Everymany Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Everymany - Research Paper Example It focuses on the efforts of the central character simply named Everyman to achieve salvation, thereby bringing into focus how there is a clear relationship between the life one lives and the life after death. Also referred to as the The Somonyng of Everyman or The Summoning of Everyman, the play’s focal point is on the event of death because death was a common event in the period in which the play was written. Death happened due to sizable number of natural as well as man-made causes. â€Å"The topic of "man summoned by death" was commonplace during the fifteenth century. Frequent warfare, bubonic and pneumonic plague, starvation, and crime made death a frequent and often public experience.† (â€Å"Everyman (after 1485)†). In the play, it is implied that when death happens, the journey of human life does not ends, instead the good as well as the evil deeds committed by an individual during his/her lifetime will be tallied by the superior being after death in the form of a ledger book. Thus, in a way, the play tries to show the people that although every one irrespective of gender, age, status, etc, has to meet death; it is far more important how he/she should live their lives. Thus, the anonymous author perceives death in a different perspective and so this paper will discuss the author’s perception of death and the treatment of death in Everyman The play, Everyman starts off with a prologue, with a messenger asking the audience to make their presence felt in the action that is going to unfold. After this initiation, the God starts to speak lamenting that humans all over the world are not focusing on the key virtues of life, and instead have become too focused on accumulating the material wealth and just enjoy the spoils. As the humans’ concentration was mainly on material riches, the God feels that the humans have taken him for granted. He further strongly condemns that the humans are showing no appreciation for all the good things that he have been bestowing on them. â€Å"Of ghostly sight the people be so blind, Drowned in sin, they know me not for their God; In worldly riches is all their mind, They fear not my rightwiseness, the sharp rod...† (Anonymous 184). So, as a form of teaching the humans a lesson, the God orders his messenger, Death to approach Everyman and inform him about his death and summon him to heaven. Here Everyman represents all the humans or entire mankind. That is, author gave the character the name of Everyman to represent all the humans who have taken the negative path of material wealth. On the other hand, Death is portrayed as a fully developed human creature, who begins the chain of events in the play. (Spinrad 69). The messenger, Death approaches