| Public human dissection functioned as a form of Renaissance entertainment that invited an audience of anatomists, surgeons, and the general public to witness the revealing of the body's secrets, or inner traits. The Renaissance public believed that the body's organs could show signs of behavioral traits, such as treachery and sorrow, and that melancholy-black bile-could contribute to unrestrained passions and uncontrollable behavior. The popularity of anatomical performance and its discoveries is evidenced in the Renaissance play, The Revenger's Tragedy. The central character, Vindice, metaphorically dissects the corrupt court, revealing the melancholy that drives the characters to murder, lust, adultery, incest, and revenge. This metaphorical dissection permits the audience and readers to better understand the dangers of melancholy and develop a historical and cultural understanding of Renaissance dissection and the sources of melancholy that drive the characters to commit acts that go against Judeo-Christian doctrine. |
