Moral and medical 'prescriptions' in a fifteenth-century Sacrament play

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to investigate the manner in which Christ, perceived as present in the eucharistic host, is portrayed as the Suffering Physician in the “quack doctor” scene in the Croxton Play of the Sacrament. The dramatist’s specific linguistic choices in this scene appear to have been made in an attempt to create images of and associations with the Passion and other perceived forms of healing. The many references to medicinal plants, which are particularly significant in relation to the medieval idea of Christ’s role as the spiritual or moral Physician of humanity are considered in detail.