Morality plays

morality plays

morality plays, medieval allegorical plays in which personified human qualities are acted and disputed, mostly coming from the 15th cent. They developed into the interludes, and hence had a considerable influence on the development of Elizabethan drama. They lost popularity with the development of naturalistic drama, but interest in them has revived in the 20th cent., prompted by a new interest in more mannered, pageant-like theatre, such as the Japanese Nōh theatre and the plays of Yeats and Brecht. Among the most celebrated English examples are Everyman; Ane Pleasant Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis by Sir D. Lindsay; Magnyfycence by Skelton; King John by Bale; Mankind; The Castle of Perseverance. See P. Happé ed., Four Morality Plays (1979); G. Wickham ed., English Moral Interludes (1976).

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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "morality plays." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "morality plays." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-moralityplays.html

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "morality plays." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-moralityplays.html

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morality play

morality play form of medieval drama that developed in the late 14th cent. and flourished through the 16th cent. The characters in the morality were personifications of good and evil usually involved in a struggle for a man's soul. The form was generally static, but it contributed significantly to the secularization of European drama. The first known moralities were called the Paternoster plays. The greatest English morality is Everyman . See miracle play .

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"morality play." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"morality play." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-morality.html

"morality play." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-morality.html

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Morality Play

Morality Play, or Morality. A form of drama, popular in the 15th and 16th cents., in which a moral truth or lesson was inculcated by the chief characters personifying various abstract qualities. It developed independently of the Mystery Plays, but at the same time.

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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Morality Play." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Morality Play." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-MoralityPlay.html

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Morality Play." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-MoralityPlay.html

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morality play

mo·ral·i·ty play • n. a kind of drama with personified abstract qualities as the main characters and presenting a lesson about good conduct and character, popular in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

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"morality play." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"morality play." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-moralityplay.html

"morality play." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-moralityplay.html

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morality play

morality play a kind of drama with personified abstract qualities as the main characters and presenting a lesson about good conduct and character, popular in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "morality play." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "morality play." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-moralityplay.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "morality play." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-moralityplay.html

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Morality plays

Morality plays: see THEATRE AND DRAMA.

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JOHN BOWKER. "Morality plays." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN BOWKER. "Morality plays." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Moralityplays.html

JOHN BOWKER. "Morality plays." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Moralityplays.html

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morality play

morality play See mystery play

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"morality play." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"morality play." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-moralityplay.html

"morality play." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-moralityplay.html

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moralities

moralities. See miracle plays.

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MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "moralities." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "moralities." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-moralities.html

MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "moralities." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-moralities.html

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