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death_n die_v end_n life_n 13,615 5 4.8465 4 true
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A01951 Playes confuted in fiue actions prouing that they are not to be suffred in a Christian common weale, by the waye both the cauils of Thomas Lodge, and the play of playes, written in their defence, and other obiections of players frendes, are truely set downe and directlye aunsweared. By Steph. Gosson, stud. Oxon. Gosson, Stephen, 1554-1624. 1582 (1582) STC 12095; ESTC S105757 41,651 123

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compasse to this key of carnall delight which wee reape by Comedies is very sore maynied and robbed of Souerainetie if delight be●●g●ea●e Next by reason of a contrariety wh●n it exceedes thus Aristotle drawing out a streight line of the office of prudence maketh it consist in giuing good counsell to liue well in which place hee counteth temperance the Nurse exceeding deligh y e corrupter of prudence But Comedyes ma●e our delight exceede for at thē many times wee laugh so extreemely that striuing to bridle our selues wee cannot therfore Plato af●irmeth y e great laughter breedeth a great change y e old prouerbe peraduenture rose of this much laughter is y e cognisāce of a soole wher● such excesse of laughter b●rsteth out y t we cannot holde it ther● is no temperance for the time where no tēperāce is ther is no wiseome nor vse of reasō when we shew our s●lues voide b●th of reason and wisedome what are we then to be thought but fooles Last of all it is a blocke in the way of reason because it locketh vp y e powres of the minde from doing their ●uetie like a kinde of drunkennes maketh vs stagger very vnfit either to speake or to walke as we shoulde in our vocation It wh●ts vs to wantō●cs because it breedeth a hunger thirst after pleasure● For whē the thing which our appetite enioyeth cānot bee receiued all at once but by succession or change we gape after more as hee y e hearing one halfe of a sentence delighteth in that is very desirous to haue the rest So in 〈◊〉 delight beeing moued with varietie of shewes of euentes of musicke the longer we gaze the mo●e we craue yea so forcible they are y t afterwards being but thought vpō they make vs seeke for the like an other time It nourisheth imperfections so long as it settes our heartes vpo● thinges that are transitorie vaine and shall perish in the twinckling of an eye it argueth a corruption in our manners because it is the windowe by which we looke into the secret corners of the soule it is the very line● and lead whereby our disposition is measured to bee roughe or smooth● streight or crooked lawefull or vnlawfull right or wrong How shall wee knowe a man to be good or euill but by the goodnes or naughtines of his will His will appeareth by the ende thereof that is counted the end wherein it resteth and the rest of our will is the delight that wee reape in the thing we holde to be good Thus we pronounce all them to bée vertuous whome we see to delight in the workes of vertue them to be wicked whome we finde to reioyce in the works of wickednes For as that is euill which rebelleth against reason and the lawes of God so is that delight to be iudged euil that is fixed in the same and the man likewise euill that so deliteth Therfore I may well say the delight which springeth of Comedies wherby superiority is giuen to affect●ons and so rebellion raysed against reason the lawes of God are brokē which bid vs come out and departe from the doctrine of the Diuell so marketh the corruption of our maners in our forehe●ddes that euery one that hath iudgmente may poynte it out● But to leaue ouer curi●u●●y to descant vpon this plainesonge of life and delight either by Aquinas or by Aristotle or by Philosophie her self I exhorte you w t Paule to beware lest any man spoyle you through Philosophy● and vaine deceite after the traditions of men and after the iudiments of the worlde and not after Christ. And s●thince we are commanded by the same Apostle as we haue receiued Christ so to walke in him let vs bring the triall of our cause to the touch of Gods worde and examine by that what the life and delight of a Christian ought to be then shall you sée my generall proposition verie strongly confirmed that Plaies are not to bee suffered in a Christian commonweale Paule commandeth the Phillippians to reioyc● in the Lord not for a day nor a wéeke nor a moneth nor a yeare but euer the reason is added that their modesty might bee knowne and why should their modesty be knowne because the Lorde is at hand by whiche Particle the delight of this life is beatē downe Christe giuing vs to vnderstand the danger of these delights wherein wée laugh with the worlde pronounceth a woe vpon them wo bee to you that laugh nowe for ye shall wéepe and lament It behooueth a Christian so to delight and reioyce nowe that he maye reioyce delight at the last daye which ioye is accomplished by this that wee are partakers of the crosse of Christe Howe farre this delight is different from Comedies is easie to bee seene with halfe an eye and if Peets haue no surer gyrthes to their sa●dle thē life and delight it will be no trouble to vnhorse them for a Christian knoweth how to delight in death Large is the groūd I might trauace in this behalfe yet for breuities sake I will passe it ouer and shewe you she life of a Christian as I promised We are taught by Paule that Christ is our life and that our life is layde vpp with Christe in God therefore by the way of comparison as Christ died and after ascended vp to heauen so he persuadeth ●s to dye that is to mortifie this ●lesh with the delights thereof and to seeke after those thinges that are aboue where Christ our life is The end of the death of Christ was that we which liue in this worlde should not liue to our selues but vnto him heere is all prerogatiue taken from vs wee are nowe no longer our owne men for if by the benefite of him wee liue our life must be his and not our own Our life is not his excepte wee crucifie the flesh with the affections and concupiscences of the same wee crucifie not the affections of our flesh when we ●esorte vnto playes to stirre them vpp therefore running to playes wee liue to our selues and not to Christe when we liue to our selues it is no li●e Yet the Authour of the Playe of Playes and Pastimes thinkes hee hath plowed such surrowes on my backe as will neuer bee filled vp againe because Comedis norish delight and delight should neuer be taken frō life This argument cuts like a Ledenhaule knife where as they say in common speach if one poure on stéele with a ladell an other comes and wipes it of with a fether Neuerthelesse heere it maye bee that my friendes of the vniuersityes will accus● me of that ausleryty which was vsed by some of the Godly long agoe who perceiuing men in all thinges naturally to passe the boundes of modesty and beeing desirous to lay some strong kinde of playster to this olde soare allowed men to vse the blessinges of God but for necessities sake prescribing them nothing but that