Anonymous, The Croxton Play of the Sacrament

Claire Sponsler (University of Iowa)
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The Croxton

Play of the Sacrament

is an odd drama that fits no known genres of medieval performance, although it shares the concern with miracles and conversion characteristic of saints' plays and the interest in moral dilemmas typical of moralities. Written in the East Midland dialect of Middle English not long after 1461, the year in which the event that is the central topic of the play is supposed to have taken place, the

Play of the Sacrament

tells the story of a miracle in which a rich Jewish merchant and his companions purchase the consecrated host from a Christian merchant and subject it to a series of tests in order to determine the truth of the Christian claim that Christ is present in it, then are converted once they witness its miraculous powers. This story exists in several…

1629 words

Citation: Sponsler, Claire. "The Croxton Play of the Sacrament". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 March 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=1151, accessed 19 March 2024.]

1151 The Croxton Play of the Sacrament 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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