The Tragedy of Mariam

In a song-like stanza, Annanell joyfully expresses that he has news that will please Pheroras—news of life rather than death. Pheroras guesses this means that Herod has been spared execution, and Salome asks if this is so.

Annanell acknowledges that he has come to tell them Herod is alive and well; Caesar embraced Herod and granted him even greater power. Herod is returning to Jerusalem within the hour. The priest wanted to share the good news with Herod’s brother and sister before engaging in religious sacrifices. With this, Annanell departs, leaving Salome and Pheroras alone on stage.

Salome says she cannot think of anything that would increase her joy more than this news, but Pheroras finds it painful. Salome perceives that her life is now secure, while Pheroras understands that he and his new wife may lose theirs.

Salome declares that Constabarus will be executed, freeing her to be with Silleus. Mourning, Pheroras laments that he will lose Graphina; even if his life is spared, he must marry his infant niece. Cognizant of her brother’s plight, Salome tries to calm him by saying that she will intercede on his behalf with Herod on one condition. Pheroras says he will do whatever Salome asks. She replies that the task she has for him is not difficult; she wants him to tell Herod that Constabarus hid the sons of Babus, and that because of this, Pheroras has drawn up a divorce decree to set Salome free of her husband. Pheroras tells her to consider it done; he will relate this story to Herod, even though he is no eloquent speaker.

Alone on the stage, Salome reflects on the plots she is hatching. She recognizes that her brother’s intercession will result in the quick death of Constabarus. She doesn’t intend for him to die alone, however; she plans to see Mariam executed as well. Her intention is to make Herod jealous and—if that does not suffice—afraid of Mariam. She intends to charge Mariam with attempting to poison Herod.

Salome’s underlying desire is to pay Mariam back for her insults. She remarks that she has been waiting patiently for this opportunity. First, she says, she will support Pheroras so that he will stay determined to assist her. Her plan is to wait silently until someone else speaks out against Mariam, and then to condemn her vociferously.

Salome detects the presence of someone else on stage and recognizes Silleus’s servant. She asks him why he looks so downcast. He replies it is because of the sword of Constabarus and asks Salome to visit Silleus. She curses her husband for wounding Silleus and asks the servant to tell her more. The servant replies that Silleus will survive his injuries and make her Queen of Arabia. Salome tells the servant to promise her heart to Silleus. She says she cannot visit him at the moment because of Herod’s imminent return, but promises to see him before night.

Mariam appears on stage with Herod’s counselor Sohemus, noticing that he has a different, altered look. When she asks the cause of his strange mood, he relates that he has news that is bad for him but perhaps good for her: Herod is alive. She asks if he is hiding out somewhere, and Sohemus replies that he has received honor from Caesar and is returning presently to Jerusalem.

Stunned, Mariam says she could bear the news of many disasters, including the destruction of her family or Jerusalem or even her own death. The one thing she cannot bear is news that Herod is back. Sohemus seeks to console her by saying Herod’s love for her will be rekindled. She responds that she will not reconcile and will not serve as his wife again. The counselor says she must take back that pledge, to which she tells Sohemus not to waste his breath trying to change her mind. Sohemus asks Mariam to forgive him, but he must. If he were to accept her decision, he would be betraying her; she is undoing herself, he warns, and needs to present a friendly visage to Herod to win back his heart.

Mariam describes the irony of her circumstances: she mourned Herod in the morning believing him dead and now mourns in the evening because he is alive. Knowing he is alive, her abhorrence for Herod is undeniable and overwhelms even her fear. Mariam agrees that she could charm her husband and win his heart to her. Indeed, she knows she could convince Herod to cast aside even his own family at her behest. However, if she wishes to preserve her honor—"to have all nations celebrate [her] birth” (3.3.61)—she must avoid plotting and manipulating like those who would gladly destroy her. In the final consideration, her innocence is all she has, and she proclaims it is enough.

Mariam departs, leaving Sohemus alone on the stage. He expresses the desire to curb her tongue: “Unbridled speech is Mariam’s worst disgrace” (3.3.67). Sohemus fears that Herod may kill him because he did not follow through on his charge to kill Mariam when he believed Herod dead. He says he spared Mariam not just because of her worthiness, but also to preserve her family’s claim upon the throne of Judea. He is therefore willing to die if it means Mariam’s outcome will be better than his own, though he finds this extremely unlikely. He closes his soliloquy by extolling Mariam’s virtues: her purity, her observance of the law, and the worthiness of her royal bearing. He loves her, but keeps that feeling secret. He wants his epitaph to be his service of the queen.

The act closes with six stanzas from the Chorus. They reflect on Mariam’s purity and goodness and note these won’t save her from the current dilemma she faces. She would do better to be a silent cypher and totally free from Herod’s suspicions. They suggest that her desire to ensure her public reputation contradicts her wifely responsibilities—specifically, her duty to submit to her husband. Musing on these duties further, they wonder if a woman totally belongs to a man once she is married, or if she is still free to share her mind with people other than her husband. Although Mariam’s thoughts aren’t improper in any traditional sense (e.g., unchaste), she is nevertheless “impure” in that she values the public’s judgment of her more than her husband’s—an attitude that also places her in grave danger.