The Delusions of Dr. Faustus
Dr. Faustus is considered to be one of the great early tragedies of English drama. Categorizing the type of tragedy the play embodies is difficult and has inspired a great deal of scholarly debate. Dr. Faustus, while being undeniably a tragedy, could fit in any number of tragic frameworks. Marlowe, in Dr. Faustus, turned the focus inward and saw the soul as the tragic battlefield. (Sewell 57) Throughout the play Dr. John Faustus made conscious decisions to engage in activities that led to his eternal damnation. Critical choices were initially controlled by a delusion of Godliness that led him to believe he could control the forces of evil and determine his eternal fate. Faustus inevitably recognizes the trivial nature of his powers and limited scope of knowledge. He comes to accept damnation and realizes that the fulfillment of his temporal desires served only to distract him from repentance. The self-delusionary nature of Faustus is evident from the very beginning of the play. In the first scene, Faustus, evaluating his life's accomplishments, comes to the conclusion that there is not much knowledge left for him to gain through the pursuit of traditional areas of study. He boasts about his accompli
shments in the area of medicine and dismisses law as fit for "mercenary drudge"(I, 33). He then rejects all of these figures in favor of magic (Bolen 188). Faustus' god status delusion is strengthened by the first appearance of the Good and Evil Angels. In reaction to the first thoughts of repentance by Faustus, Lucifer suddenly appears and entertains Faustus with an exhibition of the seven deadly sins. The fate of Faustus is meant to inspire the reader or audience to contemplate all matters concerning their eternal fate. Lucifer instructs him to "not think of God: think of the Devil" (VI, 668). Dissatisfied with the scope of power and knowledge he has obtained through his first attempts at conjuring, Faustus commands Mephostophilis to strike up a deal with Lucifer that will increase his powers (Godshalk 174). The Good Angel urges Faustus to "lay that damned book aside" and "read the scriptures" for black magic is "blasphemy"(I, 67-70). Faustus commands Mephostophilis to bring him a wife- "The fairest maid in Germany" (V, 536). By appealing to his desire for riches, Mephistophilis succeeds in distracting Faustus from the eternal implications of the pact he is signing. He then orders the Old Man to "leave me a while to ponder on my sins" (XIII, 1243). He starts to appeal to Christ but is interrupted by the entrance of Lucifer, Belzebub and Mephistophilis. Initially, Faustus believes that through his conjuring he can control Mephistophilis. Of particular importance are the words of Faustus that follow. The Old man stresses that his soul can still be saved and that through repentance he can avoid damnation.
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