The Seven Deadly Sins

The Seven Deadly Sins is a concept found throughout the history of Christianity, often used as title and/or theme in works of art, including drama, film, media and performance.

Not to be confused with the Catholic doctrine of "Mortal Sin"[1]

The Seven Deadly Sins as concept

The so-called "seven deadly sins" (also known as "capital vices", or "cardinal sins") are not explicitly mentioned in the Bible, but refer to a group of vices often found in Christian teaching and mentioned in (or used as a theme in ) in literary and dramatic works. The sins mentioned usually refer to the sins of Pride, Envy, Wrath, Greed, Sloth, Gluttony and Lust.

For more on the origin and nature of the list of Deadly Sins, see the entry on "Seven Deadly Sins" in Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_deadly_sins

The Seven Deadly Sins in theatre, film, media and performance

As a title The Seven Deadly Sins can refer to the a vast number of books and works of art, including a number of dramatic works, films and other performance forms. There are of course also a number of other works using the seven deadly sins as theme, but with another title.

Among the works bearing the title The Seven Deadly Sins are:

The Seven Deadly Sins attributed to Richard Tarlton (c. 1585)

The original text

A two-part play in the tradition of the medieval morality play, written c. 1585 and attributed to Richard Tarlton, whose company, Queen Elizabeth's Men, first performed it.

Sources

Go to ESAT Bibliography

The Seven Deadly Sins (play) in Wikipedia[2]

Go to ESAT Bibliography

The Seven Deadly Sins- Seven One-act Plays by Thornton Wilder

The original text

A series of short works depicting the complexity and consequences of human frailty, comprising the plays The Drunken Sisters (Gluttony), Bernice (Pride), The Wreck on the 5:25 (Sloth), A Ringing of Doorbells (Envy), In Shakespeare and the Bible (Wrath), Someone From Assisi (Lust) and Cement Hands (Avarice).

For performances in South Africa, see the entries on the individual plays.

Sources

https://www.stageplays.com/products/the_seven_deadly_sins/Thornton%20Wilder

The Seven Deadly Sins by Hennie Aucamp and Barry Strydom

The original text

A South African cabaret by Hennie Aucamp and Barry Strydom, originally written in Afrikaans as Die Sewe Doodsondes

See: Die Sewe Doodsondes.

Sources

Playscript [Typescript (photocopy)], CAMPBELL Location: [Collection: DALRO]: 2001. 41. 269 held by NELM.

Database: Amazwi - manuscripts.

Go to ESAT Bibliography

Other dramatic works with this title

In more recent times a number of shorter plays called The Seven Deadly Sins, depicting the seven sins, have also been written by inter alia Ron Vandenburg[3], Simon Denver[4], =

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortal_sin

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