Can Faustus truly be regarded as a tragic hero

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Faustus, a tragic hero?

In order to do this, Marlowe has drawn on the conventions of classical Greek tragedy, many of which dictate the nature of the hero or heroine. In ancient times, a hero achieved heroic status not because of saintliness or wickedness, but because of the acts he performed in life. The hero should have a socially elevated status and suffer a reversal of fortune in which he experiences great suffering. This is all certainly true of Faustus, who is highly regarded as both a lecturer at the University of Wittenberg, and an accomplished scholar. During his life, he performs extraordinary feats, which were unlike anything experienced by lesser mortals. Even by modern standards, the notion of necromancy is disturbing; for a contemporary Elizabethan audience, for whom religion permeated all aspects of life, it would have been inconceivably horrific. Once Faustus is "glutted with learning's golden gifts and surfeited upon cursed necromancy" he uses his powers to embark upon amazing adventures (for example learning the secrets of astronomy upon the summit of mount Olympus) which, again, are befitting of the tragic hero.

Faustus reversal of fortune is also typically tragic. During the final scene of the play, in which we witness Faustus' final hour before being taken off to hell, he is, like all heroes of classical tragedy, completely isolated. There is a poignant contrast in Faustus' degeneration from the successful, revered conjurer of the previous scenes, to the disillusioned scholar we see here. In despair, he tries to conjure and command the earth to gape open but realises that, "o no, it will not harbour" him. His terror, desperation and frantic hopes are all conveyed by the final soliloquy, which is both graphic and physical in its nature. The dramatic moment of Faustus' death, as his flesh is torn by devils, is at the same time horrendous and moving. His experiences the type of physical anguish reminiscent of the blind Oedipus, and this enactment of the spectacle of pain and death is at the heart of a true tragedy.

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The question of fate versus free will is a key theme in Dr. Faustus, and one which is important when considering Faustus himself as a tragic hero. If, indeed, Faustus has the freedom necessary to change or reverse his predicament then he is truly a tragic hero. The chorus' assertion that "cut is the branch which might have grown full straight", does seem to support the idea that Faustus was not doomed from the beginning, but was given choices and opportunities to repent his wicked ways. Mephastophilis sums this up perfectly when, in response to Faustus' desperate, remorseful accusation: "thou ...

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A very well written and well-constructed essay, which shows strong understanding of the conventions of tragedy and effectively places the play in its literary and historical context. The essay would benefit from more reference to events in the text however, in order to achieve the perfect balance between contextual comment and textual exploration.