The Prologues View Of Faustus' Ambitions
The proglogue situated at the beginning of Dr Faustus gives us a brief, intriuging insight into Faustus' apparent ambitions. It introduces us to him as a character, describing some of his traits regarding his personality. The quote 'surfeits upon cursed nemocracy' indicates that Faustus' meddles in practicing things which are considered to be unacceptable and perhaps sinful. The proglogue insists that communicating with the dead spells damage to Faustus' wellbeing.
A background to his early life is briefly mentioned, 'his parents base of stock' gives us the impression that Faustus came from a poor background and has resented this and attempted to work away from this 'class' of people and become his own person. He is seen as an ambitious man who is determined and willing to achieve great things, no matter what the cost of it may be. He studied in Wittenburg and is therefore well educated and intelligent, leading to him being 'graced with doctors name' and therefore becoming a figure of authority.
The quote 'his waxen wings did mount above his reach' gives the reader insight into Faustus perhaps punishing himself. This provides us with an image of him flying to the sun, being burnt and his wings melting. This a symbol of his ego becoming to big with Faustus believing that he can achieve great heights of knowledge by practicing black magic - and then being punished for believing in such unapprovable things. He is therefore brought back down to his apparent place in society when he's 'burnt.'
The prologue is short but insightful as it attempts to describe Faustus as a person without giving a lot away, just hinting at little things. One thing to be sure of is that he is obviously a ruthless and determined character who has built himself up to be somebody that nobody believed he would be. Perhaps he has a taste for power which could lead to uncontrollable situations and perhaps lead to a downfall.
A background to his early life is briefly mentioned, 'his parents base of stock' gives us the impression that Faustus came from a poor background and has resented this and attempted to work away from this 'class' of people and become his own person. He is seen as an ambitious man who is determined and willing to achieve great things, no matter what the cost of it may be. He studied in Wittenburg and is therefore well educated and intelligent, leading to him being 'graced with doctors name' and therefore becoming a figure of authority.
The quote 'his waxen wings did mount above his reach' gives the reader insight into Faustus perhaps punishing himself. This provides us with an image of him flying to the sun, being burnt and his wings melting. This a symbol of his ego becoming to big with Faustus believing that he can achieve great heights of knowledge by practicing black magic - and then being punished for believing in such unapprovable things. He is therefore brought back down to his apparent place in society when he's 'burnt.'
The prologue is short but insightful as it attempts to describe Faustus as a person without giving a lot away, just hinting at little things. One thing to be sure of is that he is obviously a ruthless and determined character who has built himself up to be somebody that nobody believed he would be. Perhaps he has a taste for power which could lead to uncontrollable situations and perhaps lead to a downfall.
No comments:
Post a Comment