Introduction
Violence has been used to advance stories by different authors. William Wilson is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe that talks about a man with split personalities who attempts to run away from his different personalities. Benito Cereno is a narration by Herman Melville about an encounter between an American ship captain and a slave ship. Letters from an American Farmer is a series of letters about life in America. The three stories contain a depiction of violence in various ways. Scenes and images of violence help authors create, resolve, and escalate conflicts which help in developing the relationship of characters and generate meaning for the reader.
Creating Conflicts Through Scenes of Violence
Both Poe and Melville depict instances where conflicts are created to help develop characters and show their relationship. In William Wilson, Poe writes that “the rebellion of the Other was a source of the greatest embarrassment” (5). This creates a conflict between Wilson and the Other (William Wilson’s identical schoolmate), which is intended on seeking sympathy from the reader. Violent scenes help the writer to create a relationship between the two characters which is essential in providing meaning to the story. The narrator then indicates that “the Other did not submit to his will which caused friction between the two” (Poe 5). The struggle between Wilson and the Other also helps the novelist to develop the connection between Wilson and the Other which provides a basis for the reader to understand the novel. Therefore, creating conflicts using scenes of violence allows the author to build characters within the story as evidenced in Poe’s story.
Benito Cereno is a story that uses scenes and images of violence to advance the story. The narrator creates a conflict between Cereno and Babo, a slave on the ship in a way that is different from the other two novels. In the early part of the story, Babo and Cereno are involved in several disagreements which end with violence. “See, master you shook so here is Babo’s first blood” (Melville 43). This conflict results in Cereno inflicting a wound on Babo as a way of retribution. The scene also displays the lies that exist within the ship because Babo had already committed crimes in the ship that resulted to loss of lives. These acts of viciousness show the power games between Cereno and Babo and help the reader understand the events that had occurred earlier in the boat. Melville shows the relationship between Cereno and Babo which helps create the intended meaning.
Letters from an American Farmer is different from the other two novels because it only depicts violence in two letters. Crevecoeur narrates a scene witnessed in Charles Town “something resembling a cage, covered with large birds of prey fluttering around with intent to perch on the cage” (68). This scene is essential because it helps the author to depict the veracity of slavery. The section does not depict the creation of a conflict between two characters which is different from the other stories. However, the passage achieves the intended meaning because it provides insight into a situation that occurred in America and which shocked the novelist. In depicting the situation, the writer intends to share the dismay with readers.
Resolving Conflicts Through Scenes of Violence
Both Poe and Melville use scenes of violence to resolve conflicts between characters. The struggle between Wilson and the Other develops into a complex issue that results in murder. Poe describes at the end “I forced him by sheer strength against the wainscoting, and thus, getting him at mercy, plunged my sword, with brute ferocity, repeatedly through and through his bosom” (15). However, slaying the other does not determine the issue as the author notes that Wilson may have killed himself. The writer uses this scene to show the reader the true meaning of the Other. This is crucial as it provides meaning to the story and makes it easy to understand the connection between the two characters. Resolving battles between characters using violence develops the story and provides the intended meaning.
Melville’s story provides various instances of resolving conflicts using violence. An important scene is where the author provides information on what happened to Babo. Melville writes “but for many days, the head, that hive of subtlety, fixed on a pole in the Plaza” (Melville 76). These two examples provide scenes of violence that were used to show the resolution of a skirmish between two or more characters. The author creates a conflict using violence and ends the conflict using viciousness. Therefore, violent scenes help the author to resolve fights between characters which enhances the intended meaning of the narration.
Letters from an American Farmer provide a different way to resolve conflicts. The author expresses his dismay and shock upon witnessing acts of violence against humans. The writer is against any form of chaos that results in human suffering. In this story, the author does not embrace violence in the narration rather he refutes it as a way of trying to resolve the conflicts between humans. This is essential as it underlines the thinking of the novelist and helps readers to understand the complexity of the atrocities that were committed upon slaves and other innocent people. Therefore, the novel takes a different approach from the other two in the way scenes of violence are used to develop and resolve conflicts between characters.
Escalating Conflicts Using Scenes of Violence
Both Poe and Melville use scenes of violence to show an escalation of conflicts between characters. Wilson encounters the Other while partying and in the ensuing argument says that “Follow me, or I will stab you where you stand” (Poe 15). The fight between the two results in the death of the Other which represents the end of the skirmish between the two. However, the violent scene at the end indicates that Wilson was unable to control himself. This is essential as by escalating the conflict between the two, the author provides the intended meaning.
In Melville’s story, the escalation of violence occurs when Cereno agrees to go with the American ship captain so that he can recover mentally and physically. “Captain Delano saw the freed hand of the servant aiming with a second dagger” (Melville 57). The escalation of the fight between Cereno and Babo shows the true intentions of the slaves. The scene is an essential aspect of the novel because it confirms the gravity of the situation on the ship. The author uses this scene to develop an ending for the story. Babo is arrested and together with the other slaves, they are sentenced to capital punishment. Therefore, the two stories by Poe and Melville use violent scenes to show an escalation of the conflict between the characters which helps shape the ending of the narration.
Letters to an American Farmer is different from the two other novels in the way violent scenes are depicted. The author provides insight into aspects of viciousness on slaves and the effects of war on humans. At the end of the letters, the writer indicates his intentions to flee and live with a group of native Americans who were peaceful (Crevecoeur 81). The difference in the way violence is depicted by Crevecoeur may be due to the writings being letters. Another aspect is that Crevecoeur does not embrace violence when compared to Poe and Melville. Instead, the narrator chooses to provide real experiences of what he had witnessed while in America. In so doing, Crevecoeur depicts instances of violence that are shocking in a society that he had depicted as being humane.
Conclusion
In summary, violence is used to create, resolve and escalate conflicts which helps develop the meaning of the story. Authors use scenes that depict fights and skirmishes between characters to show the relationship between characters. The three stories contain aspects of cruelty that are central to the development of the plot. Poe and Melville create fights between characters, escalate them, and resolve them using vicious means. This helps the reader to understand the relationship between the role players. Even though the letters from an American farmer depict violent scenes and images in a different than the other stories, the author manages to achieve the desired meaning.
Works Cited
Crevecoeur, Hector St John de. Letters from an American Farmer. Penguin, 1782.
Melville, Herman. Benito Cereno. Broadview Press, 1856.
Poe, Edgar Allen. William Wilson: A Tale. Running Press Philadelphia, 1839.