“The angel must hang”

Billy Budd’s shipmates considered him the “handsome sailor” and everyone enjoyed his company. He was a good-natured person who saw no evil in people, as described in the following quote, “With no perceptible trace of the vainglorious about him, rather with the offhand unaffectedness of natural regality, he seemed to accept the spontaneous homage of his shipmates.”(2469) Billy was a good sailor and Captain Vere enjoyed him because he brought spirit and hard work to the ship, which his fellow shipmates caught onto. He is overall perfection to most people he knew and may even be considered an “angel”, which is why the following quote in important in the text.

Captain Vere’s quote during Billy’s trial, “Struck dead by an angel of God! Yet the angel must hang!”(2504) is a significant quote to relate to the overall text because Billy was considered an angel by his fellow shipmates and no one would have believed that he was planning a mutiny against Captain Vere. I think the quote is very ironic because Captain Vere is talking about Billy as an angel, someone who is kind and heavenly, but is announcing that he will die.

Although Captain Vere is obligated to kill Billy because Claggart made him believe that Billy is planning a mutiny, I don’t think that he truly believes that Billy is guilty, as shown in Vere’s hesitation during the trial, “Captain Vere was now motionless, standing absorbed in thought.” Throughout the text of Billy Budd, I believe this quote has been greatly significant in explaining how Captain Vere felt about Billy and the mistake he made. Aside from the text, the quote is also significant in the allegory of Adam or Jesus.

**Reference: The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Vol.8

Allegory of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

In The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, I believe that Ichabod Crane represents the industrialization that was occurring the time that Irving’s literary work was written and Brom Bones represents the American people. These characters represent these to me because the American people were not sure about the new industrialization and expansion that was happening throughout the country because it was something new and unknown. Ichabod Crane represents the new lifestyle to me because he arrives at Sleepy Hollow and begins to want things that other people have, for example, Katrina Van Tassel. In response to Ichabod wanting to marry Katrina for her wealth, Brom Bones, who represents the American people, is not happy about this newcomer in town.

Another representation that Ichabod Crane can be is immigrants that come to America and Brom Bones is still the American people who are skeptical about the new people who are coming to their land to take the wealth that they have to make it their own. I believe both these representations can be possible because America was expanding at this time and new ideas were presented but the America people may have not been ready for them.

I think reading The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and looking for the allegory is an advantage if someone were interested in life during the time period of Washington Irving because they can research how different the country was becoming and how people during this time were responding to it. I also think reading the story this way can be a disadvantage because it is not easy to find the allegory hidden in the story unless you are looking for one. Either way The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is enjoyable in itself without any allegories.

**No resources were used.