Venice Preserv’d by Thomas Otway is a tragic play that deals with the conflict between love, loyalty, friendship, and political corruption. The story takes place in Venice, a city ruled by powerful senators who often misuse their authority. The play mainly follows the lives of Jaffier, Belvidera, and Pierre, whose relationships become entangled with a dangerous political conspiracy. Jaffier is a noble young man who has recently fallen into misfortune. He secretly marries Belvidera, the daughter of a proud Senator named Priuli. Because Priuli disapproves of this marriage, he turns Jaffier out of his house and refuses to support him or his daughter. As a result, Jaffier becomes poor, unhappy, and desperate, although Belvidera remains loving and faithful to him. At this moment Jaffier’s close friend Pierre, a brave soldier, becomes angry with the corrupt Venetian Senate. Pierre’s beloved woman, Aquilina, is openly kept by a rich and crooked senator named Antonio. This insults Pierre’s honour and fills him with a desire to take revenge on the ruling politicians. He therefore joins a group of conspirators who secretly plan to overthrow the government of Venice. Pierre introduces these conspirators to Jaffier and convinces him to join their cause. Jaffier agrees because he is frustrated by the injustices he has suffered from Belvidera’s father and the Senate. However, the conspirators force Jaffier to give Belvidera as a hostage to prove his loyalty, which breaks Jaffier’s heart. Belvidera pleads with him not to trust the conspirators and not to give her away, but Jaffier feels trapped between loyalty to his friend and love for his wife. Belvidera soon discovers that the conspirators secretly plan to kill Jaffier after the rebellion. Shocked, she manages to escape and warns Jaffier. Torn between his duty to his friend and the safety of his wife, Jaffier decides to betray the conspiracy to the Senate. He only agrees to reveal the plot if the Senate promises to spare Pierre and the other rebels. The Senate agrees, but once the conspirators are arrested, the Senators go back on their promise and order them to be executed. Jaffier becomes filled with guilt and sorrow for betraying his friend. Pierre feels deeply hurt and refuses to forgive him. In the final tragic scene, Pierre is taken to be executed. Jaffier cannot bear to see his friend die in disgrace. In a painful act of love and repentance, Jaffier stabs Pierre to give him a quicker, more honourable death. Immediately afterwards, full of grief and regret, Jaffier kills himself. Belvidera, heartbroken by the deaths of her husband and Pierre, loses her sanity. She dies in madness, calling out for Jaffier, unable to bear the overwhelming tragedy. The play ends with Venice witnessing the destruction caused by political corruption, personal betrayal, and tragic misunderstandings. Otway shows how love is destroyed by political power, and how even noble intentions can end in disaster when people are driven by anger, pride, and mistrust.
Venice Preserv’d — Summary 2
Venice Preserv’d is a tragic story about love, friendship, betrayal, and the danger of getting involved with the wrong people. It takes place in the city of Venice, which is ruled by a group of powerful senators.
1. A Secret Marriage
A young man named Jaffeir secretly marries Belvidera, the daughter of a rich and important senator named Priuli. Priuli is very angry about this and refuses to help them, even when Jaffeir later becomes poor. Belvidera still loves Jaffeir and stays loyal to him, no matter what.
2. A Dangerous Friendship
Jaffeir has a friend named Pierre, a brave soldier who is angry at the government because they treat him unfairly. Pierre also discovers that his girlfriend, Aquilina, has been seeing another senator, Antonio, for money. Pierre feels disrespected and wants revenge, so he joins a secret group planning to attack the government.
3. Jaffeir Joins the Conspiracy
Seeing Jaffeir sad and desperate, Pierre invites him to join the secret group of conspirators. They don’t trust Jaffeir, so he must prove his loyalty by giving them Belvidera as a hostage. Jaffeir loves Belvidera but agrees because he thinks he has no other choice.
4. Belvidera Is in Danger
When Belvidera is taken as a hostage, one of the conspirators, Renault, tries to harm her. She escapes and warns Jaffeir. She also tells him that killing innocent people—including her father—is wrong, even if the government is unfair. Belvidera convinces Jaffeir to tell the Senate about the plot so no one gets hurt.
5. A Broken Promise
Jaffeir tells the Senate about the plan and asks that the conspirators be forgiven. But the Senate lies and breaks its promise. They decide to torture and kill the conspirators anyway. Pierre feels hurt because he trusted Jaffeir. He even slaps Jaffeir to show his anger.
6. The Sad Ending
When Pierre is about to be executed in a dishonorable way (by hanging), he begs Jaffeir to let him die like a soldier instead. Jaffeir sadly agrees and stabs Pierre so he doesn’t suffer. Then Jaffeir feels so guilty and heartbroken that he kills himself too.
7. Belvidera’s Tragic Fate
Belvidera goes mad with grief when she learns what happened. She sees visions, cries for Jaffeir, and eventually dies from sorrow. Her father, Priuli, realizes too late how much he loved his daughter and is left alone to mourn.
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