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Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral, verse drama by T.S. Eliot, produced and published in 1935.
In A.D. 1170, Archbishop Thomas Becket returns to Canterbury from his seven‐year exile in France. A women's chorus represents the helpless attitude of the common people toward the schism between church and state, while the ecclesiastical party is represented by Becket's priests, and the royal party by the officers of Henry II. The archbishop, having established relations with the Pope and the king of France, is determined to bring the argument to a crisis, even though he realizes that his life is at stake. Four Tempters show the inner conflict involved in his decision: his youthful love of pleasure, his later ambition for power, the demands of the feudal barons, and the desire for martyrdom. Rejecting all four, he is certain that he must give his life “to the Law of God above the Law of Man,” and on Christmas morning delivers a sermon defending this position. Four days later the king's knights arrive, insolent and self‐assured, to murder him by royal command, and he refuses to attempt escape. After they stab him to death, the knights address the audience with a pompous, foolish defense of their deed. They withdraw, leaving the stage to the priests, who thank God for having “given us another Saint in Canterbury,” and the chorus, which supplicates divine mercy. |
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James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-MurderintheCathedral.html James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-MurderintheCathedral.html |
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Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral (1935). T. S. Eliot's 1935 drama about the martyrdom of Thomas à Becket was first presented in America that same year at Yale then the Federal Theatre Project offered it to New York in 1936. Since then it has remained popular with collegiate and other groups, who often mount it in suitable churches rather than in regular theatres.
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Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-MurderintheCathedral.html Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-MurderintheCathedral.html |
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Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral, a verse drama by T. S. Eliot, written for performance at the Canterbury Festival, June 1935, and published the same year. Drawing on Greek tragedy, Christian liturgy, and biblical imagery, it is based on the martyrdom of St Thomas Becket, and contains some of Eliot's most memorable and haunting dramatic verse.
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Cite this article
MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-MurderintheCathedral.html MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-MurderintheCathedral.html |
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Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral (Pizzetti). See Assassinio nella cattedrale.
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MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-MurderintheCathedral.html MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "Murder in the Cathedral." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-MurderintheCathedral.html |
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