Representations of Muslims and Christians in Early Modern English Literature in the Renegado - Essay Example

? Representations of Muslims and Christians in early modern English literature in The Renegado and A Christian Turned Turk IntroductionThe “renegade” English literature is positioned as one of the most interesting concerns for the modern readers, because the theme of blurring different limits, ethnicities and historical contexts is relevant to the modern globalized world. Therefore, the Early English “renegade” Literature is interesting for the contemporaries. A modern process of globalization has deep roots in the historical processes of religious transformations and different aspects of turning. In accordance with the historical criticism, there was an option for Christians either to choose Islam instead of Christianity or to confront it. There are different reflections of cultural interaction between Christian and Muslim representations of the Renaissance English literature. In the canonical Renaissance English drama the cultural and political pressures the category of renegade are focused on racial discourses, nation, and empire. On the examples of the famous plays from the Early English literature, it is claimed that the option of “turn” and the concept of “turn” was an integrative element of social, political and economical life of the seventeenth century in the Western and the Eastern worlds. The “renegade” plays In his early English tragicomedy The Renegado (1630) Philip Massinger depicted the processes of religious turn of the Christian European heroine, Paulina to being “Turk”. Her religion and her chastity were not acknowledged and she did not want to suffer anymore. Women in the society of those times had to “turn, and turn; and yet go on/ And turn again” (IV.i.253-54)1. In reality, Paulina positions herself as a renegade in order to redeem her brother and his newly converted betrothed, the Turkish princess Donusa. There are relations between Christian and Muslim females in this play2. The role of a gender was presented in the early English drama in a special way. For males “turning Turk” meant an option of being enrolled into Ottoman lands as sailors, diplomats, merchants. For females it was possible to reach those lands as wives of Englishmen or as missionaries. Messinger introduces the concept of “turning apostata” in his drama and in such a way we can see that English women were engaged in the processes of Orientalism. In order to become Muslims and turn into piracy, Oriental religion did not mean much. In the play The Christian becomes Turk the central scene is conversion to Islam. The ritual of circumcision was awful for the Christians and this Islamic tradition was viewed as a barbarian ritual. Very often turning Turk was confused with becoming eunuch. In both plays, the Christians in their turning into Turks are afraid of castration, Ward and Gazet from Renegado are afraid of being castrated. “In scripts for the stage and in other Accounts, the facts about Islamic or Ottoman culture and its power are often imbedded within or distorted by demonizing fantasies”3. In the comic nature of the processes of turning Turk, we can see that the oriental world is criticized and represented in the demonized air. In the play A Christian Turned Turk it is claimed that if Islam “were so damnable / As others make it” (7.38–39), then God would have destroyed it long ago rather than allow it to prosper4. Daborne develops his ideas about Christian turning into oriental religions on the basis of the works of that period.  In accordance with Barker's narrative Ward is positioned as a renegade. Ward for the readers is an attractive antihero. On the other hand, Ward is described from the positive perspective by other pirates: “[T]hese last three years, quoth he, [Ward] is grown the most absolute, the most resolute, and the most undauntedest man in fight, that ever any heart did accompany at sea”5. The period described in the play exerted a great influence on British trade. Tunis was the setting for both plays A Christian Turned Turk and Massinger's The Renegado. English sailors were blamed for their turning Turk and they were thought to commit a crime against Christianity, but piracy was not considered as evil. Turkish ruling over English piracy was not positive all the time. Renegade pirates in the beginning of the seventeenth century were dissatisfied by their apostasy and turned against their Muslim masters. Therefore, the authors of both plays write about aspirations of Muslim masters and potential conflicts between English pirates. The Barbary pirates experienced huge losses in the seventeenth century. On the one hand trade relations between English and Muslim world can be interpreted from a positive perspective. Christians were not promoting a peaceable economy, but rather were challenging the Muslim world. The Renegado is considered to be rather successful play and it was intended to promote relations and transfer of borders of the Muslim and Christian worlds. Moreover, there is a need to consider these plays not only in the context of political or economical relations, but also in the light of intimate relations among people. In The Renegado Vitelli's priestly mentor, Francisco, warns tells Vitelli about the sexual aggression of Muslim women: “… these Turkish dames (Like English mastiffs that increase their fierceness By being chained up), from the restraint of freedom, If lust once fire their blood from a fair object, Will run a course the fiends themselves would shake at To enjoy their wanton ends (1.3.8–13)”. A woman’s will of women in the Ottoman Empire was shown on the example of relations of Vitelli and the Ottoman Princess Danusa. These relations lead to a conversion of Donusa into Christian. The author of the play opposes military relations and intimate relations between Vitelli and Donusa. The Christian knight wins the Ottoman Princess and even makes her converted into his religion. The world of Christianity was more tolerant, but for Islamic world turning into Christianity was one of the most serious crimes and sins. Asembeg and Mustapha oppose to the relationship of Donusa and the Christian Vitelli. The Princess is accused of the most serious crime. Donusa is positioned as a powerful and independent Muslim woman. In such a way the author represents the ability of the Oriental woman to stand above all the hardships. On the contrary, the image of Paulina is quite opposite. She was sold to Asemberg. Another interesting character, which raises numerous discussions, is Grimaldi. Those, who wanted to rejoin Christianity, were strictly criticized. The play ends with the escape of all Christians from Asembeg, who suffers from tortures in the hands of Ottomans. Moreover, we should perceive such kind of plays as representations of controversial relations between the Western and the Eastern worlds. The relevance of this play can be considered in its devotion to the group of “others”, who are Turks, Christians, renegades and others. In such a way, the writers of the play represent the Mediterranean world as the one, exceeding the limits and the borders of ethnicity. There is a kind of social turmoil within the limits of a newly created Mediterranean world. In accordance with Turner (1995): “The realm of the Turks was exciting and alluring: it was a place where huge profits could be made from a single successful voyage, but it was also replete with the risks, both imaginary and real, of conversion and contamination” 6. There was a need for English trade world to set up new contacts with their foreign partners, but it was rather difficult for different social categories and ethnicities to co-exist in the world having various limits. Nevertheless, very often Englishmen experienced numerous hardships, when they were approaching a strange world of the East. Consequently, let us consider the inner and outer challenges of the appearing diversified world of the seventeenth century. There are challenging and complex relations shown on the example of Christian and Muslim relations. In the plays A Christian Turned Turk and The Renegado it is clearly seen that the authors wanted to threat to an autonomous English Protestant identity. There is a changing context of relations between the Christian and the Muslim worlds. The Islamic culture is undermined in these plays. On the other hand, we can talk about the blurred limits of the national identities among different nations. Conclusion It is shown in the plays that Englishmen, who travelled to Islamic lands, were searching for profits and trade expansion. Two main characters are positioned as severe tyrants. Daborne's Governor of Tunis and Massinger's Asembeg are shown in the light of the monstrous powerful authority. Moreover, we could see the characters struggle with their inner problems and challenges. There is a strong fight against human lust, will and appetite. In case the heroes of the plays managed to deal with their sins and secret wishes, they experienced redemption. In case when they could not fight against these sins, they experienced death or damnation. The most impressive and interesting play is The Renegado, because there are shown intrinsic interpersonal relations, as well as a challenging context of the Western and the Eastern worlds. Two impressive female characters show to the readers the options of female development in the seventeenth century in the context of Muslim and Christian religion. References Adang, Camilla, co-edited with Sabine Schmidtke. Contacts and Controversies between Muslims, Jews and Christians in the Ottoman Empire and Pre-Modern Iran. Stanbuler Texte und Studien 21Wurzburg: Ergon (2010). http://telaviv.academia.edu/CamillaAdang/Books/408112/Contacts_and_Controversies_between_Muslims_Jews_and_Christians_in_the_Ottoman_Empire_and_Pre-Modern_Iran  Matar, N.I. "The Renegade in English Seventeenth-Century Imagination." Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 33, no. 3 (1993): 489+. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000226899. Turner, Robert Y. "Giving and Taking in Massinger's Tragicomedies." Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 35, no. 2 (1995): 361+. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000328803. Vitkus, Daniel J., ed. Three Turk Plays from Early Modern England: Selimus, a Christian Turned Turk, and the Renegado. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=100739348. Read More