"Our soldiers are always beaten because they are fighting only to save their skins: and the shortest way to save your skin is to run away."
Here, Joan identifies the main problem regarding why the French always seem to lose: it is because their fighting is motivated by the desire to survive individually, not as a nation. The soldiers only care about their own life or the profit they will get. As a result, they do not fight as fiercely as they could, and they will act in their own best interest. Joan knows that in order for the French to be successful, she needs soldiers who will fight fearlessly and sacrifice their lives for a cause they believe. Joan's vision of what true valor looks like foreshadows her own behavior. Even as it becomes clearer that Joan's commitment to fulfilling God's plan might cost her her life, she never wavers. She sees herself as God's soldier, and she will fight for him rather than trying to save herself.
God made them just like us; but He gave them their own country and their own language; and it is not His will that they should come into our country and try to speak our language.
Joan speaks these lines as she reflects on the English and why she wants to drive them out of France. Notably, Joan does not think that the English are evil, nor does she bear them any ill will. However, she believes that God has allotted land to each nation and that people should respect those borders, rather than trying to acquire additional territory. Joan focuses on language as a key way to differentiate between nations, which is probably not historically accurate. At this time, Latin was still the main language for learning and religious practice, while French had been the language spoken at the English court for hundreds of years. For Shaw, as a writer and someone to whom language was very important, the idea of language defining a country's culture and identity would have been much more meaningful.
A miracle, my friend, is an event which creates faith. That is the purpose and nature of miracles. They may seem very wonderful to those who witness them, and very simple to those who perform them.
The Archbishop speaks these lines to Tremouille as the two men discuss whether or not Joan will fall for the trick of being deceived by another man disguised as the Dauphin. The Archbishop cannily suggests that Joan will use research and strategy to find out the correct information, only to pass it off as a miracle in order to strengthen her image as a messenger from God. As a priest, the Archbishop knows better than anyone how people might manipulate appearances to create the impression that a miracle has taken place, and use this effect to maintain power and control. The Archbishop thus shows that he is a deeply pragmatic man who is willing to do what needs to be done in order to maintain power.
I will not dress as a woman. I do not care for the things women care for. They dream of lovers, and of money. I dream of leading a charge and placing big guns.
Joan speaks these lines as she defends her choice to wear men's clothes. She speaks of other women in a somewhat derogatory way, assuming that women only care about men and material possessions. Joan sees herself as a chosen figure who has been given a mission specifically from God. She also expects to be taken seriously by the men she interacts with, and she becomes frustrated when they do not see her as an equal. Joan differentiates herself from other women in the hope that soldiers, priests, and kings will see her as someone who is brave and strategic. She deliberately uses very masculinized language to create a "one of the boys" effect and try to secure their loyalty.
Men cannot serve two masters. If this cant of serving their country once takes hold of them, goodbye to the authority of their feudal lords, and goodbye to the authority of the Church. That is, goodbye to you and me.
Warwick speaks these lines to de Stogumber, his Chaplain. Warwick represents secular power, while de Stogumber represents religious power. As Warwick points out, Joan threatens to disrupt both of these systems of power. Because of her insistence on rallying men towards national identity and loyalty to their country, she risks undermining established systems of power. Warwick doesn't bear Joan any personal ill will: he knows that she is innocent and just trying to do good. However, because of the threat she poses to his power, he is determined to eliminate her.
Do not think you can frighten me by telling me I am alone. France is alone, and God is alone; and what is my loneliness before the loneliness of my country and my God?
Joan speaks these lines to the Dauphin, Archbishop, and various members of the French court. She wants to lead an attack on Paris, and everyone has warned her that if she does so, it is very likely that she will be captured. Moreover, if she is captured, no one will help her. Joan defiantly responds that she does not mind being alone because she will always have God on her side. Joan's fierce loyalty to God and to France means that she is not willing to back down even if she knows she has to go on without any allies. Joan's defiance shows her stubbornness, but also her vulnerability. Joan has been a major force in turning the tide of the war and ensuring Charles could actually be crowned. Nonetheless, no one will stand by her or show her the kind of loyalty she craves.
To shut me from the light of the sky and the sight of the fields and flowers; to chain my feet so that I can never again ride with the soldiers nor climb the hills; to make me breathe foul damp darkness, and keep from me everything that brings me back to the love of God when your wickedness and foolishness tempt me to hate Him; all that is worse than the furnace in the Bible that was heated seven times.
Joan speaks these lines upon hearing that she is going to be sentenced to life in prison. She values and craves freedom, and she sees her connection to God as rooted in her ability to move freely through the world. Joan shows that she values her experience of the earthly world, not just the spiritual one. She cannot be content living in a jail cell, and she fears that this experience would drive her away from God. Especially because of the unusual amount of freedom she has experienced, Joan cannot live a restricted existence.
One gets used to it. Habit is everything. I am accustomed to the fire; it is soon over.
Lemaitre (the Inquisitor) speaks these lines to Cauchon as they wait for Joan's execution. Both priests know that they have sent an innocent young woman to her death. Lemaitre shows a cold cynicism by explaining that people can eventually get used to any sort of atrocity, even burning an innocent person alive. These lines represent Shaw's view of how evil is perpetuated in the world: people depersonalize the experience and stop actually registering its moral content. Lemaitre doesn't take any specific pleasure in suffering, but he also doesn't feel any moral obligation to stop it.
I did a very cruel thing once because I did not know what cruelty was like. I had not seen it, you know. That is the great thing: you must see it. And then you are redeemed and saved.
De Stogumber speaks these lines in the epilogue when he explains the impact of witnessing Joan's execution. Although de Stogumber had been extremely eager for Joan to be put to death, he did not fully register what her suffering would be until he saw it himself. He has been tormented ever since Joan's execution; he has also transformed his life and come to understand what compassion means. De Stogumber highlights the importance of not shrinking or running away from suffering: if he had not seen Joan's execution himself, he never would have realized the evil thing he had participated in.
O God that madest this beautiful earth, when will it be ready to receive Thy saints? How long, O Lord, how long?
Joan speaks this final line of the play when she has been left alone on the stage. Everyone has rejected her plan to come back to Earth and rushed away with hasty excuses. Joan realizes that, even though her reputation has been saved and she has seen a prophecy that she will eventually become a saint, nothing has really changed. People will speak of her admiringly, but they don't actually want to see real change happen in the world. Instead, they are preoccupied with preserving the status quo. Joan wonders wistfully whether people will ever become brave enough to accept new ideas and try to transform the world.
