The morality play is presented here with extensive critical notes on each facing page. A critical introduction precedes the play. It's Everyman and medieval drama; The plot of Everyman; Sources and analogues for Everyman; Religion in Everyman; Interpretive approaches; Language, style and versification; Everyman on the stage; The stage history of Everyman; The early editions of Everyman and editorial policy; and, Notes to the introduction. The book concludes with a list of textual variants.
I was going to cheat with this book: I read the Dover edition of Everyman earlier this year, so I was only going to read the introduction and the notes - I did not feel strong enough for the contemporary spelling (“seueryty = severity”, as an example). But the thorough and wide-ranging introduction and the interesting notes convinced me to tackle the text itself, and it was not all that difficult to read through the code after all. The editors provide a lot of information as framework in which a modern reader can read one of the foundational classics of the Middle Ages.
Everyman, 'n vertaling en verwerking van die Middelnederlandse Elckerlijc, is een van die basiese tekste uit die Middeleeue. Hierdie uitgawe bied 'n omvangryke en deeglike inleiding en fassinerende aantekeninge as raamwerk waarbinne 'n moderne leser die teks (die leesversperring van die spelling van daardie tyd ten spyt!) kan begryp.
Many are the false idols which take reign in the heart of man until... death, that messenger of GOD is sent to summon every man unto GOD and give an account. This is what we have here. Beautiful, a good read to carry around, a teaching to remind you that GOD wants everything about you and HE IS A JEALOUS GOD.