There are a number of themes that can be extracted from the play based film, "Becket." They range everywhere from loyalty, honor, and friendship to politics and religious views of the time and concepts of secular and spiritual seperations. Many of these concepts presented in the film hold much contemporary relavance.
What seems to be the most prevalent theme in "Becket" is honor. When looking into the film, we are
made to ask the question "what is honor and who through the film has it?" Acording to Thomas a Becket, "Honor is a private matter within; it's an idea, and every man has his own version of it." This is very obvious in looking at
and comparing Becket with his decadent comrade, King Henry. One is able to question the honor of Thomas a
Becket in examining his friendship with the king. According to the film, Thomas was a Saxon, a group of people who were unliked and conquered by the Normans.
English: Earliest known portrayal of Thomas Becket...
Henry II and Thomas Becket are shown in this 14th ...
Henry II with Thomas Becket, from a 13th-century i...Thomas collaberates with his king, for Nomans live better then the Saxons do. Can honor be found in this betrayal of Thomas' heritage for the sake of comfortable living? Honor is also the cause of the main conflict of the film. Through out it, we see Thomas Becket attempting to honor both his God and his King. It is from honoring a friendship and the wishes of his king that Thomas, whom was not even a priest, agrees to ascend to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury even though he strongly protested the idea. Once he becomes Archbishop, Becket takes his prestigious position very seriously. It is now his duty to defend the honor of God, even if he must defy the king. "The Lord's honor is a heavy burdern to bear." This must be so if...