LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Henry Purcell
built 656 days ago
Purcell died on November 21,1695. The cause of his death is unclear: one theory is that he caught a chill after returning late from the theatre one night and finding that his wife had locked him out; another is that he succumbed to chocolate poisoning; perhaps the most likely is that he died of tuberculosis. Purcell's death was not sudden enough to leave him intestate - the beginning of his will reads:
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The complexity of the relationships found within the vocal parts of Purcell’s anthems provides an additional rationale for why Hopkins may have decided to focus on Purcell and his music in a sonnet about identity. As Hopkins describes and as Purcell’s music illustrates, it is only in comparison with others that the unique nature of the individual can be seen.
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Leaving the BPR, Purcell became California State Highway Engineer on March 1, 1928, knowing that the proposed bridge spanning San Francisco Bay would be one of his responsibilities. Following enactment of the California Toll Bridge Authority Act, Governor C. C. Young and President Herbert Hoover appointed a Bay Bridge Commission to prepare preliminary plans and develop a funding proposal. Purcell, a member of the commission and its secretary, prepared the commission's report. In August 1931, he became the Chief Engineer.
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This group of musicians is ... a subset of the larger group of humanity and the epigraph relates Purcell to this universal humanity. He has "given utterance to the moods of man’s mind . . . uttered in notes the very make and species of man as created both in him and in all men generally" (Hopkins 143). Purcell is inherently a member of the group "man" since he shares a certain "make and species" that marks all men. However, he is distinguished from the group "man" because of his ability to musically represent what is common to all humanity. Hopkins’ epigraph concerning Purcell’s relationship to others exemplifies how an individual is dependent upon others against which he can be defined.
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During these years, Purcell had become skilled in construction of concrete bridges. After leaving his State position, Purcell used his skill in concrete bridge construction on the Columbia River Highway. His 170-foot long concrete arch bridge across Moffett Creek "gained the attention of engineers nationwide."
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Henry Purcell