Abstract

Many art historians have debated the identity of the couple in Rembrandt's the Jewish Bride (1667). The painting is most often identified as an Old Testament theme. This is due to the seventeenth-century Dutch practice of using biblical "types" as ideal models for the structuring of the new republic founded on the Israelite ideology of nation building. Three of these biblical female types that have been separately associated with the female figure in the Jewish Bride are, Rebecca, Ruth, and Esther. As these biblical women represented different notions of power through their respective narratives, this thesis argues that Rembrandt deliberately left the identity of the female figure ambiguous so that all three types could be referenced by viewers. Consequently, these powerful female prototypes provided significant role models for the women of the Dutch Republic as they strived to carve out similarly strong positions for themselves in this new society.

Degree

MA

College and Department

Fine Arts and Communications; Visual Arts

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2012-06-07

Document Type

Thesis

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd5282

Keywords

Rembrandt, Jewish Bride, Rebecca, Ruth, Esther, nation building, female power

Language

English

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