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The Tragical History of Dr Faustus

The Tragical History of Dr Faustus. Christopher Marlowe. Overview of Doctor Faustus. Marlowe makes excellent use of Christian religious convention Christian in the play In the play, the character Faustus strives against human limitation to the point of selling his soul to the devil

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The Tragical History of Dr Faustus

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  1. The Tragical History of Dr Faustus Christopher Marlowe

  2. Overview of Doctor Faustus • Marlowe makes excellent use of Christian religious convention Christian in the play • In the play, the character Faustus strives against human limitation to the point of selling his soul to the devil • Faustus is not only a seeker for power but also a knower and a desirer to know • The story is created out of Medieval morality play with a late Renaissance temper • This is because a ‘knowing’ Faustus deliberately launching himself upon a course of evil-doing

  3. Faustus – a man ruined by knowledge

  4. More on Dr. Faustus • He is a scholar overpowered by his intellectual pride • Doctor Faustus is thus a tragedy of a man who misdirects great gifts of mind and spirit and who therefore progressively loses his soul by disintegration • This disintegration brings low comedy into the tragedy

  5. The danger of having too much… • This low comedy serves to show the tragic failure of the hero to live up to his high hopes of what he would gain from magic • It also illustrates that knowing too much would eventually kill the person in you

  6. The play begins… • The Chorus introduces the theme of the play • It informed that the play will not deal with: • the subject of war • scenes of love in royal courts • presentation of “proud audacious deeds” • This play will deal with “Faustus’ fortunes, good or bad” and opens with an introduction of Faustus as a genius who was sent to an established university to study medicine

  7. Act One • Faustus is shown in his study, examining various fields of learning in order to decide upon his choice of the particular field in which to specialize: • Analytic = he already attained great proficiency in it • Medicine = his skill as physician already recognized • Legal = suitable for those who have money in their minds

  8. Act One • Divinity appeals to him but it teaches a doctrine which is for him totally unsatisfactory • So what actually appeals to Faustus???

  9. MAGIC • This study appeals to him because: • It promises wealth • It promises power • It promises glory • Magic will enable him to extend his authority as far as the mind of man can go, “A sound magician is a demi-god” • Faustus then instructed Wagner to bring his two friends Valdes and Cornelius to ask for advice

  10. Good angel vs evil spirit • While waiting for Wagner to come back, these two elements/supernatural characters enter and offer Faustus advices: • Good angel asks Faustus to put the book aside • Evil spirit asks Faustus to go forward

  11. In his soliloquy, Faustus begins to plan.. • The things that he will instruct the sprits under him to do: • Get all the gold, pearls from all over the world • Find rare, exotic food • Read to him ‘strange philosophy’ • Reveal to him the ‘secrets of foreign kings’ • Wall all Germany with brass • To cloth students with silk

  12. Modern adaptation of soul-selling story

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