Seven Deadly Sins, The

Richard Tarlton (>1588)

Historical Records

Gabriel Harvey, Fovre Letters, and certaine Sonnets ... (1592)

In the third of four letters (1592), Harvey exhausts his abuse of Robert Greene long enough to turn on Nashe, whom he styles Greene's "sworn brother," and to identify Nashe by way of his proxy character, Pierce Penniless. Thinking of Nashe's moralistic caricatures in Pierce Penniless His Supplication to the Devil, Harvey declares it "botched-vp ... according to the stile, and tenour of Tarletons president, his famous play of the seaven Deadly sinnes: which most-dealy, but most liuely playe, I might haue seen in London: and was verie gently inuited thereunto at Oxford, by Tarleton himself, of whome I merrily demaunding, which of the seauen was his owne deadlie sinne, he bluntly aunswered after this manner; By God the sinne of other Gentlemen, Lechery. Oh but that, M. Tarleton, is not your part vpon the stage, you are too-blame, that dissemble with the world & haue one part for your frends pleasure, an other for your owne. I am somewhat of Doctor Pernes religion, quoth he: and abruptlie took his leaue." (EEBO, 29).

The lengthy riposte by 'Nashe in Strange Newes, Of the intercepting certain Letters ... (1592) is excerpted here: "Hang thee, hang thee, thou common coosener of curteous readers, thou grosse shifter for shitten tapsterly iests, haue I imitated Tarltons play of the seauen deadly sinnes in my plot of Pierce Peniless? ... was sinne so vtterly abolished with Tarltons play of the seuen deadly sins, that ther could be nothing said supra of that argument? Canst thou exemplifie vnto mee (thou impotent moate-catching carper) one minnum of the particular deuice of his play that I perloind? ... Is there any further distribution of sins, not shadowed vnder these 7. large spreading branches of iniquity, on which a man may worke, and not tread on Tarletons | heeles? If not, what blemish is it to Pierce Pennilesse to begin where the Stage doth ends, to build vertue a Church on that foundation that the Deuill built his Chappell?" (McKerrow, I, 304-5)

Theatrical Provenance

Harvey said that he thought he had seen the play in London. Since Tarlton was buried on 3 September 1588, the play must have been written by then. Tarlton had a career with Sussex's players before he joined the Queen's company in March 1583. It is possible that The Seven Deadly Sins was written before 1583, but its resonance for Harvey and Nashe in 1592 makes a guess of post-1583 more attractive.

Probable Genre(s)

Moral (Harbage) NB: Harbage assigned this category to Five Plays in One and Three Plays in One, which he thought were customized versions of The Seven Deadly Sins.

Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

None known, unless the playlets of "Envy," "Sloth," and "Lechery" in the Plot of The Second Part of The Seven Deadly Sins represent three-sevenths of the original play.

References to the Play

The Harvey and Nashe exchange more properly goes here than in "Historical Records." However, with these references the only evidence about the play (unless a Plot of three-sevenths of it survives), it was thought appropriate to elevate the Harvey-Nashe exchange to the level of documentary evidence.

Critical Commentary

Fleay
Greg
McMillin

For What It's Worth

For the fullest picture of the argumentative network concerning The Seven Deadly Sins, consult also the entries for the Plot of the Second Part of The Seven Deadly Sins, Three Plays in One, Four Plays in One, Five Plays in One (Queen's, 1585), and Five Plays in One (Admiral's, 1597).

Works Cited

Fleay
Greg
Harvey
McMillin
Nashe

Site created and maintained by Roslyn L. Knutson, Professor Emerita, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; updated 24 March 2012.