GENIUS
Sign Up
Thou hast committed—
Fornication: but that was in another country,
And besides, the wench is dead.

The Jew of Malta. T.S. Eliot – Portrait of a Lady
Genius Annotation 4 Contributors ?

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

The epigraph that Eliot chose is an exchange between Friar Barnardine and Barabas in Act 4 of Christopher Marlowe’s play The Jew of Malta:

FRIAR BARNARDINE. Thou hast committed–

BARABAS. Fornication: but that was in another country; And besides, the wench is dead.

This cynical quotation implies that there are limits to sin. At the end of this poem, the speaker considers leaving the country, knowing that the woman will die soon and he can escape recriminations. It might also imply the characters have had a sexual relationship.

Unlike the ‘Lady’ of this poem, Marlowe’s play refers to the woman as a ‘wench’, while ‘fornication’ suggests mechanical, loveless sex. Eliot’s poem hints at possible sexual transgression, though sexual frustration is more likely.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

report abuse
Upvote +5 Downvote
Copy Embed