Sex and Death in Judea (Salome - Oscar Wilde)

Member Name: wyrdsister

Product:	Salome - Oscar Wilde
Date:	19/01/02 (1034 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: tantalising characters, Oscar

Disadvantages: Bosey

Oscar Wilde’s best known plays, such as Lady Windermere’s Fan (1890) and The Importance of being Earnest (1895) were remarkably humorous and witty. In contrast, Salomé is a serious drama about obsessive passion based on the biblical story of John the Baptist. Originally written in French, and later translated by Lord Alfred Douglas, Salomé was first produced in 1894 with the celebrated actor Sarah Bernhardt.
This play in one act is set on a moonlit terrace in the Palace of King Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Judea. Herod took power from his elder brother and married his beautiful wife Herodias, mother of Salomé. As the years passed, Herodias’ beauty faded and the young princess began to appear to all like a living jewel, priceless and captivatingly beautiful. All men adore her and no man can resist her innocent charm, least of all Herod, whose obsession with Salomé has instigated the bitterness and mutual hatred in his marriage with Herodias. But Herod has another big problem, for years he has had in captivity the Jew’s prophet Jokanaan (John the Baptist) and he has become fearful of him and of the God he professes to serve.

The play opens as Narraboth, a young Syrian captain is gazing at the moon, thinking about the young woman he is enamoured with: Salomé. He watches her from afar as Herod is giving a banquet that night. Two Soldiers, bored from their guarding duties, talk about the Jews and their strange invisible God, they wonder about Jokanaan, the holy man in the old cistern that has served as a prison for years and how no-one may see him by order of the Tetrarch, they tell of the old king that was killed and of the executioner who was not afraid because the Tetrarch had given him the Death Ring. The night is fair and the moon is cold. Nothing ever happens on the terrace. Nothing has until tonight. The princess Salomé rises from the banquet and comes to see the moon. She is troubled by the attention of her mother&#
8217;s husband. She knows how he looks at her and despises him for it. But her mind is set on a new path as the voice of the prophet is heard. Salomé is intrigued, she knows she is not allowed to see him, but she is determined to have her ways. She asks Narraboth, knowing that his love for her is all she needs to get what she wants and she wants to see the Prophet Jokanaan. Troubled and moved by her words to him, the Young Syrian exceeds to her demand and orders the Prophet to be brought before the princess.
Jokanaan recoils in horror at the sight of Salomé, he refuses to speak to her or even look at her. For the first time in her life, she is repulsive to a man. Salomé is intrigued, she wants to understand why he does not love her as all other men do but above all, she wants to have him. The more she tries to seduce him, the more he denies her, the sweeter the words she speaks, the harsher his condemnations. Salomé is intent on kissing him but Jokanaan refuses and returns to his prison. Devastated by her actions, the young Syrian kills himself. Unperturbed by this sacrifice, Salomé’s is now obsessed by the Baptist’s rejection of her in favour of a God he cannot see and she will stop at nothing to bend him to her will.

As Herod enters, followed by the court, a feeling of unease falls: he is looking for Salomé. Herodias is outraged by his comportment and their tumultuous relationship is exposed to the audience as the banquet moves to the terrace. Herodias is soon plagued by Jokanaan’s accusations and insults and she begs Herod to silence him. But Herod can’t or won’t, he is weak and afraid: he feels that Jokanaan’s God may in return punish him. But his desire to see Salomé seems greater than his fear of the Prophet’s words and his lustful eyes remain on her still: he is obsessed with her youth and beauty. He wants her. He wants her to dance for him, if she does, she can have whatever she wants, even the throne o
f her mother.

Salomé most definitely sits a world apart from Wilde’s usual satirical comedies. It is obviously darker and more sensual than his other theatrical works. The fact that he wrote it at the request of France’s most celebrated and eccentric actress may have had some influence. Salomé comes at a time where interest in biblical themes had known a revival and the play is reminiscent of the art nouveau style so popular in Fin de Siecle France. Due to the nature of the play and to its sexual undertones, Salomé was refused a licence in England and was finally published in France in 1893. Even after its publication, it proved difficult to find a venue prepared to mount it. It is even said that Sarah Bernhardt had to buy her own theatre in order to produce it.
The translation by Bosey is however somewhat mediocre. It feels that he rewrote parts of Wilde’s work in places, sometimes changing the entire meaning of a character’s repartee. His translation seems to embellish or flourish the language and makes the narration rather pompous. I have tried to find a more up to date translation without success. Either I have been unlucky in my search or a new translation is needed. But if the play is well produced and the director is not afraid of exploring the sensuality and sexual tensions evident in this play, Salomé can still be intriguing and enjoyable to watch. And I would recommend it this play be seen rather than read, as it is one of those works that require actors and a stage to be fully appreciated.

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