Romola · Chapter
LIX: Pleading explained
Romola confronts Savonarola, pleading for the life of her godfather Bernardo del Nero, who is among five conspirators condemned to death.
What happens
Romola confronts Savonarola, pleading for the life of her godfather Bernardo del Nero, who is among five conspirators condemned to death. She argues that Savonarola's neutrality is a betrayal of his own teachings on mercy and justice, and that his refusal to intercede is a form of hypocrisy. Savonarola defends his position, claiming that the safety of the Republic and the advancement of God's kingdom require severity and that minor respects must be sacrificed for the greater good. Their confrontation escalates into a fundamental disagreement about the nature of justice, mercy, and the path to a divine kingdom, ending with Romola rejecting his vision and leaving in despair.
Themes in this chapter
Political and Religious Corruption
Romola accuses Savonarola of letting political expediency and party loyalty corrupt his religious and moral authority, as he refuses to intercede on behalf of the condemned.
Redemption and Moral Choice
Romola faces a moral choice between her reverence for Savonarola and her duty to her godfather. Savonarola frames his choice as a sacrifice of minor lives for the greater good of God's kingdom.
Duty vs. Personal Desire
Romola's personal desire to save her godfather clashes with what she perceives as her duty to the Republic and to Savonarola's guidance. Savonarola argues that personal affections must yield to the needs of the state.
Characters to notice
- Romola de' Bardi
Confronts Savonarola, passionately pleading for the life of her godfather Bernardo del Nero. Her faith in the friar is shattered as she accuses him of sophistry and abandoning his own principles.
- Girolamo Savonarola
Defends his decision to remain aloof from the political affair of the condemned conspirators, arguing that the safety of the Republic and the cause of God's kingdom require severity. He is visibly shaken by Romola's accusations.
- Bernardo del Nero
Romola's godfather, one of the five condemned men. He is the central subject of Romola's plea, as she argues for his life based on his honesty and the injustice of his condemnation.
- Tito Melema
Mentioned in Romola's thoughts as she reads about the second plot, leading her to believe he has secured his safety through foul means.
Key passages
“I was going to say, father, that this matter is surely of higher moment than many about which I have heard you preach and exhort fervidly.”
Romola argues that the fate of the five prisoners is more important than many other issues Savonarola has passionately preached about.
Romola challenges Savonarola's priorities, suggesting he is ignoring a critical moral issue.
“The cause of my party is the cause of God's kingdom.”
Savonarola equates the success of his political faction with the advancement of God's divine plan.
This statement crystallizes the conflict between Romola's universalist view of God's kingdom and Savonarola's partisan interpretation.
“God's kingdom is something wider—else, let me stand outside it with the beings that I love.”
Romola rejects Savonarola's narrow definition of God's kingdom, saying she would rather be outside it than be separated from those she loves.
Romola's final declaration marks her complete break with Savonarola's vision.