"Billy Budd" By Herman Melville: Captain Vere

Part I of Essay
In the novella "Billy Budd" by Herman Melville, Captain Vere is the “tragic hero”. he is neither good nor evil, but rather a man whose concept of order, discipline, and legality forces him to obey the codes of an authority higher than himself even though he may be in pers ....

Part II of Essay
.... is being transported from one place to another. As Melville points out, “He had seen much service, been in various engagements, always acquitting himself as an office mindful of the welfare of his men, but never tolerating an infraction of discipline; thoroughly versed in the science of his profession, and intrepid to the verge of temerity, though never injudiciously so.” In fact, his downfall is directly caused by his never tolerating an infraction of discipline. Captain Vere instinctively disliked Claggert, a man who, for his own reaso ....