Dr Faustus is more morality play than gothic. How far does your reading of Act 2, scene 3 support this view?
Navneet Virk
‘Dr Faustus is more morality play than gothic.’ How far does your reading of Act 2, scene 3 support this view?
Fred Botting expresses “Gothic writing emerges as the thread that defines literature.” But it is apparent that Marlowe was influenced by many genres. Although Gothic plays were very popular around the time beginning from the 1760’s onwards, with the works of Shakespeare such as ‘Hamlet’, it is clearly viewed that Marlowe has taken inspiration from many genres in the writing of this play. ‘Doctor Faustus’ is not more of a morality play than gothic, it is a mixture of sub genres of morality, gothic and tragedy plays. Act 2 Scene 3 is a perfect example show evidence of Marlowe’s influences of several different genres.
Structure of Act 2 Scene 3 portrays an aspect of morality plays. Marlowe has taken the repetition of the reform and relapse pattern commonly used in morality plays and has used it in this scene. The four point cycle of doubt, persuasion, resolve and gain repeats itself several times in the scene by Faustus. The character of Faustus here links to the ‘everyman’ character in morality plays. The four point structure communicates the weakness of the merciful nature of the human’s state of mind. Faustus doubts his decision and says that he “will renounce this magic and repent” until we see the persuasions of the good and evil angel come into to distract his mind. The good angel encourages Faustus to “Repent yet, God will pity thee” whereas the evil angel ends with a reminder that “Thou art a sprit, God cannot pity thee”. Marlowe’s use of the good and evil angel could be interpreted a physical representative of Faustus, and the human race, own conscience and on-going battle between right and wrong. The cycle then goes on the point three of “resolved Faustus shall ne’er repent”; Marlowe use of 3rd person here mirrors the detachment of Faustus’s soul. Finally the cycle ends with a gain when Faustus is able to “dispute again” with “Mephistopheles”.
