the scene has no more dramatic quality than lies in its actual
substance, which, although pretty enough, is entirely commonplace.
Not till the middle of the third act (out of four) is the obstacle
revealed, and we see that the mighty maze was not without a plan.
Here, then, the drama begins, after two acts and a half of
preparation, during which we were vouchsafed no inkling of what was
preparing. It is capital drama when we come to it, really human,
really tragic. The arbitrary prohibitions of the Mosaic law have no
religious or moral force either for David or for Hannah. They feel
it to be their right, almost their duty, to cast off their shackles.