In the Chester cycle of medieval mystery plays, a character called the Expositor appears periodically to comment on events which have been depicted onstage. Because this character does not appear in other extant cycles, one should ask how his presence affects the Chester plays. My dissertation investigates this character's dramatic and interpretive function, arguing that he serves as chorus, preacher, and narrator and thus sheds light on the ways in which medieval audiences interpreted dramatic performances My introduction shows that, while critics have traditionally focused on either the religious or the dramatic aspects of the cycle, the Expositor shows us how the two intersect. Chapter Two analyzes this character's dramatic function through a close reading of his speeches and an examination of evidence for the staging of the plays. As a character who serves a structural function and provides additional information not depicted on stage, the Expositor resembles similar figures in other cycle and non-cycle plays. Chapter Three compares the Expositor to these other choric figures Few other characters have the interpretive duties that the Expositor has, however, and he thus speaks not only as a dramatic character, but also as a preacher. Chapter Four considers him in the context of homiletic theory c. 1350-1550. Like a preacher, the Expositor serves as objective point of view, moral voice, and spiritual guide. However, while the figure of the preacher would have been generally familiar to the reviser who added the Expositor to the cycle, it is also possible to identify a more specific model for him: the narrator in the Stanzaic Life of Christ. Chapter Five demonstrates correspondences between the Chester cycle and this text Chapter Six draws out the theoretical implications of the previous chapters. Though scholars have claimed that there was no dramatic theory in the Middle Ages, one can be extrapolated from characters such as the Expositor. Because the Expositor is modeled on both dramatic and non-dramatic figures, he has functions in common with both, and thus he illuminates the complexities of theatrical performance in the Middle Ages / acase@tulane.edu
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TULANE/oai:http://digitallibrary.tulane.edu/:tulane_23710 |
| Date | January 1998 |
| Contributors | Tanner, Martha Alison (Author), Kuczynski, Michael P (Thesis advisor) |
| Publisher | Tulane University |
| Source Sets | Tulane University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | Access requires a license to the Dissertations and Theses (ProQuest) database., Copyright is in accordance with U.S. Copyright law |
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