The Role of Nature within Benito Cereno

Herman Melville's Benito Cereno is a sea story based around an American sea captain, Delano, who discovers a peculiar Spanish ship in need of supplies and ship repair. This ship's captain, Benito Cereno, is injured and often appears in a daze or depressed. One of the main elements that Melville leads us to believe is causing Cereno's demeanor is Nature. Throughout this story, nature is personified as sinister and tricky. For instance, when Delano first boards the Spanish ship, Benito Cereno becomes distraught as he explains the troubles his ship has endured. He states "Off Cape Horn we had heavy gales. In one moment, by night, three of my best officers, with fifteen sailors, were lost, with the main-yard". He then goes into a coughing frenzy and becomes faint. His servant remarks, "His mind wanders. He was thinking of the plague that followed the gales." With this anecdote appearing at the beginning of the story, the reader is already given an idea of how harsh nature has been on this ship. In addition, the damage to the ship is described, plus the loss of those men that Cereno mentioned.
Another example of nature's personification occurs when Cereno tells Delano that he cannot accompany him to his ship. The narrator comments, "Meantime the sound of the parted waters came more and more gurglingly and merrily in at the windows; as reproaching him for his dark spleen; as telling him that, sulk as he might, and go mad with it, nature cared not a jot; since, whose fault was it, pray?" This excerpt highlights the unsympathetic trait of nature, and how it can be mocking it a way. Benito Cereno is suffering from some kind of illness, obviously in pain and full of troubled thoughts. Yet, the sounds of the waves are "merry", mocking Benito Cereno. In addition, the rhetorical question at the end of this excerpt is ironic because, at this point in the story, it is believed that nature is actually responsible for Benito Cereno's pain, as well as the rest of his crew's. Looking back, after finding out what really happened to Benito Cereno's men, this question is somewhat foreshadowing.
Lastly, nature is seen when Delano talks of his superstitions about Benito Cereno and the slaves. He says, "Hitherto, credulous good-nature had been too ready to furnish excuses for reasonable fears." He refers to his thought process as a result of "good-nature". This is ironic because Delano was right in thinking that something strange was indeed happening upon this strange ship. Good-nature, in my mind, is the equivalent as common sense or logical thought process. In saying this, Delano is actually blinding himself from the reality of the situation by erasing the possibility some gone wrong with good sense.
Overall, nature is personified as cruel, unforgiving, and unsympathetic throughout Benito Cereno, which is, I believe, a common description for nature in sea stories. It's unpredictable and brutal.