Judith

In my opinion, Howard Barker’s Judith can have many possible Major Dramatic Questions, each suiting a different interpretation of the play. My MDQ for Judith is, “Will Judith be able to fill the shoes of the biblical heroine?” While this choice of MDQ may be forcing outside conceptions onto the world of the play, I think it is still valid. In my opinion, the play is challenging the trope of the righteous biblical heroine by delving into things that Judith may have thought or felt.

At the beginning of the play, Judith knows what she must do, but she stammers as her determination wavers. At this point, “Will Judith kill Holofernes?” is a valid question. As the play unfolds, Judith begins to love her enemy in her own way. When the two characters talk, they forge a raw connection for a brief moment in time. The exact nature of their relationship is hard for me to put into words. Judith’s hesitation to kill Holofernes makes the question of “Will she kill him?” more pressing than ever. However, Judith eventually kills the general in a moment of rage. Now there remain at least six pages in the script, so there must be another MDQ at work.

In the aftermath of her deed, Judith comes to a fuller realization of her feelings for Holofernes. Judith then succumbs to a state of paralysis. At this point, Judith definitely doesn’t fit the picture of the gleaming heroine of Israel. Toward the end, Judith does begin to assume the role of savior of her people…but with too much zeal. When the Servant worships Judith, this shakes her out of her paralysis. However, Judith then begins to abuse the Servant. She is almost drunk with her triumph, essentially becoming a tyrant or a goddess, as the Servant calls her.

In the end, Barker’s portrayal of Judith is darker and more ambiguous than what we might expect from the biblical trope. In this portrayal, Judith is not the blessed, virtuous heroine. On page 61, the Servant shouts, “Immaculate deliverer! Oh, excellent young woman! Oh, virgin!” This is the image that the Servant and biblical tradition expect Judith to assume. However, I think that Judith’s struggle has changed her in a way that prevents her from achieving this ideal.