Mystery and Morality Plays · English Literature

What is the primary structural difference between Mystery plays and Morality plays?

  1. Mystery plays are in Latin; Morality plays are in English vernacular
  2. Mystery plays dramatize biblical history; Morality plays use personified abstractions to depict the soul's struggle
  3. Mystery plays were performed inside churches; Morality plays were performed on ships at sea
  4. Mystery plays depict saints' lives; Morality plays depict the lives of medieval kings
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Correct answer: Mystery plays dramatize biblical history; Morality plays use personified abstractions to depict the soul's struggle

Mystery plays (Cycle plays) dramatize salvation history from Creation to Doomsday using scripture. Morality plays are allegories in which personified abstractions such as 'Mercy,' 'Vice,' and 'Everyman' battle for the soul of a representative human figure.

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