Title: The Bell-Tower
Author: Herman Melville
Date of First Publication: August 1855
Place of Publication: Putnam’s Monthly
Type: Short story
Characters: No Character
Themes: ANDROID; MAD SCIENTIST/MONSTER; BYRONIC HERO
Critical Summary: In the South of Europe is the Bell-tower, built by an architect named Bannadonna. The process of crafting the bell is an arduous one. When the workmen voice their fear about damaging the bell, Bennadonna kills the chief workman with a ladle. Bennadonna gets away with the homicide and is proud to avoid punishment. Afterwards, Bennadonna isolates himself for months and everyone in town believes it is because he is planning to add a new design to the Bell-tower. Bannadonna’s new design is mysterious, because it is a heavy object covered in a dark cloak. An old blacksmith helps Bennadonna lift the statue up and notices beneath the cloak is a living man. Bannadonna fails to offer up any explanations, but the magistrates helping him add it to the Bell-tower notice that the statue moves in the wind. The people begin to grow anxious about when the new object will be ready. Bannadonna assures them that tomorrow is the day and that at one in the afternoon, the clock will strike and strange music will play for the people to see. When the townspeople gather in front of the tower the next day, there is no sound. The soldiers decide to barge into the tower and discover Bannadonna on the floor of the bell, bleeding to death. Suddenly, they see a monster, uncloaked, staring down at Bannadona. The men attempt to solve the mystery of the monster and how it came to be. They come to the conclusion that Bannadonna attempted to use the monster as mechanical hand to strike the bell. The monster’s name was Talus and he was meant to carry the strength of all God-made creatures. The men conclude that Bannadonna wanted to overrule the makings of nature. In the end, the narrator states that Talus was a blind slave and that the creator was killed by its creature.
Melville’s story is reminiscent of Frankenstein, because Bannadonna is also a creator of a frightening creature. Although it is never said how the creature emerges to life, it is implied that Bannadonna has used the body of the worker he killed to embody his creature. The theme of Android is also relevant, seeing as the creature is meant to function as the mechanical hand to the clock. There is a Byronic figure in Bannadonna, because from the beginning he is the antihero who built a wonderful bell-tower for the people, despite being a murderer and living in isolation. Additionally, the theme of Mad Scientist/Monster emerges when his creature kills him.
Administrative Notes: Aristy Inguanzo, CSUF; Travis Asis, CSUF; Alexis Shanley, CSUF (edit)