Bernard Shaw's Remarkable Religion: A Faith That Fits the Facts

Major Barbara 137
Moral responsibility, the theme raised and evaded in the first act, is the
core of Barbara’s morality and the expression of her religion. Her enemy is
its evasion. In Barbara’s religion, salvation is achieved not through works,
not faith, and certainly not pain or atonement, but by responsibility to
one’s own soul. Anything that erects a wall between a man’s conscience
and his consciousness is her foe.
The wall closes like an iron gate when her father signs his check. Barbara
treats her father and Bill Walker alike; as she sees it, they “are the
same sort of sinner, and theres the same salvation ready for them” both
(3: 89). Curiously, Undershaft invites the comparison. He first offers twopence
to round out the meager collection from their meeting, then proposes
to add ninety-nine pounds to the one Bill bids for the purchase of his
soul. He appears to be testing his daughter, testing her devotion to the
religion of responsibility. She does not waver: “You cant buy your salvation
here for twopence: you must work it out” (3: 123). Jenny Hill, an
orthodox Salvationist, argues for taking the money. Barbara’s refusal
shows precisely where she differs from the Army. She understands, where
Jenny does not, that the acceptance of conscience money, however desperately
needed, defeats the work of saving souls—at least as Barbara conceives
that work. Undershaft’s action highlights the difference and reveals
the strategic weakness in Barbara’s position: she cannot do without conscience
money because that is all the money available. Bill is not convinced
that consciences cannot be bought here; he contends that he is not allowed
to buy off his soul only because he cannot come up with the price.
All this leads to the scene of hushed awe in which Undershaft signs his
check. The charged pause is broken by Bill’s “Wot prawce selvytion nah?”
Barbara’s silence, maintained after her initial brief expression of dismay at
the news of Bodger’s offer, is over as well. Her father’s check confirmed
Bill’s cynicism and justified his contempt. His conscience has been bribed
by proxy. She must protest now, as keenly as she feels the Army’s need for
the money, because her vision of the Salvation Army is on the edge of
annihilation. She cannot demand moral responsibility only from those
who cannot afford the price of irresponsibility. Even if she could accept
such inconsistency and discrimination, she knows that as long as the Bill
Walkers of the world understand that consciences are for sale, her sword
must turn to straw. After a valiant last stand, she accepts the inevitability
of defeat. Like a soldier yielding his sword, she submits her badge of Salvation
to her father. It is unconditional surrender.
Undershaft has helped to illuminate Barbara, but he himself remains a