Contrast of The Marble Faun With Billy Budd

The first major difference between Donatello and Billy Budd is that Billy is described as being an angel-like or even Christ-like figure, while Donatello is described as half-man and half-faun. This difference is important because it affects the way the two characters develop.

Hawthorne compares Donatello with the statue of the Faun, a creature who is human but who is more of nature than of civilization. There seems to be no real threat of violence in Donatello, but rather the playful side of the animal world. Here he is described by Hawthorne: "It was difficult to make out the character of this young man. So full of animal life as he was, so joyous in his deportment, so handsome, so physically well-developed" (Hawthorne 14). At the same time, however, his friends "habitually . . . allowed for him, as for a child or some other lawless thing, exacting no strict obedience to conventional rules" (Hawthorne 14). Donatello is innocent in the sense that he does not know the difference between good and evil. Do

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only then can he truly do what is good and right. As we read: Donatello's still gnawing remorse had brought him hitherward, in spite of Miriam's entreaties, and kept him lingering in the neighborhood of Rome, with the ultimate purpose of delivering himself up to justice (Hawthorne 466). A man must be responsible for what he does. And yet there are many different paths to that hard lesson. Donatello had to take a long spiritual journey to see what he had to do. He had to come to the recognition of evil within him, and he had to see that the only way he could heal himself was to take responsibility for the crime he had done and bravely face his punishment. It might be argued that the same holds true for Billy Budd. However, it was not evil inside of Billy which he had to face, but evil in another man, in Claggart who lied about him and told Captain Vere that Billy was a threat to Vere's command. First, he must accept such evil in Claggart. This he does when he strikes him dead after not being able to talk to defend himself. Second, he must accept the responsibility for what he has done. This he does as well when he submits to hanging as a punishment. Up to this point, Billy and Donatello can be fairly compared. But Billy goes
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1709
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)