Prologue Flashcards
What technique is used in ‘not marching in the fields of Trasmiene, nor sporting in the dalliance of love, nor in the pomp of audacious deeds’?
Anaphoric repetition of negators - emphasises that Faustus is an everyman, he is not a brave solider nor a great romancer or a noble man.
Why does Marlowe utilise an everyman figure?
So the moral message of the play is applicable to the wider society - link to Aristotle - the poetics (handbook on how to write a tragedy)
What does Faustus have a gluttonous desire for?
Now unsatisfied with the finite nature of human knowledge, Faustus turns to seek the power of necromancy.
How is Faustus presented in ‘base of stock’?
Displays how he is from low status/humble beginnings - links to everyman figure
What device is used in ‘riper’ ‘fruitful’ and ‘sweet’?
The semantic field of food displays how he wishes to consume knowledge as though it is seemingly vital to him/nourishing/enriching
What device is used in ‘his waxen wings’?
Classical allusion to the myth of Icarus - foreshadows Faustus’ hamartia of overreaching and warns of the dangers of hubris - Faustus retreating to necromancy
What does ‘Wittenberg’ symbolise?
It is a symbol of revolutionary thinking
What context can be linked to the prologue?
The Protestant Reformation, seen in Marlowe anti-catholic sentiment seen throughout the play.
Who was Martin Luther?
He was a radical professor of moral theology and he nailed his theses to the door of a church, criticising the ‘corruption’ of the Catholic Church.
What did Martin Luther believe?
He believed that Christians are saved through faith and not through their own efforts. He was angry about the Catholic church selling ‘indulgences’ which were promised remissions from punishment if they paid the church.
What can be inferred through ‘He surfeits upon cursed necromancy’?
Displays how Faustus quickly gets corrupted by his unholy desire for black magic - insatiable desire
