Faustus (play)
Faustus (play) refers primarily to Doctor Faustus, a tragedy by Christopher Marlowe, likely first performed around 1592 or 1593. The play is based on the German legend of Johann Georg Faust, a scholar who makes a pact with the Devil, exchanging his soul for twenty-four years of earthly power and knowledge.
Key Aspects:
- Author: Christopher Marlowe
- Genre: Tragedy, Elizabethan drama
- Source Material: The German Faustbook (translated into English)
- Central Theme: The conflict between ambition, knowledge, sin, and redemption. The play explores the limitations of human knowledge and the consequences of defying divine law.
- Plot Summary: Doctor Faustus, a brilliant but dissatisfied scholar, despairs of the limitations of traditional learning (logic, medicine, law, theology). He summons the demon Mephistopheles and makes a pact with Lucifer: in exchange for his soul, he will be granted twenty-four years of power, magical abilities, and the service of Mephistopheles. Faustus uses his powers for personal gain, travel, and sometimes petty pranks. As the end of his twenty-four years approaches, Faustus becomes increasingly tormented by fear and remorse, but he ultimately fails to repent and is dragged down to hell.
- Major Characters:
- Doctor Faustus: The protagonist, a brilliant scholar who sells his soul for power and knowledge.
- Mephistopheles: A demon who serves Lucifer and acts as Faustus's servant. He is often depicted as melancholy and conflicted, warning Faustus about the consequences of his pact.
- Lucifer: The Prince of Hell, who tempts Faustus with earthly power.
- Good Angel/Evil Angel: Symbolic figures representing Faustus's internal moral conflict.
- Wagner: Faustus's servant.
- Significance: Doctor Faustus is considered a landmark work in English Renaissance drama. It is a powerful exploration of ambition, sin, and the human condition, and it has had a lasting impact on literature and art. The play established the "Faustian bargain" as a literary trope, representing the exchange of something of great spiritual value for earthly gain.
- Textual Variations: Different versions of the play exist, with some scholars attributing the additional scenes and comedic elements to other playwrights after Marlowe's death. The A-text (published in 1604) and the B-text (published in 1616) are the two primary versions, containing significant differences.