Billy Budd: The problem of Billy’s innocence and guilt
Captain Vere’s dilemma was that, an one hand, he was convinced of Billy’s essential innocence and that, on the other hand, he felt bound to establish Billy’s guilt and have him sentenced to death. Billy was innocence because it was Claggart’s false charge against him which provoked Billy to deal a blow to his accused and kill him, though unintentionally. Billy’s action was not premeditated; and he had absolutely no intention. or wish to kill Claggart. The falsity of the charge and the wickedness of Claggart in making that charge against Billy were in captain Vere’s eyes sufficient justification for Billy’s action. It was this feeling which made captain Vere say to the ship’s Surgeon with reference to Claggart’s death at Billy’s hands: “It is the divine judgment on ananias!” And it was this feeling which made him say further: “struck dead by an angel of God!” But Billy was guilty in the eyes of the military law. Towards the end of the trial, Captain Vere thus summed up the case against Billy: In war time at see a man-of-war’s man strikes his superior in grade, and the blow kills. Apart from its effect the blow itself is, according to the Articles of war, a capital crime”. At this moment also Captain Vere admitted the Billy was innocent in the eyes of God saying that, on the judgment Day. Billy would be acquitted by God but the court-martial had to decide the case under the law of the Mutiny Act. Billy’s intent or non-intent was not relevant to the offence, which he had committed, captain Vere went or to say. (Sten 45)
Captain Vere’s dilemma thus was whether to have Billy acquitted or convicted and sentenced to death. Actually it was no dilemma at all because captain Vere made up his mind in the matter almost at the very moment Claggart was struck dead. When a little after Claggart’s death, captain Vere said that Claggart had been struck dead by an angel of God, he in the save breath added: “Yet the angel must hang.” Thus there was no conflict in Captain Vere’s mind at all. He took an almost instantaneous decision; he took a decision on the spot without experiencing any uncertainty or hesitancy. Nor did he show and sign of warning or vacillation during the trial. Al his statements before the court-martial were categorical and unambiguous. (47)
At the outset of the trial it seemed that caption Vere would come to Billy’s rescue and would try to mitigate his guilt. When, for instance, Billy said that the master-at-arms hadn't told the truth and that he (Billy) was loyal to the king, captain Vere turned towards Billy and said: “I believe you, my man”. Again, when Billy was asked why Claggart should have told a lie about him if there had been no malice between Claggart and him, captain Vere intervened to say that this question wasn’t one, which should be addressed to Billy because only Claggart could have answered this question. But, in what followed, Captain Vere’s attitude showed that he had absolutely no intention to try to save Billy from the consequences of his action. In intervening on Billy’s behalf twice, as indicated above, captain Vere only spoke what was true; and during the rest of the proceedings he also spoke what he believed to be true.
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