The play begins with God looking down from his heavens on Everyman. He sends Death with a message for Everyman asking him to prepare an account of how his life on earth has been spent.

Everyman, understandably, does not wish to leave life on earth. He says that he is not ready and first offers Death money to spare him. When he refuses, Everyman looks for someone to accompany him.

Good Deeds and Knowledge, who advise him also to take Discretion, Strength and Beauty and, as

counsellors, his Five Senses, all accompany him to the grave. Everyman receives the Last Sacrament and sets out on his journey with these companions. But when he actually reaches the grave, Beauty leaves him, followed by Strength and the others. Only Knowledge and Good Deeds remain by his side. Good Deeds accompanies him to the heavenly realm to plead his cause before his Maker, and Knowledge, remaining behind, hears the joyful songs of the angels.

Everyman is an allegorical religious drama, perhaps of Dutch origin, which derives from oral tradition and dates from around the end of the 15th century. In Everyman the characters represent universal ideas and qualities. Everyman (a symbol of humanity in general) is called by Death to appear before God and asks for the support of his ‘friends’. All have allegorical names and are personifications of various virtues and aspects of human life, including Fellowship, Beauty, Goods and Good Deeds. Yet although Everyman is supposed to represent humanity in general, his situation is that of a particular class of people. He is a city dweller whose life seems to revolve around worldly pursuits such as making money and having a good time. As a morality tale, the play revolves around the Biblical notion that ‘all is vanity’, that we cannot take any of life’s comforts with us when we die. Within the Christian framework of the play, only our Good Deeds can save us from perdition.

In the following extract we see Everyman trying to convince his Worldly Goods (material possessions and money) to accompany him on his last journey. (see pdf file)