"'And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.' (Hebrews 11:5-7, NASB) Through faith in God David destroyed Goliath against all odds, Shadrach, Meshach and
Abed-nego were protected in the fiery furnace, Daniel was not eaten by the lions, Gideon was victorious, the sick were healed, the lame walked, the blind could see and the dead was raised.
Each of the play's three acts corresponds roughly to one of the play's principle characters, Abed-nego, Shadrach, and Meshach, in that order.
If we understand that Shadrach's use of language is informed by, or represents, a literal impulse, the attributes of language associated with Abed-nego and Meshach may also be simplified or conceptualized.
With this line in Abed-nego's opening monologue in act one, Carter introduces the theme of justice alongside the theme of language.
Abed-nego's first monologue is a relatively straightforward account of an event, relatively straightforward in relation to his later monologues and to those of the other characters.
At one point, in response to Abed-nego's reading directly from the "Good Book," Danielle says, "Objection.
Abed-nego embodies a movement toward the representation or the words themselves.
We have noted that Abed-nego, Shadrach, and Meshach all have a specious claim to possess justice, each for his own reason.
We see Abed-nego succumb to an Eve complex, and the temptations of a child who is not fertile.