Dr Faustus

Prologue

Not marching now in fields of Thrasymene,
Where Mars did mate the Carthaginians,
Nor sporting in the dalliance of love,
In courts of kings where state is overturn'd
Nor in the pomp of proud audacious deeds,
5    Intends our Muse to vaunt her heavenly verse:
Only this, gentlemen,—we must perform
The form of Faustus' fortunes, good or bad:
To patient judgments we appeal our plaud,
And speak for Faustus in his infancy.
10     Now is he born, his parents base of stock,
In Germany, within a town call'd Rhodes:
Of riper years, to Wertenberg he went,
Whereas his kinsmen chiefly brought him up.
So soon he profits in divinity,
15     The fruitful plot of scholarism grac'd,
That shortly he was grac'd with doctor's name,
Excelling all whose sweet delight disputes
In heavenly matters of theology;
Till swoln with cunning, of a self-conceit,
20    His waxen wings did mount above his reach,
And, melting, heavens conspir'd his overthrow;
For, falling to a devilish exercise,
And glutted now with learning's golden gifts,
He surfeits upon cursed necromancy;
25   Nothing so sweet as magic is to him,
Which he prefers before his chiefest bliss:
And this the man that in his study sits.

I have highlighted the parts that i found interesting within the Chorus of Dr Faustus.  This is important as it is telling the audience what the play is not about. As the audience we get told that it is not a play about love or good deeds and more a play about morality and religion. We are also teased with the idea that black magic is involved. This is in line 25. We also discover that Dr Faustus is in fact high on the academic ladder and has achieved a lot throughout his life. However, it seems as if he has become very arrogant.

Act 1 Scenes 1 - 4

 Act 1 Scene 1 Line 1 'Settle thy studies,' which means to make your mind up about what you want to do in life. This shows how Dr Faustus is unsettled about what he is going to do and he is talking to himself and the audience about making up his decision. He does this by searching through many books in his study. Then eventually stumbles across a book of magic.
Act 1 Scene 1 Line 24 'Wouldst thou make man to live eternally? Or being dead, raise them to life again?' This line relates to Victor Frankenstein because of the symbol of creating life.

There are two angels in the play and these are the good angle and the bad angle. They appeared just as Faustus begins to get interested in the book of magic and they show a sign of moral conflict. This links with the 'morality play'. When Faustus begins to fantasize about what he could have if he was on top of the world because of the magic. We see clear evidence of how he does not plan to be completely selfish, and he does have ideas for the world itself to make it a better place. This is shown in lines 90 to 94. 'I'll have them wall in Germany with brass... I'll have them fill the public schools with silk... students shall be bravely clad... I'll levy soldiers with the coin they bring'.

In act 1 scene 2 there are many significant words that are used such as 'conjure' and also there are many references to religious artifacts within the play already so far.
Again in Act 1 Scene 2 we are introduced to the characters of 'First scholar' and 'Second scholar', these characters enter the play causing some unease. This is because they both immediately make the audience aware of the danger Dr Faustus is entering.

Act 1 Scene 3, this is when we meet Mephistopheles for the first time, he brings a dark aroma to the play as he talks about 'hell' and he also talks about how he is bound to hell and therefore cannot help anyone. We discover that Faustus did not actually summon him and in fact Mephistopheles heard him mumbling the spell and he was curious as to whether he could take his soul.

Act 1 Scene 4 is when we are first introduced to the deal that Faustus has offered '24 years of luxury life and he will send off his soul. From lines 104 to 116 Faustus speculates about what he could do if the deal is accepted.

Throughout Act 1 Scene 4 we can also see that there is a parody of the bargains Faustus is about to make and this highlights his foolishness. This parody is reflected in the scene with Wagner and Robin. Also in Act 1 Scene 4 Robin who is a clown expresses his vulgar side and becomes very crude talking about tickling 'the pretty wenches' plackets!' 

Overall i think that so far the play has been very interesting and i think there is much to come from Faustus' actions in relation to the magic. I think that the play has very important characters and the humor within the play is also very significant typically within the time the play was on stage.