This was not an unpopular attitude at the time Delano recorded his venture, the time Herman Melville fictionalized it, or the later time period following the abolition of slavery in the United States. The cartoon image above is a good example of the innocence ascribed to enslaved African Americans in the 1800s. The man depicted in the illustration is enjoying a slice of watermelon and ironically proclaiming his misery, suggesting his utter contentment. As discussed in lecture, many whites ascribed a set of personality traits to blacks, among which were a docility, a willingness to serve, a certain degree of cheerfulness and a lack of intellectual faculties. This assemblage of traits is not unlike the perception Delano holds of the Africans on board the Saint Dominick/Tryal. These stereotypes, which so cloud the mind of Captain Amasa Delano in "Benito Cereno" that he almost shirks off all suspicions of Babo and the crew's guilt, is central to the tale. Though certain actions arouse his concerns, Delano is reluctant to see Babo as anything other than a willing, obedient, simple-minded servant. If Benito Cereno had not jumped overboard and illuminated the actual state of the ship, the revolutionary schemes of Babo's "hive of subtlety," would have gone completely unnoticed to the American visitor, too wrapped up in his preconceived notions of the "other" to see the reality of the situation.
It can be said that to label the colonized as an "other" so unthreatening in nature is an essential tactic of the both the western colonizers and the un-enslaved whites of later times. As is elaborated on by Albert Memmi, the assignment of traits favorable to the image of colonization upon a colonized people as a whole allows the colonizers to, consciously or subconsciously, excuse themselves from their actions. The image Delano upheld of Babo and the Haitians aboard and the cartoon of an African American merrily biting into a watermelon slice have both been constructed by an unreliable onlooker, who sees them, fundamentally, with a colonizer's gaze. As these stereotypes are ridiculous, they are inherently false.
Raquela Bases
This reminds me of our discussion in lecture of CLR James praising Babo as the true hero of Melville's novella. He discusses Babo as 'a natural leader, an organizer of large schemes but a master of detail...' Something I find important to note about this character is not only that he was underestimated because of his race, but that he used the predictability of a white man's racism against Delano. He played with Delano, almost overtly mocking the ignorance and naivety that his instilled racism allows throughout the novel. I think this awareness of Babo's can be interpreted as similar to Du Bois's double consciousness. Especially in the way that Du Bois refers to this double sight as a gift. Babo can see through the eyes of his oppressor, he can see the stereotypes and presumptions, because he lives a life where they are inflicted on him everyday. Because of this, he has the psychological upper hand.
ReplyDeleteThese constructed stereotypes about the colonized are like a blindfold that the colonizers have masked themselves with, leaving the imperialist unable to see what is before them. Babo's cleverness is brilliantly displayed through his ability to take advantage of the colonizer's gaze by acting the part that they expect him to play, leaving Cereno and Delano dumbfounded because of their inability to open their eyes.
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