Faustus

Question 1

How is Faustus presented throughout the play?

Question 2

“Till, swollen with cunning, of a self-conceit,
His waxen wings did mount above his reach,”

Answer 2

Chorus, Prologue
AO1: Plosives, Allusion, Rhyming Couplet, Foreshadowing
AO2: Faustus’ selfish motives of finding endless knowledge and power after being tempted by necromancy leads to his tragic end, much like how Icarus flew too close to the sun and died
AO3: Aristotle’s aspects of a tragic hero (hamartia, peripeteia, anagnorisis, catharsis)

Question 3

“O Faustus, lay that damned book aside,
And gaze not on it, lest it tempt thy soul,
And heap God’s heavy wrath upon thy head.”

Answer 3

Good Angel, Scene 1
AO1: Religious imagery, Allegory
AO2: The good and bad angel serve to either sway Faustus into repenting or further down the spiral of necromancy.
AO3: Morality Play

Question 4

“Shall I make spirits fetch me what I please,
[…] I’ll have them fly to India for gold,
Ransack the ocean for orient pearl,
And search all corners of the new-found world
For pleasant fruits and princely delicates.”

Answer 4

Faustus, Scene 1
AO1: Syndetic list
AO2: Faustus’ aspirations for his use of magic align with the exploration in 1600s England
AO3: Golden age of exploration during the Renaissance

Question 5

“Say, he surrenders up to him his soul
So he will spare him four and twenty years,
[…] To give me whatsoever I ask,
To tell me whatsoever I demand,
To slay mine enemies, and aid my friends,”

Answer 5

Faustus, Scene 3
AO1: Anaphora
AO2: Faustus uses his first meeting with Mephistopheles to lay down the foundations of what he wants with this power, but only asks for a limited amount of time which displays a lack of logical thinking for a man said to be a polymath
AO3: Aristotle’s elements of a tragic hero (hamartia, anagnorisis, catharsis)