Analysis Of Hrotsvit Of Gandersheham

“It is only right that the filth of her sinful delight/ be purged by the bitter severity of her plight” (Hrotsvit of Gandersheim 135). In this one sentence, the play of Abraham can be summed up perfectly. A young woman, Mary, pledges herself to the Lord and guidance of Abraham and Effrem, defies all three by committing a sin and loses her virginity. Due to the detour from her required path, Mary becomes a lost soul, a woman who will be damned for eternity for falling into the devil’s web of temptation. Since she left the protection of Abraham and Effrem, she faces unfavorable consequences. The only way in which her soul is redeemed is by Abraham’s effort to rescue her from herself because Mary is now damaged. In Katharina M. Wilson’s translation of Hrotsvit of Gandersheim’s Abraham, middle diction, internal rhyme, and allegory are used to demonstrate how, without the

Since the literature reads as a play, the conversations between Abraham and Effrem are very formal instead of informal, which means the vocabulary is not geared towards average reader. Instead, Hrotsvit of Gandersheim writes the play in a way that is meant for a more educated audience by incorporating complex vocabulary which shows off their intelligence. For example, during Act III Scene I, Abraham is speaking with Effrem regarding Mary’s sin, he says, “For after she has punished herself with these laments, defeated by the immenseness of her grief, she was carried headlong, into the lap of desperation” (127). Typically, a conversation pertaining to such an issue would not be discussed using words such as ‘immenseness,’ ‘laments,’ or ‘headlong.’ Since middle diction is used, it serves a purpose, to show how the men are more knowledgeable in religion and temptations from the devil. Therefore, they are not easily persuaded to commit sin unlike Mary who is inexperienced and