6. What characteristic of Billy’s leads him to the forechains? Is this character a strength or a weakness? Explain.
I think that the main thing that brought Billy to the forechains is his complete innocence and inability to say no. He is kind to everyone, so he never says no to what ever they request of him, and also, his innocence makes him seem like a complete push-over. This characteristic can be seen as a weakness but strength at the same time. On the Bellipotent, it plays out as a weakness since he gets pushed around by others, but on the Rights of Man, it is a strength because it makes the people around him love and care for him. This characteristic of his can be seen as a double bladed sword, where it can be used as an advantage, but when it isn’t used properly, it can cause harm to the owner.
A double bladed sword, where if it is not used correctly, it could hurt the owner as well.
4. What is Dansker’s function and purpose in the story? What is Billy Budd’s response to his suggestion about Claggart?
Dansker, a rather elderly fellow on the Bellipotent as a mastman, is more like a father to Billy than a shipmate. In this story, he functions as Moses does in the Bible, he is the man who helps and guides Billy in his times of need and when he is troubled. Billy is puzzled after hearing the possibility of Claggart disliking him from Dansker, and is left to ponder on the fact that he might have fallen out of favor with Claggart since he feels that Claggart has only talked positively about him so far.
A picture of Moses, the man who guides his people who are “lost” to salvation.
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