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Michael of Cesena
Bernard is a Dominican who works for the Inquisition—the legal court used by the church to prosecute heresy. He is a staunch supporter of the pope and hates the Spiritualists, and is thus hostile to Ubertino and Michael and suspicious of William. He is cold, ruthless (he has Salvatore tortured), and less interested in finding out the truth than in using the Inquisition to further his political and ideological agenda. By accusing Remigio and Salvatore of the murders, he is able to use the mysterious and bloody events at the abbey to undermine the Emperor’s supporters.
Bernard Gui Quotes in The Name of the Rose
The The Name of the Rose quotes below are all either spoken by Bernard Gui or refer to Bernard Gui . 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:
).
Fifth Day Quotes
What Bernard wanted was clear. Without the slightest interest in knowing who had killed the other monks, he wanted only to show that Remigio somehow shared the ideas propounded by the Emperor's theologians. And once he had shown the connection between those ideas […] and had shown that one man in that abbey subscribed to all those heresies and had been the author of many crimes, he would thus have dealt a truly mortal blow to his adversaries.
Related Characters:
Adso of Melk (speaker), Fra Dolcino, Remigio of Varagine, Bernard Gui
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
407
Explanation and Analysis:
Bernard demands that Remigio confess to two crimes: that he is a heretic who followed Fra Dolcino, and that he is guilty of all the murders that have taken place at the abbey. Adso observes that Bernard doesn’t have “the slightest interest” in knowing who killed the other monks, but only wants to make a connection between the crimes and those like Fra Dolcino, Ubertino, and Michael, who advocate for the poverty of Christ and deny the authority of the Pope. If he can show that Remigio was both a follower of “the ideas propounded by the Emperor’s theologians” and a murderer, that would be a “truly mortal blow” to the credibility of Bernard’s enemies. Under threat of torture, Remigio falsely confesses, naming Salvatore as his accomplice. Bernard tells the Emperor’s supporters that anyone who shares their heretical ideas will be punished. This threat effectively prevents any chance of reconciliation between the Emperor’s supporters and the Pope’s envoys. Ubertino flees under cover of darkness, and Michael leaves the abbey dejected. Throughout the trial, Bernard shows little regard for the truth. This is a miscarriage of justice because Bernard doesn’t care about finding and punishing the murderer; he only wants to use the trial to attack the Pope’s political enemies. In this way, Eco shows that the supposedly moral proceedings of the church were often thinly-veiled displays of political power.
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Bernard Gui Character Timeline in The Name of the Rose
The timeline below shows where the character Bernard Gui appears in The Name of the Rose. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Third Day
...means. The abbot brings grim news: the Pope’s envoys are accompanied by a notorious Inquisitor, Bernard Gui, who hates heretics and is very quick to tamp down any unorthodox behavior. If...
(full context)
Fourth Day
William has a tense interaction with Bernard, whose path he clearly has crossed before. Bernard thinks William was lax in prosecuting heretics....
(full context)
...and Adso return from the library, however, they do see the girl from the village. Bernard has arrested her and Salvatore, since Salvatore had been using a ritual involving a black...
(full context)
Fifth Day
The next morning, Adso sees Bernard conferring with Malachi about some papers. He then enters the chapter house through a doorway...
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The disputation descends into personal insults and physical brawling, and Bernard’s archers have to intervene to separate the opposing parties. Meanwhile, Severinus enters the chapter house...
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...and so the Pope should withdraw from politics. The audience appears shocked by these propositions. Bernard suggests that William should come to Avignon to make these arguments to the Pope in...
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...are in great disorder, as if someone had been looking for something in the infirmary. Bernard has already arrived and arrested Remigio, who was found in the infirmary rummaging through the...
(full context)
Bernard puts Remigio on trial, accusing him of murder and of having known Fra Dolcino. Salvatore...
(full context)
Bernard tells Remigio that he must confess to two crimes: that he is a heretic who...
(full context)
...Ubertino to ask Abo for provisions and escape the abbey under cover of darkness, since Bernard seems to have directed his hostility towards him in particular. Ubertino takes his advice and...
(full context)
Sixth Day
Listening to the “Dies irae,” Adso has a vision. He sees Abo, Jorge, Bernard, other monks, and various Biblical figures arrayed for a feast. But the feast soon descends...
(full context)
