Benito Cereno, Plot overview

In "Benito Cereno," the narrator is Amasa Delano, the captain of a Massachusetts whaling ship. When the story begins, Captain Delano and his ship, the Bachelor's Delight, are anchored off an island near Chile. hey spot another ship coming toward the island, floating rather listlessly. Delano decides to ta!e a boat o"er and in"estigate. #e and his men reach the ship, the San Dominick. Delano boards the ship, and immediately he is accosted by both sailors and blac! sla"es, all begging for water and supplies. #e sends his men bac! to his own ship for supplies and tries to find out what happened to the San Dominick. #e meets its captain, Benito Cereno. Cereno seems strange, "ery ner"ous and somewhat aloof. #is beha"ior constantly pu$$les Delano. Cereno is constantly attended by Babo, his young blac! ser"ant, who helps Cereno when he has fainting spells. Delano is a !ind man, so he persuades himself that Cereno%s beha"ior is a result of the troubles he has suffered. Cereno tells him that the ship had left Buenos Aires si& months earlier. While rounding Cape #orn, they struc! hea"y winds, so to lighten the ship they threw supplies o"erboard, including much of their fresh water. While telling this story, Cereno has one of his many coughing fits, which ma!es Delano belie"e that Cereno is both sic! and perhaps mentally troubled. Cereno finishes the story, claiming that the ship spent months on the sea with no wind, and that all the officers and most of the crew died from scur"y. #e concludes by praising Babo as his faithful companion through it all. Delano tells Cereno he will help him reach the nearest port. his briefly cheers up Cereno, but Babo draws him aside, and when Cereno returns he is again morose. As Delano in"estigates the ship, he begins to ha"e suspicious feelings. #e sees a young sla"e hit a white cabin boy, and chides Cereno for allowing this to happen. Cereno ma!es no effort to punish the attac!er. Delano in'uires as to the owner of the sla"es( Cereno says that they belonged to Ale&ander Aranda, a friend of Cereno%s who died of the fe"er. Cereno rather rudely begins whispering with his ser"ant. Delano belie"es he is the sub)ect of their con"ersation. #e wonders if Cereno is actually some low* born ad"enturer, mas'uerading as a ship captain, perhaps planning to murder Delano and then ta!e his ship. But the good*natured Delano dismisses the idea, e"en after Cereno as!s him some suspicious 'uestions, such as how many men his ship holds and whether they would be present on it that night. Delano again dismisses his suspicions as silly, but he witnesses se"eral strange e"ents, including two blac!s pushing a sailor to the ground. Cereno always ignores these incidents or brushes them off. Delano thin!s the +panish sailors are gi"ing him meaningful glances. #e tries to 'uestion them, but the sla"es crowd them out. Delano 'uestions Cereno further and, when he mentions Cape #orn, Cereno responds,

"Who spo!e of Cape #orn," Cereno corrects himself, but Delano%s suspicions are further aroused. Delano has lunch with Cereno, and is annoyed that Cereno refuses to dismiss Babo so they can tal! in pri"ate. he wind returns, and Delano pilots the San Dominick to his own ship. Delano calls for a boat to be lowered from his ship with supplies for the San Dominick. he supplies are deli"ered, and Delano prepares to lea"e the San Dominick. -ust as he gets into his boat, Cereno leaps o"er the side of the San Dominick and falls at the captain%s feet. Babo also leaps o"er, with a dagger in his hands. Delano%s men stop Babo. Delano reali$es that Babo intended to stab Cereno, not himself. Delano sends his men to reco"er the ship. he rest of the story consists mostly of Cereno%s court

deposition, re"ealing the truth about the San Dominick. he sla"es had re"olted, led by Babo and Atufal, !illing most of the +panish crew and ta!ing control of the ship. hey forced Cereno to sail toward +enegal, where they planned to escape. But they needed supplies. Babo would not let Cereno come to a port that would put the ship in "iew of people, so he chose to sail to the island of +anta Maria. #e told Babo he was planning on getting supplies, but in actuality he hoped a passing "essel would sa"e them. In the meantime, the sla"es !illed their owner and master, Ale&andro Aranda, and hung his corpse on the figurehead to ser"e as a warning to the other sailors .this was co"ered before Delano came to the ship/. When the Bachelor's Delight came near, Babo ga"e Cereno a story to tell, as well as the other sailors, then set up the mas'uerade of himself as a ser"ant to Cereno, so as to !eep an eye on him. Cereno and all the sailors were threatened with instant death if they gi"e anything away. Cereno struggled between wanting to tell Delano the truth and the constant threat of Babo. 0inally, he leapt o"erboard into Delano%s boat, thus ending the charade. At the end of the trial, Babo is e&ecuted and his head placed on a pole. Cereno falls into a deep depression, and a few months later he dies. #e did indeed "follow his leader."