37 pages • 1 hour read
Gotthold LessingNathan the Wise
Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1779A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Fire
Fire holds two symbolic meanings in Nathan the Wise, which point to its dualistic significance: Fire has both the power to destroy and the power to purify and lead to a new beginning. Certainly, fire is at times described as something fearful and destructive. Remarking on the house fire that nearly killed Recha just before the start of the play, Recha states, “[I]t is a dreadful death, to burn” (25). The most outstanding example of this is when the Patriarch essentially condemns Nathan to apostasy, or death by burning at the stake, as a punishment for raising Recha as a Jew despite her Christian birth. The Templar tells the Patriarch about this situation in hypothetical terms, not even calling out Nathan by name, but the Patriarch’s harsh refrain, “[T]he Jew shall burn” (100), is still gratuitous and recalls Recha’s earlier remark.
The opening premise of the play is that Recha nearly perished in a house fire and was only saved at the last minute, miraculously, by the Templar. “From the smoke and flame,” the play states, the Templar “suddenly appeared. In his strong arms / He held her safe” (23). Frightening as the idea of a house fire is, the fire does not lead to destruction. Instead, the play inverts the symbol of fire, so that it becomes a force that creates a new beginning. The fire is the occasion for Recha’s and the Templar’s meeting, setting in motion a series of events that eventually leads to the revelation about the siblings. In a symbolic sense, then, the house fire purifies by leading to a clearing away of the deceit and mystery that obscured the relationship between Recha, the Templar, Nathan, and Saladin. The play ends by celebrating the spirit of a new beginning, in sharp contrast to the frightening, destructive fire that set its action into motion.
The Portrait of Assad
There are several links between the present time of the play’s action and the past time when the Templar’s and Recha’s parents met and Nathan adopted her. These links include Nathan’s memories, the Lay Brother’s recollections, the book owned by Recha’s father that the Lay Brother has kept over the years, and the portrait of Assad. While each element helps to form a bridge between the past and present, and ultimately lead to revelations about the true histories of the Templar, Recha, and Assad, the portrait is distinct because it provides tangible, visual proof of a connection between the Templar and Assad.
Even before the action of the play starts, Saladin spares the Templar’s life because he resembles his brother Assad. However, he does not think much about the Templar until a conversation with Nathan reminds him of the knight. This sets his memories into motion. When Sittah tells him she has retrieved the portrait they have of Assad, Saladin joyfully exclaims, “Ah! my brother! that is him!” (102). However, he is not content until he has visual proof and says he must “compare / This picture with the young Templar, and see / How far my own imagination has / deceived me” (102). When Saladin sees the Templar again, he describes him as “[t]he very image of my Assad,” as though he were a living portrait (103). The significance of this comparison is two-fold. First, it presents another clue to the audience that suggests a real link between Assad and the Templar. In a symbolic sense, the comparison of the portrait to the Templar implies the reawakening of the past and the uncovering of transformative knowledge.
The Chess Game
Though its appearance in Nathan the Wise is brief, being referenced in just a couple of scenes at the start of Act II, the chess game between Saladin and Sittah holds symbolic significance for the entire play. Chess is a game of competitions that dramatizes the idea of having the power to influence the movements of others, and to have secret motives. Thus, it not only symbolizes the contentious setting of the time of the Crusades, but the interpersonal secrets that are at the heart of the play and are eventually revealed.
The position of the game between the siblings is notable; the beginning of Act II shows the first movement away from the focus on Recha and the mystery of the Templar toward a broader context. The sultan Saladin holds political power in Jerusalem, but the implications of the chess game show that his power is somewhat tenuous. It is Sittah’s voice that starts Act II, telling Saladin, “[W]ake up! What's happened to your game?” implying that his attention has wavered (45). As Act II later reveals, the same can be said of the sultanate; Saladin has mismanaged the finances of the sultanate, making it vulnerable and necessitating inquiries about a loan. Sittah also points out to Saladin that “Your knight is unprotected,” causing Saladin to admit, “I see I'm in a trap” (45). This foreshadows Saladin’s eventual realization that is in a precarious position and that the wisdom of Nathan, whom he had originally sought to deceive into loaning him money, is to be greatly respected.
Saladin’s defeat in the game against Sittah echoes his inability to entrap Nathan. In both cases, Saladin ends up humbled but wiser for it. Thus, the chess game symbolizes the complex interplay of power, wealth, and wisdom within the sultanate that emerges elsewhere in the action of the play.
