In this paper I will examine the sources for the tradition of the address of the soul to the body or the dialogue between, the two. I will consider the Old and Middle English poetic expressions of the body-and-soul legend in terms of the criticism of the ten poems which specifically belong to that tradition and the elements which constitute that genre. I will also deal with those poems written at the same time which exhibit one or more of those elements, with the body-and-soul tradition in English morality plays, with the Ars Moriendi, and with the Dance of Death. I will demonstrate that a shift occurs in the consideration of death from a concern for the soul to a preoccupation with the grotesque and gruesome aspects of death. The address and dialogue forms fall into disuse as a vehicle for theological argument concerning the responsibility for sin, and the view of death reflected by the popular pictorial representations of the Dance of Death becomes prominent.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc331895 |
Date | 08 1900 |
Creators | Tuck, Mary Patricia |
Contributors | Rich, Carroll Y., Kirkpatrick, Hugh, Griggs, Silas, Stevens, L. Robert |
Publisher | North Texas State University |
Source Sets | University of North Texas |
Language | English |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
Format | 300 leaves, Text |
Rights | Public, Tuck, Mary Patricia, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. |
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