Nishtha Makwana

Think and write

Hey guys, so here we have again a task by our H.O.D Dilip Barad sir. He suggests us to think in a different way. And it's really useful for all students of literature.

Doctor Faustus

      
        Doctor Faustus is a tragedy written by Christopher Marlowe, who was the greatest dramatist among Elizabethan Era.The tragedy is based on German stories. The tragic story of a renaissance man.

1. The play directed by Matthew Dunster for Globe theatre ends with this scene (see the image of Lucifer). What does it signify?

             This picture significant the end of the play directed by Mathew Dunster for globe theatre. The last scene is looking horrible and terrible. It's also shows the harsh reality of human nature. The framing character is Lucifer, who was the prince of hell. And this is also a myth but through this element of hell and devil Marlow criticised the human nature.

            In the picture we also see that the devil expression of Lucifer.The attitude to defeat the God. Wings also shows here the victory as flying up side and also the myth of Daedalus and Icarus.

2. Is God present in the play? If yes, where and how? If No, why?

            As we know that this is an Elizabethan Tragedy. Sometime between 1589 or 1592. In this time Religion has a strong existence, but although we can't find the presence of God. Doctor Faustus was a German scholar and he has too much knowledge about everything. And the quest for knowledge made him crazy and took him to the downfall. He believes that there is God but where is he and Faustus also wants to be like him. But in any scene we are Anable to find the presence of God. James Sims remarks that….

         "Dr. Faustus even becomes a kind of perverted Christ who sheds his blood not to save the souls of others but to damn his own soul and then appreciates the death cry of the biblical Christ to emphasize his own blasphemy"

          We can't find the element of God even in the end of the play when Doctor Faustus begd him for his life.

3. What reading and interpretation can be given to this image (see the image of Daedalus and Icarus) with reference to central theme of the play Dr. Faustus?

           Daedalus and Icarus is a most famous Greek mythology. And we can compare it with the central theme of Doctor Faustus. As we know that Doctor Faustus was a German scholar and has to much knowledge and on the other side Daedalus was a skillful craftsman and artist and was seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power. He is the father of Icarus. Now he and his son made a plan to escape by using wings made of wax that Daedalus has invented.

           

            Icarus felt that now he has a power and can fly higher and anywhere. But his father warn him to not fly close to the sun because the wings made of wax. But sadly Icarus didn't heard his father's warning and flew to close to the sun. The wax Melted and Icarus fell to his death.

          And as like this Doctor Faustus represents the character of Icarus. For the quest of knowledge and wisdom he met to his downfall. And here the old man and the Good angle represent the character of Daedalus. They told him to not go on that path but Faustus refused their warning and at the end his overness of knowledge led him to his downfall.        

     

              So can say that the myth Daedalus and Icarus and Doctor Faustus has similarity in the theme.

            

4. How do you interpret this painting ?

   

            

            When one first see this painting, one can say that this is a natural painting. But if we see the  painting in the literary way we can find the Main theme of the painting. The painting is about the famous Greek myth Daedalus and Icarus. But the painting is not follow the original theme. The painting is about modern time, where people don't care about anyone or anything around them. They just live their lives in their own way. In the modern time no one has time or care about anything except him or her self. The world became more selfish than before. Everyone is busy in their work.

5. Read this article by Bhagat Singh. In light of the arguments made by Bhagat Singh(Bhagat Singh article) this article, can you re-write last monologue of Doctor Faustus?

             Bhagat Singh and Doctor Faustus these two characters are totally different from each other.on the one side Bhagat Singh is a legend and a brave character in the history and never afraid from death. And he was atheist. But on the other side Doctor Faustus is a German scholar. He wanted to gain power and wisdom but at the end he begs to the god for his life.

         If there was Bhagat Singh on the place of Doctor Faustus he never prayed to God for his life. Bhagat Singh says in his article that

    "Religion is the outcome of          

    human weakness or the

    limitation of human knowledge"

         If there was his death he warmly welcomed it. And felt every last moment of life.

6. Summarise articles discussed in the class:

         We have discussed two articles in our class. The one is….

Marlow and God : Tragic Theology of Dr. Faustus

          This article Marlowe and God : Tragic Theology of Doctor Faustus is written by Robert Ornstain. In this article he talks about Marlowe's style of writing. Marlowe was an anti God writer. The experiment of black magic and sells Faustus soul are his disaster. His plays as in source the hero's defiant is his final moment of dread.

Myth, Psychology and Marlowe's Doctor Faustus

             This article Myth, psychology and Marlowe's doctor Faustus is written by Kenneth L. Golden. An article on mentality of human mind and mythology. The article is based on a theory which include a human fall by his desire or over smartness. This theory also related with the myth of Daedalus and Icarus. In Doctor Faustus for gain more power and knowledge doctor Faustus at the end himself invite his downfall.