Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Ivanhoe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Merits of Chivalry
Disguise and Discovery
Inheritance and Displacement
The Vulnerability and Power of Women
History vs. Romance
Summary
Analysis
At this point, the story backtracks slightly to explain how Ivanhoe came to be in Isaac’s and Rebecca’s care. Rebecca wanted to help the knight; despite his naturally kind and grateful temperament, Isaac worries that sheltering a Christian disobeys Jewish law. And, no good will come to them if anyone discovers that a Christian knight died in their care. But eventually he relents. Templeton notes that, although medieval romances frequently cast knights’ ladies as their physicians, the Jewish people in that era were particularly well-trained in the medical arts. Moreover, they augmented their skill, he claims, with the power of “cabalistical” or “supernatural arts.” And even among her people, Rebecca is a particularly well-regarded doctor.
The conflict between Rebecca and Isaac shows that the book’s Jewish characters are no more hegemonic than its Saxons or Normans and suggests that future stability requires compromise among factions—a thoroughly modern moral. Templeton’s aside illuminates a few aspects of medieval history and courtly love ideology that play a key role in coming chapters: first, Jewish people were not just moneylenders—in many parts of Europe (particularly Italy and Spain) they were also respected medical professionals. Second, in courtly love ideology, a knight’s physician and his love interest are often one and the same. This generates some of the sexual tension that will arise between Ivanhoe and Rebecca, mainly on Rebecca's side.
Themes
Literary Devices
Rebecca examines Ivanhoe at Ashby, dressing his wound and declaring him stable enough to take back to York with herself and Isaac the next day. Isaac greets this pronouncement with shock; he didn’t expect Rebecca to extend their charity that far. But Rebecca convinces him, in part by arguing that Isaac will need the protection of someone as close to Richard I as Ivanhoe, if the king returns to discover that Isaac has been financing Prince John.
Having just established Rebecca’s skills as a physician the book then slyly suggests that there’s more at stake here than just her professional opinion; she seems already to have taken a particular interest in the noble and virtuous Ivanhoe. Moreover, she’s just as politically aware and savvy as her father, and she recognizes the utility of having someone of Ivanhoe’s stature on their side.
Themes
Literary Devices
Later that same evening, Ivanhoe recovers consciousness. He finds himself in a room whose “oriental costume” makes him think for a moment that he’s back in Palestine. Rebecca’s entrance only reinforces this feeling. He draws his breath to speak, but she silences him while she skillfully tends his wound. She gives brief instructions in Hebrew to two servants, and Ivanhoe reflects on the “romantic and pleasing effect” of her mellifluous voice. Only after the servants leave does he dare address Rebecca. He chooses the language he learned in Palestine but, to his surprise, she answers in English. She introduces herself as Rebecca, the humble daughter of Isaac of York. Templeton suspects that Rowena might not have been entirely pleased by the way that Ivanhoe appreciates Rebecca’s beauty. But by highlighting her Jewish identity, Rebecca immediately lowers herself safely below Ivanhoe’s romantic interest.
Because the love interest and the physician are frequently aligned in medieval romances and courtly love ideology, Ivanhoe feels an initial flash of romantic interest in Rebecca, inspired not just by her tender care but by her beauty, as well. However, his ardor cools as soon as she notes her Jewish identity; despite his good qualities, Ivanhoe expresses the same prejudices as his society. And while Ivanhoe responds to Rebecca’s perceived foreignness (first with attraction, then with disgust) she immediately reminds him (and readers) that although the other characters treat her and her father as dangerous outsiders, they are English natives themselves. Thus, Rebecca and her father’s disinheritance and displacement rise from social prejudice alone.
Themes
Rebecca watches the desire in Ivanhoe’s eyes instantly turn to disdain, but she declines to hold the prejudices of the age against the noble young knight. Treating him with the same gracious courtesy as before, she explains the necessity of bringing him with herself and Isaac back to York; although there he might find shelter in many a noble house or Christian convent, no one else can offer him the same medical skill as Rebecca. She promises he need not stay in despised Jewish company for long; eight days in her care will bring him to full recovery. If she can accomplish this, Ivanhoe promises to richly reward her, but Rebecca only wants the knight to believe that “a Jew may do good service to a Christian” without looking for financial gain.
Ever the book’s shining example of good character, Rebecca doesn’t take it personally when Ivanhoe’s demeanor changes. She takes care of him out of the goodness of her heart because it is the right thing to do and not out of hope for reward (romantic or otherwise). And in exchange, she only wants him to recognize her humanity in the same way she recognizes his. She models the foundation of a truly just society, and her actions sharply contrast the self-interest and self-dealing typical among the power-hungry Norman ruling class.
Themes
Get the entire Ivanhoe LitChart as a printable PDF.
Ivanhoe agrees and places himself completely in Rebecca’s care. He asks what happened after he fainted. She tells him that Prince John ended the tournament early. Gossip says he’s preparing to claim the throne. She further reports that Cedric, Athelstane, and Rowena are on their way home with Gurth in their custody. Ivanhoe curses the fate that endangers his friends, from Gurth the swineherd to King Richard. But Rebecca suggests that perhaps divine providence has brought him back to England purposefully at the hour of his friends’ greatest need.
Despite his injuries, Ivanhoe’s knightly heart impels him to the protection of his friends above all other considerations. In this way, he proves to be a shining example of chivalric virtue. Yet, because his injuries (incurred while proving his knightly worth in a tournament) prevent him from acting on these desires, his position makes an ambivalent contribution to the book’s debate about the value of chivalry. His attitude suggests its importance, while his inactivity hints at its practical limitations.
Themes
Ivanhoe has enough strength to undergo the journey the following morning, despite the punishing pace Isaac sets to avoid robbers. But their speed frustrates his hired Saxon bodyguards into deserting. This brings the story back to the point where Cedric and his group stumble on the trio on the forest road. During the attack of the Norman “bandits,” De Bracy discovers Ivanhoe, whom he secretly conveys into the castle. He fears leaving a rival for Rowena’s affection at large yet dares not dishonor himself by killing a defenseless knight. There, after Front-de-Boeuf learns that two of De Bracy’s men are tending to a wounded “companion” rather than preparing to defend the castle, he assigns Ivanhoe to Ulrica, who recruits Rebecca as nurse. Thus, Ivanhoe ends up back in Rebecca’s care.
Maurice de Bracy’s actions contribute to the book’s debate about chivalric virtue, too. On the one hand, some sort of knightly code prevents him from killing the wounded and vulnerable Ivanhoe on the spot when he discovers him. On the other, as a rival for Rowena’s hand, he feels no compunction about kidnapping Ivanhoe with what seems to be a half-formed idea of using him as leverage. His ambivalent actions suggest that while chivalry might provide a positive framework to channel the energies and ambition of young, bold noblemen, in practice, a knight’s chivalry tends to reflect rather than direct his natural inclination toward good or evil.
Themes
