Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Silence of the Lambs analysis - part 5: Clarice represents the Virgin Mary

CATEGORY: MOVIES

Immaculate Conception by Murillo, 1660. [Image from the Wikipedia 'Immaculate Conception' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.]












The Roman Catholic Church concept of the Immaculate Conception of Mary teaches that she – unique among all human beings in history – was born without original sin, and never sinned throughout her life. This doctrine should not be confused with the miraculous conception of Jesus. The Immaculate Conception refers to Mary's own conception and birth – not to the famous miracle by which Jesus was conceived within her.[a]








The character Clarice Starling, in some sense represents the Virgin Mary, Jesus's mother. One of Lecter's drawings (shown at left), drawn by him while he's being held captive in Memphis, Tennessee, depicts Starling holding a lamb as a mother would hold a child, and Jesus was sometimes referred to as the Lamb of God.


Left: Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, with gushing blood, detail of the Ghent altarpiece by Jan Van Eyck. [Image from the Wikipedia 'Lamb of God' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.]













Lamb of God is one of the titles given to Jesus in the New Testament and consequently in the Christian tradition. It refers to Jesus' role as a sacrificial lamb atoning for the sins of man.[b]



a. Wikipedia, 'Immaculate Conception'. Web, n.d. URL = https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immaculate_Conception.
b. Wikipedia, 'Lamb of God'. Web, n.d. URL = https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamb_of_God.


      

Posted at 12:40 AM
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