Good And Evil : Dr. Faustus

The story of Faust has inspired creative works for hundreds of years. The myth features an ambitious and intelligent man, usually a scholar, who desires more than his current situation can offer him and so makes a dangerous pact with the devil. Interpretations of this story range from classical music and opera to paintings and cartoons. From Goethe to Radiohead, Dr. Faustus’ thirst for knowledge and the chaos this desire produces have captivated artists of all disciplines. This paper will examine two theatrical depictions of this myth. A little more than 400 years separate the original productions of Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragic History of the Life and Death of Dr. Faustus and David Mamet’s Faustus, but both plays feature the bare

Christopher Marlowe's play, Dr. Faustus, is the story of the struggle of one man who is battling with himself over what he values most in life, and to what extent he will go to obtain what he desires. The battles over the control of one's ego and what a person values in their life are the two underlying struggles in this work. Faustus is a very educated and high member of society, but he was born in a lower class and has struggled all his life to be a wealthy person. He attains this opportunity to become wealthy when he learns how to call upon Satan, and he makes a deal with the devil to attain all the riches in life for his soul. Through out the play Faustus

Though, they were twins, they had different skills and attitudes. Zethus was the strongest man at the time, and enjoyed manly actions that required physical strength, such as fighting and hunting. Zethus couldn't understand Amphion's love for music, who excelled with the lyre and singing. It was Amphion and Zethus who had built the walls and the seven gates of Thebes. When the wall of Thebes was under construction, Zethus carried the heavy stones to build the wall from the mountains of Cithaeron. Here, Amphion showed what his music could do. While playing his lyre, the stones were charmed by the music that they followed Amphion. The statement: “And hath not he that built the walls of Thebes With ravishing sound of his melodious harp Made music with my Mephistophilis?” compares the seductive power of Mephistophilis’ to that of Amphion and his harp. Before Mephistophilis, Faustus tries to attain his life goal under his own power similar to Zethus building the wall of Thebe’s in the traditional manner. Mephistophilis then came and was able to give Faustus what he wanted through his pact in a manner very similar to Amphion charming the stone into place.

There is constant references to the beliefs and ideas of the Catholic Church such as confession, penitence and the Virgin Mary this suggests the catholic centered society in which the play existed. It concentrates on the qualities of the catholic religion that are important in the journey to heaven. Everyman is a symbol of the human condition and how it is understood by medieval Catholicism. Whereas in the sixteenth century in which Doctor Faustus was written, saw a shift of Christian ideals. No longer was there only the

Although Faustus has signed a contract with the devil in blood, it is obvious that it is still able to repent. The good angel in the play is trying to make Faustus realize this. Throughout the play the angel encourages Faustus to stay away from dark magic, “Oh Faustus, lay that damned book aside, and gaze not on it lest it tempt

As a result of this ambition and its outcome on his perspective, Faust 's rational dilemma has been retained by many to embody the indifference of man in the present day. All of Faust 's values and flaws, his strengths and weaknesses, are amplified so that his experiences and proper improvement are granted on a scope that is greater than life. At the end of the novel, Faust is granted salvation but continues to be seen as a great tragic hero. Faust’s misfortune has been portrayed as “rebellious," for he tries to stride above the constraints of humanity to explore that which is not inclined to mankind to have or experience. Faust 's countless experiences all convey the message that to find contentment one must learn to subdue

Just as each Devil’s motivation for enlarging his kingdom varies, so do their relationships with God. This differing in goals also reflects the change in humanity’s religious pursuits between the time periods. When Faustus tries to seek God’s forgiveness, Lucifer expresses his displeasure when he says “We come to tell thee thou dost injure us […] Thou shouldst not think of God: think of the Devil” (Marlow 5). This Devil’s dislike for God is evident in his jealousy over Faustus’s pledge of allegiance. He can’t seem to stand it when Faustus talks about Paradise or creation. This ultimatum to only think of the Devil, as well as the previously identified thirst for power, alludes to some sort of conflict between the Devil and God in Dr. Faustus.

The play is set in the fifteenth century in the northern part of Germany. Doctor Faust was a scholar who was hungry for knowing more about magic and anything mythical. Doctor Faust was a true definition of sufferer of consequences of your greed. He used alchemy to get his way with the upper class for example the pope and the emperor. When stumbling on the book of evil. He cursed god to gain more knowledge about Lucifer. Faust began to experiment with the ruler occult of darkness by summoning the devil he was given the ability to run the world. Unknowingly Dr. Faust was given a coconspirator named Mephistopheles, who watch him and spied on him for the devil. Mephistopheles enjoyed his position and in the end betrayed Faust and took pleasure in welcoming him in hell.

     In the books The Picture of Dorian Gray and Dr. Faustus, both protagonists are lured into the world of evil, but by different forces. Dorian Gray and Dr. Faustus both sell their souls to the devil. However, Dorian Gray deals with the devil unknowingly, and Dr. Faustus conjures the devil. After Dorian sells his soul, he becomes an immoral criminal, and even resorts to murder. After Dr. Faustus sells his soul, he lives frivolously and entertains himself through practical jokes. So who is more evil? An innocent young man corrupted by the ideas of another? Or, a man who is bored with the world, and seeking excitement calls upon the devil? Dorian Gray is clearly more evil, because even

Pride, Covetousness, Wrath, Envy, Gluttony, Sloth, and Lechery together make up the Seven Deadly Sins, but these are all also real flaws in human nature. Pride is a sin common to all of humanity and is portrayed vividly as a character, but is also seen in Faustus’ inner being as well. Covetousness and Envy are also found in Faustus because he desires a lot that he doesn’t have. Though every sin could be found in Faustus just like they could be in any man, Lechery is made very apparent to be human nature as well. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, written by Christopher Marlowe, is a tragedy in which Marlowe personifies the seven deadly sins to highlight Faustus’ flawed human nature and error of wanting to be above the level of God, and readers should take caution not to make the same mistakes as Faustus.

I. The play Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlow was first published in Manchester by Manchester Publishing in 1588, no information about the play’s first production date was found.

From the time when Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides introduced an idea of tragic hero, this became one of popular element with many writers. Although the element of tragedy was widespread for many centuries, this classical Greek drama was largely forgotten in Western Europe from the Middle Ages to the early 16th century. Even so, few of English writers kept element of tragedy while creating a character similar to a tragic hero. Two of few English writers who kept this idea were Geoffrey Chaucer, the writer of The Pardoner’s Tale, and Christopher Marlowe, the writer of Doctor Faustus. The Pardoner’s Tale and Doctor Faustus not only had popular theme of morality during the era when they were written, they also were incorporated with tragedy, an element that was forgotten by many.

Throughout this play, we see the theme of free will and predestination. Free will is present when Faustus is discussing his reasons for turning to the devils. He is in search of limitless knowledge and magic. After reading a passage from the bible, “The reward for sinne is death: thats hard”, but does not continue to read the whole statement that says, derived from various translations, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Westlund). He decides that if everyone is subject to death

The play is a human tragedy for not only is Faustus tragically constituted in his boundless ambitions but, at the same time, the play questions the effectiveness of the cultural aspirations that shape his ambitions. Consequently, the play provides a complex interaction between the human dimensions of the dramatic character and the ambiguities and ambivalences of the cultural situation the character is placed in.

Things aren’t always as they appear to be. This is true in John Faustus’s case in terms of his relationship with Mephistopheles and in turn the devil himself. Poor Faustus believes it is he who has called upon the demon Mephistopheles and it is his tongue that orders the servant of hell, yet he could not be any more mistaken. In reality, Faustus is the one with strings attached to him and it is Lucifer, Mephistopheles, and the Evil Angel playing the role of the puppeteer. Nevertheless, Faustus remains a student to the ideology of Christianity throughout his adventures, even amongst the bleakest of hours. God never leaves the side of John Faustus, as He relentlessly tries to bring Faustus back onto the path of righteousness.