Doctor Faustus..THE CHARACTERS

THE CHARACTERS

• FAUSTUS 
  It is no accident that Faustus compares himself to a colossus (IV, VII). Marlowe's hero looms out of the play like some huge, jagged statue. There is far too much of him to take in at a glance.
  Make any simple statement about Faustus, and you'll find you are only talking about part of the man. Faustus lends himself less than most characters to easy generalization.
  Say, for instance, that Faustus is a scholar. Books are his trade, philosophy his strength. Yet what an unscholarly scholar he is! At times during the play, he kicks up his heels and romps about the stage just like a comedian who has never heard of philosophy in his life.
  Or say that Faustus is an atheist. He scoffs at religion and denies the existence of God. But, at one of the play's most dramatic moments, you see Faustus fall to his knees in a fervent prayer of contrition to Christ.
  Perhaps we should take our cue from such contradictory behavior and seek the key to Faustus in contradiction. Clearly he's a man of many inner conflicts. Here are three for you to think about:
  
  
  1. Some people sense an age-old conflict in Faustus between his body and his mind. To these readers, Faustus is a noble intellect, destroyed by his grosser appetites. In this interpretation, Faustus' tragedy is that he exchanges the worthwhile pursuit of knowledge for wine, women, and song. Faustus not only burns in hell for his carnal ways, he pays a stiffer price: loss of his tragic dignity.
  2. Other readers see Faustus' conflict in historical terms. Faustus lives in a time of the Middle Ages and the start of the Renaissance. These were two very different historical eras with quite different values, and Faustus is caught in the grip of changing times. On the one hand, he is very aware of the admonitions of the medieval church- don't seek to know too much, learn contempt for this world, and put your energy into saving your soul. On the other hand, Faustus hears Renaissance voices which tell him just the opposite. Extend the boundaries of human knowledge. Seek wealth and power. Live this life to the full because tomorrow you'll be dead. (This theme of "eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die" is known as carpe diem or seize the day. It was a popular theme in the Renaissance.)
  3. Still other readers see Faustus torn between superhuman aspirations and very human limitations. Faustus dreams that magic will make him a god. In his early dealing with Mephistophilis, he talks about himself as if he were a king. He gives commands, dictates terms, and fancies himself on a par with Lucifer, the dreaded regent of hell. Faustus is willing to sign a contract which will free him from human restraints for twenty-four years. During that time, he will have a spirit's body that can soar free of the earth, a body immune from the ravages of old age and time. Yet, even as he signs the contract, Faustus somehow knows that he is only human. His body warns him to flee and addresses him, in no uncertain terms, as "man."The contrast between Faustus' hopes and his realities is very great indeed. The man who was to have been a king grovels like a slave before Lucifer. The "god" who was to have escaped from time watches powerless as the last hour of his life ticks away. Because of the great distance between Faustus' dreams and achievements, he strikes some readers as a wretch, an immature egotist who cries like a child when the universe won't let him have his way.
  Indeed, all three interpretations of Faustus present you with a challenge and a question. Which emerges most strongly from the play: Faustus' noble mind, his soaring Renaissance aspirations, his superhuman dreams? Or Faustus' gross appetites, his sins against God, his very human terrors? Somewhere between the super-hero and the lowly wretch, you will find your own truth about Faustus.
  
• MEPHISTOPHILIS 
  There are two sides to Mephistophilis. One of these spirits is an evil, malevolent tempter. He wants Faustus' soul and stops at nothing to get it. This Mephistophilis lies to Faustus, manipulates him with threats of torture, and jeers at him when his final hour has come:
  What, weepst thou? 'tis too late: despair. Farewell.
  Fools that will laugh on earth must weep in hell.
  The second spirit has a sweeter nature. He's a reluctant demon who would spare Faustus if he could. This Mephistophilis offers no enticements. He watches, in quiet distress, while Faustus damns himself. When summoned during the night by Faustus' blasphemous conjurings, the spirit does not seize the soul that is offered to him. Instead, he urges Faustus away from his contemplated deal with hell:
  

  O Faustus, leave these frivolous demands
  Which strike a terror to my fainting soul.

  Which is the real Mephistophilis? It isn't easy to say. You can put your trust in Mephistophilis' better nature and see him as a kind of guardian spirit. You'll find evidence in the play that Mephistophilis cares for Faustus and feels a strong attraction to the man. He calls his charge "My Faustus," and flies to his side with eagerness. He is a companion in Faustus' adventures and is also Faustus' comforter. The spirit sympathizes when Faustus is sick with longing for heaven. And he goes out of his way to console the scholar with the thought that heaven isn't such a great loss after all.
  Mephistophilis understands Faustus in ways that suggest they are two of a kind. He's been called Faustus' alter ego. And you get the feeling that he sees himself in Faustus as he was eons before- a proud young angel who marched with Lucifer against God, only to see his hopes of glory dashed when Lucifer's rebellion failed.
  It's possible that, when Mephistophilis threatens Faustus, he is merely doing his job. The spirit isn't free to do what he likes. He is Lucifer's man. Mephistophilis has counseled Faustus against making a deal with hell. But once that deal is made, the spirit has no choice but to hold Faustus to it.
  On the other hand, you may feel that Mephistophilis shows more enthusiasm than the job requires. In that case, you can see the spirit as Faustus' evil genius. And Mephistophilis' understanding of Faustus becomes a potent weapon in his hands.
  The spirit, for instance, knows just what cleverly worded promises to make to get Faustus' signature on the dotted line. He tells Faustus, "I will... wait on thee, and give thee more than thou has wit to ask." That promise turns out to be true, but not in the way that Faustus has reason to expect. What Mephistophilis gives Faustus is an eternity of torment, not the limitless power that Faustus imagines.
  Mephistophilis is a trickster. When Faustus asks for a wife, the spirit provides one- a demon too hot to touch. When Faustus asks for information about the stars, Mephistophilis gives him facts which the scholar already knows. In his own hellish fashion, Mephistophilis abides by the letter, not the spirit, of the contract. He obeys Faustus' commands without fulfilling his wishes. The spirit makes sure that Faustus pays full price for relatively shoddy goods.
  Is Mephistophilis a brilliant schemer who plots the damning of Faustus? Or is he a reluctant actor in the tragedy? It's up to you to decide.
  
• WAGNER 
  Wagner is not happy in his role as a servant. He's sufficiently educated to regard himself as a scholar, and he's eager to prove his prowess in logical dispute. If you read between the lines, you begin to suspect that Wagner has a secret yen to wear a professor's robes and sit as king of the roost in Faustus' study.
  Yet there is a more faithful side to Wagner. He serves his master loyally. He shields his master from the prying eyes of tattle-tale clerics. And he takes the trouble to track Faustus down on the road with an invitation to the castle of Vanholt. (Wagner knows very well that his master likes to preen in front of the nobility.) What's more, Wagner is Faustus' heir. Faustus probably wouldn't leave his money to Wagner except as a "thank you" for years of good service.
  Some readers think Wagner is foolish. But there's every indication he's really rather clever. He dabbles in magic and conjures demons without going to hell. Wagner watches carefully as his master gets snared by the devil. He manages to skirt by the same trap without getting caught.
  
• VALDES AND CORNELIUS 
  Valdes and Cornelius usher in the era of wizardry at Wittenberg. By introducing magic to the university, they, play a minor role in tempting Faustus. Valdes seems the bolder of the pair. He dreams of a glorious association with Faustus and has himself overcome the scruples of conscience that await the would-be magician. Cornelius is more timid, content to dabble in magic rather than practice it in earnest. "The spirits tell me they can dry the sea," Cornelius says, never having ventured to try the experiment.
  
• ROBIN 
  With his stirrings of ambition and his hapless attempts at conjuring, Robin, the clown, is a sort of minor Wagner. He's yet another servant who follows his master into devilry. Like most of the characters in the play, Robin is an upstart. He regards himself as destined for higher things than service in an innyard. In particular, magic turns his head. Intoxicated with the thought of commanding demons, Robin turns impudent. He gets drunk on the job and boasts of seducing his master's wife.
  
• THE OLD MAN 
  The Old Man is a true believer in God and is the one human being in the play with a profound religious faith. He walks across the stage with his eyes fixed on heaven, which is why he sees angels visible to no one else. With his singleness of purpose, the Old Man is an abstraction, rather than a flesh-and-blood character. (Appropriately, he has no name.) His role is to serve as a foil for Faustus. His saintly path is the road not taken by Marlowe's hero.
  
• LUCIFER 
  There's something compelling about the prince of hell, a fallen angel who once dared to revolt against God. Formerly bright as sunlight, Lucifer's now a dark lord who holds sway over a mighty kingdom. Yet there's something coarse about him, too. Lucifer's regal image is tarnished by association with creatures like the Seven Deadly Sins and that jokester, Belzebub. The grandeur of ambition, the grossness of sin- these two aspects of Lucifer are reflected in his servants.
  
• BENVOLIO 
  A courtier, Benvolio takes the world with a blase yawn and a skeptical sneer. You can't fool him, but he can outwit himself. He does so by rashly challenging the powers of hell on two occasions.
  
• THE HORSE COURSER 
  Horse coursers or traders were the Elizabethan equivalents of our used-car salesmen. That is, they were known for being cheats. Marlowe's horse courser is no exception. A sharp bargainer, he beats down the price of Faustus' horse. And when the horse proves to be a spirit, he demands his money back. This hardy peasant is a survivor. -
  
• THE POPE 
  The Pope is the most worldly of priests, luxury-loving and power-hungry. The character seems tailored to the Elizabethan image of the churchmen of Rome, and his defeat at Faustus' hands was undoubtedly the occasion for roars of approval from a Catholic-hating crowd.

Posted in: Doctor Faustus ...paper2