Billy Budd/Moby Dick by Herman Melville

In Billy Budd, a struggle between good and evil is presented through the lives of three men, each of whom portrays an aspect of human behavior—from lack of knowledge of the nature of man to the intellectual acceptance of values which lead to the priority of law and order at the cost of injustice. The story takes place during the Napoleonic wars, when two mutinies have ignited fears of more turmoil. An innocent man, Billy Budd, is accused for no apparent reason by a petty officer, Claggart. The captain of the Indomitable doubts Claggart’s accusations and summons Billy to confront the charges. Because of his stuttering and inability to speak an immediate word in response, Billy strikes Claggart dead. Thus, the captain of the ship is faced with a serious dilemma, for although he believes in Billy’s goodness and understands him, he is forced to uphold naval law. As a result of Captain Vere’s commitment to duty, Billy Budd is hanged.

Set aboard the Pequod on the high seas of the early nineteenth century, Moby Dick is narrated by Ishmael, a former schoolmaster who takes a job on a whaling ship with his newfound friend Queequeg. They discover that the ship’s commander is the one-legged fanatic Captain Ahab, whose only goal in life is to kill the great white whale that crippled him. The novel examines the conflict between nature and humanity, between the warrior-hero’s glory and madness, and between the work’s protagonist and antagonist.

About the Series:

Novel/Drama curriculum units contain complete lesson plans with preliminary and follow-up work, teacher notes with plot summary, background, and rationale, ready-to-use worksheets, and suggested answers for student questions. These study guides encourage the development of thinking, reading, speaking, research, and writing skills as well as critical thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.