# Cecilia — Marius the Epicurean character guide

> Cecilia in Marius the Epicurean by Walter Pater.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0025-part-iv-ii-the-church-in-cecilia-s-house

## Snapshot

A noble Christian widow whose household of children and charity draws Marius toward a faith whose warmth he can feel but not yet fully enter.

## Who they are

Cecilia presides over a community where children cling to her instinctively, where the dead are mourned with exultation, and where a rule against second marriages keeps earthly and heavenly love carefully apart. Marius is drawn to her as to the sister he never had, yet his old policy of fleeing any affection that might disturb his quiet work of living pulls him back. Her household, with its strange joy and its buried children, becomes the most serious rival to every philosophy he has tried.

## In the story

### [The Ceremony of the Dart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iii-xviii-the-ceremony-of-the-dart)

Cecilia is not directly mentioned in this chapter.

### [Guests](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-i-guests)

Not directly mentioned in this chapter, but referenced indirectly through the context of the Cecilian villa; no direct appearance.

### [Two Curious Houses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-xxi-two-curious-houses)

The Catacombs belong to the Cecilii, and Cecilia is implied as the wealthy Roman matron whose piety established the Christian society there.

### [II: The Church in Cecilia’s House](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-ii-the-church-in-cecilia-s-house)

Cecilia is the wealthy Roman matron whose piety established the Christian community and the catacombs, though she does not appear directly in this chapter.

### [XXII: "The Minor Peace of the Church"](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-xxii-the-minor-peace-of-the-church)

Cecilia is the host of the Christian household Marius visits, moving among the lilies with enhanced grace, embodying the new spirit of the church.

### [Divine Service](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-xxiii-divine-service)

The Cecilian villa is the setting for the Christian service, and its Lararium has been transformed into a place of worship.

### [The Martyrs](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-xxvi-the-martyrs)

Hosts Marius, oversees the burial of a child, and embodies maternal affection and Christian piety.

### [XXVIII: Anima Naturaliter Christiana](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/chapters/part-iv-xxviii-anima-naturaliter-christiana)

Cecilia is mentioned as the intended wife of Cornelius, motivating Marius's desire to ensure Cornelius's safety.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/characters/cecilia
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/marius_the_epicurean_se/characters