Quelques réflexions sur l’amitié sur l’exemple de „Becket ou l’honneur de Dieu” de Jean Anouilh

Abstract

A FEW REFLEXIONS ON THE FRIENDSHIP IN BECKET OR THE HONOUR OF GOD BY JEAN ANOUILH

The above work is a conjecture on a new interpretation of the complicated friendship between Henry II, King of England, and Thomas Becket, saint martyr, as characters in Jean Anouilh’s play Becket or The Honour of God. They have little in common, and it seems that everything divides them. An analysis of this opus is used as a starting point to a general reflection on the influence of external factors such as social status and political framework, as well as internal factors such as personality traits, value system, and propriety on particular stages of friendship. The analysis is also an attempt at defining the concept of friendship presented in the play.