The
Jew of Malta Themes and Motifs
The play the Jew of Malta is a typical Marlovian tragedy. It’s a
multi thematic play although it mainly revolves around Religious hypocrisy and
Machiavellian strategy it also deals with vengeance and retribution. Moreover
it has a few sub-themes also.
Medieval tragedy was a matter of kings and princes and the plot of
these tragedies were mainly concerned with the rise and fall of royal personalities.
But Marlowe has a different concept of tragic hero and tragedy. Marlowe’s hero
belongs from a lower class family but possess great powers. Although the
Marlovian tragedy or tragic hero do not follow the rules of classical tragedy
or tragic hero yet Marlowe by his techniques proves what he claims. A typical
Marlovian tragedy has a strong influence of Machiavelli (a socio-political
writer of Italy) and Renaissance spirit. Marlowe’s protagonist usually is an
anti-hero like the central character of the Jew of Malta, possess all the
qualities of typical Marlovian tragic-hero that’s is why we take the Jew of
Malta a typical Marlovian tragedy.
Religious Hypocrisy is one of the main themes
of the play. Although the Maltese Christians—particularly Ferneze and the two
priests—present themselves as agents of morality, Marlowe makes it clear that
these men are frauds and hypocrites. This complicates Barabas's role within the
play, for it challenges his status as the obvious villain. There is no clear
struggle between good and evil, although the Maltese demonize Barabas. Instead,
the major characters are presented as strategists who maneuver themselves into
positions of strength or weakness depending on their ability to deceive. Even
the Catholic priests turn their backs on religious morals when it suits them,
shown in their attempts to outmaneuver each other to win Barabas's money. And
Farneze breaks his promise which he makes with Barabas in last parts of the
play that if Barabas helps him in freeing the Malta he will pay him with
Hundred Thousand pounds but also will let him govern the state and also
promises to act upon Barabas’s commands. “Here is my hand; believe me, Barabas.
I will be there, and do as thou desirest.” But Farneze betrays Barabas for the
governorship of Malta.
Machiavellian Strategy is an overarching
theme that ties in with many others within the play, particularly religious
hypocrisy. Essentially, the characters display an ability to strategize that is
alien to ideals of religious sincerity. As Machevill asserts in the Prologue,
"religion [is] but a childish toy." Instead of religion and the power
of Divine Providence, many characters place their trust in schemes and
strategies. Marlowe treats this subject ambiguously. Although the Prologue satirizes
Machiavellian scheming, the rest of the play suggests that statesmen must
manipulate to protect their own interests. For example, Ferneze is only able to
survive and free Malta by outmaneuvering Barabas. In turn, Barabas avoids
capture for a long period of time through anticipating other people's moves and
motives. Marlowe ultimately leaves us wondering whether or not he believes in
Machiavellian tactics. The play's heavily ironic tone could support the view
that man is driven by his own motives. Alternatively, it might suggest that our
ability to control events always comes second to God's will—which would make
political scheming redundant.
Vengeance and retribution dominates the play
as it grows to consume Barabas. Notions of vengeance obsess the protagonist,
and what Barabas qualifies as a personal injury becomes increasingly broad as
the play progresses. Barabas turns from specific wrongs done him by
individuals—such as Ferneze—to focus on wrongs done him by Christian society
and the world in general. Even those characters who have been loyal to Barabas,
or who have brought him great advantages, come under fire. Calymath is a
notable example, for the protagonist repays the Turk's generosity with
treachery. Barabas even threatens Ithamore at a point when the slave is most
loyal to his master, saying, "I'll pay thee with a vengeance,
Ithamore." The protagonist's all-consuming wrath has a momentum unlike
anything else within the play, including the motivations of the other
characters. As a theme, vengeance contributes to the stagy feel and self-
referential theatricality of The Jew of Malta
Most characters in The Jew of Malta deceive
and dissemble, mostly for political expediency or criminal purposes. Abigail is
the only exception, as she pretends to convert to Christianity in order to help
her father recover his gold. In the scene where they plan this false
conversion, father and daughter use the word "dissemble" three times
in as many lines. In response to Abigail's assurance, "Thus father shall I
much dissemble," Barabas replies, "As good dissemble that thou never
mean'st / As first mean truth and then dissemble it." As far as the
Barabas is concerned, it is no worse to deceive when you know you are lying
than it is to do something honestly and later become hypocritical. Marlowe has
Barabas—who is never troubled by his false actions— stand by this maxim
throughout the play. Other characters, such as Ferneze, also try to conceal
their own motives but meet with variable success. The priests Bernardine and Jacomo
are prime examples of poor dissimulators. A clear example is Act IV, scene i,
where the priests pretend to have Barabas's best interests at heart but really
want his gold in their coffers. It is no coincidence that these men of faith
have impure motivations—Barabas stands out in comparison as an able strategist,
precisely because he does not espouse false moral ideals. The protagonist
regards dissembling as a strategic tool to achieve political ends; he remains
unconcerned about the immorality of such duplicity.
Barabas's (and by extension Marlowe's) use of
biblical and classical allusions is heavily ironic. Barabas refers to the story
of Cain when he hears of Abigail's conversion to Christianity, exclaiming
"perish underneath my bitter curse / Like Cain by Adam, for his brother's
death." While Barabas's allusions display the breadth of his knowledge,
they are often used mockingly to undermine the seriousness of events. Ithamore
uses proverbs in a more overtly jocular way, as shown by his comment, "he
that eats with the Devil had need of a long spoon." Also, both allusions
and proverbs serve to bridge the world of the stage and the audience. They form
part of a cultural dialogue that traverses the gulf between theater and real
life. When Pilia-Borza knowingly asserts, "Hodie tibi, cras mihi,"
(Today you, tomorrow me) Marlowe is speaking to the minds of his contemporaries
about the unpredictability of fate. Although the play pertains to be about past
events in Malta, such proverbial wit suggests that it dramatizes the tensions
and concerns of contemporary Elizabethan England.
Marlowe have also used symbols ironically in
the play on various occasions.
Gold symbolizes power and success as well as
wealth. Barabas is ecstatic when he recovers his hidden gold in Act II, scene
i. As the Turkish bashaw states to Ferneze, the Turkish army are driven by
"[t]he wind that bloweth all the world besides, / Desire of gold." In
sixteenth century Malta, as in our modern era, money makes the world go round.
Gold symbolizes faith in the terrestrial world—its schemes, profits and
rewards—as opposed to the spiritual realm's less immediate rewards
Most of the comments about Barabas's nose are
made by Ithamore, who makes puns on the idea of smelling and having a nose for
things. For example, he says, "Oh brave, master, I worship your nose for
this." The slave expresses his admiration for this feature along with
Barabas's qualities of character, stating, "I have the bravest, gravest,
secret, subtle, bottle-nosed knave to my master, that ever gentleman had."
And yet, Ithamore's gentle jibing is not always comic—it can turn nasty. In Act
IV he mutters as an aside, "God-a-mercy nose," in response to
Barabas's comment that he smelt the priests "ere they came." Marlowe
is undoubtedly playing on Jewish stereotypes with this unconventional symbol.
The fact that Ithamore focuses on Barabas'
nose symbolizes his need to define the Jew as different, through selecting this
feature as a mark of distinction. By saying that Barabas has a nose for crime,
Ithamore is somehow connecting what he perceives to be a Jewish identity with a
criminal identity. It is unlikely that Marlowe agrees with Ithamore. The
slave's comments are so ridiculous—as is Barabas's comment that he could smell
the priests before they appeared—that we cannot ignore their sharply ironic
tone. While the character of Ithamore might be saying these things in all
seriousness, the playwright uses them to deepen the play's darkly comic flavor.
Barabas's nose is a symbol of the satire that permeates The Jew of
Malta. Just as tragic events in the play are undercut by humor, so its
jokes have serious implications about the state of human relationships.
