Authority and Rebellion

Where it surfaces

• Bartleby

  Bartleby's passive resistance ('I would prefer not to') challenges the narrator's authority and the expectations of the workplace.

• Cock-a-Doodle-Doo!

  The narrator's rant against railroads, steamboats, and creditors expresses rebellion against the authority of industrial progress and financial systems.

• Sketch Seventh: Charles's Isle and the Dog-King

  The Dog-King's authoritarian rule, enforced by a canine army, is repeatedly challenged by rebellions, culminating in a successful mutiny that overthrows him and establishes a lawless 'Riotocracy.'

• Sketch Ninth: Hood's Isle and the Hermit Oberlus

  Oberlus establishes absolute authority over his enslaved sailors, who are too cowed to rebel despite being armed.

• The Happy Failure

  The uncle's authoritarian control over the experiment and his nephew's initial rebellion against the arduous journey highlight tensions between authority and individual will.

• The Lightning-Rod Man

  The narrator rebels against the salesman's self-proclaimed authority, refusing to be commanded in his own home and ultimately breaking the rod and ejecting the man.

• The Bell-Tower

  Bannadonna's secret design and his defiance of natural and divine limits represent a rebellion against established order, while the magistrates' uneasy authority is challenged by his mysterious work.

• Benito Cereno

  The slave revolt led by Babo challenges the established authority of the Spanish captain and crew, highlighting the tension between oppressors and the oppressed.

• The 'Gees

  The power dynamic between captains and 'Gees is explored: captains exploit 'Gees for cheap labor, but also fear 'ripe' or 'knowing' 'Gees who might resist, preferring docile 'green' ones.

• I and My Chimney

  The narrator's passive resistance to his wife's authority and her attempts to assert control over the household, particularly the chimney, embody a domestic struggle for power.

• Billy Budd, Foretopman 3: What Befell Him in the Year of the Great Mutiny, etc.

  The chapter references the Great Mutiny, a major rebellion against naval authority.

• I: (An Inside Narrative)

  The impressment scene and Billy's farewell to the 'Rights-of-Man' subtly challenge naval authority and decorum.

• III

  The chapter details the Great Mutiny at Spithead and Nore, where sailors rebelled against naval authority, and the subsequent suppression and reassertion of order.

• IV

  The narrator contrasts the old naval order with modern utilitarian critiques, touching on rebellion against traditional martial values.

• V

  The chapter explores the tension between naval authority and the lingering discontent from the mutinies, as well as Captain Vere's role in maintaining discipline.

• VI

  Captain Vere's settled convictions serve as a 'dyke' against the 'invading waters of novel opinion,' highlighting the tension between established authority and emerging revolutionary ideas.

• VII

  Explored through Claggart's role as master-at-arms, a chief of police enforcing order, and the crew's potential resentment toward authority figures.

• Life in the Foretop

  Billy's strict adherence to duty and fear of punishment reflect the tension between individual will and naval authority.

• XII

  The afterguardsman's attempt to recruit Billy into a mutinous conspiracy highlights the tension between authority and rebellion aboard the ship.

• Chapter XVI

  The chapter explores the dynamics of authority aboard the Indomitable, with Claggart's report of suspected mutiny challenging Captain Vere's command.

• Chapter XVII

  Captain Vere's shift from fatherly figure to strict disciplinarian highlights the tension between human compassion and military authority.

• Chapter XVIII

  Captain Vere's decision to act swiftly and secretly reflects the tension between naval authority and the threat of mutiny, especially in the wake of the suppressed insurrections.

• Chapter XIX

  Captain Vere's announcement to the crew and the suppression of any mutinous murmur highlight the tension between military authority and the potential for rebellion.

• XXI

  The chaplain's inability to intervene in Billy's fate underscores the rigid authority of martial law, which overrides any moral or religious considerations.

• XXII

  Captain Vere's rigid adherence to naval law and the crew's silent, spontaneous echo of Billy's words underscore the tension between authority and collective emotion.

• XXIII

  Captain Vere's strategic use of discipline and commands to suppress the crew's murmurs highlights the tension between authority and potential rebellion.

• Temple First

  The beadle's authority is challenged by the narrator's stealthy entry, and the narrator's eventual bell-ringing is a rebellious act against that authority.