Career choices, "post-decision regret," shortcuts to success--these and other themes of Dr. Faustus make it a good selection for junior and senior high school students. They will love acting out the Good Angel/Bad Angel scene.

Dr. Faustus (1604) by Christopher Marlowe

Study Guide/Suggested Journal Topics

(originally created for a 12^th grade elective class in English Renaissance literature)

Assignment One: Introduction and Act I

1. Notice the allusion to Icarus in the Prologue. How does the comparison between Icarus and Faustus help to establish Faustus as the “symbol of the Renaissance”?
2. As the play opens, which “career paths” does Faustus, the university graduate, consider and reject? For what reasons?
3. Why does Faustus consider the Bad Angel’s invitation so appealing?
4. Faustus believes that he has conjured up Mephistophilis with his magic and that the devil is his servant. What unexpected news does Faustus learn in his first exchange with Mephistophilis?
5. What makes Act I, scene iv, comic? What is a scene like this doing in a tragedy?

Assignment Two: Act II

1. Many of us have experienced “post-decision regret.” How does this psychological concept apply to the Faustus of Act II?
2. Can you think of any contemporary versions of the Bad Angel/Good Angel scene?
3. How does the play redefine the idea of Hell?
4. The traditional seven deadly sins make an appearance toward the end of Act II. Which of these are still considered sins today?
5. Notice the parallel between the endings of Acts I and II.

Dr. Faustus--Final Assignment and Essay

In reading Act V, think about all of the following questions; write about one in your journals.

1) Why does Faustus, with the help of Mephistophilis, conjure up Helen of Troy?

2) The Helen speech ("Was this the face that launched a thousand ships," etc.) is often cited as an example of consummate poetry. What makes the speech so poetic, so memorable? Note the contrasting speeches in prose that follow soon afterwards.

3) A new character is introduced, the Old Man. What is his dramatic function?

4) How would you stage Act V, Scene 2?

5) What's the function of the final scene?

__________________________________________________________________ Essay Assignment

Why has the Faust story, as presented by Marlowe, had such long-lasting and universal appeal? (Goethe's Faust, "The Devil and Daniel Webster," and the movie Damn Yankees are just a few of its reenactments.) Your essay should, in effect, answer that question by focusing on one aspect of human experience that Marlowe captured for all ages. Here are some suggestions for structuring your essay:

1) This topic lends itself to a "funnel style" introduction. You might begin by discussing some general issue (for example, the nature of classic works of literature) and thereby lead up to your thesis statement. Note: Something as vague as "Marlowe's play explores the sin of pride, a perennial human flaw" is not a thesis statement.

2) The body of your essay (two paragraphs or more) should explain, develop, and elaborate your thesis. Use concrete examples. Quote from the text, but don't import big blocks of text; rather weave words, phrases, or, occasionally, whole lines into your sentence structure.

3) In your conclusion, broaden out again. You might bring in other versions of the story in literature or observations from your own experience. However, don't stray too far from the theme you've been discussing earlier in the essay.

Alternatively, you may write a scene from a contemporary Dr. Faustus. If you choose this challenging alternative, you not only must come up with a contemporary embodiment of the story, but must also show that you have absorbed Marlowe's dramatic technique (his use of the soliloquy and Bad Angel/Good Angel characters to represent consciousness, burlesque imitations of the main plot, etc.).