Judith by Howard Barker

This play was WEIRD! But through all of the quirkiness I was able to narrow the scope to a Major Dramatic Question of "will Judith regain power?" This is a simple MDQ, yet a very relevant as control is a very dominant issue in this script. With her initial intentions of murdering Holofernes, the question of will she actually kill him is obvious as stated in the prompt. There are many different moments in the script that support the MDQ of "will Judith regain power". One example is Holofernes' beheading, followed by the act of necrophilia. When Judith begins to fall in love with her target she begins to reveal a softer, more subtle side. Her power begins to diminish as her heart becomes involved. This is only altered by the deed of murdering Holofernes. By killing him and participating in intercourse with his corpse, Judith is reclaim her power and obtaining control of her emotions. Also, the entire idea of a servant is a position of power and control. The back and forth shift of power between Judith and the servant shows Judith's struggle of power and control not only with said servant, but within herself. This adds weight to the question "will Judith regain power" as we as reader's (for a while) aren't quite sure. The beheading of Holofernes sparks the rebirth of Judith's dominance. She uses her servant as a stepping stone to top. The play ends with Judith having gained control for her country Israel and for herself over her servant.