Lorena Estevez
October 5, 2015
Acting II
Agnes of God by John Pielmeier
Agnes of God is about a young, simple-minded nun Sister Agnes who gets pregnant and her newborn child is found dead in a wastebasket in her room. Sister Agnes claims to not remember the conception or the birth so psychiatrist Dr. Martha Livingston is appointed by the court to determine whether Sister Agnes is fit to stand trial for the murder of the baby. When it comes time to question about who the father is, who is never mentioned in the play, it becomes a mystery of it all as that the nuns lead a sequestered life and so it seems there are no men who could possibly have been the father other than old Father Metineau. Dr. Livingston a lapsed Catholic is determined to get to the bottom of this. She meets her match in the convent's mother superior, Mother Miriam Ruth, who seems determined to protect the fragility of Sister Agnes and the story she says of her immaculate conception. Agnes is not concerned with the solution to the gruesome murder; it merely uses the suspense generated as the backdrop for a much wider debate between science and rationality on one hand, and religious faith on the other.
As the story progresses we learn that Mother Miriam has got it into her head that Sister Agnes is something of a saint.
…show more content…
That is the purpose the playwright wrote it to make you feel something or provoke something inside of you while reading or watching it. John Pielmeier really did provoke something inside of me while reading Agnes of God. I consider myself to be someone with a stable faith, someone who tries her best with her faith but maybe not always at 100%. As I was reading this play I was thinking a lot of my old school and all the sisters that I used to know. Specifically I was thinking of this one sister that one time in a moment of vulnerability was talking to me about how she will always want to have a child of her own even though she
Throughout history there have been many cases of women who possess strong powers and a passion for God, especially in the Middle Ages. One woman that fit into that category was Margery Kempe, a fifteenth-century visionary, who was a controversial figure in the Christian faith. Margery insisted that Jesus talked to her, while many people thought that she was being possessed by the devil. During the time of The Middle Ages many stories of women saints were being exposed with many differences from Kempe’s life, however there were some surprising similarities as well. Medieval female saints and martyrs were intended to be chaste if they were single and virtuous if they are married. They were also extremely devoted and pure to Christ, not giving in to any temptations. Kempe seems to be tempted by men, but then immediately followed by shame. On the other hand she posse’s qualities the saints share like, visions, passion, a desire to be chaste and, commitment. Saint Margaret of Antioch is one of the saints that appear often in “The Book of Margery Kempe”. She is a martyr who death occurred sometime in the late thirteenth century. Unlike the
..., you are also one of my children, one of my own son!" Has god in mercy as a person who commits a crime. Her clever use of god, gave her instead of desperation, if she was a bit stupid, as inappropriate people is humorously said, "if the rest of my life every minute someone endless shoot at her, she will be a good woman". An abandoned god's people in front of the person a abandoned by god dressed as god, only.
How would a woman achieve the role of Saint during medieval times when their visionary legitimacy is questioned? For Margery Kempe, trying to prove herself as a viable candidate through martyrdom is a difficult task. Throughout her story, she is constantly having to prove herself to her community and to the church hierarchy, but it always comes at a cost. Consequently, Margery is ridiculed, taunted, and accused of many negative things, yet she stands firm in her belief that her gifts are real. The physical threats she receives, such as being burned, are all part of her performance. Although these gifts of visions and miracles are questionable, she is able to mold them in order to achieve her spiritual goals. In The Book of Margery Kempe, translated and edited by Lynn Staley, Margery gives the performance of a lifetime by using her visionary gift to spiritually manipulate her community and the church
Every year, the statue of the Infant King “is carried into the cell of every Carmelite on Christmas.” A decree of the National Assembly confiscated all church goods, including the crown and the scepter of the Infant King. Regardless, the Carmelites carried on the tradition. The statue came to Blanche’s room, and she was moved to tears as she saw the poor Infant King, clad only in a handmade cape. She held the statue and said, “Oh so small and so weak”, Sister Marie corrected her saying, “No, so small and so powerful.” Blanche’s misconception was that the Infant King was only powerful if he was wearing his crown, and as she bent over to kiss it, she noticed his crown was missing. At the same moment, she heard Carmogle being sung in the streets. She immediately dropped the statue and its head broke off. She cried, “Oh, the Infant King of Glory is dead!” From that moment on, Blanche’s demeanor changed, as her hope was shattered, like the Infant King. She now realizes that the good Infant King was not protected from suffering. In fact he embraced suffering to sacrifice for the good of others. She began to accept her condition. Mother Teresa asked Blanche if she still hoped to overcome her weakness, and Blanche replied, “No Reverend Mother… Consider the secret of my name.” Blanche was referring to her religious name bestowed on her by the bishop: “Jesus in the
We want to relate to it in a way that can only be done through imagination. So, due to this, when we are not given the flexibility, then the context no longer becomes entertaining. The viewers do not want to be told how to think. Given these points, if they are influenced to believe that Sister Aloysius is a cruel individual like the movie portrays, then at the end of the movie and book when Sister Aloysius says, “ I have doubts! I have such doubts!”
In Lousie Erdrich short story, “Saint Marie” (1934), she makes a very clear point that even the most loyal and well-disciplined can become corrupt. In this chapter from the book Love Medicine, Marie is young 14 year old girl. The young girl has been born and raised into the Catholic faith. Marie has gone to the convent for Sunday school for several years. With years in the making, she decided to join the Sacred Heart Convent. There were many nuns at the convent but one stood out the most. This nun was Sister Leopolda. Sister Leopolda was a violent, evil, and Satan-obsessed. Many had hatred for her; although, some found her quite pleasant. However, one day, Marie has a vision of the devil that causes her to smile. That smile
Joan of Arc can be seen through the eyes of two very different of thinking. One would be that she was a witch and possessed, and the other would be that she was a true saint.
Sister Agnes Walsh was a good woman. She risked her life to save a poor family. She wasn’t paid, wasn’t bribed, wasn’t forced to. She saved them out of the goodness of her heart.
Leonardo’s da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” is a very famous and worshipped oil painting. It was a Renaissance masterpiece full of perspective. Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to paint “The Last Supper,” his technique and style, however, were entirely up to him. The setting of the painting was the refectory, the dining hall, of the Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy. The painting portrays Leonardo’s visual interpretation of the night before Christ was betrayed by one of his disciples. Christ called his disciples together to eat and tell them that he knew what was coming.
Similar to Ambrosio who does not possess the characteristics of an effective abbot, Agnes does not have the traits to be a devoted nun. A nun who truly serves the Lord chooses that path out of genuine interest. It is clear from Agnes’ disinterest that her passion meanders outside of the convent. It is learned that since infancy Agnes has been expected to take the habit. Her aunt claims, “Donna Inesilla vowed, that if she [Agnes] recovered from her malady, the child then living in her bosom, if a girl, should be dedicated to St. Clare (134).” Agnes’ journey to the convent is carved from a multitude of poor intentions. First, all through her life it is ingrained in her mind that because of the curing of her physical ailment, it is necessary she join the convent. Similar to Ambrosio’s experience, a life predestined for the monastery is not guaranteed to be a successful one. The convent represents an awaiting payment and a consolation prize. Later, when the abbot discovers Agnes’ secret she admits, “I believed him [Raymond] forever lost to me, and threw myself into a convent from motives of despair” 70. The convent should be entered a first choice, not a backup plan. Agnes chooses the convent to run from her true desires— her love, Raymond. Agnes says, “Long before I took the veil, Raymond was the master of my heart: he inspired me with the purest, the most irreproachable passion” 70. Agnes’
Even though the grandmother brings up Jesus a lot with The Misfit, she does not seem as deeply devoted in a religious way. The reader can suppose this due to the fact that she never mentions it in the story, and only brings Jesus when she is in need of savior. As she grew up religion had place in her live due to the social classes and rules of being a lady. This is because due to her notions, a respectable lady like her had to believe in a merciful God. Even supposing she was a lady the reader can notice that her faith is not very devoted. O'Connor provides us with an example in regardless to the grandmothers faith. When she writes,Well whatever faith she has is shattered by the fact that she is in shock of what is happening in her surroundings.
The grandmother is trying to connect with The Misfit because she could sense the inner struggle he was experiencing, which is revealed in their conversation. The grandmother is not in the least concerned with God at this point, but tries to connect with the Misfit any way she can. The grandmother recognizes the Misfit as one of her own children and reaches out to touch him. It’s the moment of grace for her anyway. She reaches out because she has been touched by the Grace that comes through him in his particular suffering (Hendricks 207). After feeling like all hope was gone, “She found herself saying, "Jesus. Jesus," meaning, Jesus will help you, but the way she was saying it, sounded as if she might be cursing” (O’Connor 384). It seems that the grandmother is displaying a good Christian spirit, but she's 'taking the name in vain', putting her further into the category of the damned. O’Conner, further strengthens the grandmother’s façade of Christanity, when she instantly forms into a real believer, “If you would pray,” the old lady said, “Jesus would help you” (O’Conner 384). O’Conner also suggest the possibility of dramatic transformation in a person. Having just lost all of her family and threatened with death herself, the Grandmother appears to undergo a sudden and miraculous change of heart: she reaches out lovingly to the
“I had seen paintings before, but never so many” thinks Griet as she first enters (Chevalier 17). This is the first step in her awakening of artistic expression. Of course, Griet’s father was a tile painter so she has seen her fair share of paintings but not the amount or kind that is in this home. She sees a “picture of Christ on the Cross […] Christ had thrown his head back in pain, and Mary Magdalene’s eyes were rolling. I lay in bed gingerly […] every detail was fixed in my mind” (Chevalier 30). Griet is not used to seeing works of this intensity, especially religious ones, and is made uncomfortable by it. It depicts Jesus as he is being crucified, which disturbs her. As Brieber explains in his article, “context affects the experience of art, the amount of time people spend on art, and, in turn, that viewing time is related to art experience” (Brieber 7). Art experience is more than just first impressions; it is the amount of time one spends with the artwork and the context one comes from. Griet is at first shocked by the piece because of her background, adding to her art experience. Over time she may develop entirely different perceptions about the art around her, changing her artistic experience and
In the short story “ A Dead Woman’s Secret by Guy de Maupassant, the basic theme is devoted to family and private relationships. The main characters in the story are Marguerite (the daughter), the judge (the son), the priest, and the deceased mother. Marguerite is a nun and she is very religious. The dead woman’s son, the Judge, handled the law as a weapon with which he smote the weak ones without pity. The story begins by telling the reader that the woman had died quietly, without pain. The author is very descriptive when explaining the woman’s appearance - “Now she was resting in her bed, lying on her back, her eyes closed, her features calm, her long white hair carefully arranged as though she had done it up ten minutes before dying. The whole pale countenance of the dead woman was so collected, so calm, so resigned that one could feel what a sweet soul had lived in that body, what a quiet existence this old soul had led, how easy and pure the death of this parent had been” (1). The children had been kneeling by their mother’s bed for awhile just admiring her. The priest had stopped by to help the children pass by the next hours of great sadness, but the children decided that they wanted to be alone as they spend the last few hours with their mother. Within in the story, the author discusses the relationship between the children’s father and their mother. The father was said to make the mother most unhappy. Great
The Prioress' Tale is overtly a religious tale centered around Christian principles and a devotion to the Virgin Mary, but within the warm affection that the Prioress shows for her Christian faith is a disquieting anti-Semitism that will be immediately obvious to the modern reader. The tale is an overwrought melodrama, replete with scenes of such banal sentimentalism and simplistic moral instruction. The tale is an unabashed celebration of motherhood. The guiding figure of the tale is the Virgin Mary, who serves as the exemplar for Christian values and the intervening spirit who sustains the murdered child before he passes on to heaven. Her mortal parallel is the mother of the murdered boy, who dearly loves her son and struggles to find the boy when he is lost.