through Jacques Lacan’s mirror stage. He undergoes a “transformation that takes place in the subject when he assumes an image,” that is when he understands himself to be a part of the slave revolt (Lacan 503). Delano’s self-actualization or mirror stage occurs as he progresses from seeing Cereno
as his mirror image to finding himself within the mirror. Captain Delano notes the peculiarity of the San Dominick throughout Melville’s novella, though he fails to recognize the slave revolt amongst the ship; this is because Delano cannot see himself among the passengers of the ship but as an outsider. While Don Benito shows the San Dominick to Delano, he notes the irregularities on the ship, such as the freedom of the slaves and the lack of discipline. He witnesses an occurrence between children, one a slave and the other Spanish, in which the enslaved child hits the other with a knife “inflicting a gash from which blood flowed” (48). Delano, shocked by such brazen actions, address Cereno and assures him that “had such a thing happened on board the Bachelor’s Delight, instant punishment would have followed” and notes that Cereno seems to be a captain “who has little of command but the name” (49). In this exchange, Delano begins to experience Lacan’s mirror stage because he sees “a series of gestures in which he experiences in lay the relation between the movements assumed in image and the reflected environment, and between this virtual complex and the reality it reduplicates” (502). As Delano witnesses such oddities aboard the San Dominick, he relates them to himself and notes the ways in which he would run the ship differently than Cereno currently does. Delano, while still not see the situation aboard the San Dominick for what it is, he begins to see himself in Don Benito. This interaction is parallel to Lacan’s infant looking into the mirror for the first time and noting that they are within an active world, and they are an active participant. As Delano approaches the mirror stage, he does not see himself in such the situations but himself in Cereno. As Delano is unable to see himself as an active participant of the San Dominick, Benito Cereno acts as his temporary reflection.
After arriving aboard the ship, Delano notices the peculiarity of Cereno and his relationships aboard his ship. Cereno’s relationship with Babo causes jealousy in Delano as he wishes to have such a “fraternal” relationship, even proclaiming that he “env[ies]” such a relationship (41,46). Delano witnesses the nature of Babo and Cereno’s connection and imagines himself in such a position as Cereno. This, in relation to Lacan’s mirror stage, is the recognition of “the desire of the other” which corresponds to Delano’s “natural maturation” (507). As Delano wishes to have the same relationship as Cereno, he recognizes that he is not the same but only similar to the other man. Whil he recognizes that he and Cereno are not the same, Delano refuses to believe that anything unnatural is happening aboard the San Dominick and so he agrees to remain clueless to the revolt within his subconscious. Cereno, as Delano’s reflection in the Lacanian sense, is giving clues to the problems aboard his ship through his “relentless and unintentional self-policing” as he attempts to help Delano decipher the mysteries that remain hidden on the San Dominick (Rebhorn 168). As Delano wishes for such a brotherly bond that Cereno has with Babo, Babo threatens Cereno with a knife to his neck under the guise of shaving him. Delano notes the “terrified aspect … presented by Don
Benito” at “Babo’s first blood” (75). Instead of noting that Cereno seems to be terrified of Babo rather than his own blood, Delano relates Cereno’s fear to himself; now he is sure that Cereno is not going to assassinate him. This revelation brings Delano into the knowledge that he and Cereno are the same; neither of them are attempting to harm the other. In is his acknowledgment of their similarities and differences, Delano is able to break free of seeing himself and Cereno as the same person and thus stops seeing Cereno as his reflection. This actualization begins Delano’s realization of self. With this realization, Delano sees himself and Cereno as a sort of brothers, not identical but similar. Delano notices the resemblances between himself and Cereno and feels as if they share a bond, and must aid each other in any way possible. As Delano leaves the San Dominick, Cereno calls Delano his “best friend” which affects Delano enough that he wishes to stay aboard the boat (86). He leaves instead after “catching the meekly admonitory eye of the servant” and, in this action, leaves behind his reflection – Benito Cereno. When Cereno flings himself over the bulwarks, Delano sees himself as “the startling spectacle of the infant in front of the mirror” (Lacan 503). Delano finally sees in himself a reaction to the revolt aboard the San Dominick; he is no longer able to remain unaffected by the situation as Babo follows Cereno overboard. Delano, as the infant in front of the mirror, “overcomes … the obstructions of his support and … brings back an instantaneous aspect of the image” (Lacan 503). At once, Delano recognizes his part as Cereno’s aid in the slave revolt. He “grapple[s] the servant in his descent” and saves Cereno and himself in the process (87). When Delano jumps into action against Babo, he fully recognizes himself as an individual in Lacan’s mirror.
Delano’s unconscious search for self while aboard the San Dominick fleshes out through his actions.
As mentioned earlier, Cereno acts as a reflection of Delano in the simplest terms. They both hold commander positions aboard their ships and Delano capitalizes on this. As he subconsciously ignores his self and the actions that he must take as his own entity, Delano only notices the most obvious similarities between himself and Cereno. It is when he is forced to realize his own standing aboard the San Dominick and the serendipitous way that he is able to rescue Cereno, that Delano finally realizes his purpose in this situation and thus, his self. Jeannine Marie DeLombard suggests that “neither rebellion nor escape automatically [confer] independence,” and that is true in the case of Delano (36). He does not immediately realize himself as individual at Cereno’s reaction to him leaving or Babo’s jumping after him; it is only when he sees the “dagger in [Babo’s] hand” that Delano realizes that he is individual. In these actions, Delano reaches a full circle of self-actualization. He has emerged from his comfort aboard the Bachelor’s Delight and has faced the peculiar deck of the San Dominick. Delano has seen himself in Benito Cereno and envied the relationship between the captain and his slave. Yet it is not until he see the dagger set to kill that Delano realizes what he is meant to do while aboard the ship and, in this realization, he realizes that he is not just another
sailor. He is a vital part in the rescue of Benito Cereno and the end of the slave revolt aboard the San Dominick. The concept of self within Melville’s novella focuses on the birth of Delano into his conscious being and purpose while on the San Dominick. Lacan’s mirror stage shows that Delano, before arriving on the San Dominick, is in his personal infancy. He is dependent on his steady time aboard the Bachelor’s Delight and the roles to which he is accustomed. When he is forced into the unfamiliar, Delano looks at himself in the “mirror” through Cereno and finally comes into the realization of self when he realizes that he and Cereno are not the same at all. In Babo’s leaping from the San Dominick, Delano realizes that he is his own entity.