Patterns & Metaphors

Morality play

Template:
A morality play is a medieval allegorical play, with the principal figures personifying the forces of good and evil, the main hero being mankind. Originally serious and theologically didactic, it later often dealt with pedagogical, political, and other non-theological topics, and sometimes contained comic elements. Although the morality plays necessarily preached Christian morality, they did not necessarily have religious plots. They contained elements of antifeudal criticism and motifs of social satire, and also conveyed the outlines of various human passions by approximating the situations and conflicts of real life.