ABSTRACT
John Bale made radical changes to the forms, functions, and use of transgressive language in King Johan. These changes may be seen as, the response of a Protestant dramatist who perceived the value of drama as a medium of instruction and persuasion, but rejected those traditions were associated with the earlier use of instructional drama in the service of Catholicism. The changes are the result of Bale's polemical intention, and play to the Protestant sympathies of his audience, who may have included Cromwell and Cranmer. Bale's language in King Johan deserves to be seen not only in the context of a Protestant polemical style but also in relation to a debating vocabulary and style which were linked to traditional attitudes towards language in drama and society, and to newer literary fashion. By the time Bale wrote King Johan both sides of the Reformation debate had already used vehement abuse as a weapon in defence of their particular Christian beliefs.
