SOURCE: “Captain Vere and Upper-Class Mores in Billy Budd,” in Studies in Short Fiction, Vol. 19, No. 1, 1982, pp. 9–18.

In the following essay, Durer considers the effect of societal mores on Billy Budd, contending that the character of Captain Vere acts as the “mouthpiece” for upper-class society.

Insufficient attention has been devoted, in my view, to the role of different societies and social settings in Billy Budd,¹ as shapers of individual psychologies and determining forces limiting man's outlook and aspirations. When one considers psychological imprisonment to which at least one character in Billy Budd falls victim (and a variety of characters in Melville's other works), one begins to see social settings and groups in Melville's works in their true light, as imprisoning or restraining forces emasculating individuals of whom at first sight we expect nobler deeds. This is precisely what happens in Melville's final work.

The purpose of this [essay...