Word: martyrdom
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Eliot presents the oft-dramatized story of Becket as a morality play, a lesson in the nature of martyrdom, and eschews all the possible theatrics in the tale. He manipulates a sparse collection of performers--Becket, three priests, four tempters, four knights, and a chorus of women--through a ritual that both plumbs the deep seas of Christian theology and plunders pagan mythology for parallels and a natural background. The mutable verse form, with irregular rhymes and cyclical repetition, can hypnotically enthrall you even if you don't quite catch Eliot's meaning...
...Eliot wrote lengthy parts for the chorus, to make it the passive, fearful substratum of the play, somewhere between mankind and nature. Its members understand even less than the audience what's happening to Becket, but they too participate in a small way in the miracle of Becket's martyrdom and learn something as the play progresses. You wouldn't know it from the actresses at Currier, who maintain the same unbearable level of high-pitched, uncomprehending moaning from start to finish--until the Te Deum they sing at the end, for which their voices suddenly turn saccharine...
...everybody, worsened Jimmy Carter's problem. Talleyrand, the 19th century French diplomat, cautioned against "too much zeal." But how to deal with a nation of zealots, who do not play by the rules of law, who do not or cannot keep their promises, who seem more inclined to martyrdom than to statecraft...
...threat to his dream of an Islamic republic, the establishment of which is his overriding goal. At the same time, he will not accept any settlement that would appear to be a defeat. If he feels totally boxed in, he just might seek an outlet in national martyrdom, by provoking the U.S. to military action...
...regime, a single policeman could force all merchants in a huge bazaar to hoist flags to mark the Shah's birthday. These very people stood up against tanks and artillery with their bare hands. Even now, they wear burial shrouds, come here [to Qum] and declare their readiness for martyrdom. A nation thus transformed cannot be pushed around. Mr. Carter has not understood this transformation yet. He thinks a dictator can be imposed on the country again. But he must understand that Iranians will never put up with such actions. Carter must wake...