# Sketch Ninth: Hood's Isle and the Hermit Oberlus explained — Short Fiction

> Chapter companion for Short Fiction by Herman Melville.

## What happens

This sketch describes Hood's Isle and its sole inhabitant, Oberlus, a European castaway who has become a brutal tyrant. He kidnaps sailors, enslaves them, and arms them with cutlasses, planning to capture a passing ship. After a failed attempt to trap two ships' crews, he steals a boat and sails away, leaving behind a letter claiming to be a persecuted patriot.

## Themes in this chapter

### Isolation and Alienation

Oberlus lives alone on a barren volcanic island, his isolation twisting him into a misanthropic tyrant.

### Authority and Rebellion

Oberlus establishes absolute authority over his enslaved sailors, who are too cowed to rebel despite being armed.

### Nature and Desolation

The volcanic landscape of Hood's Isle is described as blasted and desolate, mirroring Oberlus's own corrupted nature.

## Character check-ins

### Oberlus

The hermit of Hood's Isle, a European castaway who becomes a tyrannical slave master, kidnapping sailors and arming them as his army.

### The Narrator (Encantadas Sketch Nine)

The narrator who recounts the history and actions of Oberlus on Hood's Isle.

## Key lines

> Oberlus, czar of the isle, gaffles his four subjects; that is, with intent of glory, puts four rusty cutlasses into their hands.

Oberlus, acting like a tyrant, arms his four slaves with old swords, pretending to create an army for his own glory.

_Highlights Oberlus's delusion of grandeur and his cruel manipulation of his slaves._

> I am the most unfortunate ill-treated gentleman that lives. I am a patriot, exiled from my country by the cruel hand of tyranny.

Oberlus claims to be a persecuted gentleman and patriot, unjustly exiled, to justify his theft and escape.

_Shows Oberlus's self-serving narrative and his attempt to portray himself as a victim._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_28_se/chapters/sketch-ninth-hood-s-isle-and-the-hermit-oberlus
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_28_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_28_se/chapters