Tennyson and Eliot s Poetic Plays on Thomas Becket: A Study in Plot, Structure and Characters

The subject of this paper is about the English Christian martyr and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket (1118-1170), in the plays of Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) and T.S. Eliot (1888 -1965).The paper is an attempt to identify such historical and religious figure in a literary framework in Tennyson s Becket (1884) and Eliot s Murder in the Cathedral (1935) in which Becket s story is the main subject. Accordingly, the aim of the present analysis is to make a comparative study between the previous mentioned plays in terms of plot, structure and characters in order to show the similarities and differences of the two dramatists historical and literary treatments of their plays. Therefore, our concern takes an order, which proceeds gradually according to the following sequences: it begins with an introduction explaining the historical story of Thomas Becket and his relationship with King Henry II (1133-1188) in order to show how each writer reveals his subject matter in a literary content. Then, it follows the main points upon which this study is based about aspects of plot, structure and characters to reflect the similarities and differences of the two plays. Finally, the subject ends with conclusions summing up the main results and findings. The results shadow that Tennyson and Eliot write about the same story concerning the English martyr, Thomas Becket, but they have numerous differences in the way of revealing their subject especially in the points of plot, structure and characters.