Temptation Theme Analysis

The concept of temptation as something that causes people to deviate from the divine unfolding of fate—at least as Becket sees it—permeates Murder in the Cathedral. The four tempters and priests both try to “tempt” Becket away from his fate, though in two very distinct ways.

The priests also try to “tempt” Becket—though less obviously than the actual “tempters”—by trying to keep Becket alive. They refuse to unbar the doors of the church at Becket’s command, and while the knights are gathered outside, the priests reply: “You would bar the door / Against the lion, the leopard . . . Why not more / Against beasts with the souls of damned men, against men / Who would damn themselves as beasts.” Though not explicitly using the language of temptation, the priests here are playing a role which parallels that of the tempters: the priests also try to make Becket change or shift events, to shift fate rather than accept it. The priests even go a step further than the tempters in trying to get Becket to do what they think is best—they try to physically force him into safety from the knights.

In this way, the difference between the roles of the tempters and the priests is somewhat blurred by the play, making “temptation” assume a more general shape and meaning. Temptation, as the play presents it, is anything that leads one toward a personal view of action and the world, because that will naturally pull one away from a selfless acceptance of God’s plan.