What does Marlowe's presentation of Mephastophilis tell an audience about Sixteenth Century ideas of hell and damnation?

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Sabaa Mahmud

What does Marlowe’s presentation of Mephastophilis tell an audience about Sixteenth Century ideas of hell and damnation?

In this essay I am going to explore different ways in which Faustus uses Mephastophilis. I am also going to be talking about the complicity of the play. I’m also going to look at damnation and talk in depth about Mephastophilis’s character and the way he’s presented to the audience.

Mephastophilis first appears in Scene 3 and straightaway he makes it clear that he is there of his own accord and he’s not there because Faustus has conjured him up “I came hither of mine own accord”. Straightaway we can realise that Mephastophilis is a very strong character and will not be pushed around.

Marlowe presents Mephastophilis to be a clever character who has affections and this would have been weird for the Elizabethan audience to understand as the devil to them was always seen as someone who had no feelings. Mephastophilis has strong emotions and they are clearly shown in Scene 3 in the following exclamatory sentence “think’st thou that I, who saw the face of God, and tasted the eternal joys of heaven, am not tormented with ten thousand hells, in being deprived of everlasting bliss”.

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Mephastophilis is shown to be a very complex character in the play; he has a name and emotions too. That’s what makes this play different to morality plays as a devil would have been shown as unsympathetic and uncompassionate. Morality plays were teaching devices which were combining of delight and instruction, it was used to entertain the audience and taught the dangers of sin and also showed the goodness of God. Dr Faustus has a lot of similarities as well as a lot of differences to a morality play.

Morality plays are about simplicity and the audience of the ...

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