TSOI sauce

I was reading Fletcher's blog and his November 8th blog (http://fletcher-biblelit.blogspot.com/2009/11/adam-and-eve-relapse.html) reminded me of something that involves lacuna and the filling therein. His discussion of Milton reminded me of the Corpus Cristi Cycle play entitled, "The Sacrifice of Isaac" (TSOI) which is a retelling of the cancelled sacrifice of Isaac, or so I've heard. Similar to Milton, the writers of Liturgical plays engaged their audiences with re-tellings of familiar stories using the beloved characters alongside period archetypes to draw in viewers from the laypeople. Although not as influential as "Paradise Lost", these plays are precursory to Milton's text and illustrate certain similar traits.

In the Brome version of TSOI, God asks a distraught Abraham to sacrifice his son and Abraham agrees but first laments his task. Throughout, he whines and moans until he decides that he isn't going to do it. Ironically, the one who steps in to get Abraham is Isaac himself. Politely asking his father to bash his head in, Isaac becomes an example of a son who demonstrates his fealty to God through his own self sacrifice. A son sacrificed in the name of faith for a foolish, sentimental man (an everyman) for the redemption of his soul. Christ, this seems familiar.

Just as Milton traces the symbolisms of the fall to The Christ in order to draw comparisons between the audience's life and the religious edifice, the Corpus Christi Cycle enacts the most well known stories of the bible, using certain literary modes such as humor and irony and imagery to create often anachronistic portrayals of characters that viewers can relate to.

These plays (as in: medieval plays in general) channel a few archetypes that are used by Milton. For example, In "The Crucifixion of Christ", a group of bumbling soldiers fail to properly crucify Christ, however, through out the play, the soldiers brag about their carpentry prowess, yet, they cannot even hammer a set of nails through their savior. This is meant as humor, and the archetype of the Milas Gloriousis or the braggart soldier has made audiences laugh since the times of the Romans when he was known as Priapus. In Milton's piece, Satan proclaims his will, and though not humorous, the eventual corporeal salvation of man, as proclaimed by the angel Michael, shows that this is indeed a comedy. Satan is a braggart soldier.

Literature is interconnected. Who woulda thought?