Benzyl alcohol is obtained from benzaldehyde by:

Options

A. Perkin's reaction
B. Wurtz reaction
C. Cannizzaro's reaction
D. Claisen's reaction

Explanation

To obtain benzyl alcohol from benzaldehyde, we can use the Canizzaro reaction. Here is a step-by-step explanation of the process:

### Step-by-Step Solution:

1. **Identify the Reactant**:
- The starting compound is benzaldehyde, which has the structure C6H5CHO. It contains a benzene ring (C6H5) and an aldehyde functional group (CHO).

2. **Understand the Canizzaro Reaction**:
- The Canizzaro reaction is a redox reaction that occurs with aldehydes that do not have alpha-hydrogens. In this reaction, one molecule of the aldehyde is oxidized to a carboxylic acid, while another molecule is reduced to an alcohol.

3. **Check for Alpha-Hydrogens**:
- Benzaldehyde does not have any alpha-hydrogens because the carbon adjacent to the carbonyl group (C=O) is part of the benzene ring. Therefore, it is suitable for the Canizzaro reaction.

4. **Reaction Conditions**:
- The reaction is typically carried out in the presence of a strong base (like sodium hydroxide, NaOH). The base facilitates the reaction by deprotonating the aldehyde.

5. **Disproportionation Reaction**:
- During the reaction, one molecule of benzaldehyde is oxidized to benzoic acid (C6H5COOH), while another molecule is reduced to benzyl alcohol (C6H5CH2OH).

6. **Final Products**:
- The products of the Canizzaro reaction when benzaldehyde is used are benzyl alcohol and benzoic acid.

### Conclusion:
- Therefore, benzyl alcohol is obtained from benzaldehyde by the Canizzaro reaction.