Symbols- The Historical Artifacts of Identity

Symbols - The Historical Artifacts of Identity

Abstract - Symbols are conscious communication and language of the subconscious minds. They represent our multidimensional universe. Symbols surround us in numerous forms and form a complex part of our daily lives. They represent a nation's culture, heritage, and history and are part of collective human consciousness. Every culture has its own set of symbols, which are associated with different practices and perceptions. Thus, as a representation, a symbol's meaning is neither instinctive nor automatic. The paper discusses two powerful symbols namely Om and Tai-Chi and concludes how symbols have hidden meanings and doubtlessly they are historical artifacts one attires to identify with one’s faith.

Keywords: #Symbols, #Conscious, #Communication, #Language, #Artifacts, #Identity,

#Religion, #Culture

Characterization- 'A Tale Of Two Cities'

 
 
 

Characterization in A Tale Of Two Cities

Reference Material

A Tale of Two Cities, a novel by Charles Dickens, was published both serially and in book form in 1859. The story is set in the late 18th century against the background of the French Revolution. The complex plot involves Sydney Carton’s sacrifice of his own life on behalf of his friends Charles Darnay and Lucie Manette.
 

 The book is perhaps best known for its opening lines, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” and for Carton’s last speech, in which he says of his replacing Darnay in a prison cell, “It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”

Characters are crucial to all books, novels, articles, and other pieces of literature. Their characteristics, actions, personalities, and looks allow an author to create any story he or she can dream of with the use of unique characters.

Dickens is one of the greatest creators of characters in English fiction. A mere glance of at the list of persons who figure in any of his novels is enough to remind us of the author’s amazing fertility in the invention. He has portrayed a whole variety of characters such as David Copperfield, Pip, Trotwood, and Sam Weller. There is no shortage of real and unique characters in his works.

A Tale Of Two Cities affords ample evidence of Dickens’ capacity for the character –portrayal. The range of characters in A Tale Of Two Cities is wide and has deep and penetrating studies. Some of the figures like Monsieur Defarge and Madame Defarge are memorable. Dicken's purpose in the case of this novel was to allow the characters to reveal themselves through incidents and through their deeds and actions rather than through dialogues.

Charles Dickens creates a powerful story with the use of his characters in A Tale of Two Cities. Some of his characters are more important than others, but none of them go unnoticed and none of them are unnecessary. Dickens refrains from using complex characters, therefore making them easy to understand and relate to. The development of each of his characters is clear and evident. The theme is also important to a story; without theme, there would be no moral to a story. Alongside the development of the characters, Charles Dickens creates a very powerful theme in this novel. The theme in A Tale of Two Cities is the need for sacrifice. Dickens uses three specific characters to present this theme. A different story is told through each character and Dickens uses them in three unique ways. Charles Dickens develops the characters of Doctor Manette, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton to display the theme of the need for sacrifice.

 A Tale of Two Cities is, in many ways, Doctor Manette's story. The Doctor's release from the Bastille begins the novel, and the mystery of his imprisonment creates tension throughout the book. The reading of his letter ultimately condemns Darnay to death, forcing Carton to sacrifice his life. A close reading of the book reveals the Doctor to be one of its few complex characters. Throughout the course of the novel, he is seen as an aspiring young doctor, a prisoner who craves revenge and who descends into madness, and a man who fights to regain his mind, his family, and his profession. His life after prison is a continual struggle against the shadows of madness and despair that are his legacy from the Bastille.

The love he has for his daughter helps him to overcome the darkness in his life, even giving him the strength to welcome the son of his enemy as a son-in-law. When his status as a Bastille prisoner becomes an asset at the end of the book, he regains the strength and confidence that characterized him before his imprisonment. When his bitter, angry letter surfaces, however, the past undermines his stability.

Through the Doctor, Dickens makes a statement regarding the nature of forgiveness and revenge. The Doctor's ability to forgive brings him happiness in his daughter's marriage and children. However, his past demand for revenge has the power to destroy his life and the lives of his family. Additionally, whereas revenge leads the Doctor to a state of dementia, forgiveness raises him to a level of intellectual vigor and emotional happiness. In showing these contrasting aspects of Doctor Manette's character, Dickens emphasizes the concepts of the destructive power of revenge and the healing power of forgiveness.

The second important character in the story is Lucie. Dickens describes Lucie as being beautiful physically and spiritually, and she possesses a gift for bringing out the best qualities of those around her. She is one of the lesser-developed characters in the novel, but she is "the golden thread" that binds many of the characters' lives together.

 
A reader can best judge Lucie by her actions and influences on other characters rather than by her dialogue, which tends to be melodramatic and full of stock sentimentality. Dickens portrays her as a compassionate, virtuous woman who inspires great love and loyalty in the other characters. For example, Darnay, Carton, and Stryver all court her and envision their futures being made brighter with her as their wife. Additionally, both Mr. Lorry and Miss Pross, who are without families, love Lucie as if she were their daughter and do everything they can to keep her safe. Although Lucie is a flat character, she is an important one. She represents unconditional love and compassion, and Dickens uses her to demonstrate how powerful these qualities can be, even in the face of violence and hatred.

Another important and major character in the novel is Charles Darney. Although Darnay rejects the Evrémonde name and inheritance and moves to England, he cannot escape his family history. Trying to make compensation to an unknown woman whose family was wiped out by his father and uncle, he is arrested for treason in England; trying to save a jailed family servant, he is arrested in revolutionary France, where he is tried twice. His sense of responsibility motivates him to right wrongs, but he is otherwise a passive character who lets events direct his fate rather than trying to control it himself. Forces outside of his control inevitably foil even his attempts to assert himself and atone for his family's transgressions, placing him in increasingly dangerous situations from which he must be rescued.

Darnay represents justice and duty, qualities inherited from his mother. He (and his mother) also stands for the members of the French aristocracy who were aware of the damage their families were inflicting, but who could do nothing to prevent it. Darnay's willingness to atone for his family's wrongs and to work for a living demonstrate that eventually, something good can come out of evil, a point that Dickens emphasizes at the end of the novel.

Carton, Darnay's double and alter-ego has wasted his life on alcohol and apathy. He makes his intelligence obvious through his ability to analyze cases for Stryver. He makes clear that he had the same opportunities for success as Stryver, but for some reason chose not to take them. Besides some vague references to his student days and the disclosure that his parents died when he was young, Carton's past remains a mystery to the reader. Consequently, the reader can only guess what caused him to become so degenerated. The only noble part of his life is his love for Lucie and his affection for the rest of her family. His love for her is strong enough to induce him to give his life for that of her husband.

Carton takes on a mythical aspect in sacrificing himself to save his friends. He represents the sacrificial hero who is ritually slaughtered of his own free will so that society might renew itself, a prospect he envisions before he dies. Through his death, he redeems his sins and is reborn in the afterlife and through the life of his namesake. Sydney Carton is one of the most dynamic and poignant characters in the novels. Readers, critics, and Dickens fans offer a multitude of words on the subject of Sydney Carton. Some view him as the most heroic of heroes. Others see him as a miserable drunkard, welcoming the guillotine as a way to escape from an unhappy existence. He is a complex character, evolving as the novel progresses. Upon studying Dickens’ novel, Carton’s heroism becomes indisputably clear. Dickens’ establishment of Carton as a flawed man merely elevates Carton as a hero, demonstrating how an ordinary, struggling human being can become extraordinary. Dickens gradually details Carton’s character growth as Carton’s love for Lucie Manette spurs him to acts of greatness.

Childless and merciless, Madame Defarge is the antithesis of Lucie Manette. Both women possess the ability to inspire others, but while Lucie creates and nurtures life, Madame Defarge destroys it. Because her entire family perished when she was a young girl, Madame Defarge wants revenge, not merely on the family that caused the evil but on the entire class from which it came. What makes her such a threatening figure is her stubborn patience, which bides its time until it can strike. In this, she is like some natural force that, when the opportunity is right, becomes ferocious and unrelenting. Her secret management of Darnay's re-arrest is cunning but shows immense cruelty as well. In seeking to avenge her family, she has acquired the same ruthlessness as the men who destroyed her family. Her knitting represents both her patience and her urge to get revenge because she knits the names of her intended victims. Symbolically, Madame Defarge stands for the intensity and bloodthirst behind the Revolution. Her relentless drive for vengeance makes her strong, but it eventually destroys her because she is unable to comprehend the powerful love that gives Carton the strength to die for Darnay, and Miss Pross the courage to defeat her.

Her husband Defarge was Doctor Alexandre Manette's servant. When the Doctor was newly released from prison, Defarge was not above exploiting his insanity as a spectacle to further the revolutionary cause. As a revolutionary leader, Defarge organizes the Jacquerie and helps lead the mob in storming the Bastille. He bases his desire for a revolution more upon a desire for positive change than the blood thirst of his wife, as demonstrated when he resists denouncing Doctor Manette, Lucie, and young Lucie simply because of their relationship to Darnay. His wife interprets his scruples as weakness, giving the reader the impression that before long revolutionaries such as Jacques Three will turn on Defarge and send him to the guillotine himself. Defarge represents the more rational aspect of the Revolution. He is not blinded by class hatred and retains his conscience and sense of fairness. His ability to empathize with those people Madame Defarge views as enemies, however, will probably result in his death, showing how out of control the Revolution became as paranoia and violence destroyed its positive forces.

Well, in nearly all novels by Dickens, characters take the main stage and generally are just as important as the plot because of their complexity. As such, A Tale of Two Cities offers far more to the reader than the title suggests, particularly because of the enormous complexity of the characters—both major and minor.

“A Tale of Two Cities” by Dickens is also a series of tales about dual identities and the ways in which one character serves as a foil to another. In Books I and II of “Tale of Two Cities”, Dickens establishes the setting and the dynamic relationships among the characters, all of whom are struggling, to greater and lesser degrees, with their positions regarding the Revolution and as a result, this creates a struggle with their identities. While some characters in the Dickens novel “A Tale of Two Cities”, especially Darnay, clearly have more acute conflicts to resolve and far more to lose than the seemingly minor characters, it is by examining the marginal characters that the reader can understand the dynamic conflicts of the period more fully. Two of the novel’s marginal characters, John Barsad, the duplicitous spy, and Gaspard, the quiet but determined peasant who takes justice into his own hands, represent two faces of the Revolution and help to emphasize the conflicts and conditions of the major characters.
When John Barsad is introduced in the novel, it is immediately clear that he is not only self-serving and hypocritical, he is a man who is not to be trusted. While he is not a popular character, he is, nonetheless an excellent candidate for a character analysis as Barsad is complex and multilayered. He testifies falsely against Darnay for spying, when he himself is a spy which shows him to be not only untrustworthy but willing to be a hypocrite when his own interests are at stake. Barsad will eventually play a significant role in other aspects of Darnay’s affairs as well. Although Barsad represents himself before the court as a loyal patriot, a skilled barrister exposes Barsad’s seedier side as a gambler and debtor. The narrator of “A Tale of Two Cities” by Dickens describes Barsad as “a hired spy and traitor, an unblushing trafficker in blood, and one of the greatest scoundrels upon the earth since accursed Judas–which he certainly did look rather like…" (Dickens 72).

This description is apt, and it foreshadows the effects that Barsad will have on the other characters. While he is a minor character in the larger scheme of the novel, his sphere of influence is rather extensive, and his actions have a decisive impact on the trajectory of the plot and upon the decisions of the other characters. When he visits the Defarge’s wine shop, for instance, Barsad knowingly drops a tidbit of information that he knows will set a chain of events into motion. He reveals that Lucie is to be married to Darnay. This is news that puts the DeFarges into conflict because they care for Lucie and her father, but not for Darnay. This information shapes Madame DaFarge’s future revolutionary activities.

While Gaspard is a different sort of character altogether. Whereas Barsad is obnoxious and grandstanding, trying to seem like someone more respectable than he is, Gaspard is quiet and unassuming. Nonetheless, Gaspard holds as least as much power and influence as Barsad exercises, for he takes justice into his own hands and kills the Marquis for having run over his child and then insulting him with the compensation of a coin. While the reader of A Tale of Two Cities is never privy to the thought process that leads to Gaspard’s decision to ride on the undercarriage and stab the Marquis in his sleep, it is perhaps easy enough for the reader to empathize with this marginal character, for he could be any common man who has been wronged by a haughty and careless aristocrat. Gaspard’s actions are a mirror of revolutionary thought and feeling, and it is through Gaspard that we can understand the sentiments that provoked uprisings against the traditional social structure. Gaspard not only represents but embodies fully, the suffering and rage of his class. Rather than accepting his position of powerlessness, however, he finds a way to seize personal agency and act upon it. In doing so, he clearly affects the life—or rather, the death—of the Marquis, but his action also influences Darnay’s position and the circumstances which will eventually envelop him later in the novel. Beyond affecting Darnay, though, Gaspard’s actions serve as the spark for the Revolution itself. It is the tipping point for some characters; those who might have felt lukewarm about the Revolution beforehand, are incensed by Gaspard’s sentence and execution and are thereby compelled to change their opinions.

Aside from these cases, the literary canon of the novel is full of examples of seemingly minor men and women who become heroes and highly worthy of character analysis, hardly-noticed characters who turn into villains, and people of no reputation who shape the entire course of a novel’s events. This is part of what makes the story Dickens is telling so interesting—even though the events themselves are worthy of note, the characters who are the subjects of great interest and character analysis and their level of complexity make A Tale of Two Cities what it is.

Beyond offering the reader a mere narration of the events leading up to the Revolution, Dickens creates suspense, tension, and the opportunity for opinions and actions to be transformed by uplifting the influence of characters worthy of intense character analysis in “A Tale of Two Cities” by Dickens who would otherwise be marginal to the plot. John Barsad and Gaspard are two men who are quite different from one another, and who also differ in their motives and means of expressing their power and influence. Nonetheless, in several relatively brief scenes, both men shape the outcome of the novel by acting upon their beliefs and passions decisively and without apology. As a result, the lives of the major characters in “A Tale of Two Cities” by Dickens and the decisions that they are able and choose to make are transformed.

Interpretation - Murder in the Cathedral

                                              Interpretation -  Murder in the Cathedral

Murder in the Cathedral was written by Eliot for a special occasion the Canterbury festival in June 1935. Basically, the plot is concerned with the death, and martyrdom of Thomas Becket. It can easily be called the first successful modern religious play.

Though essentially religious and theological in the subject, the play is perfectly adapted to a form nearest to that of the Aeschylean tragedy. The play proves that a religious theme need not deter it from becoming a great drama.

Basically, the play deals not so much with the murder of the Archbishop as with the significance of martyrdom. The play is about the spiritual state of a martyr facing death; the spiritual education of the poor women of Canterbury who are witnesses to this sacrifice, and the willful opposition of secular to religious power. The central theme of the play Murder in the Cathedral, therefore, is martyrdom: martyrdom for the right reason and its capacity to fructify the life of the common man. As D.E. Jones remarks, the play is "not just a dramatization of the death of Thomas Becket. It is a deep-searching study of the significance of martyrdom. There is no attempt at naturalism or the creation of illusion. The historical detail is severely subordinated to the pattern or design of martyrdom which gives the play its shape as well as its meaning." 

Temptation Theme

      Closely related to the central theme of martyrdom is that of temptation and it has obvious religious significance. Significantly enough the temptation which is most difficult to resist is that which emanates within, from the root of the subconscious. The first three temptations that assail Thomas are easily overcome for he is more or less beyond what they offer. The fourth tempter reveals a temptation to which Thomas is in danger of succumbing. As soon as Thomas becomes aware of it, it ceases to be a temptation and becomes "the instrument of purgatorial suffering". Out of this suffering comes the desperate questions and appeal of Thomas, leading to the cry: "Can I neither act nor suffer without perdition?" The fourth tempter replies "action is suffering and suffering action (paradox). After which the Chorus, the priests, and the tempters, in alternation, present a vision of horror: The Chorus finally chants: "Destroy yourself and we are destroyed" Thomas now knows the true meaning of martyrdom. The last temptation was the greatest reason - "to do the right deed for the wrong reason." But he is now free of it. Thus Thomas is ready to face martyrdom for the right reason, having overcome the temptation that could have led him to damnation.
 
The Character of Thomas

      Thomas's character undergoes a perceptible evolution in the course of the play. Eliot succeeds in impressing the reader that this change is both natural and inevitable. As Francis Fergusson says, Becket can be seen as an archetypal figure, the religious martyr, wrestling with an archetypal problem, the subtle temptations of the religious conscience. The truth of character is gained not by a full portrayal of Thomas in all his rich personality, but, as David Clerk remarks, by the precision and sensitivity which delineates the mental struggles of any great and religious man in this archetypal situation.
 

Classical in Treatment

The material has been carefully selected, pruned, and ordered so that there is full concentration on the central theme. As has been mentioned before, historical and political elements have been relegated to the background and the personal conflict between King Henry II and Thomas has not been dealt with directly. The emphasis is on martyrdom, and to this end, Eliot opens his play at a comparatively late stage in the life of Becket, at a stage when he is very near his martyrdom. Necessary information about earlier events is provided through the comments of the Chorus and the priests. Everything superfluous is done away with and the result is classical "simplicity, symmetry and regularity of outline." The concentration on the central theme achieves the brevity and effectiveness of a classical tragedy.
 
The Chorus

 An important and obvious Greek element in the play is Eliot's use of Chorus. Made up of the ordinary poor women of Canterbury, the Chorus provides information, comments on the characters, and the action from the viewpoint of common humanity, and also creates an atmosphere. Eliot has restored the Chorus of Greek tragedy after centuries, "to mediate between the action and the audience; to intensify the action by projecting its emotional consequences. As a result, the audience sees them doubly, by seeing its effect on other people".

The Chorus expresses, in the music and imagery of the verse, the suffering which results from Thomas's peril, suffering similar to his, yet on a different level of awareness. The Chorus also reveals to Thomas the "right reason" for his martyrdom though here again, it does so without truly comprehending anything itself. Their appeal: "Save yourself that we may be saved/Destroy yourself and we are destroyed". Apparently helps Thomas to see the Will of God (as against his own ambitious or suicidal will) in his move towards martyrdom. Eliot has given the Chorus a new significance in the light of Christian dispensation. It represents the great mass of individuals Christ came to save "We acknowledge ourselves as a type of the common men". Some of the greatest plays have given to the Chorus most beautiful poetry. As Helen Gardner remarks, the fluctuations of the Chorus are the real measure of Thomas's spiritual conquests.
 
Ritual Element

The play can be approached through a comparison with ritual elements as found in ancient drama. Fergusson considers the basic plot structure to derive from the ritual form of ancient tragedy. The ritual motif endows the play with a kind of secondary pattern - the pattern of myth which reinforces the theological pattern.
 
Agon and Epiphany

 The first part can be said to correspond to the agon, the contest, or the struggle. The main characters are the Chorus of women, three priests, four tempters, and Thomas. The issue is whether Thomas will suffer martyrdom and, if so, how. It is clearly set forth in the scene between Thomas and the tempters, while the priests worry about the physical security of the Church, and the women have dreadful premonitions of violation - "a more metaphysical horror."

Overcoming the first three tempters, and faced with the fourth, Thomas nearly despairs. Ultimately, however, Becket sees his way, clearly. This concludes Part I. The Interlude can be compared to another element of ancient drama, the epiphany. In this case, it sets forth the idea of martyrdom. It corresponds to the epiphany following the Agon, from the point of view of dramatic form. The subject of the Interlude is also another demonstration of the basic idea in the play.
 
Spectacle

The element of spectacle dominates Part II of the play. This is connected with an earlier scene. Part II is, from the point of view of Thomas's drama, merely the apparent result of his agon (contest or struggle) with the tempters. He now suffers what he had foreseen at the end of Part I.

There are various spectacular effects in this part. There is the procession of the Priests with their banners commemorating three Saints' days. The four knights (corresponding as a group to the tempters of Part I) arrive and demand Thomas's surrender to the King and then they kill him while the Chorus laments and the Dies Irae is sung off stage. After the murder, the knights rationalize the deed in a style that denotes common sense and logic.

Part I is addressed to the. understanding; Part II is rhythmic, visual, exciting, and musical and thus contrasts with Part I. Part externalizes an internal conflict and in Part II the conflict itself is external.
 
Universality through the Use of Myth

The essentially religious theme has been given a universal appeal and interest through the Greek and Christian myth that is provided us an under pattern. The seasonal myth and its parallel with the Christian story of Easter is used (the passion of a god, his death and rebirth, by which the yearly cycle of the disappearance of the seed into the ground and its re-emergence as new life in the spring is assured).

Eliot sees a parallel to the martyrdom of Becket in the death of Oedipus and to some extent, the death of Christ. Sophocles Oedipus has a similar attitude towards suffering as Eliot's Becket, Both overcome temptations. Both die gloriously and each one's death brings benefit to the people, though on different planes.

An analogy for Becket's martyrdom can also be found in the death and crucifixion of Christ bringing redemption to mankind. The texture of the play is enriched by this parallelism and Eliot has been able to show that martyrdom is a universal phenomenon, as essential in the ancient past as in the Middle Ages and, by implication, also in modern times. The knights' apologia is addressed in 20th-century idiom and language, directly to the modern audience. Even though the play has a religious and historical subject, their speech serves to impart a secular interest to the play and brings out the contemporary relevance of martyrdom.
 
Action and Suffering

 The play is coherent, illustrating the antithesis of action and suffering, or ignorance and awareness; an antithesis which sometimes becomes an ironical equation, "between action, suffering and knowledge-ignorance". All the parts are instances of the action suffering, knowing-unknowing formula and it is the germinal idea of the play.
 
More than Reason Can Grasp

 Reason by itself is shown to be inadequate in grasping spiritual truth. Reason cannot grasp the truth of the human situation which rests upon "revealed truth" which can only be seen in the paradoxical formulas of theology "at, once reasoned and beyond reason." Mere intellect and logic would reduce martyrdom to "suicide while of unsound mind". Its significance can only be perceived by something beyond mere reason.
 
Verification

 The strength of the play, as many critics have pointed out, lies n its versification, language, diction, and imagery. The verse has a certain flexibility and variety. Eliot has developed a style suitable for each kind of scene. The quarrels between Thomas and the Knights, being on a superficial level, are in rhymed doggerel. A more subtle four-stress verse is used for the tempters who bring out the complicated developments of Becket's inner struggle. The Chorus, to whom the greatest poetry in the play is given, speaks in a variety of forms, suited to a particular mood and situation, from the simple three stress lines to very complex pieces for their appeals and praise.

 Rhetorical devices like alliteration, balance, and antithesis impart intensity to the verse which makes it very effective. Sean Lucy says "It is the power of the dramatic verse that gives the play its unique quality of unity and intensity. The language is the verse, which is the atmosphere, which is the meaning".
 
Demerits

  No literary work can be completely free of certain demerits. The fault found in this play is the shadowy nature of most of its characters-they are symbolic and not of flesh and blood. Helen Gardner remarks that Thomas Becket is hardly tempted and that there is no time for marked inner development as the play opens very near the climax. Furthermore, there is very little action. These drawbacks can, however, be overruled in the face of the general greatness of the play.
 
Conclusion

 Murder in the Cathedral shows a path to poetic drama. The play, in spite of its perfections, should be considered not "as the drama to end all dramas but as one example of the art in our confused times". It should be regarded as "employing only one of many possible strategies for making modern poetic drama".

Murder in the Cathedral – Background of the Play

 

Murder in the Cathedral – Background of the Play

                                          (by  T.S Eliot - first performed in 1935)

‘The theatre as well as the church is enriched by this poetic play of grave beauty and momentous decision’ — New York Times

 

 One of the most notorious episodes in medieval English history took place at Canterbury Cathedral on 29 December 1170. During evening vespers, Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury and previous friend of King Henry II, was murdered by four of the king’s knights, William de Tracy, Reginald Fitzurse, Hugh de Morville and Richard Brito. They are said to have been provoked to action by Henry’s annoyed words, ‘What miserable drones and traitors have I nurtured and promoted in my household who let their lord be treated with such shameful contempt by a low-born clerk!’ 

 Becket's martyrdom was the subject of T. S. Eliot’s verse drama Murder in the Cathedral, first performed on 15 June 1935 in the Chapter House of Canterbury Cathedral before it moved to a run at the Mercury Theatre in London. Eliot’s play drew on the work of an eyewitness to the event, a clerk named Edward Grim who had attempted to defend Becket from William de Tracy’s blow. Henry had actually hoped that the appointment of his chancellor, Thomas Becket, as Archbishop of Canterbury, would help him to reassert royal authority over the Church. But the king had not anticipated that Becket would resign as chancellor shortly after he was elevated to the seat of Canterbury.

As such, the conflict between Henry II and Becket centered on the persistent issue of the balance between royal and popular authority and the rights of the church in England.Becket’s murder sent shockwaves across Western Christendom. The four knights were excommunicated by Pope Alexander III, who ordered them to serve in the Holy land for 14 years while they sought his forgiveness. Becket himself was canonized in February 1173, less than 3 years after his death, and Canterbury Cathedral became a major site of pilgrimage – Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, from the late 14th century, are testament to the continued popularity of pilgrimage to the shrine of St Thomas.

 Henry II, meanwhile, undertook a public act of penance on 12 July 1174. Confessing to indirect responsibility for the murder, he entered Canterbury in sackcloth, both barefoot and mute, and made a pilgrimage to the crypt of St Thomas where he was whipped by the monks while he lay prostrate and naked by the tomb.

When the Bishop of Chichester commissioned the poet and dramatist T.S. Eliot to write a play for the Canterbury Festival of 1935, Eliot decided to link his subject matter with the location and chose to write about the martyrdom of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his brutal murder within his own Cathedral church on 29 December 1170.

 

The story is well-known - the conflict between Thomas Becket and his royal master Henry II, which was sparked by the King’s secular interference in spiritual matters, culminating in a deadlock between these two strong personalities and the subsequent murder of Thomas by knights loyal to their king, who, legend has it, called out beseechingly in an angry moment, ‘Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?’

 

Well these were the events which provide the basis of Murder in the Cathedral, but the events are not told in chronicle format; Eliot structures the story in the manner of a Shakespeare play in which the events matter less than the situations. It examines the conflict between the material and the spiritual worlds, and Becket’s journey from spiritual doubt to certainty as he prepares for martyrdom, as well as the effect his actions have on the people of Canterbury. Interestingly, Eliot had been on his own spiritual journey in the 1930s. There had been a gradual burgeoning of his Christian awareness throughout his poems in this period as his agnosticism faded and his attraction to Catholicism developed. Eliot’s growing conversion to the Anglo-Catholic faith contributed greatly to the style of Murder in the Cathedral. It is a ritualistic poetic drama, giving the writer an opportunity to consider the inner thoughts and doubts of the central character, Thomas Becket. These thoughts centre on the nature of martyrdom; it is not seen as an act of personal glorification, but the acceptance of man’s will being subdued to the will of God—the path shown to man by Christ himself. For the poetic style of his play, Eliot went back to the roots of the drama, Greek tragedy, which was an act of religion, ritual, purgation and renewal. Later, the medieval morality play sought to achieve the same response from its audience by imaginative example, the anonymously written Everyman being the masterpiece of this genre. Murder in the Cathedral’s verse structure is based on the rhythms of Everyman, as is the ritual element and the symbolism of the characters.

 

From Greek tragedy, Eliot borrows the Chorus, which comments on and responds to the developing drama. The Chorus of the women of Canterbury is not however entirely symbolic; it is rooted in humanity and acts as a mirror for the audience to see and hear its own responses expressed. The tempting of Becket in the first part of the play reflects Everyman’s struggle to overcome his earthly strengths (Knowledge, Strength, Discretion etc) and let his Christian spirit alone prevail over all-conquering death. Eliot was keen to re-invent verse drama, which had largely become moribund in its imitation of Shakespeare, developing its ancient forms to suit a modern play. For instance, he uses the power of modern prose to shock when the knights try to justify their actions. Murder in the Cathedral is constructed with medieval simplicity: Part I – Shows Becket’s spiritual struggle. Interlude – His doubts resolved, Becket affirms his beliefs in a sermon preached on Christmas Day. Part II – Becket’s murder, and its meaning and effect on the people. The Te Deum at the end unites the past with the present in the ever-continuing, unchanging liturgy of the Church. It is an act of ritual worship and prayer, celebrating one man’s journey from doubt, through a struggle with pride, to renouncing self-will and embracing spiritual purity. The play can also be read on another level, as an examination of individual conscience at variance with the State.

 

Major Themes of 'A Tale of Two Cities'

 

 Major #Themes of #ATaleofTwoCities 

 #CharlesDickens 

A TALE OF THE TWO CITIES is probably the least “Dickensian” of his fourteen novels in that it has less of the grotesque, fewer characters, more big scenes, and a less complicated plot. Much of the novel’s value lies in its structure, creativity, and explorations of timeless themes. As a #historical novel, it serves as an excellent example of this genre. The fact that Dickens is able to weave the simple lives of ordinary people into the mosaic of a cataclysmic historical event is an indication of his genius, and another reason to read the book. The #themes that are explored in the novel still have relevance today.

#Themes are overarching ideas and beliefs that the writers use to convey to the readers. #Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities has themes that are not only universal but also highly relevant at any time. Some of the major themes of A Tale of Two Cities have been discussed below.

Theme 1

#Resurrection

The theme of resurrection and change is one of the major themes that seem to emerge on both social and personal level. The character of Sydney Carton and his death saves the life of Charles Darnay and Lucie Manette. He also saves his name with his heroic act of going to the gallows to save Darnay. The end of the novel is suggestive of him regarding his Christ-like resurrection, as he becomes an icon of sacrifice and heroism for those he has sacrificed his life for.

On a social level, the old status of France appears to give way to the new France where Carton has sacrificed his life for others. His final act of great sacrifice tells how Paris and the society in which he has shown this example will see resurrection. Despite his death and violence in France against and by the aristocracy, the revival of peace and better society echoes throughout the novel.

Theme 2

#Sacrifice

Sacrifice is another dominant theme along with resurrection and an integral part of a happy life in A Tale of Two Cities. The novel presents the need for sacrifice on a personal as well as social levels. The revolutionaries sacrifice their own lives and love to bring revolution. The guard, when he arrests Darnay, reminds Manette that the interest of the country overrules everything else. Madame Defarge also teaches her husband the same thing when he expresses his love for Dr. Manette. On a personal level, Sydney Carton’s personal sacrifice brings happiness to Lucie and Darnay. Therefore, the need for sacrifice with resurrection is an important theme of the novel.

Theme 3

#Violence and Oppression

Violence and oppression are two other major themes of the novel A Tale of Two Cities. The readers can see that the revolutions bring torture, violence, and mass killings. Although Dickens seems to support the revolution, his attitude is not clear about the evils committed by the revolutionaries. The viciousness of the aristocracy, which Evremonde demonstrates, appears to be the major reason for criticism.

Similarly, the Marquis’ exploitation of the peasants is shown in a poor light. However, Dickens has also demonstrated their vengeance following the revolution in which various innocents are crushed such as the Manettes. In fact, seeking revenge after the revolution is to burgeon another cycle of violence, revenge, and oppression. The depiction of the dance with weapons being ground seems to herald a cycle of senseless killing and massacre. Even the tribunals set up to punish the aristocracy worked working without a set law.

Theme 4

#Class Conflict

There are two classes in France before the revolution; the peasants who are at the receiving end and the aristocrats, the exploiters. When the revolution takes place, the whole social fabric experiences a rude jolt. The peasants become no less violent than the aristocracy against them before the revolution because of the long-suppressed suffering. The rape of the peasants through the Marquis in the pre-revolution era reverses in the post-revolution era. The class struggle becomes apparent in the shape of the wine shop of Madam Defarge and Mr. Defarge which becomes a hub of the anti-aristocratic forces. The burning of the chateau of Evremonde is a symbol of the fall of the aristocratic norms. The outcome of this mess comes in the shape of summary execution through guillotines like that of Carton and vengeance as Mrs. Defarge shows toward the Manette.

Theme 5

#Theme of Fate

A Tale of Two Cities highlights another theme which is fate. The mention of time at the very start of the novel presents the idea of fate intertwined with the land and time. Dicken’s method of referring to trees to form a guillotine in France shows that something terrible was going to happen. Lucie, though predicts correctly about the happenings, is fortunate in the end when Darnay is freed. Although Darnay is caught when he returns to France but is freed after Carton sacrifices his life for him. Even women were not safe after the revolution and as mentioned, “There were many women at that time, upon whom the time laid a dreadfully disfiguring hand”.

Theme 6

#Social Injustice

The theme of social injustice is intertwined with revolution and class discrimination. The novel, A Tale of Two Cities, presents this theme through different characters. Dr. Manette does not deserve to be incarcerated for such a long time. The peasant boy is not destined to be killed and then left deliberately by Marquis St. Evremonde. This is an extreme type of social injustice that the boy meets. Moreover, the social injustice going on in Paris is put into contrast with justice in London where everybody has to accept the rule of law while in Paris even persons like Darnay and Manette have to go through torture and imprisonment in spite of their innocence.

Theme #7

Family Preservation

Family and its preservation is another major theme of the novel. It is clear from Darnay’s advances toward Lucie and her trip to Paris to meet her incarcerated father. Although she knows the risks involved and also that her father has lost his memory, she undertakes the journey to meet him. Even Marquis Evremonde is concerned with the family's reputation despite knowing that they have done wrong as he says, “we did a world of wrong.” On the other hand, Defarge, too, plays a vital role in the pre and post-revolution times using animosity to preserve their family preservation.

Theme 8

#Reversals of Roles

Revolutions not only bring bloodshed but also reverse the roles of people and classes.The poor become cruel and barbaric, while the aristocrats and exploiters suffer at their hands. Despite being an aristocrat, Darnay becomes a prisoner when he returns to Paris. However, he is freed when Carton sacrifices himself for Darnay due to his love for Lucie. Their roles reverse by the end of the novel, and Sydney Carton replaces Darnay to be hanged.

Theme 9

#Love and Hate

The novel also presents the theme of love and hate and their interaction. Madam Defarge represents hatred on account of her past sufferings. Carton and Darnay, on the other hand, exhibit love which they shower on Lucie while Carton sacrifices his life for love. Lucie’s love for her father brings him to life from his prolonged incarceration. Therefore, love and hatred go hand in hand in the novel.

Theme 10

#Revolution

The nature of a revolution and its impact is another theme of the novel. France was going through an upheaval. The whole social fabric has turned topsy-turvy as the poor people like Defarge became revengeful and the aristocrats like Evremonde had fallen. Even Darnay has to go through many challenges due to his family connections. The killing spree has led to the deaths of innocents and sinners alike.

 

Thus we can say that the novel contains several major themes that run throughout the story. Themes of resurrection, social justice, and darkness versus light can be found in abundance.

 

Metaphysical Poetry and John Donne

Metaphysical Poetry

Etymologically the term “Metaphysical” has been derived from two Greek words of Meta and Physics these words imply that Meta means beyond and physics means Physical nature. The metaphysical period is one of the major remarkable literary periods in the history of English literature. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines Metaphysical as “of or relating to the transcendent or to a reality beyond what is perceptible to the senses”

Metaphysical poetry is a group of poems that share common characteristics: they are all highly intellectualized, use rather strange imagery, use frequent paradox, and contain extremely complicated thoughts.

Literary critic and poet Samuel Johnson first coined the term 'metaphysical poetry in his book Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets (1179-1781). In the book, Johnson wrote about a group of 17th-century British poets that included John Donne, George Herbert, Richard Crashaw, Andrew Marvell, and Henry Vaughan. He noted how the poets shared many common characteristics, especially ones of wit and elaborate style.

History of Metaphysical Poetry

The word “metaphysical” was used by writers such as John Dryden and Samuel Johnson in regard to the poets of the seventeenth century. These poets are noted for their “unnaturalness”. Johnson wrote in Lives of the Most Eminent Engish Poets in the late 1700s, that a “race of writers” had appeared that might be termed “metaphysical poets”. The term was likely taken from Dryden who had described John Donne as affecting “metaphysics” in his “satires” and his “amorous verses”. It was not until the twentieth century that many of these poets were adequately recognized for their talent and originality.

T.S. Eliot is one of the many twentieth-century literary critics who helped to establish the well-deserved reputation that writers such as John Donne and Andrew Marvell now hold. He applied many of their techniques to his own writing.

CHARACTERISTICS OF METAPHYSICAL POETRY

• The group of metaphysical poets that we mentioned earlier is obviously not the only poets or philosophers or writers that deal with metaphysical questions. There are other more specific characteristics that prompted Johnson to place the 17th-century poets together.

• Perhaps the most common characteristic is that metaphysical poetry contained large doses of wit. In fact, although the poets were examining serious questions about the existence of God or whether a human could possibly perceive the world, the poets were sure to ponder those questions with humor. • Metaphysical poetry also sought to shock the reader and wake him or her up from his or her normal existence in order to question the unquestionable. The poetry often mixed ordinary speech with paradoxes and puns. The results were strange, comparing unlikely things, such as lovers to a compass or the soul to a drop of dew. These weird comparisons were called conceits. Metaphysical poetry also explored a few common themes. They all had a religious sentiment. In addition, many of the poems explored the theme of carpe diem (seize the day) and investigated the humanity of life. One great way to analyze metaphysical poetry is to consider how the poems are about both thought and feeling. Think about it. How could you possibly write a poem about the existence of God if you didn't have some emotional reaction to such an enormous, life-altering question? Metaphysical poetry investigates the relation between rational, logical argument on the one hand and intuition or “mysticism” on the other, often depicted with sensuous detail Metaphysical poetry is considered highly ambiguous due to the high intellect and knowledge of metaphysical poets.

John Donne

John Donne was born in 1572. He studied both law and religion. Donne was catholic by birth, but in 1597, he embraced the Church of England and became Anglican. His belief in the old faith struggled against the impact of the established church. His intellectual spirit detached itself from Catholicism. His conversion to Anglicanism was due to intellectual pervasion. Donne sought poetry and divinity. He was promoted to the post of Dean of St. Paul’s in 1621. He died in 1631. Donne gave a sincere and passionate quality to the Elizabethan lyric. He was the pioneer and founder of metaphysical poetry.


John Donne is the leader and founder of the Metaphysical school of poetry. His poetry is a revolt against the popular current. First of all, Dryden used the term ' Metaphysical' for Donne's poetry. He said,' Donne affects the metaphysics. Later on, Dr. Johnson called Donne and his followers 'the metaphysical poets. Since then the word metaphysical has been used for Donne and his followers.

When Dryden, Johnson, and Dowden called Donne a metaphysical poet, they referred to the style of Donne. His poetry is metaphysical because of his individualism and his quest for learning. His poetry is full of wit. It is obscure and it indulges in farfetched conceits. It fuses thought and emotion. It is logical, analytical, and mystical. His poetry combines all elements of metaphysical poetry, i.e., Passion, wit, conceit, an amalgam of Passion and intellect, paradoxes, and hyperboles are characteristics of metaphysical poetry. He brings together physical and spiritual love in his poems. His images are always unique and exclusive, often drawn from classical and contemporary branches of learning.

Simultaneously his poetry is metaphysical because it employs conceits and wit and is characterized by the display of learning, hyperbolism, and exaggeration, colloquial speech, argumentation, and paradox.

Here are some elements of metaphysical poetry, which are frequent in every poem of Donne. Following are some attributes, which make John Donne a good metaphysical poet.

Metaphysical poetry:-

• Is free from artificiality
• Contains conceits and hyperboles
• Is intellectual
• always remains away from the female physique
• Is about emotions and psychological experiences

Reference - -



https://poets.org › poet › john-donne

Gratitude

Gratitude 

 I have noticed that the Universe loves gratitude. The more grateful you are, the more goodies you get. When I say “goodies,” I don’t mean only material things. I mean all the peoTople, places, and experiences that make life so wonderfully worth living. You know how great you feel when your life is filled with love and joy and health and creativity, and you get the green lights and the parking places. This is how our lives are meant to be lived. 

 The Universe is a generous, abundant giver, and it likes to be appreciated. Gratitude brings more to be grateful about. It increases your abundant life. 

Lack of gratitude, or complaining, brings little to rejoice about. Complainers always find that they have little good in their life, or they do not enjoy what they do have. The Universe always gives us what we believe we deserve. Many of us have been raised to look at what we do not have and to feel only lack. We come from a belief in scarcity and then wonder why our lives are so empty. If we believe that “I don’t have, and I won’t be happy until I do...,” then we are putting our lives on hold. What the Universe hears is: “I don’t have, and I am not happy,” and that is what you get more of. We even want to be grateful for the lessons we have.

 Don’t run from lessons; they are little packages of treasure that have been given to us. As we learn from them, our lives change for the better. So, whether the lesson is a “problem” that has cropped up, or an opportunity to see an old, negative pattern within us that it is time to let go of, rejoice! 

  Let’s spend as many moments as we can every day being grateful for all the good that is in our lives. If you have little in your life now, it will increase. If you have an abundant life now, it will increase. This is a win-win situation. You are happy, and the Universe is happy.

 Gratitude increases your abundance. Start a gratitude journal. Write something to be grateful about each day. On a daily basis, tell someone how grateful you are for something. Tell sales clerks, waiters, postal workers, employers and employees, friends, family, and perfect strangers. Share the gratitude secret. Let’s help make this a world of grateful, thankful giving and receiving . . . for everyone!

The excerpt is taken from Gratitude – A Way of Life.