It may not have been as humorous for an audience in Marlowe's time, but, due to the fact that I have this association, I got a kick out of it. Kronk aside, I am really enjoying this play. The first scene was a little hard to get through, but now I am really into it. I actually had to remind myself to stop reading so I could do this blog post!
Part of me feels really bad for Faustus. I think that a big part of him wants to make the right decision and repent, like the Good Angel tells him to do. Other people keep stepping in and convince him to never speak of God or paradise. Then, another part of me, is reminded that Faustus is in this situation by his own choice. He is the one who summoned Mephistophilis. Mephistophilis, who wants Faustus' soul, even warned him "O Faustus! Leave these frivolous demands/ Which strike a terror to my fainting soul" (Marlowe 13). No one in this play tried to sugar coat Hell for Faustus, but Faustus insists on selling his soul to Lucifer.
One other thing that I found very interesting while reading this play is that it reminds me of Macbeth. Both of the main characters are influenced by elements both supernatural and human. Furthermore, they both seem to want out of their situation. Macbeth does not want to kill the king, but Lady Macbeth insists that he do it. Faustus starts to repent, but then is interrupted by Lucifer. I found this very interesting because, if I remember correctly, Shakespeare and Marlowe were rivals.
A final element of the novel that I was a bit shocked by when I was reading was the fact that the first thing Faustus asked for once he made the deal with Mephistophilis was a wife. Faustus seems very power driven, but he asks for a wife? That makes me think there is something more to this than I was initially seeing. It is clear that he wants power, but maybe he also wants other things such as companionship as well. What do you guys think motivates Faustus? And do you see the Macbeth comparison?
No comments:
Post a Comment