THE BISHOP'S CANDLESTICKS

by Norman Mckinnell

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Norman Mckinnell (1870-1932) was an actor and a dramatist, As a playwright he is known for the play, 'The Bishop's Candlesticks‘.

CHARACTERS

1. The Bishop2. The Convict

3. Persome, the Bishop's sister4. Marie

5. Sergeant of Gendarmes

MESSAGE TO READERS

The play ‘The Bishop's Candlesticks’ conveys a number of messages to the readers. It explains that empathy is one of the most important features that a man should possess. Everybody should be given a second chance just like the Bishop gave the convict a chance to improve his life. The play also exemplifies the power of love, kindness and benevolence in transforming a person. We should always hate the sin and not the sinner. Optimism is the key to better relationships and a well developed society.

SUMMARY

THE HUMBLE KITCHEN OF THE BISHOP

The scene opens to show the kitchen of the Bishop. It is very simple and humble, yet substantial. On the mantel piece, we can see two very good candlesticks, which seem oddly out of place in that kitchen. Persome, the Bishop’s sister, is laying the cloth on the table, while Marie, the maid, is stirring some soup. Persome scolds Marie because she has not tended the fire properly and the soup is not ready yet.

PERSOME IS WORRIED FOR HER BROTHER

It is eleven at night and Persome is worried for her brother who has not returned yet. She enquires with the maid, who tells her that the Bishop has gone to visit her mother who is sick. Persome scolds her for troubling the Bishop in this manner. Persome is further angered when she comes to know that her brother sold the silver salt-cellars to pay the rent of a poor old lady. Persome wonders what would happen to her brother because all his savings are gone and his estate is sold.

THE KIND-HEARTED BISHOP RETURNS As Persome rebukes the maid and sends her off

to wash her hands, the Bishop enters and is happy to be in the warm comfort of his home. He orders the maid to go home as it is already late and offers his comforter because it is cold outside. Persome is angry with her brother but still she makes him sit and have the soup. She criticizes her brother for being too kind to everyone and warns him that one day everything will be sold off for the sake of the people who lie to him about their poverty.

PERSOME'S EXTRAORDINARY LOVE FOR HER BROTHER

Although Persome disapproves of her brother’s kindness, yet she loves him so much that she is willing to excuse him. She makes him sit at the table and finish his soup and while going to bed tells him to bless her. She also makes him promise that he will not stay up late and tire his eyes. The Bishop blesses her and after she leaves, settles down to read.

A CONVICT ENTERS THE BISHOP’S HOUSE

The Bishop is reading a book when a convict comes behind him and asks for food. He warns the Bishop that if he talks he will be dead. Before going to bed Persome had locked the cupboard, so the Bishop wants to call her but the convict is not willing to believe him. He thinks the Bishop would hand him over to the police. Later, maybe due to hunger, the convict is forced to trust him. The Bishop calls his sister and tells her to unlock the cupboard so that he can give some food to a traveler.

THE CONVICT TELLS HIS STORY

The convict threatens to kill them both if they make a sound and hungrily eats the food. The wine that he is drinking is affecting him a little and he starts talking about himself. He informs the Bishop that he has escaped from prison and talks about how he was arrested. He had a farm and a home, but his wife became sick. That yea, he had no money and no food so he stole to buy food. Alas, he was arrested. He was sentenced to ten years prison the same night his wife died.

The Bishop’s compassion makes him talk moreThe convict starts talking about his prison life. He was beaten and tortured, which turned him into a devil. He became a beast and one day, as soon as he got a chance, he escaped. But that too was like living in hell because he had no money, no passport and no food. To survive, he started stealing again.

THE CONVICT STEALS AGAIN

The Bishop kindly offers him his couch to rest for the night but he has other plans as he has seen the expensive candlesticks. He makes the Bishop go to his room first so that he can steal the candlesticks. As soon as the Bishop leaves, the convict picks up the candlesticks, stoves them in his pocket and leaves banging the door behind him. The sound awakens Persome and she comes inside to see what it is. She calls her brother as soon as she realises that the candlesticks are gone. She wants to call the police but the Bishop stops her from doing so.

THE CONVICT IS CAUGHT

Just then, someone knocks at the door and a Sergeant enters with the convict. He informs that this man was caught moving suspiciously and they found the candlesticks with him. The Bishop tells them to release the man as he is his friend and the Bishop himself had given him the candlesticks. The policemen leave and the convict has a change of heart. He tells the Bishop to bless him and as he is about to leave, the Bishop gives him the candlesticks and tells him to go.

MEMORY TEST

Why was the convict sentenced to ten years in prison?

Where does the Sergeant find the convict?

How does the Bishop save the convict? How does the convict behave with the

Bishop at the beginning of the play? How does the Bishop deal with the

convict?

Made by:-Shalesh Kumar

Shubham Sharma IX – B

Teacher : Mr. Pradeep Thank you for watching our

presentation.