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The Wakefield Master

The language of his plays suggests that he wrote in the first half of the 15^th century and that he had a thorough religious education.

He contributed five plays to the Wakefield Cycle, which consisted of 32 plays originating about fifty years before his time.

Versification

Nine-line stanzas, unique in medieval literature

The first four lines have identical end and internal rhymes; the fifth line rhymes with the ninth; and the sixth, seventh and eighth line rhyme with each other: aaaabcccb

The first four lines contain four beats; the fifth consists of only one stressed syllable; the sixth of two; the seventh and the eighth have three stresses; and the ninth has two beats: 444412332

Contents

The dialogue of the three shepherds distinguishes them from each other. The first shepherd, Coll, is obsessed by his poverty and outraged by the nobility who exploit him and his fellows; the second shepherd, Gib, is preoccupied by the afflictions of married life; and the third shepherd, Daw, is fed up with his job of tending other’s sheep. They are united by their social plight, their dissatisfaction with the weather, and their mutual friendship. Their combined suffering dramatically presents the image of a world in need of salvation that announces the subsequent birth of the saviour.

A line from the Gospel according to Luke, “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night,” is taken as the background and basis for the plot. The birth staged by the thief, Mak, and There is a sharp contrast of mood and action between the first part of the play, the birth staged by the thief, Mak, and his wife, Gill, and the nativity scene at the end, which is characteristic of the entire Wakefield cycle.

Because of the small cast, short parts, few required locations and few props, the play is relatively easy to stage. It has been widely performed, especially by student groups during the Christmas season.