Faustus The Reward Of Sin Is Death Analysis

559 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Divided Self: The Many Facets Of Faustus

In the opening soliloquy, Faustus quotes scripture saying, “The reward of sin is death. That's hard...If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and there's no truth in us. Why then belike we must sin, and so consequently die...What doctrine call you this? Che sera, sera, what will, shall be? Divinity, adieu!” (Marlowe 348). Oddly enough, the reason Faustus rejects religion becomes the reason he refuses to rectify his ways. He believes that eternal damnation is his fate. Even before the Doctor formally agrees to trade his soul he concludes that God will not save him saying, “The god thou servest is thine own appetite, wherein is fixed the love of Beelzebub. To him I’ll build an altar and a church, and offer lukewarm blood of new-born babes” (Marlowe 360), when simple logic, which he earlier rejected as lowly and simplistic, suggests that all he must do to escape this fate is not make a pact with the devil. Directly after this statement the personifications of Faustus' duel nature, the Good and Evil Angels, arrive on the scene. The fact that Faustus still has a conscience se...

Show More
Related

  • Essay On Divine Punishment In Oedipus And Dante's Inferno

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    Divine punishment occurs in Oedipus and Dante’s Inferno. Divine Punishment is an endless punishment where your fate is determined and you cannot escape it. It is known as an irreversible occurrence that creates attitudes within characters that harms themselves and others. Oedipus faced a punishment that he had no choice over and couldn’t escape it. In Dante’s Inferno, people chose to sin and make their own decisions when sinning. The difference is that in Dante’s Inferno, some sins could’ve been escaped by man. People in Dante’s Inferno chose to sin while Oedipus had no choice and couldn’t escape it. Divine punishment can be escaped by man after a certain age of maturity, and control of their own actions. The question is, can divine punishment

    Read More

  • Elliot Richards' Bedazzled

    1822 Words  | 4 Pages

    Faust also gets out of his contract. He is finally pleased with this paradise he is going to build. The ability for following generations to enjoy this paradise was his pleasure. This selfless act of joy was what allowed God to save him, even though the contract said otherwise.

    Read More

  • A Divided Self: The Many Facets of Faustus

    2087 Words  | 5 Pages

    Having attained all that he desires from the knowledge of man, Marlowe’s character Faustus turns to the only remaining school of thought that he feels he must master which is the art of necromancy. In his pursuits, he manages to summon the devil Mephistopheles, arch demon of hell, and strikes a deal to trade his immortal soul with Lucifer in exchange for being granted an infinite amount of power and knowledge that extends even beyond the limits of human understanding. However in the process of negotiating the terms of his pact, it becomes clear that Faust is in a constant state of uncertainty in terms of whether he should repent and forsake the arrangement or simply go through with it. This underlying theme of internal struggle is introduced very early and reappears in later acts with the appearance of established binaries that suggest a theme of division not only among the character of John Faustus, but within the written text as a whole. This suggests that Faustus is meant to serve as a symbol for the divided nature of man and the consequences of failing to negotiate the struggles that are a result of the divided self.

    Read More

  • Deluded Pursuit in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus

    420 Words  | 1 Pages

    Faustus, too, is a superior being. He consciously removes the yoke of academia, and exerts his free will. After freely entering into his contract with Lucifer, he repeatedly considers repenting. When he calls on Christ to help "save distressed Faustus' soul," the evil trinity of Lucifer, Belzebub, and Mephostophilis appear, possibly to tear him to pieces. Under duress, he vows, "never to name God or pray to him." However, with only one-half hour left on earth, he calls on God. Faustus, forever the horse trader, tries to strike a deal with God. He asks God, for Christ's sake and blood, to limit his time in hell from a thousand to a hundred thousand years.

    Read More

  • Dr. Faustus Essay: Free Will and Personal Responsibility

    3313 Words  | 7 Pages

    It can be argued that Doctor Faustus is damned from the moment of conception. His innate desire for knowledge inevitably leads to his downfall. He represents the common human dissatisfaction with being human and the struggle of accepting our lack of omnipotence and omniscience. Marlowe manipulates this struggle between the aspirations of one character of his time and the implications to Christianity in relation to its doctrine of heaven and hell. Indeed, Doctor Faustus asks for more than what was intentionally made available to him through God's plan, yet it was God's gift to him of his intellect, that tempted him to search beyond his appointed realm of knowledge. Faustus, through his own free will, decides to trade his soul with Lucifer in order to gain the answers to the questions of the universe. According to the divine plan ideology of Catholic doctrine, his decision worked into the cosmic outline. The divine application of his decision implies that there are benefits or rather some other importance, outside of the connection to Faustus, of his selling his soul. This lessens the impetus behind his decision because of the emphasis on universal application as opposed to the immediate ramifications to Faustus, the human being. Therefore, one can argue as to where the responsibility or fault lies concerning Faustus' fate because of the presence of other forces who may have influenced his decision. However the responsibility for his choice remains his and his alone.

    Read More

  • Dr. Faustus Essay: A Historicism Approach to Doctor Faustus

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    Doctor Faustus is a doctor of theology that wants no limits on what he can know or see or do so he sells his soul to the devil to gain these desires. While reading or observing Marlowe's fascinating play the reader or observer should apply the "New Historicism Approach," and take in to consideration Marlowe's and the 1590s society's beliefs, habits of thought, and biases about various concepts of obtaining the "forbidden knowledge". Like the people of the 1590s, Doctor Faustus searches for the "forbidden knowledge", begins to deny God during his quest for greater knowledge, and gains nothing from his vain activities throughout his lifetime. After these listed characteristics have been established one can begin to visualize the relationship between Marlowe's, Doctor Faustus and the beliefs and thoughts of the people of the 1590s.

    Read More

  • Socrates View Of Death Analysis

    1179 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Plato’s Apology Socrates’ was on trial for corrupting the youth and for spreading atheism. Socrates defended himself in the trial saying that he was just performing a service to the god that complimented him saying that he was wiser than anyone else. Ultimately this defense did not work, therefore he lost the trial. He was sentenced to death. Most people would be sad, scared, or distraught over this sentencing, but not Socrates. He didn’t view death as a bad thing, he almost welcomed death. Socrates welcomes death in a different way than Christians. Indeed people should welcome death, but not the way Socrates did. People should welcome death the way that Christians do, the right way. I believe that the Christians have the correct view of death, and that Socrates view of death is flawed. Socrates says that we should believe that death is the biggest blessing to man. He also says that we should not fear what we do not know. I find that hard to believe because I believe that the opposite to be true as well.

    Read More

  • The Religious Motivations of Christopher Marlowe's Dr Faustus

    1785 Words  | 4 Pages

    Dr Faustus is a short play written by Christopher Marlowe. The play is a masterful insight into the paradoxical soul of mankind and its ironically self inflicted corruption. The play could be classified as a theological allegory. It can be assumed that the play specifically speaks to the religious motivations of the time, but can be adapted to the present as well. Marlowe portrays Faustus’ ambition as dangerous; it was the cause of his demise. Perhaps Marlowe used the theme of over-ambition as a warning to the audience, who would be likely to be wary of ambition - it was looked down on as a negative personality trait in Christian England (Calvinism) (Munteanu, Class notes). An on going theme within the story is the corruption of a soul which is played out through the use of religious beliefs. Specifically, the use of the seven deadly sins is a precursor to man kinds self inflicted death. Marlowe uses sin, redemption and damnation to get his point across to the audience. The sins that Marlowe specifically uses are those of: pride, covetousness, wrath, envy, gluttony, sloth and lechery. Theses sins are colourfully displayed through the character traits of Dr Faustus. In the process we view them and can adapt them to our own lives and how they are all parts to the corruption of our souls.

    Read More

  • The Power Of Power In Dr. Faustus

    1399 Words  | 3 Pages

    The play progresses to Faustus gaining power but doing nothing productive with it because he has no wisdom to guide himself on. Faustus wishes for power and has plans looking forward to his future life but as he gains it, he starts to lose his wisdom as power clearly took a toll on his mind. He becomes a performer for an emperor and finally ends up believing there is no redemption for his life as he knows he has sinned against God before and after his deal with the devil which what he believes - his last straw with God. Faustus crumbles after he has too much of the weight of power in his hands to the point it ruins him, as he has no wisdom to properly organize his goals or

    Read More

  • Comparing the Characters of Faustus and Hamlet

    1761 Words  | 4 Pages

    .... This creates indecision in both Faustus and Hamlet, whether to repent or not, should I kill the king or not, what if the ghost was a daemon in disguise, what if the devil actually intends to rip me apart if I repent and turn to the path of righteousness. This in turn provokes both characters tragic flaw procrastination leading to their tragic deaths. The only difference is Hamlet is surrounded by corruption and faithlessness, while Faustus has brought it upon himself in order to engage in his practice with magic.

    Read More

  • Faustus And Mephastophilis Analysis

    1889 Words  | 4 Pages

    After meeting Mephastophilis, Faustus’s second request from him is a wife, stating: “But leaving off this, let me have a wife, the fairest maid in Germany, for I am wanton and lascivious, and cannot live without a wife,” (I.V.138-140). Faustus clearly states in these lines that he desires someone to control him, especially in a sexual manner, and has yet to find someone capable of doing so. However, it is after hearing about how trivial marriage is from Mephastophilis that Faustus takes this desire a step further. He says to Mephastophilis: “And long ere this I should have slain myself, / Had not sweet pleasure conquered deep despair,” (I.V.200-201). By expressing his utter sadness with not being able to fulfill his desires, it becomes clear that even though Faustus has been able to accomplish everything he has ever wanted, by not fulfilling this desire, he will never be satisfied with his life. By meeting Mephastophilis, Faustus is persuaded that he would finally be able to fulfill his desires at the price of his soul, a sacrifice he was willing to make as his final

    Read More

  • Pride In Dr Faustus

    1122 Words  | 3 Pages

    I can go as far as saying that Faustus lusts to be God, similarly to Lucifer, considering everything he has asked for. Lucifer was envious of God before he fell from grace, and with Faustus emulating Lucifer so closely, he also matches this unnecessary envy through his actions. He is too charmed with being a God in which he says “A sound magician is a mighty God.” The fact that Faustus wants to be an equal with God has him in complete denial of God 's power. But just as how Lucifer was damned for the same desires, Faustus was destined to follow the same fate. Despite Lucifer’s damnation, it is also as if he has succeeded in someone serving him as a God, seeing that Faustus has gave himself up to

    Read More

  • Dr Faustus - Ambition

    1258 Words  | 3 Pages

    Faustus may be seen as blasphemous in the opening speech, implying that he would only be a doctor if he could be equal to God, (lines24-6)

    Read More

  • Analysis of Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe

    1145 Words  | 3 Pages

    Doctor Faustus, also referred to as The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus is a play by Christopher Marlowe. This play is based on a German story where a man sells his soul to the devil in quest for knowledge and power (Sales 340. The protagonist in this play is Doctor Faustus. Doctor Faustus was hungry of power and knowledge and in search for them; he sold his soul to the devil. At first, he was very happy with the praise he received from the people as they considered him a hero. Later on, Faustus learns that he committed a grave mistake of selling his soul to the devil for twenty-four years. Even though he felt remorseful for his mistakes, it was already late for him. He is later found by his fellow scholars dead and torn from limb to limb. Faustus was a heroic fool who only thought of power and never thought of eternal damnation.

    Read More

  • The Concept Of Romanticism In Faust By Johann Wolfgang Von Faust

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first appearance of Faust in the story finds him having doubts about himself and the worth of his time spent in education. Undeterred by this depression, we see his pride has not diminished as he declares he is “cleverer than these stuffed shirts, these Doctors, M.A.s, Scribes and Priests, I’m not bothered by a doubt or a scruple, I’m not afraid of Hell or the Devil” (Goethe 633). Turning to magic to fill the void in his life, Faust conjures a spirit, but shrinks back from it in fear. In the ensuing argument between them, Faust asserts that he is the spirits “equal” (Goethe 637). Mephisto’s second visit at Faust’s residence leads them to having a drawn out discussion over the proposal of Mephisto serving Faust in exchange for his soul. Common sense might ask why a person would willingly discuss a deal with the devil knowing that it probably won’t end well. This instance would have to be answered that the imperious pride of Faust made him “so rash that he would give no heed to the salvation of his soul He thought the devil could not be so black as he is painted nor hell so hot as is generally supposed” (Fischer 107). In spite of his vast education, Faust’s pride pulls him into wagering his soul with Mephisto and causing the deaths of others and his

    Read More

More about Faustus The Reward Of Sin Is Death Analysis

Open Document