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Benevolence In Captain Delano's Sacrifice

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When Brent at last receives her and her children’s full liberation, she obtains it through the benevolence of a true friend, Mrs. Bruce. Brent enlightens that “I am deeply grateful to the generous friend who procured it, but I despise the miscreant who demanded payment for what never rightfully belong to his or his” (185) and though Brent was truly appreciative of the benevolence shown to her by her friend, she was not entirely happy about it either. Brent realized the implications behind a human being sold as a piece of property and that though she was bought under kind circumstances, it was a kind of benevolence that should never have been needed in the first place. Brent pronounces that “A human being sold in the free city of New York! The …show more content…

While Captain Delano observes the slaves in their various tasks, his opinion of what an African slave’s traits are become glaringly clear, he explains while looking at the six Ashantees that there is a “peculiar love in negroes of uniting industry with pastime” and that they “had the raw aspect of unsophisticated Africans” (2902). Captain Delano truly believes that Africans merely enjoy working hard for their masters and that they are not intelligent enough to conceptualize wanting something more than this. Nothing more accurately articulates Captain Delano’s perspective on the benevolence of slavery then the ‘benevolent’ relationship he views between Benito and Babo—master and slave. Captain Delano finds a “humane satisfaction” when he “witnessed the steady good conduct of Babo” (2903) the seemingly loving nature of Babo reassures Delano of his own interpretations of slaves and how that relationship is supposed to be perceived. Analogously, Benito Cereno explains to Captain Delano that “it is Babo here to whom, under God, I owe not only my own preservation, but likewise to him, chiefly, the merit is due, of pacifying his more ignorant brethren, when at intervals tempted to murmurings” (2907), in which the purported benevolence of Babo has empowered Cereno to keep control of his ship. Captain Delano becomes envious of “the beauty of that relationship which could …show more content…

Captain Delano’s benevolent nature also causes him to notice the mulatto stewards “extreme desire to please; which is doubly meritorious, as at once Christian and Chesterfieldian” (2936), explaining that wanting to serve someone so much means they are a good Christian. Therefore, making the confines of slavery something that is divined by God through benevolence. When Captain Delano is leaving Cereno’s quarters he becomes frightened of passing by the slave Atufal, but then after passing him “with the chained figure of the black, clenched jaw, and hand relaxed. Once again he smiled at the phantoms which had mocked him, and felt something like a tinge of remorse, that, by harboring them even for a moment, he should, by implication, have betrayed an almost atheist doubt of the ever-watchful Providence above” (2943), rationalizing that to question the benevolent motive of a slave would be similar to questioning Gods providence and therefore foolish.

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