The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus - Essay Example

The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus Faustus is the central character in the play. At the start of the play, Faustus is starting to resume his career as a magician. Performing magic is not Godly and from this point, it is clear that Faustus is devilish. He is very ambitious and hopes that the magic he will manage to pile up wealth (Marlowe 7).Faustus is determined to change things. He is determined to change the God-centered universe to a state where people will begin to embrace human possibility.

He believes that with his magic, he will show the powers in people. Most of the characters believe that God is the changer of everything and hence by believing in human possibility, Faustus elicits sympathy for the devil. He believes that a pact with the devil is the easiest way for him to fulfill his great ambitions.His sympathy will the devil is also shown in his conversations with mephastophilis. He lets him know that he does not believe that hell exists. During Faustus’s opening soliloquy, he says, “We deceive ourselves, and there’s no truth in us.

Why then be like we must sin, And so consequently die.” (Marlowe 11) This shows that he does not care about sin and he does not believe in the consequences of sin. He is not concerned about all the prospects of eternal damnation (Marlowe 29). He refuses to repent since he does not believe there is any consequence of sin. Although at a certain point it appears like mephastophilis bullies Faustus into non-repentance, his character shows that he sympathizes with Lucifer. Faustus is seen to agree with mephastophilis when he says “Why this is hell, nor am I out of it.

Think’st thou that I, who saw the face of God…” their conversation question the existence of God and it implies that they side with the devil. His desire for power draws him closer to Lucifer.At the end of the play, Faustus gives in to repentance since his desire to have power brings him back to God (Marlowe 57). He decides to burn all his books and withdraw from the race against God. He ends up being the hero in the play. All through the play, his ambitions are against the law of God and in line with works of the devil.

Works CitedMarlowe, Christopher, and Paul H. Kocher. The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus. Wheeling, Ill: Harlan Davidson, 1989. Print.