Plays · Theme
Humility and Intellectual Vocation
How Plays develops Humility and Intellectual Vocation.
The author's prefaces and epistles emphasize her own humility as a woman and a scholar, while defending her right to write and learn, weaving 'threads and scraps torn from the old mantle of philosophy' into her work for God's glory.
Where it surfaces
- Dedication
Roswitha repeatedly emphasizes her own ignorance and unworthiness, framing her writing as an act of obedience rather than ambition.
- Preface to the Plays of Hrotswitha, German Religious and Virgin of the Saxon Race
She humbly acknowledges her talent is inferior to ancient scholars, yet dedicates her work to God, balancing intellectual ambition with Christian humility.
- Epistle of the Same to the Learned Patrons of This Book
Hrotswitha repeatedly emphasizes her humility, calling herself a 'poor humble sinner' and an 'obscure woman,' while also asserting her God-given ability to learn and write.
- Scene I
Ephrem counsels Abraham to teach Mary to despise temporal things and fix her mind on heaven, reflecting the monastic ideal of humble devotion.
- Scene II
Mary's humble acceptance of instruction and the plan for her education in the psalter and divine law highlight the value of learning in a religious context.
- Scene III
Abraham's willingness to humble himself by adopting a worldly disguise and relaxing monastic rules for the sake of saving a soul exemplifies humble service.
- Scene I
Paphnutius defends the pursuit of knowledge as a means to praise God, while warning against pride, and humbly calls himself an ignorant man.
- Scene IX
Paphnutius humbly acknowledges his own inability to know God's will and turns to a brother for guidance, reflecting intellectual humility.
- Scene III
Sapientia uses arithmetic to demonstrate divine wisdom, turning a question about ages into a theological lesson.