Massacre of the Innocents
- proper noun
- NSFW
:
Matanza de los Inocentes
- Marino's use of the metaphor in his Massacre of the Innocents (bk. 3) is discussed in Cropper, "Petrifying Art," 207.93.
Examples
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The Massacre of the Innocents is often portrayed in paintings to symbolize the horror of King Herod's decree.
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Many artists have depicted the Massacre of the Innocents to illustrate the tragic consequences of tyranny.
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In literature, the Massacre of the Innocents serves as a powerful reminder of the suffering of innocent lives.
Synonyms
198
7.0
The violent killing of many people in a cruel way
80
5.7
Violent killing of a large number of people
65
8.2
A mass killing of people, often during war or attacks
1
8.1
The very violent killing of many people
Surface Forms
Morphology
massacre + of + the + innocent
A B1 learner who knows 'massacre' and 'innocent(s)' will readily infer this phrase refers to the killing of innocent people because the composition 'massacre of X' is semantically transparent. However, the fixed historical/biblical reference (Herod's ordered execution of male infants in Bethlehem) and the specific nuance 'infants' are not predictable from the words alone, so the expression goes beyond simple compositional meaning.
Etymology
Massacre of the Innocents comes from a Bible story where King Herod ordered the killing of all baby boys in Bethlehem. Artists and writers used this shocking scene of the deaths of the 'innocents' to show great unfairness and grief, so today the phrase means 'a terrible, unjust killing'.