Billy Budd – Foreshadowing Essay

Foreshadowing – where a certain graphic or celebration may touch at something that becomes more significant later on in the story. Creators often use different literary devices to seize the reader’s attention, or to establish basis for plan development down the line in the book. In Herman Melville’s Billy Budd, Melville uses the literary device of foreshadowing to allow the audience to be aware of Billy’s inevitable fortune before the character types in the story, thus creating a feeling of suspense within the book. In phase one, the incident together with the Red Whiskers (12) features as a foreshadowing of Billy’s confrontation with Claggart.

This is very similar to what happens later between John Claggart and Billy (58). Melville uses the incident showing that although Billy Budd is a gentle man, unwilling to fight, he can turn into aggressive in the event provoked. Can make the later incident more believable, since the reader has seen Billy behaving in this manner.

The Red Whiskers is comparable to Claggart in numerous significant techniques. Like Claggart, the Reddish Whiskers disfavors Billy, and out of sheer covet he “bestirs” himself to pick a fight with Billy. Melville begins applying foreshadowing early in the novel when he explains Billy Budd as a tall handsome sailor that was well adored by generally all whom knew him.

Melville makes Billy appears flawless right up until he notifies the audience employing straight, another little known and overlooked fact sentences that Billy contains a speech impediment that only seems to rear the ugly mind whenever Billy has a thing of importance to express (17). The fact that Billy’s speech impediment only shows when he provides something significant to say allows inform the group that anything of significant importance will happen later on in the novel (57). Billy’s failure to speak during times of emotion will mean that later, he cannot speak the fact and save himself. Vere’s nickname is definitely ironic within a second way, although the narrator does not point this paradox out clearly.

The character known as “Starry Vere” in the Marvell poem is known as a severe disciplinarian (24), whereas Captain Vere is anything but harsh or perhaps brutal in his conduct. But while the identity seems ironic at this point in the story, the passage quoted from the composition provides an significant piece of foreshadowing. Vere truly does indeed can charge an all of a sudden harsh discipline upon Billy, and his dedication to rule is what encourages him being severe (60).

Without the element of foreshadowing within Billy Budd it seems nearly incoherent the events with the novel would have come together. Melville’s use of foreshadowing allows him to take the group on an unforgettable journey throughout the life and troubles of Billy Budd and permits the audience to have a full understanding of the situations leading up to Billy’s tragic end.