Korb has a master's degree in English literature and creative writing and has written for a wide variety of educational publishers. In the following essay, Korb explicates the sequence of scenes in Osborne's play and discusses how they relate to the overarching theme of the play.

Osborne's Luther is a series of connected scenes, most of which highlight important episodes in the life of sixteenth-century religious reformer, Martin Luther. The play does not attempt to develop the entire story of his monumental decision to protest the practices and beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church nor the theological reasonings that he put forth. Such intellectual arguments, as several critics have noted, are not the stuff good drama is made of. Instead, Osborne focuses on Martin Luther's personal trials with his faith and his God.

Osborne opens his play as Martin Luther takes his monastic vows and, even more...