MORALITY PLAYS

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MORALITY PLAYS
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Morality Plays

• Only five medieval English morality plays still
  survive
• 1. The Pride of Life (a corrupted Anglo-Irish
  text)
• 2. The Castle of Perseverance
• 3. Wisdom
• 4. Mankind
• 5. Everyman (translated from a Dutch original.)
• Two other plays similar to Morality Plays still
  exist
• Second Sheppard's Play
• Hickscorner
• These are all that are left of an influential
  dramatic genre.
• The understanding of style has been developed
  based upon the influence these plays had on
  surviving literature and art

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Morality Plays

• An attempt to educate via entertainment
• Dominican and Franciscan monks developed the
  morality play
• in the 13th century by adding actors and
  theatrical
• elements to their sermons.
• They hoped the (mainly illiterate) masses
  could more easily
• learn the basics of Christianity through
  dramatic spoken word.
• The plays made complex topics such as original
  sin and
• atonement more easily understood.
• By personifying Vices, Virtues, the Devil and
  the
• Good Angel, stories of temptation were made
  accessible
• to those who were unable to read.

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Morality Plays

• The main theme of the morality play is
• this
• Man begins in innocence
• Man falls into temptation
• Man repents and is saved.
• The central action is the struggle of Man
  against the seven deadly
• sins that are personified into real characters
• It is believed that the allegory of vices and
  virtues fighting
• over Mans soul goes back to the 4th century
  Roman epic,
• The allegorical application of theatre to
  Christianity
• is intended to help the audience understand
  sin and virtue

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Morality Plays

• The three greatest temptations that Man faces
  in morality
• plays are
• The World
• The Flesh
• The Devil
• THE MESSAGE
• Sin is inevitable
• Repentance is always possible
• Morality plays were not holiday-specific
• Performed at any time of the year-
• Repentance occurs at any time of the year.

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Morality Plays

• Characteristics
• A protagonist who represents either humanity as a
  whole or a smaller social structure.
• Supporting characters are personifications of
  good and evil.
• Provides the audience with moral guidance.
• Morality plays encourage men to live a righteous
  life

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Everyman

• The archetypal morality play
• Characters represent broad ideas
• Characters in Everyman are
• God
• Death
• Everyman
• Goods (Riches)
• Good-Deeds
• Angel
• Knowledge
• Beauty
• Discretion
• Strength
• Doctor
• The personified meanings of these characters are
  not hidden

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• PLOT
• God, believing that the people on earth are too
  focused on wealth and worldly possessions, sends
  Death to Everyman to remind him of God's power
  and the importance of upholding values.
• EVERYMAN is a concrete example of a Morality Play
  because of
• The emphasis put on morality
• The vast difference between good and evil
• The strong presence of God
• However, most morality plays focus more on evil,
  while Everyman focuses more on good, highlighting
  sin in contrast.

Everyman