The secret of the plague of the soul

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The book The Secret of the Soul Plague was written by Jürgen Seidel . It was published by Beltz & Gelberg in 2004 . The novel has 293 pages and is divided into 39 chapters.

Historical background

The novel is set in London in the 16th century , when King Henry VIII ruled . There was still the 3 class order from the Middle Ages . Everything was strictly divided, the nobility and clergy paid no attention to the citizens. Because of this, the relationship between the main characters of the novel Andrew and Margaret was difficult to maintain, as both come from different classes, namely 3rd and 2nd class. The beliefs at the time were very strict, people who disagreed received heavy punishments, not infrequently death.

action

The novel begins with the protagonist Andrew Whisper working in the Bear Garden (animal fighting arena). He later meets with Margaret Morland, with whom he is in love. Raspale, who brought Margaret here, brings them back to town. Margaret later talks to her stepmother and father about Andrew. After a while, another victim of the alleged plague is found. Afterwards Lady Alice and Thomas argue about the atheism commission, which is to investigate the plague of the soul. The next day, Andrew and his friends take a rest from Preceptor Clifford's punishment and chat. After Andrew meets with Margaret, she is escorted home by Aron Boggis, who is behind the murders. Andrew and Gregor watch Aron Boggis the next day.

Thomas Morland was appointed head of the Atheism Commission, which is responsible for investigating the deaths. After interviewing Johann Whispers, Sir Thomas seems increasingly depressed because he feels responsible for his death. After some trouble, Andrew and Margaret met at church, where, to her amazement, Andrew kissed Magaret on the mouth. After the meeting, Aron Boggis took Magaret to Parliament on her father's orders, where Boggis questioned her about her relationship with Andrew. After the incident at the church, Magaret is convinced that Andrew is pregnant. Andrew has been sent to his office by Clifford, where he receives a stone and shares a secret with him. What he doesn't know is that Clifford received an assignment to kill Andrew from Thomas Morland. But when he is attacked, he knocks Clifford down with a stone. After Andrew escapes, he learns of Margaret's engagement and meets with Gregor. In order to free his father, he develops the plan to kidnap Gills.

From this he learns that Johan is already dead, but he doesn't believe him and still writes a ransom note to Thomas, whereupon Margaret visits him in his hiding place. Meanwhile, Charles is said to be another victim of "the selenium plague", but he is able to flee from Aron Boggis. Gregor then intends to kill Aron, but instead becomes a victim himself. Margaret begins to fight back against her father. In the end, Thomas helps Andrew and Margaret find refuge in the Whitefairs Asylum. Aron is arrested and confesses to the murders. And Clifford is no longer allowed to teach either.

people

Person constellation of the novel

Andrew Whisper

Andrew is a student at the New Inn, a law school in London. He can only afford this because he is very clever and has received a scholarship that enables him to stay for free. Usually he couldn't afford this because his father is a drinker and doesn't make any money. Andrew's closest friends are Gregor, Search and Charles. He is also in love with Margaret and plans to marry her later. Even if Margaret's father, the king's under-treasure chancellor, does not approve of it. Andrew often asks questions about God and often discusses the subject with Margaret. To earn a few pennies of pocket money, he works in the arena.

Margaret Morland

Margaret Morland is the daughter of the under-treasure chancellor Sir Thomas Morland. She is a beautiful young girl and the friend of Andrew Whisper, a student at the New Inn in London. She is taught by her father. He also wants to marry her to William Gills, his lawyer. That's why she wants to flee with her friend Andrew. She is very religious, this can be seen from the fact that, when she is locked in by her father, she prays a lot to God. Despite all incidents, she stands by Andrew and turns against her father, which you can see clearly when she defends himself against him.

Sir Thomas Morland

Sir Thomas Morland is tall and has strong, severe features. As a knight and under-treasure chancellor of the king, he is powerful and very influential, but has to work a lot. Morland is known as a cunning fox, but also a coward. At first, Sir Thomas Morland is portrayed as tolerant, but in reality he is intolerant, brutal and violent. In his house, Old Barge, which has a large garden for self-sufficiency, he lives with his second wife, Lady Alice, his children, the house jester and his lawyer, this shows that he is very wealthy. He is against his daughter Magaret and Andrew Whisper's relationship.

Lady Alice Morland

The very important secondary character Lady Alice, who is the contact person for the whole Morland family, is around 40 years old and has a pointed chin, is the stepmother of Margaret and the second wife of Sir Thomas Morland. She is nice and very helpful towards other people, which can be seen from the fact that she does the whole Morland household by herself and is seen almost as the head of the family. As a small child, she had an accident that caused her to lose an eye, so she wears a glass eye . She looks very masculine through her appearance.

Preceptor Clifford

Preceptor Clifford is an important minor in the book. He is a teacher at the "New Inn" and is strict with the students, by whom he is feared and respected. He is a believer but openly expresses his doubts in front of the class. He often asks his students questions of faith or punishes them for no reason. In the course of the novel, his students feel more and more threatened and feel that he has something to do with the "soul plague". Among other things, he tries to lure Andrew into a trap to kill him.

literature

  • Nadja Kummerow: 'The secret of the soul plague' in class. (= Gulliver; reading, understanding, learning. No. 15). Beltz, Weinheim / Basel 2007, ISBN 978-3-407-62572-4 .

Text output