Caravaggio, the celebrated Italian Renaissance painter, created “David With The Head of Goliath” inspired by the biblical story of “David and Goliath.” In Caravaggio’s painting, David is depicted as a younger man, half clothed, with a look of both sadness and sympathy on his face while he holds Goliath’s severed head by the hair. David carries a sword that follows his eyes toward the removed head. Interestingly, Caravaggio does not paint Goliath’s face as described in the Bible, instead Goliath’s face is Caravaggio’s own. William Shakespeare’s Macbeth was first performed in 1611 at the Globe Theatre. Shakespeare’s Macbeth follows the story of a back-stabbing kingsman, living through a prophecy foretold to him by a group of three witches. Over the course of Macbeth’s story, he becomes the Thane of Cawdor, murders his king in secret, is then proclaimed King, witnesses the death of his wife, and is ultimately beheaded by his enemy, Macduff. Both “David With The Head of Goliath” and Macbeth draw on similar themes of immortality and self-hatred.
Toward the end of the play where Macbeth has lost all of his original and sane self, he talks about his powers and strengths, mainly those given to him by the three witches. The most significant of them coming from a vision, “Laugh to scorn The power of man, for none of woman born Shall harm Macbeth,” (4, 1, 79). Macbeth takes this statement to heart, believing that no man or woman can kill him. Goliath, on the other hand, does not believe in supernatural powers given to him, but in his own strength and abilities. Macbeth and Goliath have an attitude from which the reader senses that they think themselves superior to all, and even immortal. Both characters are killed by those who do not have such powers and by those who overcome such. For instance, Macbeth is killed by the very thing he thought himself immune to, a man, Macduff. Macduff, in truth, was not “of woman born,” (4, 1, 79). but was the product of an early C-Section. However, David was able to overcome Goliath’s physical strength through his humbleness and skill with a slingshot.
By replacing Goliath’s face with his own, Caravaggio shows self-hatred, a theme in both Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Caravaggio’s “David With The Head Of Goliath.” In Caravaggio’s painting, David’s gaze leads the viewer to the head of Goliath. Goliath’s own face, however, is not in the painting. Caravaggio instead paints his own face where Goliath’s face should be. In the painting Caravaggio’s face has been drained of blood and his eyes are lifeless. In the Bible, Goliath is seen as the villain of the story. Therefore, Caravaggio’s self-naming as Goliath shows the viewer that Caravaggio has feelings of self-hatred. This theme of self-hatred is further explored in Macbeth through the main character’s wife, Lady Macbeth. Guilt and ultimately self-hatred entered Lady Macbeth’s life after her involvement in the murder of her king and the eventual crowning of her husband as king. Lady Macbeth’s guilt caused her insanity. Shakespeare writes, “Here’s the smell of the blood still. All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand,” (5, 1, 39). Not long after Lady Macbeth speaks this line, she commits suicide, throwing her body from a tower. She hated herself for what she had done to the king and what she had forced her husband to become. Ultimately, self-hatred manifests itself in both Caravaggio’s painting and Shakespeare’s play.
Both Shakespeare and Caravaggio create works of art that explore two different, powerful themes. These themes being immortality and self-hatred. Shakespeare draws on these themes through Macbeth’s experiences and Lady Macbeth’s experiences. Caravaggio, on the other hand, explains these themes through his imagery and the biblical story, “David and Goliath.” Whether in Caravaggio’s “David With The Head Of Goliath” or Shakespeare’s Macbeth themes of immortality and self-loathing are represented and explored.
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