Influence Of Renaissance Spirit On Christopher Marlowe
Marlowe wrote this play in Renaissance. The word Renaissance means rebirth or the revival of the Greek and Latin classical knowledge. It was a cultural movement that started in Italy in 1453. It spread roughly from 14th century to 17th century throughout Europe. Renaissance profoundly affected all aspects of life like art, literature, philosophy, religion, science, politics, and other aspects of intellectuality. Dr. Faustus is one of the best representatives of the Renaissance scholars. Faustus succeeds in achieving supernatural power through knowledge in the form of Black Art. There are some characteristic features which vividly describe the various aspects of Renaissance.
First of all Humanism, which emphasizes the fact that the basic nature of human is good is one of the most important feature of the Renaissance. It was considered a genuine way for new learning. The humanists convinced the religious people to be humanists. They studied every aspect of literature like poetry, ethics, grammar, rhetoric and so on. Humanism reawakened the intellectuality of European scholars.
Secondly, Science brought a big change in the whole way of living in England. In the development of science there was a kind of skepticism. The new discoveries and inventions divided people in three groups (i. e. the believers in religion, the believers in science, and the skeptic; whether they believe in religion or science).
Thirdly, the Renaissance scholars were against the corrupt laws of Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther challenged Christianity. He disagreed with the corrupt clergies and priests. He pointed out the weakness and blunders of the religion and of the priests. Some of the people stood with Luther against the priests, known as Protestants. Martin Luther wanted to reform the Church of England, therefore Luther known as the first reformer. Similarly, Dr. Faustus gets against the religion and disgraces the religious people like Pope and Knight in the play.
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was born on 26 February 1564. His father was a shoemaker, John Marlowe and his mother was Catherine. Marlowe was born in the busy city of Canterbury. At Marlowe’s time Catholicism was the dominant religion in England. Canterbury was also the city of cultural representations. Marlowe’s early education included reading and writing. He was interested in studying Latin and Greek. At Marlowe’s time it was essential for an educated person to learn different classical languages and to have knowledge about the classical texts which were written in Greek and Latin.
At fourteen, Marlowe was admitted at the prestigious King’s School. The school followed the pattern of Christian worship which was prescribed by the Church of England. There he was also taught a big collection of poetry at the King’s School. Marlowe was greatly interested in poetry; especially in the Latin poetry of Ovid and Virgil. He also read the Latin translation of the great poet Lucan and Odyssey by Homer. Marlowe wrote his play Dido Queen of Carthage which was published in 1594 while he was at English Catholic College in Rheims. He graduated in 1587 and went to London and started writing plays. He wrote many great plays like Tamburlaine the Great which was performed in 1587, Edward II which was printed in 1592 and The Tragic History of Dr. Faustus.
In 1587, Marlowe arrested in a case of murder that he involved in a night where a man found dead. In 1592, he was arrested in the case of counterfeiting in Netherlands (Holland). He also took to court twice in the same year for assault. Later on he was accused again and again being as an atheist and traitor. At last he was taken to death; a person stabbed him in his eye on May 30, 1593.
Christopher Marlowe wrote his play Dr. Faustus in Renaissance language. It was a kind of challenge to the high school’s and college’s students. Of course, it is the famous play of that age. Faustus, a German scholar as a renaissance man; dissatisfies in all fields of knowledge. He rejects all the books as useless. He shows all these things in the first monologue of the first scene “Philosophy is odious and obscure. Both law and physics are for pretty wits; Divinity is the basest of three, Unpleasant, harsh, contemptible and vile; ‘Tis magic, magic that hath ravished me. ’ He remains with one thing that is to play with the power of black art, Necromancy. His two friends Valdes and Cornelius help him to summon Lucifer, the devil. When he spells something from the book of magic, the minister of Lucifer, Mephistopheles appears to serve him. He makes an agreement with Lucifer through Mephistopheles and sells his soul for twenty four years to the devil. In this duration he would be free to enjoy the great power of magic.
