This essay examines the role of faith in George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan, focusing on how Joan of Arc's unwavering belief in God shapes every dimension of her character and story. Drawing on the text of the play and criticism by Harold Bloom and Louis Crompton, the paper argues that Joan's faith is the central motivating force in the drama — inspiring her to lead an army, convincing others to follow her, enabling miracles, and sustaining her through adversity and eventual martyrdom. The essay also considers Shaw's own motivations for writing the play in the aftermath of World War I, connecting his broader social concerns to Joan's spiritual convictions.
Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw dramatizes the story of Joan of Arc, the French female soldier who heard voices from God commanding her to help the French Dauphin — ultimately King Charles VII — drive the English out of France. Captured by the English, she is accused of witchcraft and sorcery and burned at the stake. She was only 19 years old at the time of her death, and the Catholic Church canonized her as a saint in 1920, which inspired Shaw to write the play in 1923. Joan's faith in her religion and in God is the major force that guides her life and her ultimate fate. Thus, her faith is the most motivational force in her life.
Faith, especially Joan's faith in God, is at the core of this dramatic play. It inspires her to lead an army, but more than that, it makes her believe anything is possible. At one point she says about going to war with the English, "I do not think it can be very difficult if God is on your side, and you are willing to put your life in His hand" (Shaw). Her faith is constant, and it guides every aspect of her life — from her decision to lead an army to her ultimate death at the hands of the English. Some people call her an "angel," while others see her as a miracle come true. All of this relates to her faith and her ability to lead others and to convince them of her belief in God.
Joan's faith inspires her and leads her to fight for the Dauphin, but it also inspires others to follow her lead. Literary critic Harold Bloom writes, "Faith, which appears to the court to have performed a miracle in guiding Joan to the Dauphin, has in all truth performed a greater miracle still in transforming supine men into potential fighters" (Bloom 42). Shaw establishes this quite early in the play when Joan manages to see Captain Robert de Baudricourt and then convinces him to arm her and give her a horse so that she can aid the Dauphin. Her faith in the voices she hears — and her certainty that they come directly from God — is never shaken, and so her faith creates the entire situation of the play and feeds her ability to convince others.
Bloom continues, "Joan's genius and sainthood tend to fuse, informed most dynamically by the power of faith — her own faith in her cause, and her countrymen's faith in her divine inspiration" (Bloom 80). Her faith is so strong that others can feel it, and this is a true test of faith: she has enough strength and determination to lead others and convince them of her belief. The nature of this faith is strong and easy to perceive, which is why she can lead others. It also fills her with a sense of right and wrong and allows her to recognize evil in the world. Her faith is, in this sense, educational — it gives her a strong sense of herself and her abilities. She is a simple peasant girl, yet her faith allows her to rise and become a great and inspirational leader, underlying and strengthening her own qualities in the process.
The entire play is built on this foundation of faith. Bloom notes, "The certainty and resolution of Joan's faith were central for Shaw. As a result, he could not really render the moving sense of humility expressed in the phrase Jeanne used so frequently in the trial: 'I wait on Our Lord'" (Bloom 133). As the play progresses, more people begin to see Joan as a "miracle," and in Shaw's definition of a miracle, faith is intertwined. He writes, "A miracle, my friend, is an event which creates faith. That is the purpose and nature of miracles" (Shaw).
Another dimension of Joan's faith, then, is her ability to perform miracles. She can convince others of her belief, but her faith also creates miracles: the Captain's hens stop laying eggs and then begin again as soon as he outfits her in armor and sends her off with his men; the wind changes once she arrives at Orléans. One must have faith to believe in miracles, and so Joan spreads her faith to others when she creates them and they choose to believe. The most tragic dimension of this faith is that even it is not strong enough to save her from martyrdom at the end of the play.
"Joan's unshaken conviction under pressure"
"Shaw's post-WWI reasons for the play"
Joan of Arc's faith is central to this play about her life and was also the foundation of her actions. The nature of her faith is one of strong conviction and the ability to lead and inspire others, and her faith is the most motivational part of her life. She holds on to it until the very end — a final indication of her character, strength, and unwavering belief in God and his goodness.
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