Religion Essay -- Character Analysis, Daja, Nathan

William Hazlitt, a British source during the early 1800s once said, Prejudice is the child of ignorance. During the eighteenth-century, the time stop consonant in which Gotthold Ephraim Lessing wrote his land, Nathan the Wise, there was much religious prejudice displayed throughout Europe, specific every(prenominal)y against the Jewish and Muslim populations. For instance, Ronald Schechter nones, eighteenth-century writers typic solelyy represent Jews as greedy m unityylenders, and portrayed Muslims as violent despots and servants of the despots (4). M all people perceived Christianity as the scarcely true religion however, Lessing challenges these notions of Christian superiority throughout his play. One focussing he does this is by not portraying the Christian characters as any better or worsened than the characters of different religions in fact, the Patriarch is characterized as a despot, similar to how eighteenth-century writers portrayed Muslims. Furthermore, he tries t o illustrate that not one religion be it Christianity, Islam, or Judaism is greater than the others, but rather all religions are ultimately equal in the eyes of God. From factors such as characters portrayal, the plays audience is able to grasp Lessings boilers suit view of Christianity, which is also his main message throughoutChristians do not have a monopoly on religious truths (Schechter 10). In Lessings play there are four Christian characters and two of the four, Daja and the Patriarch, are portrayed negatively. Daja, a Christian servant of Nathan and his stepdaughter Recha, is characterized as one of those fanatics who imagine they discern the universal and only true path to God (111). Although she tries to be a devout Christian, she betrays Nathan by revealing his secret regarding ... ...sides (118). Although this is only a stand for direction and not an actual line from the play, it nonetheless has a major impact on the play. The fact that all characters, representing each of the three religions, cope together in the end exemplifies what the author is trying to portray throughout. As Ronald Schechter notes in the introduction, The play does not end with the various characters tolerating each other. It ends with them include each other (20). Having the play conclude this way conveys Lessings thoughts on religion. Lessing does not think of Christianity as any better or worse than Judaism or Islam, rather practitioners of different religions can please God as (Schechter 16). And until that higher, experienced judge comes down to rule which religion is better than the others, all religions should be thought as equal in the eyes of God.