Inaug.-dis.--Halle. / Vita.

Braunschweig, Techn. Universiẗat, Diss., 2001.

Th.--Lett.--Paris 3, 1983.

Diss.--Fachbereich Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaften--Trier, 1980. / Bibliogr. p. 412-433. Résumé en anglais.

This thesis examines the interplay of the forces of life, death and love in Fry's plays. The relevance of Quakerism to the issue is established in Chapter I. This chapter takes the mystery of existence as the basic point common to Fry's plays and Quakerism and explores it as it develops in each. Christopher Fry includes within his plays abundant evidence of the tragedy inherent in the human condition. He transcends this awareness, however, in his consistent intimation of the triumph of the vital force and in a concept of redemption through joy as the proper expression of the human spirit. This attitude parallels the basic frame of mind underlying the Quakerism in which Fry has his roots. The Quaker chooses to be amazed at the mystery of existence rather than lament his inability to fathom it. Indeed, he finds this the natural course. Intuitions of a greater reality prevent him from indulging in an unnatural suicidal concern with his human limitations. Chapter II deals more specifically with the mystery of existence within each of Fry's plays. Each play is considered separately. However, since similar themes appear in all his plays, this chapter in fact explores the body of Fry's plays as a whole. It perceives each play as a particular dimension of what is in all his plays. The Appendix establishes the literary relevance of Fry's plays to the theatre as both religious drama and verse drama, and it concludes by describing the relevance of religion and poetry to a type of romance drama. Fry's work as a whole reflects the conviction that romance and comedy are universal, and that they can only be found after the tragic experience. There is something beyond tragedy and Fry calls it comedy. In reaching out to it, he says, one has to pass through tragedy first. / Arts, Faculty of / English, Department of / Graduate

In Curtmantle, William Marshal recalls that Henry's appointment of Becket to Canterbury promised unity, but "the whole significance of unity was not debated." Christopher Fry is constantly exploring the nature of unity and seeking its significance. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine how the themes of his plays are structured in language and patterns of action which both exemplify unity and reach for ontological meaning in terms of a vision of a unified universe. Fry's work concentrates on a group of closely related themes: the positive power of love, both eros and agape; the wonder, paradoxes and unity of existence; the cycle of life, death and renewal; the operation of necessity and the nature of individuality; and man's relationship with the universe and with God. A direct approach could be made on a thematic basis, but the emphasis of this dissertation is on the structural integration of each separate play, and on the way in which these themes are expressed through aspects of structure. Many of the themes are common to several plays, and the variety of forms which Fry develops to express them is one indication of his stature as a dramatist. Another possible organization of material would be to group the plays under the headings "secular." and "religious." This method would make an arbitrary distinction between plays that have an overt religious content and those that do not. One of the important results of these analyses is that the "secular" plays exhibit patterns that make religious statements as positive as those that deal directly with religious subjects. The chronological play-by-play approach chosen contains the built-in danger of fragmentation. Against this disadvantage stands the advantage that the development of Fry's ideas, techniques and skill can be observed. A unifying factor is that themes and configurations—particularly in character relationships—recur and are reworked in fresh contexts. The dominant direction of Fry's work is in a dual quest, for meaning and for God. Each play is, in Fry's own phrase from A Sleep of Prisoners, an "exploration into God," and the analyses aim to show how this quest is pursued in each play. Critical attention has tended to focus on Fry's verse at the expense of a broader view of his plays. The poetry is only one means—albeit an extremely important one—through which the themes are expressed. They also receive implicit expression through other aspects of the dramatic structure, dealt with where appropriate. Part of the introduction, which first places Fry in a general historical and cultural perspective, deals with the function of poetry in modern drama, and with Fry's views on the subject. The choice of poetry as a vehicle for dramatic expression stems from his world view: it is a natural mode for a man who sees existence as a complex mystery to be comprehended intuitively rather than rationally. He is acutely aware that existence is not only mysterious and complex, but that it also has a shape or pattern in which meaning can be found. For Fry, the combination of mystery and pattern finds its best expression in the form of poetic drama. / Arts, Faculty of / English, Department of / Graduate

Univ., Diss.--Tübingen, 2004.

Thesis (D.M.A.)--Ohio State University, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes embedded audio and video examples. Includes bibliographical references (p. 169-270).

At present the Church is confronted by two major problems, specifically, its marginalization within Western society, and the difficulty of transmitting the faith to the young. This confusion has had a particularly severe impact on Catholics within English-speaking countries such as Australia, where a dominant secularized Protestant culture has repudiated its Catholic roots. Catholics have had limited opportunities to appreciate the depth and richness of their heritage or to understand the forms and substance of a flourishing Catholic culture. There have been two major responses to the dilemma of the Church’s interaction with modern culture. The first, which predominated before 1960, drew largely upon neo-scholastic philosophy, a major proponent of which was the prominent French Catholic intellectual, Jacques Maritain (1882-1973). However, a sole reliance on this approach has proved unsatisfactory in countries such as Australia, where the Catholic cultural and historical understandings remained underdeveloped. The second major response, which has dominated the period since the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), has interpreted the term aggiornamento to mean accommodation by the Church to the modern world. This response has been particularly problematic for Catholics in Australia, which has experienced substantial social and cultural changes in the last forty years. Consequently, major declines in religious practice and the marginalization of Christian understandings and beliefs within the broader society are indicative of a need for new ways to respond to modern culture and the challenge of secularization. Since the early 1970s, Communio scholars have explored the relationship between theology and culture. Their perspectives have also led to a renewed awareness of the importance of tradition, memory and history in understanding culture. This thesis will build on this renewed awareness, to argue that the confusion about the rôle of culture has resulted from a failure to recognize the challenge posed by modernity’s breach with the Christian past, and the accompanying distortion of the historical narrative. A solution to these difficulties draws upon the historical and cultural understandings of the English Catholic historian, Christopher Dawson (1889-1970). He sought to emphasize the essential quality of the spiritual dimension in culture and history. In particular, Dawson’s understanding that religion forms culture gave him a unique insight into the importance of memory and tradition in the survival of a culture. Thus, his work addressed such themes as the rôle of Christianity in forming the West, and the need to analyse the forms and substance of a Christian culture. During the 1950s, Dawson became increasingly convinced of the importance of education in transmitting the spiritual and cultural heritage of society. He advocated the idea of a Christian culture course that would teach students about their Christian past and help them to understand that religion provides the most vital aspect of society. In particular, this thesis will propose that Dawson’s historical and educational framework is an important way to respond to the amnesia of modern culture and to transmit the faith to the next generation. Specifically, this thesis will use the Dawsonian perspective as well as the cultural analysis of the Communio school, as a means to focus on the importance of culture, history, the European heritage and education, in order to argue for new catechetical and educational directions. A focus on Europe would benefit Australia not only because it has a European heritage, but because it would allow a greater knowledge of a culture that was formed by Christianity, and of the challenge that arises from a secularization of the Christian ethos. The Dawsonian proposal for a Christian culture course provides an alternative to historical and cultural perspectives that are based on secular and Whig versions of history. Instead of focusing on the three-fold division of history into Ancient, Medieval and Modern eras, Dawson’s course developed an understanding of the impact of Christianity by developing a knowledge of six stages of Christian culture: The Apostolic Age; the Patristic Age; the Formation of Western Christendom; the High Middle Ages; Divided Christendom, after the Reformation; and finally, Secularized Christendom. Thus, the Dawsonian course with its emphasis on the formative rôle of Christian culture within Western society is an important means to address the problems of the marginalization of the Church, and the urgent need to find more effective ways to transmit the faith to the next generation.

Texte remanié de: Thèse d'État--Toulouse, France--Université Toulouse-Le Mirail, 2004. / Bibliogr. p. 183-196. Index.