Parnassus plays
The Parnassus plays emerged between 1598 and 1602 as three satiric comedies performed by students at St John's College in Cambridge. These full-length academic dramas were staged during Christmas festivities for an audience of fellow students. No one knows who wrote them, yet the works offer a rare glimpse into university life during the Elizabethan era. The first play, The Pilgrimage to Parnassus, was certainly intended to stand alone but gained enough favor to inspire sequels. Performances took place over several years, with the final piece likely written no later than 1601. Queen Elizabeth I died in March 1603, which helps date the trilogy’s completion. The plays reflect a growing anxiety among scholars about their future prospects after graduation. Francis Bacon noted that universities produced more educated men than there were jobs available. This employment crisis shaped the themes and tone of the entire trilogy.
Philomusus and Studioso begin their journey on Mount Parnassus, representing the traditional trivium of grammar, logic, and rhetoric. They travel through lands named Logique, Dialectica, and Rhetorique while encountering figures like Madido, a drunkard who believes inspiration comes only from drink. A puritan named Stupido has given up his studies ten years prior and now pursues trivial matters. Amoretto, a lover, tempts them to linger in Poetry and dally with wenches instead of continuing onward. Ingenioso warns them that poverty awaits at Mount Parnassus before they finally reach its foothills. In the second play, the allegory drops away as Philomusus becomes a sexton and Studioso works as a household servant or farmhand. Both characters struggle to find meaningful work despite their education. Luxurio joins them in London but soon abandons poetry entirely to become a beggar. Their descent into hardship illustrates how little value society placed on scholarly training during this period. The two protagonists eventually decide to wander off together in poverty after losing all their positions.
The plays critique the plight of educated graduates facing severe employment shortages in late sixteenth-century England. Thomas Nashe and Christopher Marlowe were among the University Wits who turned to theater because few other options existed for men with advanced degrees. These scholars often found themselves unable to take up humble trades traditionally held by their fathers. The trilogy highlights fears shared by ambitious young dreamers about what comes next after college. Ingenioso appears as a satirist who criticizes contemporary writers including Edmund Spenser, Henry Constable, Michael Drayton, John Davies, John Marston, Ben Jonson, Shakespeare, and Thomas Nashe. Nashe is referred to as dead in the third play, suggesting his death occurred around 1601. The character Gullio mocks those who worship Shakespeare while also embodying traits of real literary figures like Gabriel Harvey. Scholars have speculated that Ingenioso may represent Nashe himself, though this was not originally intended. The author clearly knew Nashe’s works well since all three parts contain numerous reminiscences of them. This satire reflects broader tensions between university-educated writers and non-university playwrights.
William Shakespeare is mentioned explicitly by name in the last two plays and quoted at least ninety-five times across the trilogy. His works are mocked or satirized throughout, especially when he becomes successful and famous. A passage from The Return from Parnassus; Or the Scourge of Simony features Will Kempe and Richard Burbage judging scholars’ acting abilities. Kempe claims that university men smell too much of Ovid and Metamorphoses while talking excessively about Proserpina and Jupiter. He declares that their fellow Shakespeare puts everyone else down along with Ben Jonson. This ironic commentary suggests the author holds up illiterate fools as authorities on drama to mock academic pretensions. Philomusus auditions using lines from Richard III: Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of York. Judicio comments on Shakespeare’s early poems but implies he wastes talent writing love poetry instead of graver subjects. Gullio worships sweet Mr Shakespeare and plans to hang his picture in his study at court. Such devotion hints that young scholars admired both Shakespeare’s writing and his person despite public criticism. The play extends a war of words between university-educated writers like Nashe and Robert Greene versus those outside that circle.
Universities transitioned from Catholic institutions into Reformed ones during Elizabethan England while teaching scholarly debate and philosophy supporting the state. Students faced constant observation by college authorities who sat above and to the side of wooden theater stages designed for monitoring reactions. Puritan-minded individuals objected to student performances suspecting they were remnants of Catholic rites. One observer claimed the devil used plays under cover of recreation or learning to join Gentiles in corruption. The Privy Council funded certain performances yet also responded to pressure when plays became too controversial. A notorious satire titled The Isle of Dogs written by Nashe and Ben Jonson led to demands that London playhouses be torn down after being deemed slanderous. In Cambridge, students could occasionally break the fourth wall to mock professors seated above them. This allowed observation itself to become a theme within the performance. Hamlet was performed at Cambridge around the same time featuring scenes with former and current university students existing under similar climates of spying. These parallels highlight how political tension shaped both dramatic forms simultaneously.
The third play entered the Stationers' Register in 1605 by Owen Gwyn before being published twice in 1606 four years after its original performance. Many textual variations existed between these two editions though only this part saw print initially. For many years the first two plays remained considered lost until W.D. Macray discovered them in 1886 while researching manuscripts collected by Thomas Hearne at Oxford’s Bodleian Library. Macray edited and published all three plays together immediately upon finding them. Handwritten copies consist of twenty folio leaves written imperfectly possibly due to copyist difficulties reading originals. Another manuscript exists housed in the Folger Shakespeare Library bound in parchment as a small quarto volume contemporary with early performances. Study of James Halliwell-Phillipps’ handwritten version helped correct errors found in earlier printed editions. A rehearsed reading took place on the 6th of December 2009 at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre featuring David Oakes as Ingenious and Kevin Quarmby as Burbage. Modern scholarship continues examining these documents to better understand their historical significance today.
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Common questions
When were the Parnassus plays written and performed?
The Parnassus plays emerged between 1598 and 1602 as three satiric comedies performed by students at St John's College in Cambridge. The final piece was likely written no later than 1601, which aligns with Queen Elizabeth I dying in March 1603 to date the trilogy's completion.
Who wrote the Parnassus plays and what is known about their identity?
No one knows who wrote the Parnassus plays yet scholars have speculated that Ingenioso may represent Thomas Nashe himself though this was not originally intended. The author clearly knew Nashe's works well since all three parts contain numerous reminiscences of them and Francis Bacon noted universities produced more educated men than there were jobs available.
What characters appear in the Parnassus plays and what do they symbolize?
Philomusus and Studioso begin their journey on Mount Parnassus representing the traditional trivium of grammar logic and rhetoric while encountering figures like Madido a drunkard and Stupido a puritan. Amoretto tempts them to linger in Poetry and dally with wenches instead of continuing onward while Ingenioso warns them that poverty awaits at Mount Parnassus before they finally reach its foothills.
How does the Parnassus plays critique employment for graduates in late sixteenth-century England?
The plays critique the plight of educated graduates facing severe employment shortages in late sixteenth-century England where Thomas Nashe and Christopher Marlowe turned to theater because few other options existed. These scholars often found themselves unable to take up humble trades traditionally held by their fathers and struggled to find meaningful work despite their education as illustrated when Luxurio joins them in London but soon abandons poetry entirely to become a beggar.
When was the third play published and how were the first two plays discovered?
The third play entered the Stationers Register in 1605 by Owen Gwyn before being published twice in 1606 four years after its original performance. For many years the first two plays remained considered lost until W.D. Macray discovered them in 1886 while researching manuscripts collected by Thomas Hearne at Oxford's Bodleian Library.