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The knight is one of Ferneze’s Maltese officers, and he serves to personify the widespread anti-Semitism and bigotry present in the play, and, Marlowe thus implies, in 16th-century England as well. When Ferneze seizes half the wealth belonging to all the Jews in Malta to pay the Turkish tribute, the knight tells Barabas that it is because of his “inherent sin,” or Jewish identity. What’s more, it is the knight who suggests Ferneze also seize Barabas’s house and turn it into a convent, a proposal that adds insult to the injury of Barabas’s lost gold.
Knight Quotes in The Jew of Malta
The The Jew of Malta quotes below are all either spoken by Knight or refer to Knight. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 1, Scene 2 Quotes
Barabas: Are strangers with your tribute to be taxed?
Knight: Have strangers leave with us to get their wealth?
Then let them with us contribute.
Barabas: How equally?
Ferneze: No, Jew, like infidels,
For through our sufferance of your hateful lives,
Who stand accursèd in the sight of heaven,
These taxes and afflictions are befallen,
And therefore thus we are determinèd;
Read there the articles of our decrees.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Here, Barabas and the other Jews are told that Malta owes tribute money to the Turkish Empire that it can’t pay, a situation that again highlights the anti-Semitism and religious hypocrisy that pervades both the play itself and 16th-century English society more broadly. When Barabas asks if “strangers” will be taxed to pay the bill, he is referring to the Jews. The Jews are considered foreigners in Malta—as they were in Marlowe’s England—and are therefore not official citizens. According to the knight, the Jews live in Malta and earn their money there, so they should “contribute” to the debt. The Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores a
What? Bring you scripture to confirm your wrongs?
Preach me not out of my possessions.
Some Jews are wicked, as all Christians are:
But say the tribe that I descended of
Were all in general cast away for sin,
Shall I be tried by their transgression?
The man that dealeth righteously shall live:
And which of you can charge me otherwise?
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Explanation and Analysis:
Barabas speaks these words after Ferneze seizes Barabas’s wealth to pay the Turkish tribute. This passage again underscores religious hypocrisy and the prejudice the Jewish community endures in the play, and, Marlowe thus implies, in 16th-century English society as well. Ferneze uses holy “scripture” and his Christian religion as a reason to tax the Jews, and Barabas will not be “preach[ed]” “out of [his] possessions” by Ferneze and his holier-than-thou attitude. Barabas admits that “some Jews are wicked,” but he says that “all Christians are [wicked],” as they claim moral superiority yet clearly have no scruples if they can so Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui digni
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Knight Character Timeline in The Jew of Malta
The timeline below shows where the character Knight appears in The Jew of Malta. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1, Scene 2
...Barabas can make more. Nothing comes from nothing, Barabas reminds Ferneze, but one of Ferneze’s knights interrupts. “’Tis not our fault,” the knight says, “but thy inherent sin.” Barabas is furious....
(full context)
...worse, especially since it will only force him to steal to recover his wealth. The knight again interrupts and suggests they also seize Barabas’s mansion and turn it into a nunnery....
(full context)
...and tells them it is time to gather the money for the Turks. Yes, the knight says, they must pay immediately. If they are late, they will “break the league, /...
(full context)
