The Jew of Malta

by

Christopher Marlowe

Katherine Character Analysis

Katherine is Mathias’s mother, and she serves to personify vengeance and anti-Semitic hate. When Katherine catches Mathias talking to Barabas, she forbids her son to converse with a Jew, and even though Mathias admits he is in love with Abigail, he is hesitant to act on his feelings for fear his mother won’t approve. When Mathias is killed in the duel with Lodowick, Katherine, like Ferneze, swears revenge, which suggests that revenge and betrayal often go hand in hand.
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Katherine Character Timeline in The Jew of Malta

The timeline below shows where the character Katherine appears in The Jew of Malta. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 2, Scene 3
God and Machiavellianism Theme Icon
Money and Greed Theme Icon
Betrayal and Revenge  Theme Icon
...about the “diamond,” Barabas says. As Lodowick exits, Mathias enters the market with his mother, Katherine. Mathias wonders what business Lodowick has with Barabas and worries that it might be about... (full context)
God and Machiavellianism Theme Icon
Religious Hypocrisy Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism Theme Icon
Money and Greed Theme Icon
Betrayal and Revenge  Theme Icon
Katherine and Mathias inspect the slaves for sale, and Mathias pretends not to know Barabas. Then,... (full context)
God and Machiavellianism Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism Theme Icon
Betrayal and Revenge  Theme Icon
...Abigail will marry Mathias, but he says that Lodowick has gone to tell Mathias’s mother, Katherine, that Mathias is in love with Abigail. “She’ll die with grief,” Mathias says and exits. (full context)
Act 3, Scene 2
Betrayal and Revenge  Theme Icon
Ferneze and Katherine rush in, along with a group of citizens, and find Lodowick and Mathias dead. Ferneze... (full context)
Act 5, Scene 1
God and Machiavellianism Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism Theme Icon
Betrayal and Revenge  Theme Icon
Katherine enters and asks Ferneze if he has found their sons’ murder. Yes, Ferneze says, it... (full context)