Saint Joan

Joan is the protagonist of Saint Joan, and she falls into the narrative role of a tragic hero. George Bernard Shaw describes her in the stage directions as “an ablebodied country girl of 17 or 18, respectably dressed in red, with an uncommon face” (74). Joan speaks very directly and confidently, often using nicknames to refer to men who would be considered her social superiors. She does so not to be rude or to offend these men, but rather because she sees herself as their equal in the eyes of God. When Robert de Baudricourt accuses her of impudence for referring to Bertrand de Poulengey as “Polly,” she protests, “His friends call him so, squire: I did not know he had any other name” (76). Joan implies that she considers Poulengey a friend, rather than a superior who outranks her, and thus she uses his nickname. Joan prefers to dress in male clothing and to wear her hair cut short. She does not see this as a transgressive act of rebellion, but rather a pragmatic adjustment that better suits her role as a soldier. When Joan arrives at the French court and the Duchess laughs at her bobbed hair, the stage directions indicate that she is “not at all embarrassed” when she says, “I wear it like this because I am a soldier” (97).