At twenty-one years of age, Billy has never directly confronted evil. Due to his striking good looks and affable nature, he has always been well liked and admired by everyone. As a consequence, he naïvely assumes that other people always mean him the best. He has not yet developed the prudent cynicism of an individual like the dansker, who is well aware of mens evil inclinations. Billy has no defense of a hateful man like Claggart and cannot perceive his malice.

If Billy represents innocence, then the antagonist-john Claggart- represents evil. His innate wick

With the development of these two characters, the author presents us with the climax of the novel, where Claggart is out to destroy Billy Budd. It is not clear as to why claggart has such a hatred for Billy, but nevertheless he employs vicious methods and lies to see billy killed.

Evil exists to corrupt innocence, since the beginning of time to present days. Melville, through his narrative prose, is able to successfully convey how evil corrupts innocence through the three conflicting characters. Claggart-who represents the natural evil in the world- serves as the opposition and corruption that we face everyday. The outcome of these adversities will reflect and depend on how we react to them. Billy was unable to succeed because of his innocence and naïveté, which made him ignorant to such evils.

edness is causeless, Melville suggests that he was born evil “In whom was the mania of an evil nature...but born with him and innate, in short a depravity according to nature”(Melville 38). Claggarts inner motives are t

Some topics in this essay:
Billy Budd, Adam Eve, Garden Eden, , billy budd, conflicting characters, letter law, innocence naïveté, billy death, adam eve, innocence claggart,