Authors Perception and Treatment of Death in Everyman - Outline Example

Author’s Perception and Treatment of Death in “Everyman”

Thesis

Humans repent out of fear of death as it means the end of life; however; it is God’s doing that cannot be evaded since it is the reality that determines redemption and salvation.

Outline

1.0 Introduction

• Human Perception of Death
• Effects of Death to Humans
• Uncertainty of Death
• Christian Perspective of Death
• Context of the Play “Everyman”

2.0 Summary of the Play “Everyman”

• Context of the Play “Everyman”
• The Characters of the Play
• Synopsis of the Play
• Themes in the Play

3.0 Perception and Treatment of Death

3.1 Death as a Means of Repentance

• Death makes people repent
• Uncertainty and Inevitability of Death
• Vanity of Worldly Wealth
• Death: The Source of Reality

3.2 Death as the End of Life

• Death versus Life

3.3 Death as God’s Messenger

• Death as the Messenger
• Death Obeys God’s Order
• Death Responds to no Man
• Death as an Integral Entity

3.4 Death as a Mandatory Occurrence

• Death Knows No One
• Death Consider No Class
• Death Consider No Deeds

3.5 Death as the Reality

• Death is Real
• Man Faces Death Alone
• Death Shows No Loyalty

3.6 Death as a Way of Redemption and Salvation

• Two Sides of Death
• Death Connects Man to God
• Death: The Means to Rest
• Salvation Due to Death
• Death versus Hope
• Death versus Eternity

4.0 Conclusion

• Understanding death
• Life without Fear of Death
• God in Control of Death
• Death versus Eternity
• Death is Compulsory and Unexpected
• Death as the End of Life on Earth
• Death as the Beginning of Eternal Life

1.0 Introduction

All humans fear death and all efforts have been put in place to postponed it since knowing it is inevitable. Even the mention of death triggers fears in some of the people. Inevitability and uncertainty of death are what makes humans so worried. On the contrary, they love life since it can be planned for since it is something that can be understood. Christians view death from two perspectives. First, they believe that upon the death of an individual, he or she goes to hell or heaven depending with his or her salvation. However, the denomination under Christianity describes the concept after death differently despite agreeing that death is the outcome of sin and hell is where the sinners go upon dying. They also agree that Jesus is the savior and redeemer of the human beings. Christians argue that adhering to God's standards among the Christians is the only way to ensure eternal life. They perceive the eternal life to be better compared to the one experienced on earth. The play “Everyman” is a Christian perspective of death (Halsall). The author of the play depicts death to be God’s doing and a phenomenon through which people can reconsiders how they spend their lives and repent as they wait for eternal life (Freeman 397).

2.0 Summary of the Play “Everyman”

The context of the play “Everyman” was based on the point of view of the Roman Catholics. It was written in the 15th century. The main character of the play is Everyman, which stands as a symbol of all humanity in the world. Other characters in the play are God, Death, Messenger, Fellowship, Kindred, Cousin, and Kindred (Halsall). The characters have been represented through different vices and virtues to pass the information to the audience. At the beginning of the play, God sends death as the messenger to Earth. The play portrays God to be merciful and patient. It shows how people enjoy sinning due to the Earthly pleasure that comes with it. The pleasure has made the people neglect and abandon their God. The play goes ahead to depict the some of the useless things that humans decide to engage in at the expense of salvation (Van Laan 465). It highlights the suffering that humans go through in their attempt to accumulate the worldly wealth which ends up being vanity as they lead them nowhere. Human has to die at long last, and during their death, they carry nothing with them to paradise or hell. The major themes covered in the play include salvation, death, Christianity, and Redemption.

3.0 Perception and Treatment of Death

3.1 Death as a Means of Repentance

Death is the reason to why people repent and change. The conviction and repentance are out of fear of death. Humans just mourn and become sorrowful when they hear death without which they are proud and arrogant. For instance, when Death questions if Everyman has forgotten God, Everyone asks “Who wants to know?” (Halsall) Everyone later regrets and repents to God when he learns that he will have to face death. Everyman calls the Earthly pleasure to be false traitors and hopes that only deceives. He regrets of his life and blames himself having to spend his eternal life in hell. Everyman later sees Good Deeds as the only action of relief he has.

3.2 Death as the End of Life

Death means the end of humans' life. It is a fresh start in another life: hell or paradise. Humans have to forget all upon dying including relatives, talents, and accumulated wealth (Halsall). Not even the human senses are important when it comes to life after death. Death makes people understand that not even talents and skills are important. None of those things can be used to evade death (Fulton 120). Discretion, beauty, and strength are some of the personal attributes valued most on Earth; however, they cannot stop death.

3.3 Death as God’s Messenger

The author considers death to be an action of God. It, therefore, has to do God’s will be it bad or good. The characteristics explain why death is unpredictable, and man always cries: "Oh Death, you've come when I least expected you." (Halsall) No man can persuade death through bribes to change its course since it respects no Earthly wealth. Even though humans fear death, the one in control is God.

3.4 Death as a Mandatory Occurrence

The author considers death to be something that must be experienced by all humans despite their social status. No matter how comfortable one is on Earth, he or she must face death no matter his or her deeds (Fulton 119). For instance, when Everyman talks to his cousin and kindred, they say they are not able to help him but will see him in future (Halsall). The two know that they will have to face death too at some point in time.

3.5 Death as the Reality

Death is the only way that reality can be tested. It can help determine the best friend. For instance, when Death dares Everyman to look for anyone willing to accompany him in the presence of God, all of them turned him down. Even though the friends gave different promises, Everyone knew that they were lying (Halsall). Everyman also that time heals all. In explanation, with time, even the five senses will leave the human body so that it can face life on itself. Nothing matters upon one coming to the end of his life. All the strength and beauty has to vanish at that point. The insignificance and triviality of life and all that associated with it is only realized through death. Even though people will continue talking to people with good deeds and even call the person a heroine or hero, all those will pass by time. The author considers death to be an eye-opener (Paulson 121). The author's argument is that all is vanity just as Solomon puts it in the book of Ecclesiastes. He argues that the only thing that human beings can rely on is God and his Grace. He is the one who created human beings and had the power to determine their fate.

3.6 Death as a Way of Redemption and Salvation

Even though death might be considered negative humans, it is not since it leads to salvation. According to the author, death is a shift from the earthly life to the next one upon those who believes in Christ (Goldhamer 87). Humans of good deeds will enjoy an eternal life with God. At this point, the author does not condemn death but points at it as a positive thing. He considers it the way that people are relieved from suffering, pain, and sins. Out of death, people have faced redemption and salvation. The author argues that the death of Jesus Christ made people receive salvation (Halsall). The death of Jesus is a sign of hope humans.

4.0 Conclusion

The author of "Everyman" depicts death in a way that can be easily understood. It shows how people can conquer their fear of death. The idea is realized in the argument that God controls death and uses it as the messenger. The play is a clear description of the faith and hope that the Christians believe. It goes further to describe the eternal life as believed by Christians and what it entails and as a result call for humans to repent and live as per the commandments of God. The author depicts death as the only thing that human fear most. He further clarifies that death can mean a bad and good thing as per punishment and salvation respectively. All humans have to face death despite their social status and deeds. However, the deeds will determine where humans go to upon facing death: hell or paradise. Through death, salvation is gained, and eternal life enjoyed.