Introductory
Abigail is the "hopeless daughter of hapless Jew". She is the only character in the play by Christopher Marlowe to exhibit positive and likeable qualities [for the reader]. In early act, her father prophesies that he loves her (as a daughter) and his money bags the most but it only turns out to be a myth. Her father uses his 14 years old daughter as a tool to seek vengeance upon his enemies.
Pious Abigail does Something Sketchy
"Wrenched" Barabas, the wealthiest Jew of entire Malta is deprived of his hard-earned wealth by the Governor Ferneze and he devising his policies to reclaim his 'gold'. Abigail, as a whole, is seen positive and does not catch red-handed doing anything harmful. Barabas uses his daughter as a toy [remember the line of Machiavelli when he said, "I count the religion but a childish toy"?] to retain his lost wealth by sending her as a fakely converted nun in his house which is converted into a fresh nunnery. She does not want to deceive neither the nuns nor her lover, Mathias but her father exclaims, "It is no sin to deceive a Christian" and forces her to do so. In order to prove a good daughter towards her father, she commits such a shady thing and secretly throws her father's money bags in a street in the dark.
A Sincere Lover
When she is sent to the newly made nunnery, two young men, named Don Lodowick (son of the governor) and Mathias because they deem her as "fair". She also falls in love with Mathias and when her father knows this all, he hatches another policy to make Ferneze pay for his unjust action through fighting a duel between Mathias and Lodowick. Abigail openly protests against her father's intrigues and resolutes, "I'll make 'em friends again". But it is too late and both her friends kill each other in the duel. The point is, she is sincere in loving either her father and her "would have been" husband, Mathias. She does her best to enjoin the two Maltese but her efforts are "frustrated" by her father. Barabas even does not listen to the confession of love, uttered by Abigail, "O father, Don Mathias is my love! " and moves forward to win his goal.
Abigail - A Tragic Character
Having known all the "brave policies" of her "hard-hearted" father through Ithamore, she decides to convert to Christianity so that she might be free from the sins committed by her in her afterlife. Her conversion infuriates her father and he decides to poison her own daughter whom he loved the most [what a pity!]. Her pitiful death after losing her beloved and her sincere help to her father makes her a tragic character. She confesses every policy of her father to Friar Barnardine when she breathes her last but she requests him,
"To work my peace, this I confess to thee
Reveal it not, for then my father dies"
Conclusion
Abigail proves to be the most sincere daughter to her father. She arises the feelings of pity in the hearts of the readers through her tragic death. Her character is an embodiment of genuineness and honesty. Her character reminds us that positivity can exist in the blowing storms of negativity and she is forced to kick the bucket but she successfully retains her good name [throughout the play].
Sources, References and Citations
- https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/jew-malta/abigail
- https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Jew-of-Malta/character-analysis/
- https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Jew-of-Malta/quotes/
- The Jew of Malta - Text by Famous Production
- Lecture(s) of Sir Hassan Akbar
