Growth of English Drama: Miracles, Mysteries, Moralities, Study notes of English

Download Growth of English Drama: Miracles, Mysteries, Moralities and more Study notes English in PDF only on Docsity! Growth of English Drama: Miracles, Mysteries, Moralities Sibaprasad Dutta =================================================== Nearly a century after Chaucer was fallow in literary activity. Not that literary exercises were not undertaken, but be it in prose or in poetry, literary activities were dull. The period began with wars, unrest, and chaos but ended with a settled dynasty, a reformed religion and a people united and progressive. The Renaissance that sprouted in Europe was yet to sway England, but in a word, in the perspective of the great Elizabethan age that followed, the period may be called an age of preparation. The remarkable literary activity was the germination of English drama. Prior to this age, some so-called dramatic activities were evident on the occasions of festivities. They aimed at providing amusement and fun, and dwelt mainly on the exploits of heroes like Robinhood and St. George. The growth of drama owes its origin to the church. By the 14th century ? England witnessed the evolution of ‘cycles of plays’ covering the history of the world from the Creation to the Day of Judgment based on the materials like legends and the lives of the saints. The plays having reference to the Bible were called Mystery Plays while those dealing with the lives of the saints were known as Miracle Plays. Basically they were given in Latin by the clergymen, and only the minor clerics and laymen who took part as side-actors spoke in English. Slowly, drama as a religious presentation stepped out of the hold of the church and was nourished by the commoners. The plays, as they contained interpolations and non-religious elements, were banned on the church campuses, and by 1210 the clergymen were prohibited from taking part in the plays, now mostly secular. Thus gradually, the control of dramatic activity passed on from the clergy to the religious and social guilds to the trade guilds. There was a rivalry among the wealthy guilds, and this led to better productions. The early Miracle Plays of England were divided into two classes. The first presented at Christmas were connected with the birth of Christ, and the second class presented at Easter included plays related to his death and triumph. The complete cycle was presented every spring on Corpus Christi Day. The festival was enjoyed by the public heartily, and they waited the whole year for the day. The cycles later on produced by the guilds were mainly four – Chester and York plays named after the towns of Chester and York, the Towneley or Wakefield plays named after the Towneley family, the Coventry plays associated with the Grey Friars (Franciscans) of Coventry. The Chester cycle has 25 plays, the Wakefield 30, the Coventry 42 and the York 48. Among them, the York plays are considered to be the best while the Wakefield cycle is marked by greater humour and variety and maturer workmanship. On Corpus Christi Day, the plays began at 4-30 a.m. and went on till sunset. The theatres set on wheels and having a frame of two storeys were movable and held in the squares and open places. The upper storey was the stage while the lower storey was the dressing room. Although the plays were religious in tone, there was hardly one without humorous element. This is seen, for example, in the play of Noah in which Noah’s wife has a brawl with her husband. The Devil is a favourite character, and he often left the stage to play pranks on or frighten the children. Songs were there, and often the audience would join in the chorus. The Three Maries and Shepherd’s Play are the notable ones among this group. The Morality Plays were a step ahead. In these plays, Life, Death, Repentance, Goodness, Love, Justice, Mercy, Gluttony and Vice were the main characters. Being allegorical, they were very interesting, and featuring broad farcical elements , they gave free scope to the imagination for new plots. The Morality Plays still contained the character of the Devil of the Miracle Plays, and the role of Vice was to torment the Virtue by mischievous pranks. His chief duty was to tease the Devil by beating him with a bladder or a wooden sword at every opportunity. The Morality Plays generally ended with the triumph of Virtue, and the Devil was driven to the hell-mouth, vice on his back. EVERYMAN is the best known Morality play, and this has been revived recently in England and America. Like the Miracle plays, most of the old Moralities are of unknown dates and origin. The known authors are John Skelton who wrote Magnificence and The Necromancer. Another author is Sir David Lyndsay (1490 – 1555) whose purpose was to make the rulers uncomfortable by telling them unpleasant truths in verse. Thus satire enters into English drama, and is used as an instrument of correcting abuses. Besides EVERYMAN other well-known Moralities are Pride of Life, Hyckes-corner and Castell of Perseverance. The Interludes were dramatic scenes which were often presented at banquets and entertainment parties where a little fun was wanted. But later on, they were introduced into a Miracle play to enrapture the audience after a serious scene. The quarrel between Noah and his shrewish wife is considered a late addition in the tradition of Interlude. The Interludes originated undoubtedly out of a motive to supply humour, and John Haywood (1497-1580), a jester at the court of Mary, is given the