Characters in Duchess of Malfi - The Cardinal

Overview

- The Cardinal is a high-ranking churchman and brother to Ferdinand and the Duchess

- Webster presents him as:

- Calculating

- Duplicitous (deceitful)

- A symbol of religious corruption

- He embodies hypocrisy within institutions that claim moral authority

Corrupt rise to power

- The Cardinal is believed to have bribed his way into his church position

- This immediately undermines:

- The sanctity of the Church

- The idea that religious authority equates to virtue

- Webster uses this to criticise:

- Institutional corruption

- The moral emptiness of rank and title

Paranoia, surveillance and control

- In the exposition, audiences learn - ironically through city gossip - that the Cardinal is:

- Distrustful

- Paranoid

- He governs through:

- Spies

- Rumour

- This reliance on surveillance reveals:

- Fear of exposure

- Awareness of his own guilt

Treachery and exploitation

- The Cardinal is immediately associated with betrayal:

- Bosola's imprisonment in the galleys follows a murder ordered by the Cardinal

- His refusal to reward Bosola later confirms:

- His cruelty

- His willingness to exploit others and discard them

- He uses people as:

- Tools

- Shields for his reputation

Facade of virtue

- The Cardinal is obsessed with appearances:

- Pretends ignorance of the Duchess's murder

- Avoids characters who might expose him

- Unlike Ferdinand:

- He is restrained and controlled in speech

- This makes him more dangerous

- His 'face-serving' behaviour reinforces:

- His moral cowardice

- His prioritisation of reputation over humanity

Attitudes to honour and bloodline

- He insists the Duchess remain a widow:

- Claims to protect family honour

- His concern with 'royal blood' reveals:

- Snobbery

- Obsession with lineage and appearance

- Webster exposes this as:

- Hollow

- Self-serving

Sexual Hypocrisy: Julia

- The Cardinal's affair with Julia, a married woman, reveals:

- Sexual hypocrisy

- Abuse of power

- His treatment of her is:

- Exploitative

- Emotionally detached

- Julia is valued only while she serves his interests

Blasphemy and ultimate sin

- Webster explicitly condemns the Cardinal through:

- The poisoned Bible

- Despite being a 'prince' of the church:

- He poisons a sacred text

- Forces Julia to swear on it, killing her

- This act represents:

- Blasphemy

- Total moral corruption

- Religion becomes a weapon, not a moral guide

Motivation: reputation above all

- The Cardinal's crimes are motivated by:

- Fear of exposure

- Desire to suppress earlier sins

- His actions are driven by:

- Self-preservation

- Not ideology or belief

Punishment and downfall

- Webster punishes the Cardinal through double betrayal:

- Murdered by both Bosola and Ferdinand

- His momentary conscience:

- Comes too late

- Is unconvincing

- He shows:

- Little remorse for the Duchess's murder

- His repentance coincides with his death, reinforcing:

- The futility of delayed morality

The Cardinal's function in the play

- He represents:

- Institutional hypocrisy

- Corruption within religion

- He contrasts with:

- The Duchess's moral integrity

- Ferdinand's emotional brutality

- His downfall reinforces Webster's message:

- Moral authority without compassion is meaningless

- Religious power can be the most dangerous of all

Exam tip

Link the Cardinal to:

- Morality and sin

- Power and class

- Religious hypocrisy

- Reputation vs virtue

- Corruption of institutions