"'Tis set down so in heaven, but not in earth": Reconsidering Political Theology in Shakespeare's "Measure for Measure"

How to govern a state in a Christian way is a question central to Shakespeare's Measure for Measure. In the play. Duke Vincentio is often thought to demonstrate the importance of tempering justice with mercy, in contrast with the rigid legalism of his deputy Angelo. This essay argues instead th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Christianity & literature 2012-03, Vol.61 (2), p.217-239
Main Author: Goossen, Jonathan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
British & Irish literature
Christianity
Churches
Criminal law
Death
Drama
Dramatists
English literature
Guilty verdicts
Judgment
Justice
Law
Literary characters
Morality
Politics
Shakespeare plays
Shakespeare, William (1564-1616)
Spirituality
Swords
Theater
Theology
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Summary:How to govern a state in a Christian way is a question central to Shakespeare's Measure for Measure. In the play. Duke Vincentio is often thought to demonstrate the importance of tempering justice with mercy, in contrast with the rigid legalism of his deputy Angelo. This essay argues instead that like Angelo and the Puritans of Shakespeare's day, the Duke's governance conflates spiritual with temporal law and personal sin with public crime. Only the novice Isabella perceives both the similarity and consequences of their thinking and rejects it in favor of a more traditional political theology that refuses to make Christ's spiritual teachings into legal requirements.
ISSN:0148-3331
2056-5666
DOI:10.1177/014833311206100205