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The character of Babo, who apparently was just a loyal personal attendant of Don Benito, but actually he was the person first-in-command of the throng of slaves, and tended to be a constant eye on Benito, and influenced (in fact controlled) all his actions/decisions. As it was revealed in the latter portion of the story, that it was Babo, who took the dire initiative to overrule the enslavement, which was literally destroying his kins, both mentally and psychologically. Hence Babo was that Black who actually channelized the thirst of freedom which was a direct effect of slavery.
Even the old Oakum-pickers, who according to Delano: "Seem to act the part of old dominoes to the rest," tended to further support the notion that Don Benito's role of being the ship's Commander had turned into a symbolic one.
The passive character of Don Benito itself, illustrated the fact that he had already realized that its not humanly possible to dictate/enslave human beings (like animals or even worst than that) for a very long time as this actually does arouse a reaction i.e. The desire of liberty, which gradually transforms that lot of defenseless slaves into such a formidable force which, like a ruthless tide, destroys...
Hence once, probably a domineering Commander had now turned into Paper Captain, literally, without any powers.
The general behavioral outlook of the Negroes featured intense brutality, ruthlessness, viciousness and savagery. This was quite evident from the following quote: If looked in isolation, this behavior is exceedingly damaging but if their situation is viewed holistically, then it is a mere reaction/effect of the cruelty afflicted on them. This prolonged servility had itself devised a path of mutiny, which they impulsively followed.
Qoute: "For the Negroes had already proved themselves such desperadoes that, in case of a present assault, nothing but a total massacre of the whites could be looked for." Hence this slavery forced them into such a mental state, where they were ready to do-or-die!.Qoute: "Having no bullets to return, the Negroes sent their yells."
As Delano confessed:" Slavery breeds ugly passions in man."
References
Herman Melville, Benito Cereno (1855) All quotes are taken from this version online: http://www.infomotions.com/alex2/authors/melville-herman/melville-benito-746/melville-benito-746.pdf
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In fact, when in the midst of trying to sort out what was going on aboard the San Dominick, he briefly thinks that Cereno might be teaming up with the blacks, but this was impossible, since "who ever heard of a white so far a renegade as to apostatize from his very species almost, by leaguing in against it with Negroes?" Throughout the story, Melville relates how Delano eases his
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Social Construction of Race and Reality Herman Melville's Benito Cereno is a story of race relations and a narrative of racial formation. The theories and definitions set out by Michael Omi and Howard Winant in their article "Racial Formation in the United States" can easily be applied to Melville's novel. First, Benito Cereno details a slave revolt aboard a Spanish merchant ship off the coast of South America. The historical, political,
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