EVERYMAN

The play tells the story of Everyman, a wealthy and successful man who is suddenly called upon by Death to make a reckoning of his life. Everyman is forced to confront the fact that he has lived a life of sin and must now face judgment for his actions. Throughout the play everyman tries to find someone to back him and tell good about the good thing that he has done. However, even his family, although they love him, do not see him worthy of redemption. Because of this he is punished by death. The only thing that backed him was good deeds, and even they were too little, therefor too weak to help him.

This play tries to explain and teach people about the concept of death and the fate of the human soul.

As one might expect from a morality play, "Everyman" has a very clear moral, one that is delivered at the beginning, middle, and end of the play. The blatantly religious message is simple: Earthly comforts are fleeting. Only good deeds and God's grace can provide salvation.

The main characters in Everyman include Everyman, Fellowship, Cousin, Kindred, Goods, Good-Deeds, Knowledge, Beauty, Strength, Discretion, the Five-Wits, God, and Death. Everyman is an allegorical figure who represents all of humanity.

Genre: a morality play. The "moralities" were a fairly rich, late medieval genre which were encouraged by the church and civil authorities because they taught social and moral values through amusing dramatic actions.

Why is Everyman relevant, today?

The play Everyman may have been written many years ago, but its lessons are still relevant today. Generally, the facts of death are very traumatizing and in fact unthinkable. This leads the modern day Everyman to ignore its significance, dying without acknowledging or reflecting on their lives here on earth.