Prologue

The play opens with a speech delivered by the soul of Machevil. Although the world believes he is dead, Machevil declares that his soul flew to France and inhabited the body of the Duke of Guise. Since the Duke himself is now dead, the seemingly immortal Machevil has arrived from France "to view this land and frolic with his friends."

Although Machevil says that he has not come to "read a lecture," he puts forth several claims. He states that those who find his name odious actually admire him the most; that those who renounce his books actually read them avidly; that religion is but a "childish toy"; and that "there is no sin but ignorance." He then speaks along vague political lines, and he concludes by stating that his purpose of the day is to present "the tragedy of a Jew." Machevil claims that he has helped the Jew (Barabas) acquire his fortune, so the Jew "favours" him.

Act 1, Scene 1

The curtains rise to reveal Barabas counting his riches. As a Maltese merchant, the Jew has made such a fortune that he has become weary of counting all his coins-if only everyone could pay in wedges of gold, or precious stones by the weight! Just as we begin to see the extent of his wealth, a merchant enters to announce the arrival of ships carrying Barabas's merchandise. The merchant states that the bill of customs itself surpasses the wealth of many local merchants. A second merchant enters with news of Barabas's argosy from Alexandria, consisting of rich oriental treasures.

Barabas then delivers a short monologue on his wealth. To what ends does he amass such a great fortune, together with the rich Jews abroad who form a "scattered nation"? Although wealth is honored universally, Barabas is hated for being a rich Jew. But he declares that he would prefer to be hated as such, rather than be "pitied in a Christian poverty." He associates Christianity with both material and spiritual poverty: their faith, he believes, bears only "malice, falsehood, and excessive pride." Though Kings may be Christian, Barabas renounces any desire for political power, declaring that he gathers wealth for the sake of happiness for himself and his only daughter.

Three Jews of Malta enter the scene. They report that a Turkish navy has arrived, ready for combat. Especially given that Malta and the Turks are in league under a peace treaty, the three Jews are concerned about the warlike appearance of the ships. Why have all the Jews of Malta been summoned to the senate house? While assuring his three friends that he will look into the matter, Barabas reveals his selfish and duplicitous nature through an aside: "Nay let 'em combat, conquer, and kill all, / So they spare me, my daughter, and my wealth." He already suspects that the Turks have come to exact Malta's tribute (to the Ottoman Empire), and he begins to ponder how he can avoid difficulties if the Turks come his way.

Act 1, Scene 2

Selim Calymath enters, followed by Callapine and other Bashaws. Calymath demands payment from Ferneze, the governor of Malta, for ten years' worth of Malta's unpaid tribute to the Ottoman Empire. Should Ferneze refuse, he most likely would have to fight off a Turkish invasion. Unable to pay the due tribute on the spot, Ferneze asks for some extra time to make a collection among the citizens. Callapine reacts belligerently, but Calymath accepts the governor's request and promises to send a messenger in a month.

The Turks leave, and the Jews of Malta arrive to see Ferneze. The governor explains the situation and says that, due to recent expenditures for wars, Malta cannot possibly pay the required tribute. He therefore asks for a contribution from each of the Jews. The Jews protest alternately that they are poor and that, as "strangers," they do not usually pay taxes for the tribute. At this point, Ferneze gives up any pretense of a request and decrees that the entirety of the tribute shall be taken among the Jews. The Jews must agree to give up half of their estates-otherwise they will be made Christian and will lose all that they have. For his resistance to the decree, Barabas has his entire estate confiscated.

Barabas protests vehemently against what he sees as the injustice of the governor. In response, Ferneze and his knights declare that Jews are "infidels" and that their "hateful lives" have caused many Christians to suffer. Indeed, if the Jews now suffer in turn, the First Knight states that it is due to their wickedness and "inherent sin." At this, Barabas again voices his outrage: "What? Bring you scripture to confirm your wrongs?" Shall he be persecuted for his ancestors' transgressions, though he himself has lived righteously? Barabas then states that he would rather be killed than live without his fortune. Ferneze curtly dismisses Barabas's lament-the knights meanwhile have decided to convert Barabas's mansion into a nunnery-and all of the officials exit the scene.

The three Jews attempt to comfort Barabas, invoking the biblical sufferings of Job. But finding him unconsoled, they decide to leave the scene quietly, whereupon Barabas's daughter Abigall enters. Abigall expresses her concern over the turn of events, but Barabas reveals his foresight and cunning: he has a small fortune hidden under a plank in his house, ironically marked with a symbol of the cross. Since his house has been turned into a nunnery, Abigall must "dissemble" a conversion to the Christian faith and make a false confession to the Abbess. She thus will be able to access the treasure and secretly pass it to Barabas in the early hours of the morning.

Act 1, Scene 3

Mathias enters, ruminating over the strange turn of events surrounding Abigall. "A fair young maid, scarcely fourteen," why has the rich Jew's daughter suddenly become a nun? As Mathias ponders the question, his friend Lodowick suggests that they go visit Abigall. Mathias exits with the intention to do so, unaware that Lodowick also intends to go and see the girl.

Analysis

The speaker of the prologue, Machevil, is presumably an anglicized reference to Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), the Italian Renaissance man best known for his political discourse in The Prince. The adjective Machiavellian, of course, derives from the same historical figure. Precisely, the soul of Machevil recounts how he inhabited the Duke of Guise (1550-1588), the patron saint of Rheims who infamously oversaw a massacre of French Protestants in 1572. Marlowe's The Massacre at Paris stages the events of this Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day, and the play portrays the Duke of Guise as an archetypal Machiavellian villain.

The prologue suggests, to a certain extent, that the soul of Machevil will now inhabit Barabas: Machevil will "grace him as he deserves." Yet of all the characters in the play, Barabas cannot be called the most Machiavellian. In line with the general sense of the adjective, the Jew is certainly cunning, duplicitous, and unscrupulous, Machiavellian in a nonpolitical sense. But he is not Machiavellian in a strict political sense, insofar as he stands in no position (as of yet) to place political advantage over morality, or to use deceitful tactics to uphold authority. Whereas Barabas will act out of selfishness, love of money, and the desire for revenge, it is the governor Ferneze who will reveal himself to be the most Machiavellian schemer.

The governor's scheming is already clear in Act 1, Scene 2. Whereas he puts on a show of politely requesting the aid of the Jews of Malta, the swiftness with which the officers seize Barabas's goods suggests that the action unfolds in a manner already planned out by Ferneze. The religious logic that the Christians use, besides, is falsely self-righteous and entirely hypocritical. Ferneze declares:

No, Jew, we take particularly thine [fortune]
To save the ruin of a multitude:
And better one want for a common good,
Than many perish for a private man. (I.ii.96-100)

This echoes the priest Caiaphas's judgment of Christ (John 11:50). While model Christian readers should understand the biblical passage in an allegorical sense, it seems, Ferneze and his Knights take the passage literally in order to justify their extortion.

Barabas's outcry thus becomes particularly pointed. "What? Bring you scripture to confirm your wrongs?" Not only are the authorities using religious history to justify their actions-which is in itself questionable-but they are abusing history. As members of the majority religion, these Christians selectively and unjustly interpret history so as to support their present choices, and as those in power, they can get away with it. Few moments have passed before Barabas's mansion is converted into a nunnery. The Christians thus take full advantage of Barabas and subjugate the other Jews in the name of religion, using their religion more as a pretext than as a spiritual or moral guide.

The three Jews invoke the sufferings of Job to console Barabas, but the play has already signaled the difficulty of using scripture to justify one's place in the world. Besides, the world of The Jew of Malta turns above all around wealth. It is not by chance that the curtains opens to reveal Barabas counting gold; Barabas disparages Job by ridiculing the smallness of his fortune, and he sets out to retrieve his remaining fortune through scheming. In a counterpoint to the Christians, Barabas offers his own moral justification for Abigall's false conversion: "A counterfeit profession is better / Than unseen hypocrisy." It will be interesting to return to this scene in light of Abigall's second and true conversion to Christianity.

M. M. Mahood offers an insightful comment on the proceedings of the play thus far: "The world of The Jew of Malta is one into which ethical considerations do not enter"; that is, "intelligence alone counts. Characters are not good or bad; they have fewer or more wits about them" (46). Instead of morality, the characters are obsessed with their own advantage-financial, and in some cases, sexual. Act 1, Scene 3 introduces two young men who are potential suitors to Abigall. They surely are interested in her beauty, but Lodowick's later allusion to her as a diamond shows that her wealth never lags far behind her looks. When the curtain to the first act falls, we are prepared for many battles of wits. Will the cunning Jew be able to outsmart his oppressors? Will his daughter outsmart the nuns? Will one suitor outsmart the other and win Abigall by persuading her of his superior wit?

Act 2, Scene 1

Night has fallen. Barabas enters with a light in hand, lamenting the events that have befallen him. Just as he prays to God to safely direct his daughter, on the model of God directing Moses and the Israelites through the wilderness, Abigall enters above with bags of gold and jewels. Faintly able to perceive her, Barabas thinks he sees a ghost. He soon realizes that the figure is Abigall, who begins to throw down bags of treasure to him. Barabas declares that he is now entirely happy, equating happiness with having his daughter, his gold, and beauty all together. Abigall warns him that the nuns will begin to wake up as midnight approaches, and she retires back into the house.

Act 2, Scene 2

Ferneze enters with Martin del Bosco, the vice-admiral of Spain who has just arrived on his ship, the Flying Dragon. Del Bosco carries a freight of Greek, Turkish, and Moorish slaves, which he would like to sell in Malta. Ferneze welcomes the vice-admiral but says that he does not dare buy the slaves due to the tributary league with the Turks. Upon hearing this-and with the encouragement of the Maltese First Knight-del Bosco urges Ferneze to break Malta's league with the Turks. He declares that the Spanish King has title to the island, and he promises to send for aid in fighting off the Turks. He tells Ferneze to keep the tributary money rather than give it to the Turks. With new hope, Ferneze decides to buy the slaves whom del Bosco is holding in cargo. The scene closes with Ferneze trumpeting his resolution to fight the "barbarous misbelieving" Turks, exclaiming that "Honour is bought with blood and not with gold."

Act 2, Scene 3

Two officers arrive at the marketplace with the newly-purchased slaves. Noticing Barabas, the First Officer mutters that the Jew would have bought all the slaves had his fortunes not been seized. As it turns out, Barabas has recovered a substantial proportion of his fortune with the help of Abigall, and he has just purchased a new mansion. In an aside, Barabas swears to take out his revenge against Ferneze as well as his son Lodowick. The Jew boasts of his ability to dissemble-to put on a show of gentleness and innocence while injuring others.

Lodowick enters and seeks Barabas in hopes of acquiring permission to visit Abigall. Barabas responds to Lodowick's request to "help [him] to a diamond," insinuating through a series of innuendoes that Abigall is well and available to the young man. Barabas also tells Lodowick that he now sees the light of Christianity. He praises Ferneze for converting his former mansion into a nunnery, albeit with the pointed suggestion that the nuns and friars engage in illicit sexual activities. All this time, he has been revealing his true intentions through a series of asides within hearing of the audience, saying that he hopes to kill Lodowick and set the nunnery on fire.

Accompanied by Lodowick, Barabas examines two slaves before finally settling on Ithamore (who is cheaper because he is skinnier). Mathias and Katherine enter the marketplace. Barabas and Mathias engage in secret conversation such that Katherine, Mathias's mother, cannot hear. The Jew invites Mathias to come and see Abigall at his house, whereupon Mathias inquires about Barabas's conversation with Lodowick. Barabas responds that they were speaking of diamonds. He and Mathias part with unrelated talk in order to fool the anti-Judaic Katherine. All but Ithamore and Barabas exit the scene.

The Jew teaches his new slave to be cold and cunning, embarking on an extended speech to brag about his own evil and anti-Christian deeds. To this story, Ithamore in turn enthusiastically responds with the cruel deeds that he has himself committed against Christians. Barabas promises to pay Ithamore handsomely, so long as he remains faithful. The two meanwhile have arrived at Barabas's house, where Lodowick is arriving to see Abigall.

Barabas orders his daughter to entertain Lodowick to the best of her abilities, as if she were truly in love with him. The young pair enter the house, while Barabas remains outside to greet Mathias. The Jew then puts on a show of sadness, saying that although he intended his daughter for Mathias, Lodowick has been imposing himself on his daughter. Mathias draws his sword at once, ready to fight with Lodowick, but Barabas manages to calm him with the promise that he will firmly reject Lodowick.

Lodowick sees Mathias exit and inquires after him. Barabas laments that Mathias has sworn Lodowick's death, for he is in love with Abigall as well. Barabas again forces his daughter to declare her love for Lodowick, claiming that "It is no sin to deceive a Christian." Abigall leaves the scene thoroughly upset, but Barabas assures Lodowick that her tears are just what one would expect of Jewish maidens who are about to be married. Happy to be promised Abigall's hand in marriage, Lodowick departs without hampering Mathias when Mathias returns once again.

Barabas tells Mathias that if not for his intervention, Lodowick would surely have stabbed Mathias then and there. The Jew then tells Mathias that Abigall now belongs to him and that Lodowick has gone to visit Mathias's mother--being anti-Judaic, Katherine will "die with grief" upon hearing about her son's relationship with Abigall. Mathias thus exits in pursuit of Lodowick. Abigall's father expresses disappointment that she wants to marry a Christian, and she laments her father's malicious scheming, especially since she wishes no harm to come to Mathias.

Ithamore takes Abigall into the house, after which Barabas orders him to give Mathias a feigned challenge from Lodowick. The act closes with Barabas vowing that he will set the two young men against each other.

Analysis

Given a choice between his fortune and his daughter, which would Barabas choose? In the opening scene of the act, he associates four types of fortunes in a parallel structure: "O girl, O gold, O beauty, O my bliss!" Just as Abigall lovingly carries out her father's wishes, so too does Barabas seem to genuinely love his daughter: "Abigall, Abigall, that I had thee here too!" Whether this appearance captures the reality of his preferences is a question that will be answered in the following act.

In the meantime, Ferneze continues to reveal his hypocritical ways. Martin del Bosco's offer to assist Malta in its coming war against the Turks strikes the governor as highly desirable. After all, he will be able to keep the tribute money taken from the Jews-an easy financial gain that will appear to the public as righteous. To be sure, Ferneze may feel genuinely relieved to be associated with Christian Spain rather than the Ottoman Empire. Still, his talk of how "honour is bought with blood and not with gold" is nonsense, from his point of view. He knows that his honour as a Christian has been bought with gold, so his courageous defiance of the Turks only comes after the assurance that Spain will come to Malta's aid. Besides, it is the blood of the Spanish, more than that of the Maltese, that will spill. In exchanging one protector for another, though, Malta is likely to face new challenges and costs.

In a manner similar to his father's, Lodowick shows his deep taste for wealth. It is not without reason that he refers to Abigall as a diamond. As Barabas's daughter, after all, it is clear that Abigall will inherit a considerable fortune. Lodowick hastens to assure the Jew: "'Tis not thy wealth, but her that I esteem, / Yet crave I thy consent." Now if Abigall were ugly, Lodowick would have good reason to make such a comment. But given that the young men describe her as exceedingly pretty, Lodowick's comment seems to reveal his preoccupation with the fortune he will inherit as a son-in-law. (Note that he is trusting in her father's continued success in maintaining his fortune even under difficult circumstances on the island.) Love and the desire for wealth, then, once again are the motives that lead to action, not Lodowick's religious or ethical motives.

The lady Katherine clearly displays her anti-Judaic sentiments, but her son Mathias hardly considers religion or family as providing motives that will trump his love for Abigall, in all her beauty. Similarly, Lodowick affects none of his father's animosity towards Barabas, reflecting mainly his father's love of women and gold irrespective of religion or family vendettas Meanwhile, Barabas keeps a vendetta alive, though it remains unclear where his priorities lie among gold, family love, and revenge.

Revenge has become a powerful force in the play. Barabas notes that he has regained much of his fortune through Abigall, and he has bought a new mansion; nonetheless, he is more driven than ever to take revenge on Ferneze. To do so, he is more than willing to sacrifice Lodowick-and probably Mathias along the way as well. The Jew of Malta, then, fits well with the popular tradition of revenge tragedy in English theater, typified by such works as Thomas Kyd's Spanish Tragedy, Shakespeare's Hamlet, and the Revenger's Tragedy (sometimes attributed to Thomas Middleton).

In plotting his revenge, Barabas reveals his extreme shrewdness. Like Shakespeare's Iago in Othello, he knows precisely how to manipulate others to do his will. When he meets Ithamore, for example, Barabas presents himself in the image of the stereotypical medieval Jew:

As for myself, I walk abroad a-nights
And kill sick people groaning under walls;
Sometimes I go about and poison wells. (II.iii.177-79)

Encouraged by his new master's taste for evil, Ithamore responds with an equally exaggerated-if not entirely fabricated-story of his crimes against Christians. Barabas also revels in his malicious maneuvers. In the third scene, he repeatedly states his true intentions through asides. While this serves as a dramatic device-to clarify matters for the audience-the extent and the number of asides suggest Barabas's sheer pleasure in planning his revenge.

Finally, the third scene of Act 2 marks a development in Abigall's character. She has, thus far, followed all her father's wishes, staying true to her name's literal meaning, "father's joy." (In English, though, ending the name with "gall" suggests a negative experience: 'father's gall.') Now, as two suitors are set up to compete for her, possibly to the death, she begins to assert her own opinions and desires. Must she really help her father set up Mathias and Lodowick? A tension thus arises between romantic love and familial love; she seems more concerned with this conflict at this point than with the possibility of losing her inheritance if her father's fortune is confiscated again. Another way of looking at the conflict is to see it between Abigall's love and Barabas's hate (a form of his love for revenge).

Act 3, Scene 1

The courtesan Bellamira enters, complaining about the lack of suitors ever since Malta closed itself to prepare for the arrival of the Turkish fleet. She remarks that only Pilia-Borza still comes to visit her, whereupon he enters bringing a bag of silver. He has stolen it from Barabas's counting house--and hopes to steal more. Ithamore enters and in one breath remarks on Bellamira's extreme beauty and on the success of his mission to set Mathias and Lodowick against each other.

Act 3, Scene 2

Mathias and Lodowick enter, each having been provoked accordingly by Barabas. The two draw swords and fight. Barabas enters above to goad them on, then leaves the scene when the two fall dead. Ferneze and Katherine arrive to find their respective sons dead. Mourning over the corpses, the two first express their desire to commit suicide, but they then decide to find out who made their sons enemies. After vowing to carry out due revenge, they exit with the bodies.

Act 3, Scene 3

Ithamore revels in the villainy that he has just helped Barabas commit. Abigall enters, and Ithamore gleefully recounts to her how Barabas orchestrated the death of the two young men. Abigall then asks Ithamore to summon one of the friars from the nunnery. Before leaving, Ithamore facetiously asks her whether the nuns engage in "fine sport" with the friars from time to time.

All alone now, Abigall bemoans her father's "hard-hearted" revenge. In his single-minded pursuit of vengeance against Ferneze, Barabas has killed not only Lodowick, but also the entirely innocent Mathias. For Abigall, the death of Mathias strikes her almost as her own death: perceiving that there is "no love on earth," she desires to leave behind the vicissitudes of the world and become a nun. Friar Jacomo arrives and shows surprise at her change of heart, but he admits her once again as a sister. As the two head to the nunnery, Abigall swears to Barabas in an apostrophe: "never shall these lips bewray thy life!"

Act 3, Scene 4

Barabas enters, reading a letter from Abigall that urges him to repent of his sins. Much disturbed by the turn of events, Barabas fears that his daughter knows about his hand in the deaths of Mathias and Lodowick. Ithamore enters to confirm that Abigall sent for the friar herself and voluntarily entered the nunnery. Feeling outraged and betrayed, Barabas adopts Ithamore as his only heir and hatches a plot to poison the sisters-including his daughter.

Ithamore brings a pot of rice into which the Jew mixes a rare, poisonous powder. He then orders Ithamore to take the porridge to the nunnery, promising him great wealth in return for his service. Barabas utters spiteful words towards his daughter. After Ithamore leaves, he declares that he will "pay [Ithamore] with a vengeance" as well.

Act 3, Scene 5

Accompanied by Martin del Bosco, Ferneze once again welcomes the Turkish Bashaws to Malta. Since the time has come for Malta to pay its tribute, Callapine has arrived as the messenger for Calymath. But Ferneze strongly refuses to pay the tribute-and for that matter shall never let any Maltese property be taken by the Turks. Callapine thus leaves with the ominous promise that Calymath will return and destroy Malta for its wrongs. After the Turks leave, Ferneze encourages his men to prepare for war.

Act 3, Scene 6

Friars Jacomo and Barnardine enter in great distress--all the nuns are dying! Abigall enters to make a confession to Friar Barnardine. She admits that she is greatly tormented by her offence against Mathias and Lodowick, as planned by her father. She has written down the details. The friar is greatly vexed, but he assures Abigall that confessions may never be revealed. She passes away. Friar Barnardine expresses regret that she has died a virgin. Friar Jacomo returns to announce the death of all the nuns, and the two set off to bury them. Afterward, Barnardine says, he will confront the Jew about what Abigall has said.

Analysis

The plot of The Jew of Malta cannot be described sufficiently by using the simple terms of introduction, climax, denouement. The plot consists of several sub-plots woven together, one rising as another falls. Most of them converge here in the third act: Bellamira enters to hint at a story of bribery to come; the tension between Mathias and Lowodick is definitely resolved; Ferneze and Katherine embark on their own quest for revenge; the Turks promise to return with a full army; the nunnery is bereft of nuns; Abigall is no longer the heir of Barabas.

One focal point of the third act is the nunnery. It is where Abigall learns some good things about Christianity, despite the negative insinuations that the nuns and friars engage in illicit sexual relations. Barabas suggests it, and when asking Abigall about the nunnery, Ithamore speaks along the same lines. Note that the allegations can be given credence as acted onstage. When the nuns are dying, for example, Friar Jacomo rushes out to visit "fair Maria" in her lodgings-the actor could speak the line to suggest a lascivious relationship between the two. One also should remember the curious words of Friar Barnardine's upon Abigall's death: "Ay, and [she dies] a virgin, too, that grieves me most." If nuns are supposed to be chaste, why would Barnardine feel grief over Abigall's virginity, unless he thought she would have had opportunities for sex in the nunnery? A more charitable interpretation, however, is that after Abigall has revealed her thwarted love for Mathias, Barnardine feels grief that Abigall never was able to marry him.

Why does Abigall decide to convert to Christianity once again, this time gladly and voluntarily? She explains to Friar Jacomo:

But now experience, purchased with grief,
Has made me see the difference of things.
My sinful soul, alas, hath paced too long
The fatal labyrinth of misbelief,
Far from the Son that gives eternal life! (III.iii.64-68; an alternative edition reads "sun")

The traditional pun on "Son" and "sun" suggests that Abigall believes that she now sees the true light of the Lord's way. This turn of events may seem entirely unexpected, but Abigall claims that experiencing Christianity from within the nunnery has given her a new appreciation for the religion. Still, her first answer was that she converted out of sad experience and personal grief, rather than faith and rational reflection. The sincere confession by the Jew's daughter seems somewhat contrived, though it is not uncommon for conversions to be attributed to reflections on experience.

In fact, in a play full of malicious and hypocritical characters, Abigall may be the morally strongest. She earnestly follows what she perceives as the correct path of life, all the while staying faithful to her father. Until the end, she keeps her promise: "never shall these lips bewray [Barabas's] life." She keeps this promise: it is through writing that she informs Barnardine of her father's crimes--and she does so only under the strict secrecy of confession.

In contrast to Abigall, Barabas has remained entirely unsympathetic. He expresses some regret over her second conversion, as a Jewish father might, but he soon resolves to poison her along with the rest of the nuns, fearing that she has betrayed him--which, after all, to some degree, she has. The gift of poisoned porridge is a gift of death (compare Genesis, where Jacob bribes Esau with porridge in exchange for the latter's birthright). Barabas goes on a killing spree far in excess of what even the usual criminal might do in response to a bad situation. He even turns against Ithamore, who has offered to kill himself if that is what his master desires, without any clear reason for vengeance. It is as though, once he is betrayed by the political leaders of Malta, he sees betrayal everywhere.

Act 4, Scene 1

Barabas and Ithamore gloat over their success in poisoning the nuns. The Jew expresses particular satisfaction over his daughter's death. Friar Jacomo and Barnardine enter and, after a series of interrupted exchanges, intimate that they know of Barabas's hand in the deaths of Mathias and Lodowick. Barabas realizes that his daughter has confessed. He immediately puts on a show for the two friars: dissembling great sufferance under the burden of his many sins, he expresses a desire to convert to Christianity himself. He ostentatiously adds that he still possesses a large fortune, pointing out that this fortune would be donated to the monastery into which he enters.

At this point, the two friars start bickering over which monastery Barabas should choose. Once Barabas tells friar Jacomo to visit him at one o'clock that night, the two friars break into a fight. Barabas pulls them apart and asks Barnardine to leave with Ithamore. In his usual duplicitous manner, he has promised his favors to the friars while plotting to murder both of them. One, after all, converted his daughter to Christianity, and the other knows enough to have him condemned to death.

Ithamore returns after leading Barnardine into the house, noting that the friar has fallen asleep with his clothes on. The master and slave tie a noose around the friar's neck and strangle him on the spot. They then prop up his body against his staff and wait for Jacomo. When the friar arrives at the promised hour, he finds Barnardine standing silently in his path. Friar Jacomo decides to force his way past his former friend and strikes him with his staff, whereupon Barabas and Ithamore jump out of hiding. The two accuse Jacomo of murder and lead him off to be tried by the law.

Act 4, Scene 2

Pilia-Borza enters, telling Bellamira that he took her letter to Ithamore. Ithamore enters and delivers a monologue recounting Jacomo's calm behavior at the gallows. As he wonders aloud why Bellamira has summoned him, he arrives in front of her house. Bellamira welcomes him with sweet words and a kiss, and he decides that he should steal some money from Barabas to make himself presentable. He discusses the possibility with her and Pilia-Borza, then agrees to write a blackmail letter to Barabas for three hundred crowns. While Pilia-Borza delivers it, Bellamira pretends to think little of the gold and continues to play the seductress. Ithamore would be glad to marry her; he bursts into uncharacteristic high poetry. Pilia returns with the money, which inspires Ithamore immediately to write a second letter for five hundred crowns more, plus one hundred for Pilia.

Act 4, Scene 3

Barabas enters reading over Ithamore's first letter. As he expresses his outrage, Pilia-Borza enters carrying the second letter demanding five hundred crowns. Barabas invites Pilia-Borza to dinner in hopes of poisoning him, but the latter will hear nothing till he sees the money. The Jew finally gives in, wincing at the sight of so much gold leaving his pocket-but puts on a show for Pilia-Borza, lamenting his betrayal by Ithamore more than its financial consequences. Alone again, Barabas genuinely feels the hurt of the betrayal but focuses on the money and the possible consequences of being found out. He resolves to visit Ithamore in disguise, hoping to rid himself of the blackmailers.

Act 4, Scene 4

Bellamira and Ithamore drink wine while exchanging amorous words. Ithamore boasts of the evil deeds that he has committed with Barabas, upon which Bellamira and Pilia-Borza decide to betray him to the governor, after blackmailing him further. The Jew himself enters the scene, dressed as a French musician. Barabas presents the three blackmailers with poisoned flowers to smell, and Pilia-Borza pays him two crowns to play the lute. Ithamore asks him if he knows the Jew named Barabas, and Ithamore proceeds to rail against his master with false claims about his eating and dressing habits. Barabas then leaves the scene under the excuse that he feels ill--perhaps disgusted by the filthy lies that Ithamore has been telling about him.

As the scene ends, the three agree to send a third letter demanding one thousand crowns. Ithamore defends their blackmail with an anti-Judaic justification, speaking the last line of the act: "To undo a Jew is charity, and not sin."

Analysis

When the friars visit Barabas's house, their express purpose is to urge him to repent of his sins, but they have very little leverage over the Jew Barabas. Since his murder of Mathias and Lodowick was revealed to Friar Barnardine in a confession, the friars may never speak of the matter in public, so even if they wanted to blackmail him, they could not do so without losing their own standing. Even addressing the matter to Barabas may transgress the sacred rules. Their presence does not really concern Barabas, who has already embarked on a killing spree to conceal his crimes. He may also be rather paranoid by now. Still, he has the cunning to solve the problem by finding an excuse to turns the friars against each other.

The friars could hardly be happier with his offer of his fortune. At the first mention of it, they seem to forget their spiritual values and instead try to draw him to one monastery or the other on material grounds: for example, one must go barefoot in one of the monasteries, as the other friar charges. Only moments ago, they were preaching to Barabas to repent, so their quick turn of motivation to money emphasizes their hypocrisy. As for Barabas, in his usual cunning manner he plays both ends against the middle, pondering the best way to murder them.

As with the case of Mathias and Lodowick, his plot is realized almost effortlessly. The first murder is of a sleeping Barnardine. Then, blinded by his desire for gold, Jacomo strikes the already-dead Barnardine and involuntarily completes the perfect murder. Again Ithamore has a central role in this plot.

Ironically, Barabas invokes the particulars of the law to have the friar tried:

The law shall touch you, we'll but lead you, we.
'Las, I could weep at your calamity.
Take in the staff too, for that must be shown;
Law wills that each particular be known. (IV i 205-9)

The trope of a Jew enforcing the laws of the Christian commonwealth with the intention of causing a tragic consequence is repeated with Shylock in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice.

Forces of avarice and desire come in multiple degrees in The Jew of Malta. Whereas almost all of the characters are obsessed with gold, Ithamore finds a formidable rival to the lustrous metal. At first sight of Bellamira, he falls head over heels in love. Even before the courtesan prompts him, Ithamore resolves to steal Barabas's gold. Also, Ithamore gives Barabas a taste of his own poison through blackmail, and the slave is in turn being manipulated by Bellamira and Pilia-Borza. (Bellamira's phrase "'Tis not thy money but thyself I weigh" echoes Lodowick's earlier words concerning Abigall.) The two conspirators resolve to notify the proper authorities only after they have made their fortune.

These recourses to political authority are ironic in that Ferneze is no model citizen. He represents the corruption of the island, and it is his corruption that set the drama in motion from the beginning. Neither the church nor the state, at least as they are embodied in hypocritical representatives, has sufficient moral authority to enforce the laws. Nevertheless, justice (like everything else in the play) is swift. It is hard to believe that Friar Jacomo is so dense as to believe that he killed Friar Barnardine with his staff, but he apparently accepts the judgment of the Jew and his slave to the degree that he goes willingly to the gallows and the afterlife. The state apparently accepts such testimony and then goes straight to the execution.

As for Barabas, he twice pays the amount exacted by Ithamore. At this point, it is not clear that the Jew has all his wits about him. Ithamore's blackmail carries little force, because if Ithamore were to confess the truth as he threatens, he also would probably be jailed or executed, and Barabas's fortune probably would be seized once again by Ferneze and his officers. This threat is therefore more or less empty, yet Barabas complies. Barabas might be stuck, however, now that others are in on the news.

Why does Barabas comply with the blackmail? Is he weary, paranoid, or simply careless? Or is the money amount too small to be concerned with? He can afford to pay now, without revealing his plot of killing Ithamore until later. Barabas certainly has money enough to buy time. Having purchased some time for strategic reflection, he arrives in disguise at Bellamira's house in the last scene of the act, with consequences that will become clear in the final act.

Act 5, Scene 1

Ferneze enters with knights and Martin del Bosco, fortifying Malta against the Turkish invasion to come. (The Spanish navy is nowhere to be seen.) Bellamira enters with Pilia-Borza and informs Ferneze that it was Barabas who killed Lodowick. Bellamira also declares that Barabas strangled a friar and poisoned the nuns, including his own daughter. Ferneze asks for proof of her accusations, upon which Bellamira betrays Ithamore. Officers soon return with the accused master and slave.

Ithamore readily confesses the truth, revealing all of his own and Barabas's crimes. Barabas calls for the law and attempts to divert Ferneze's attention by pointing out that Bellamira is a courtesan and Pilia-Borza is a thief-all in vain. As he is carried off by the officers, Barabas says he hopes "the poisoned flowers will work anon"; the flowers that Ithamore, Bellamira, and Pilia-Borza smelled earlier were sprinkled with poison.

The lady Katherine enters and discusses the turn of events with Ferneze, whereupon an officer announces the deaths of all four: the accusers and the accused. Barabas's poison has finally taken effect--but Barabas's death was unexpected. Martin del Bosco remarks on the strangeness of Barabas's death, but Ferneze dismisses it as the justice of heaven and orders that the Jew's body be tossed over the city walls.

Alone outside the walls, Barabas quickly rises; he had merely taken a "sleepy drink" to feign death. While awaiting the arrival of the Turks, Barabas vows for vengeance-let them take even his fortune, so long as he sees the governor "whipped to death"! Calymath enters and notices the Jew. As a spy, Barabas informs the Turks how to gain entrance to the city, himself volunteering to lead five hundred men to open the city gates. Calymath then promises to make Barabas the governor, should his plan succeed.

Act 5, Scene 2

Calymath gloats over his easy victory and pronounces Barabas the new governor of Malta on the spot. Leaving the Jew with a number of Turkish janizaries, Calymath leaves to roam the town with his Bashaws. Barabas dismisses Ferneze and his officers and starts a monologue: although he is now governor, all of Malta hates him. Now his life is in constant danger. Besides, what good is authority without friends or profit? Barabas thus resolves to make the best of the situation. He summons Ferneze and describes his plan to recover Malta from the Turkish forces. In response to Ferneze's disbelief, the Jew demands what he can expect in return for his service to Malta, and Ferneze duly promises a great fortune. Not trusting Ferneze, Barabas sends Ferneze to visit the citizens personally to raise the money. With this agreement, Barabas releases him and makes provisions to surprise the Turks, declaring: "he from whom my most advantage comes, / Shall be my friend. / This is the life we Jews are us'd to lead; / And reason too, for Christians do the like."

Act 5, Scene 3

Calymath has ordered that the damage on the island be repaired. He roams about, admiring the geographical security of the island. A messenger enters with an invitation from Barabas, who offers to host a banquet for the Turks before they leave. He has even prepared a special pearl as a present. In response to Calymath's hesitation to dine within Malta, the messenger indicates that the banquet will take place in a monastery right outside the town. Calymath finally accepts, then retires to his tent to meditate before evening.

Act 5, Scene 4

Ferneze enters with his knights, giving out orders for the evening. None of the knights is to come forward until he hears a musket discharged. The knights swear their allegiance to Ferneze and leave the scene.

Act 5, Scene 5

Barabas supervises the carpenters as they finish up some construction at the monastery. He pays them and offers them wine from his cellar as they leave. The messenger then enters to confirm Calymath's presence for the festivities. Immediately afterwards, Ferneze arrives with the hundred thousand pounds that he has collected, but Barabas refuses to take the gold on the spot. The Jew then explains the contraption he has built, whereby Calymath's army will be instantly obliterated. As for getting rid of Calymath himself and his attendants, Ferneze need only cut a single rope at the right moment. Ferneze hides himself as he sees the Turks coming, and Barabas is left alone to boast about his "kingly kind of trade, to purchase towns / By treachery and sell 'em by deceit."

Calymath arrives with kind words, and Barabas invites him to ascend the stairs-whereupon Ferneze jumps out of hiding and cuts the rope, revealing a cauldron into which Barabas falls. Meanwhile the First Knight has sounded a charge within. All look on as Barabas struggles helplessly in the pit, crying for help. Finally resolved to death, the Jew openly admits his past crimes and dies amidst a string of curses.

Calymath attempts to leave with the idea that he will persuade Turkey to give up its claim on Malta, but Ferneze points out that all his soldiers have been massacred by Barabas's contraption--Spain is the protector once again. The curtain falls with Ferneze's declaration that he will take Calymath as prisoner, followed by Ferneze's praise to heaven.

Analysis

After Ithamore corroborates the accusations of Bellamira and Pilia-Borza, Ferneze exclaims: "Away with him! His sight is death to me." Barabas cries out in response: "Let me have the law, / For none of this can prejudice my life." At first glance, one may accuse the Jew of a type of legalism. He calls for the law only when it is useful to himself, thus adhering to its rules rather than its spirit. Yet, one wonders why the law would be useful to Barabas. Only a while ago, in the previous act, Friar Jacomo was executed swiftly and under the law respecting murder. There is no reason to think that Barabas would be exonerated, should a fair trial even take place.

Perhaps Barabas is scared that Ferneze will prematurely send him to his death. The governor's impetuous exclamation certainly does not bode well for the Jew. By calling for the law, then, Barabas is again bargaining for time, and he needs only a few extra moments; once the poison from the flowers works its effect, he might become safe under the law due to the lack of witnesses. But the witnesses have already spoken, so he needs time at least to take a "sleepy drink" to increase his chances of escaping the gallows. This device allows Barabas to survive, which serves the plot: he ends up outside the city to become the spy who leads the Turks into Malta.

The Turks having conquered the city, Calymath keeps his promise and makes Barabas the governor. But this does not seem so good to the Jew. As a corrupt governor, after all, he will be forced to lead the life of a tyrant:

But Malta hates me, and, in hating me,
My life's in danger; and what boots it thee,
Poor Barabas, to be the governor,
Whenas thy life shall be at their command?" (V.ii.30-33)

This line of thought reflects a view of the dangers of leadership dating at least to Plato's Republic (566d-567d). Though he may have power and wealth, the tyrant will lead a fundamentally unhappy life. Barabas therefore attempts to make best of the situation by serving as something of a double agent, plotting to return Malta to Ferneze.

Barabas takes considerable pleasure in the intricate plot to obliterate the Turkish forces. For the first time in the play, however, the plot fails miserably: the tables are turned, and Barabas falls into the deep pit designed for Calymath. Is this, as Ferneze suggests, the work of heaven? Perhaps, but several points distinguish Barabas's last plot. To begin with, he has built a large and conspicuous physical contraption-in opposition to his previous subtle scheming in the shadows. Barabas becomes so excited with the contraption itself that he declines to take the payment until later. He also unnecessarily explains the details to Ferneze who, he should know very well by experience, cannot be trusted. Finally, so sure of his success, he hands over the crucial device of execution to Ferneze. The execution of his plan, as it were, becomes his own execution: he mirrors the falling motion seen at the gallows when he falls into a cauldron-which also is a magnified version of the pot of porridge he used to murder Abigall and the nuns.

In Greek theater, the gods would have punished Barabas for his hubris. In The Jew of Malta, Barabas finally tastes his own poison, receiving poetic justice. He has become so proud and involved in his own plot of revenge that he almost forgets his place in the world as a successful merchant. The money he raises via Ferneze almost amounts to protection money. When Barabas refuses to take Ferneze's payment on the spot, though, he has involuntarily condemned himself-exactly in the manner of the friars Jacomo and Barnardine, when they forgot their spiritual paths and ran after Barabas's wealth.

Finally at the end of his rope in the cauldron, Barabas utters his one and only confession. But the confession does not bask in religiosity. In accordance with his character, he ends his life with a curse of frustration: if only he could have "brought confusion on you all"!

Despite all the havoc he has wreaked, Barabas serves a crucial role in the safety of Malta all the way to his death. His money buys Malta a month's time, during which Martin del Bosco minimizes damage to the city by helping the Turks to an easy victory; finally, he liberates Ferneze and allows Malta to assert its independence once and for all. Yet, it is not at all clear that the ending should be considered "happy." The governor Ferneze has after all revealed himself to be a hypocrite and traitor, no less Machiavellian than Barabas-in contrast to the invading Turks, who have acted with relative courtesy. T. S. Eliot famously called The Jew of Malta a "tragic farce." It is perhaps a farce because the tragic elements remain conspicuously unnoticed by the surviving characters, and a tragedy because the farcical elements ultimately lead to death.

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