Doctor Faustus as a Morality Play Part - 1
Introduction :
- The morality play was one of the early forms of drama.
- It developed out of miracle and mystery plays. Developed at the end of 14th century and get popularity in 15th century.
- The morality plays different from miracles plays that not presenting a biblical story with named characters ,but was rather a play conveying a moral truth or lesson by means of personified abstractions.
- In this play,characters were allegorical personages – Repentence,Goodness ,Love,Greed and other virtues and vices.
- In morality plays ,the hero represents ‘ mankind ‘ and ‘everyman’ .It shows the difference between good and evil.
- The theme of morality plays was man falls into temptation and then repents ,at the end saved or killed.characters personified with vice and virtues or good and evil.
- Theme of this plays were struggle between good and bad power for capturing man’s soul.comic scenes also included in this plays.
- The morality play have aim to teach moral lesson .
Christopher Marlowe :
His work influenced William Shakespeare and generations of the writers to follow. Marlow's most famous play is “ Tragicall history of Doctor Faustus “ in which a man sells his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power.
Dr. faustus appears to be an example of a renaissance tragedy.,which had certain degree of influence of medieval dramatic tradition and characteristics of morality play.
Doctor Faustus as a Morality Play :
Marlowe follows the pattern of morality play; characters are
personified as a allegorical figures.good and bad angels clearly represents the force of good ,they
convince Faustus for repentance and force of evil ,which led him towards
damnation.
Marlow established the moral values of the play by ; The Chorus,good angel and bad angel ,old man ,mephistophilis and seven deadly sins. In this play we find them as sin and redemption,good and evil angel,Faustus's struggles much related to morality play.Morality plays shows a switch in emphasis from religious characters to common people.
Morality play have a religious subject but the protagonist is the average /common man.
Marlow established the moral values of the play by ; The Chorus,good angel and bad angel ,old man ,mephistophilis and seven deadly sins. In this play we find them as sin and redemption,good and evil angel,Faustus's struggles much related to morality play.Morality plays shows a switch in emphasis from religious characters to common people.
Morality play have a religious subject but the protagonist is the average /common man.
Faustus has greed for power and knowledge that he not
satisfied with what he had.
He wants to go beyond the limitation given by God. He sells his soul to the devil Lucifer and lives a very blasphemous life full of vain and pleasure for twenty four years.He played trick upon pope and visit the German emperior and impressed him with his magical power.
Faustus also summons the ‘Helen of Troy’ (ancient beauty). Good angel and old man urges Faustus to repent and turn back to God. At the end Faustus felt repentance,but it is too late.
He wants to go beyond the limitation given by God. He sells his soul to the devil Lucifer and lives a very blasphemous life full of vain and pleasure for twenty four years.He played trick upon pope and visit the German emperior and impressed him with his magical power.
Faustus also summons the ‘Helen of Troy’ (ancient beauty). Good angel and old man urges Faustus to repent and turn back to God. At the end Faustus felt repentance,but it is too late.
Faustus is in someways as an everyman figure.we are able to
relate him, as he has internal struggles and traits that we can see in ourselves.Dr.Faustus is a story of a selfish Renaissance era.
Man who sold his soul to the devil in order to further his knowledge of things beyond man’s normal state of being.
He was a doctor with a degree and highly respected among his fellow scholars,yearned for more knowledge and gained a new interest in magic.
Faustus proceed to make a pact with Lucifer by surrendering his soul to him.He wastes his magic skill by playing a tricks on important figures
Faustus become more and more obsessed with the idea of becoming all powerful.
Man who sold his soul to the devil in order to further his knowledge of things beyond man’s normal state of being.
He was a doctor with a degree and highly respected among his fellow scholars,yearned for more knowledge and gained a new interest in magic.
Faustus proceed to make a pact with Lucifer by surrendering his soul to him.He wastes his magic skill by playing a tricks on important figures
Faustus become more and more obsessed with the idea of becoming all powerful.
Mephistophilis :
Mephistophilis whose goal is to catch Faustus soul to hell. But they also stopped Faustus for his deal with Lucifer of selling soul in exchange of twenty four years.
He warns Faustus about the horrors of hell. Mephistiphilis is ultimately as tragic figure as Faustus,his regretefull accounts of what the devils have lost in their eternal separation from God and his repeated reflectionon the pain of damnation.
when Faustus remarks that the devils seems to be free of hell at that time mephistophilis insists,
MEPHASTOPHILIS:
Why this is hell, nor am I out of it.
Thinks that I, who saw the face of God,
And tasted the eternal joy of heaven,
Am not tormented with ten thousand hells
In being deprived of everlasting bliss?
Why this is hell, nor am I out of it.
Thinks that I, who saw the face of God,
And tasted the eternal joy of heaven,
Am not tormented with ten thousand hells
In being deprived of everlasting bliss?
Mephistophilis doesn't want faustus to make the same mistakes that he made.so this
allegorical character like morality play and dialogue is example of good and
evil power.
He give all answers to questions asked by faustus but when he asked that who creates universe he doesn't answers as a motive of faustus soul to hell.
He give all answers to questions asked by faustus but when he asked that who creates universe he doesn't answers as a motive of faustus soul to hell.
The Good Angels and Evil Angels :
The Good Angel :
The good angel
urging him to repent and serve God, the evil angel urging him to follow his
lust for power and serve lucifer.
This characters derived from the morality plays;one is wholly good and one wholly evil, they appeared as a allegorical figures.They reflect the possibility of both damnation and redemption being open to faustus.
O,Faustus,lay that damned book aside,
And gaze not on it,lest it tempt thy soul,
And heap God’s heavy wrath upon thy head!
Read ,read the scriptures :-that is blasphemy.
This characters derived from the morality plays;one is wholly good and one wholly evil, they appeared as a allegorical figures.They reflect the possibility of both damnation and redemption being open to faustus.
O,Faustus,lay that damned book aside,
And gaze not on it,lest it tempt thy soul,
And heap God’s heavy wrath upon thy head!
Read ,read the scriptures :-that is blasphemy.
Faustus,repent ;yet God will pity thee.
“O ,Faustus ,if thou hadst given ear to me,
Innumerable joys had followed thee!
But though didn't love the world.”
The Good Angel is
the voice of God ,the voice of faustus’s conscience; try to convince faustus
for repentance that
God will mercy on him.
The Evil Angel :
Evil Angel represents the evil half of faustus’s conscience: turned Faustus towards way of hell by praising the hell and its power. Evil Angel gives him threat that if he repents,devil will tear him to pieces."Go ,forward ,Faustus, in that famous art
wherein all Nature's treasure is contained:
Be though on earth as jove is in the sky,
Lord and commanders of these elements.
Faustus ; think of honour and of wealth.”
