Lisibilité de l’histoire et (in)visibilité des corps violentés dans Sir Thomas More
This article focuses on the history play Sir Thomas More and its representation of three types of violence at the core of Tudor society: war, public execution, and rebellion. The first two are presented as legitimate while the third one is deemed criminal; yet, the play blurs such an orthodox delimi...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Centre de Recherche "Texte et Critique de Texte"
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Sillages Critiques |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/sillagescritiques/11820 |
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| Summary: | This article focuses on the history play Sir Thomas More and its representation of three types of violence at the core of Tudor society: war, public execution, and rebellion. The first two are presented as legitimate while the third one is deemed criminal; yet, the play blurs such an orthodox delimitation. Official history makes some forms of violence visible, even spectacular, while erasing others from its narrative. Moreover, this framing, which is particularly present in language, tends to hide the concrete and physical effects of such violence on bodies. Nevertheless, the play brings those bodies back to the surface, giving them an existence and a voice, whereas the royal figure remains in the background. Thus, Sir Thomas More stages history in such a way that it offers multiple perspectives on violence and places suffering at the centre of the stage. In so doing, the play questions both the univocality of history and the legitimacy of state violence. |
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| ISSN: | 1272-3819 1969-6302 |