Crucifixion of an Angel

In the Mistress of the Art of Death, murders are committed throughout the town of Cambridge. And even more sinfully, the deceased are children. In one of the first murder committed, an apparent witness claimed that she saw the child crucified. I find this important because this alludes to one of the most powerful events in history, the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

However, instead of seeing the child as the one crucified, I find that the murder seems to be more like a crucifixion of an angel. In a way that is what it symbolizes to me. A child is pure and untainted by the evils of the world because they are still young and naive, much in way that angels are perceived. By murdering a child, it is almost like murdering an angel.

Not only that, but the death of this child sparked outrage among the people of Cambridge. After this incident, everybody turned their hatred on the Jews because the Jews were the one who had “crucified Jesus”. This death caused people to turn a blind eye on what the basis of their religion even tells them do - which is to do good and not evil. And yet, ironically, for their religion they fuel their hatred for the Jews and accuse them of this murder. In a way, not only had a child died but so did humanity or rather the ethics of humanity - that of which is the center of all good. And in a way, this is also the murder of an angel that of which symbolizes all good.