The Image Of Death In The Play Everyman - Essay Example

The Image Of Death In The Play Everyman Thesis Statement The play Everyman is one of the greatest collections of the medieval plays on morality. Although the work was written by an unknown author, it presents one of the profound ideologies in the contemporary society. Death has been used allegorically by the author. As such, this paper is set to unveil the author’s perception of Death and how death is treated in the play. Outline The Author’s Perception of Death and the Treatment of Death in Everyman.................. 1 Thesis Statement............................................................................................................... 1 Introduction....................................................................................................................... 3 Plot Summary…………………………………………………………………………… 3 The Author’s Perception and Treatment about Death…………………………………… 4 How Themes Reveal the Author’s Perception of Death………………………………… 4 How the Author’s Perception of Death is revealed through Characters’ Attitudes…….. 5 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………. 7 Work Cited........................................................................................................................ 8 Introduction Notably, this play is a medieval morality play that was written by an anonymous person around 1485. From the chronology given, this play is one of the oldest and therefore has a lot of similarities with the Flemish play, Elckerlijk, which was published at the same time. In fact, most of the critics point to the fact that Everyman is a translation of Elckerlijk. This work is referred to as an allegory since much of its traits dig deep into Christianity as people seek for eternity in heaven. The book, therefore, serves an informative function to the ignorant people in society. Such plays as Everyman continue to appear in most works of the contemporary renaissance. The storyline of the play is simple and straightforward. The main protagonist leads a life of pleasure and essentially pays no attention to life after death. Plot Summary This play, Everyman, just like any other player on morality focuses on religious issues through allegorical characters that have unique characteristics. This play concerns Everyman, a very rich person whom we can say has reached his peak. From nowhere, he is called upon by Death to go before God for judgment. He chooses to undertake the journey but the challenge is that he has no strength to go alone. Following this, he asks his friends to accompany him to appear before God. Among those requested are Fellowship, Kindred, Cousin, and Goods. He also asks Good-Deeds who appears too weak to accompany him since he has paid no attention to her in life. However, she advises him to look for Knowledge. He accepts to escort Everyman but leads him to Confession. In turn, Confession leads Everyman to penance. It is through penance that Good-Deeds is strengthened so much that she can now follow Everyman to his ultimate Remembrance. On the journey to God, Everyman wears Contrition seeking for spiritual nourishment, although he continually indicates values of pilgrimage to receiving salvation. The final voyage to reckoning involves Everyman, Good-Deeds, Beauty, Strength, Discretion and Five Wits. Everyman donates his wealth to charity and is advised to receive the sacraments of Communion and Extreme Unction. Along the way, we are told that Knowledge and Five Wits debate about corrupt clergymen. At the final stage near the grave, Everyman is abandoned by all but Knowledge and Good-Deeds. We notice that eventually Everyman is left with Good-Deeds to enter the grave. The Author's Perception and Treatment of Death The writer of this play has worked on the view of Death through themes and the plot of the play. The kind of language used along the way to the Grave by characters in the play reveals a lot about the mission of Death. Attitudes revealed through most of the characters whenever they hear anything to do with Death indicate the author's point of view on Death. In the discussion of the writer's perception of Death, therefore, it will be imperative to consider all factors like attitudes, themes, and the language used in the play. How Themes Reveal the Author’s Perception of Death It is clear in the play that major themes have been availed through the allegory characters that dominate the play. The main lessons in this play are on ethics and religious values about the manner of pleasing God as well as treatment of humanity. Death, therefore, has been used by the author to provide that link between God and human beings. Similarly, death dictates the kind of moral values that people in society should pay close attention to. Research done into this play reveals that the work has been criticized as being a dramatic allusion of the medieval Catholic Church doctrine of “Holy Dying”. In such a case, people should die without any form of sin that apparently the main hindrance to perceiving eternal life. According to the writer of this play, Death dictates that Everyman should avoid any material attachment and in the same way prepare himself for purity, otherwise salvation. On the contrary, a situation in which Knowledge and Five Wits debate on corrupt priest point out the evil deeds entangled within protestant reformation. In addition, Death has been used by the writer to show who true friends are in the earthly life. Along the journey of Everyman to meet God for judgment, all his friends are tested. They fail except Good-Deeds. The loyalty of Good-Deeds is seen in the event Everyman has neglected her to a point of weakening her. However, she finds ways to strengthen herself through advising Everyman to seek help from Knowledge. Death has been perceived as a path towards God’s blessings following Everyman’s good actions on the earthly kingdom. How the Author’s Perception of Death is revealed through Characters’ Attitudes Through the characters’ attitudes, the writer indicates to the reader that Death is destructive and inhuman. This play opens with God complaining that those people on earth are busy looking for their personal luxury at the expense of righteousness. To offer a solution to this conflict, God decides to seek help from Death. This shows that only Death can teach human beings an actual lesson on humanity. Death, therefore, denies human beings pleasure and their material wealth. In the event, Death looks for Everyman and calls him for the ultimate Remembrance. At this time, we realize that Everyman fears Death and attempts to protest that he is not ready and would like to bribe him so that more time is given to Everyman to prepare. As such, the author indicates that Death threatens and no human being is prepared to die at any moment in life. Death is therefore used as a call for preparation to enter the next stage in life: everlasting life. The first person to be requested to accompany Everyman to his last reckoning was Fellowship. This implies those friends that men spend their time with while on earth. In most cases, such people will swear to do anything for their friend. However, at the mention of Death, Fellowship draws back. The writer, therefore, perceives death as a way of separating intimate people in society. Death acts as a barrier to human association and existence. In addition, it is clear that death does not discriminate in the way it treats people. It not only breaks mutual friendship of people, it destroys relatives. This is indicated when Everyman approaches Kindred and Cousin to accompany him to his last reckoning. They too refuse after realizing that it is actually Death who has summoned Everyman to meet God for judgment. The author is in this case sentimental about death. The next level in which the writer reveals the evils of death to human beings is in the manner in which death denies people a chance to enjoy their life hard-work gotten goods. After friends and families desert Everyman, he turns to his Goods to accompany him to God. Still, this is not possible as Goods claim to be so brittle that they cannot undertake any voyage. Death has therefore been utilized by the author to show how material wealth is set to destroy souls than strengthen them. Based on this, Death is viewed as the power to control what people should do. The progress of this play reveals that only Good-Deeds accompanied Everyman to the final remembrance. In this view, death is used to reveal people's deeds on earth particularly when their eulogy is the reader to the bereaved. Death goes beyond all bounds to expose human beings in the virtues and deeds they accomplished while still alive. It can, therefore, be said that the author has mixed views about death but majorly inclined to the negative impacts of the death of human life. Conclusion The play Everyman is a medieval morality play that was written by an anonymous person around 1485. From the chronology given, this play is one of the oldest and therefore has a lot of similarities with the Flemish play, Elckerlijk, which was published at the same time. In fact, most of the critics point to the fact that Everyman is a translation of Elckerlijk. This work is referred to as an allegory since much of its traits dig deep into Christianity as people seek for eternity in heaven. Death has been used allegorically by the author. This paper has looked at the author’s perception of Death and how death is treated in the play. In the event, it has been noted that death is inescapable by all human being and does not discriminate. Death moves into every aspect of individual life to expose human deeds. As such, it serves to link human beings and their creator. Work Cited: Sterling, G., et al. The play of Everyman: based on the old English morality play. Chicago: A. M. Robertson, 1917. Moses, M. Everyman: a morality play. New York: J.F. Taylor, 1903 Rosenberg, J. Parallels: The morality play "Everyman" and selected tales of Nathaniel Hawthorne. London: ProQuest, 2008 Cawley, A. Everyman and medieval miracle plays. New York: Dent, 1970 Potter, R. The English morality play: origins, history, and influence of a dramatic tradition. New York: Routledge, 1975 Read More