The Duchess of Malfi Essay - Critical Essays

John Webster

Little is known of John Websters life, although the title page of his pageant, Monuments of Honour (1624),
calls him a merchant-tailor. In the custom of Jacobean playwrights, he often collaborated, probably with
Thomas Dekker, a practice supported by Philip Henslowe, whose Diary (1961) gives much information about
the theater of the period. Websters reputation rests almost entirely upon The White Devil (c. 1609-1612), and
The Duchess of Malfi. Both are studies of illicit love, revenge, murder, and intrigues worthy of the
Machiavellians that so appealed to Elizabethan and Jacobean audiences.

The Duchess of Malfi is a finer play than The White Devil, in part because of the noble character of the duchess
herself. Her story has the reputation of being the best poetic tragedy written after William Shakespeares, and
the work reveals Websters powers to present themes of great moral seriousness in magnificent language while
also creating flesh-and-blood characters. Webster and Shakespeare mastered thinking in images so well that
the images develop themes and meaning as fully as does the plot.

Some critics have noted that the violence of Websters revenge-and-blood tragedies may obscure their finer
qualities. George Bernard Shaw referred to Webster as a Tussaud-laureate. Despite the melodramatic or
surrealistic qualities of his work, however, few critics underestimate Websters brilliance as a psychologist.
His work shows its descent from Thomas Kyds The Spanish Tragedy (c. 1585-1589), Senecan tragedy, and
the medieval morality play, and the dramas reflect a preoccupation with death and the tempestuous history of
the Renaissance period. Many of the dramas are set in Italy, the epitome of evil locales to Renaissance English.

The duchess of Malfi was an actual Italian figure, but Websters immediate source was William Painters
Palace of Pleasure (1566), a collection of tediously moral stories, which was in turn based on twenty-five
novellas of Matteo Bandello that also provided themes for several plays by Shakespeare and his
contemporaries. Painter concentrates on two major sins, or weaknesses: the duchesss sensuality and
Antonios excessive ambition. Bosola is referred to only once in Painters story. Webster does not alter
Painters version so much as he enlarges it by surrounding the limited world of the lovers with other worlds:
the corrupt court of Amalfi and the religious state of Rome. He thereby exposes a universal corruption that
expands concentrically beyond the lovers chambered world. He enlarges and magnifies the role of the villain
Bosola and uses him to bind the various worlds together. The resulting revenge tragedy treats the question of
personal honor (still tied to feudal values), the political and moral problems of lawlessness, and the supreme
questionhuman vengeance and divine or Providential vengeance.

Webster creates this fallen world through the actions of the duchess, Ferdinand, the cardinal, Antonio, and
Bosola, particularizing the questions as to what true love should do in the presence of family pride and social
taboos; how an individual can rise in an evil, power-dominated world without undergoing corruption; and,
finally, whether people create their own heaven or hell. The topic of free will is both implicit and explicit
throughout the play: People are responsible for the choices they make. Webster forces the smaller worlds into
collision in the working out of these themes, and tragic destruction ensues. Providence finally asserts its
influence through the hope vested in the duchess and Antonios innocent son.

The duchess of the play is a headstrong but noble woman who says to her executioners: Pull, and pull
strongly, for your able strength/ Must pull down heaven upon me. Nobility notwithstanding, her passion is
out of place, for Antonio is but head steward of her household. In wooing Antonio she denies the chain of
being on its social level. Even at the moment when she and Antonio confess their love, they are therefore
threatened. In act 1, scene 3 (lines 176-181), she tries to ease his fears:

Ant.: But for your brothers?Duch.: Do not think of them:All discord without this circumferenceIs only to be
pitied, not feard:Yet, should they know it, time will easilyScatter the tempest.
Her optimism is that of the pure soul, but she misjudges the power of those outside this circumference. Her
willfulness and passion are lust in the eyes of her brothers, the Church, and society at large. Webster
communicates the sweetness of the romance, however, so thoroughly that the lovers are totally sympathetic
throughout.

Second to the duchess in importance is Bosola, a symbol of Websters disgust with an era that admired
ambition but provided little opportunity for its honest realization. This melancholy scholar perverts his
intelligence to serve Ferdinand and the cardinal, representatives of political and ecclesiastical corruption.
Bosolas evil actions continue after the duchesss murder so that Webster can complete the theme of
corruption. This accounts for the extended action of acts 4 and 5, which some critics have found objectionable.
Ultimately, Bosola recognizes his misplaced devotion and his responsibility for the horrors, a recognition too
sudden for some readers. Outside Shakespeares works, however, dramatic characters of the period seldom
change gradually, a vestige of the parent morality plays.

Even Ferdinand (who may hide incestuous feelings for his sister) accepts his guilt when he says, Whether we
fall by ambition, blood, or lust,/ Like diamonds, we are cut with our own dust. Ferdinands marvelous image,
which refers to all the characters, is characteristic of the powerful figurative language throughout the play.
The image identifies the characters as the most precious of jewels, yet paradoxically made of dust. The place
of human beings a little below the angels is secure, Webster declares, only so long as they act in accordance
with the moral laws established by Providence. People rise or fall by their own acts. Delios words that close
the play are Websters imagistic final comment upon the fallen of Amalfi: These wretched eminent things/
Leave no more fame behind em, than should one/ Fall in a frost, and leave his print in snow.

Thomas Kyd S The Spanish Tragedy Essay

Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy (c. 1587) is generally considered the first of the English Renaissance "revenge-
plays. ;A rich genre that includes, among others, Hamlet. These plays tend to be soaked in blood and steeped in
madness. The genre is not original to the period, deriving from a revival of interest in the revenge tragedies of the
Roman playwright Seneca. Nor is it exclusive to the past, as anyone who has seen the "Death Wish" or "Lethal Weapon"
films can attest. The revenge-play satisfied a deep longing in its audience for simple black-and-white rough justice that
seems to be universal. (Watson, 317) While the brutal quest for vengeance drives Kyd's play, justice is ultimately its
main thematic concern: what is it, who has the right to administer it, and is any sacrifice too great for its final
attainment? (Hunter, 217) Central to these questions is the pair of hangings that occur in the middle acts of the play.
Poisenings and stabbings happen throughout the piece but hanging was revloutionary. Hanging, decapitation, and
burning at the stake was forbidden to be shown in a play. The reason for this is simple: the use of the official methods
of execution as part of an entertainment would rob those methods of their value as deterrent to crime. (Shapiro, 100)
The same argument is made today over the desensitization to violence caused by television. The Spanish Tragedy is
unique in its onstage use of hanging as a device of murder. Why did Kyd risk public censure and official punishment by
having two of his characters meet their demises at the end of a rope? It is precisely because the noose is a symbol of
temporal justice, and Kyd wishes to demonstrate just how fickle such justice is when placed alongside the cosmic. Both
hangings in the play are perverse, Horatio's because it is a murder rationalized by a contrived social order, and
Pedringano's because it is state justice wrongly applied. The murder of Horatio in the arbor is abhorrent and terrible,
but it is also quizzical. He is hanged and stabbed by Lorenzo, Balthazar, Pedringano, and Serberine. It seems that
stabbing him would be not only sufficient but more expedient to the killers than what must be the arduous task of
subduing him and hauling him up on the tree branch, a curious way to kill a man unless one considers that Lorenzo
and Balthazar are making a point. Horatio is the son of Hieronimo, the Knight Marshal, functionally a civil servant
;Lorenzo is the son of the Duke of Castile, and Balthazar the Prince of Portugal. Early on in the play, the King of Spain
notes the difference in portfolio: But nephew, thou shalt have the prince in guard, For thine estate best fitteth such a
guest: Horatio's house were small for all his train. (I.ii. 185- 7) Once the conspirators discover that Horatio is Bel-
imperia's suitor, Balthazar comments, "Ambitious villain, how his boldness grows!" (II. ii. 41) Horatio had earned the
enmity of both of these men, Balthazar by subduing him in battle, and Lorenzo by contesting his claim to Balthazar's
capture. These reasons, coupled with Balthazar's desire for Bel-imperia, drive them to murder Horatio, but they hang
him for the crime of reaching beyond his station. Bel-imperia pleads for his life, claiming that she bore him no love, to
which Balthazar replies, "But Balthazar loves Bel-imperia" (II. iv. 59) with a simplicity that implies that the mere desire
of the Prince of Portugal excuses whatever depredations they inflict upon Horatio. Lorenzo tops it off by mocking his
dead rival: "Although his life were still ambitious proud,/ Yet is he at the highest now he is dead" (II. iv. 60-1
;Watson,323). The implication is clear: this is the justice of the ruling class against one who would seek their prizes.
Lorenzo in effect commits a second hanging murder by orchestrating the execution of Pedringano. This too is justified.

The Spanish Tragedy Summary

Thomas Kyd
In the introduction to the play, the Ghost of the Spanish courtier Don Andrea explains its history. After Andrea
was slain in a battle against Portugal, his Ghost made its way through the underworld, only to find itself sent
back to earth. The character Revenge, his guide, tells him that he has been sent back to witness his former
lover Bellimperia kill Balthazar, the "author of [his] death." The Ghost and Revenge sit down to watch the
spectacle unfold.

In the opening act, the Spanish forces return from their victory over Portugal. The General gives an account
of the battle to the King, explaining that they have reached a state of "peace conditional" and that they have
captured the Portuguese prince Balthazar. The Duke of Castile's son Lorenzo and the Marshall Hieronimo's
son Horatio, however, dispute their respective roles in capturing the Portuguese prince. The King rewards
them both. Meanwhile, in Portugal, the Viceroy laments his son's death. The loyal Alexandro tells him that
his son is in fact still alive. Another nobleman, Villuppo, however, declares that he saw Alexandro shoot
Balthazar in the back. Alexandro is immediately imprisoned.

In Spain, Horatio recounts the battle to Bellimperia, Lorenzo's sister and Andrea's former lover. The two begin
to fall in love. In the same scene, Balthazar also expresses his love for Bellimperia. The Portuguese
ambassador arrives, and Hieronimo stages a masque for him and the King. The act closes with Revenge
foreboding a general demise.

In the second act, the King of Spain attempts to arrange a marriage between Bellimperia and Balthazar.
Bellimperia, however, is in love with Horatio. As the two make their way to a secluded bower, the servant
Pedringano betrays them to Lorenzo and Balthazar. Horatio is hung from an arbor and stabbed to death.
Hieronimo enters to find his son's body and vows revenge. The Ghost expresses dismay at the turn of events,
but Revenge advises him to be patient.

The Viceroy discovers the truth about his son in the third act. He immediately sets Alexandro free and
condemns Villuppo to a painful death. In Spain, Bellimperia is held captive, but manages to send Hieronimo
a letter in which she reveals the identity of Horatio's killers. Lorenzo, on the other hand, attempts to purge all
evidence of the murder. He makes Pedringano shoot Serberine (Balthazar's servant who was present at the
murder scene), and then plots successfully to have Pedringano himself hanged. Pedringano's last (undelivered)
letter to Lorenzo, however, falls into Hieronimo's hands. Hieronimo thus confirms Bellimperia's accusations
and resolves to demand justice before the King. At home, his wife Isabelle "runs lunatic."

Like his wife, Hieronimo shows distinct signs of madness. He contemplates suicide, but again vows to first
exact revenge for Horatio's death. The Portuguese ambassador, meanwhile, arrives with good news: the
Viceroy has consented to the marriage between Balthazar and Bellimperia (whom Lorenzo has just released
from captivity). Hieronimo calls for justice before the King, but undermines himself by falling into a frenzy.
Later, several citizens come to petition Hieronimo, but once again Hieronimo is carried away in an ecstatic
fit.

The Viceroy himself arrives at the end of the act. While the nuptial celebrations are prepared, the Duke
confronts Lorenzo and Hieronimo about the negative rumors surrounding the two. Hieronimo denies any
wrongdoing on Lorenzo's part, and Bellimperia seems to have reconciled with Balthazar. The Ghost is alarmed
at such an unexpected turn of events, but Revenge once again reassures him that all is well (or, for the
characters in the tragedy, quite amiss).

In the final act, Bellimperia and Hieronimo work together to exact their revenge on Lorenzo and Balthazar.
Hieronimo wrote a tragedy in his youth, which the two young men now act out for the royal audience. Back
in the arbor where Horatio was murdered, Isabella commits suicide. As for Hieronimo's play, the plot is
executed smoothly, and Lorenzo and Balthazar are killed on stage. Bellimperia, too, commits suicide. The
King, the Viceroy, and the Duke are all horrified when they discover that the play seemed to merely be a
simulation. They demand to know Hieronimo's motives, but the latter bites off his tongue, stabs the Duke, and
finally commits suicide.

Doctor Faustus Essay - Critical Essays

Christopher Marlowe
The Tragicall History of Doctor Faustus 1593(?)

In his The Tragicall History of Doctor Faustus, Marlowe used the structure of the medieval morality play to
reinterpret the nearly century-old legend of Faust, a man who sacrifices his immortal soul in exchange for
knowledge and power. Marlowe presented a mythic, archetypal tale of human pride, sin, and fall from grace
that has appealed to readers and audiences through the humanist aspirations of the Renaissance, the spiritual
explorations of Romanticism, and the skepticism of modernity.

Biographical Information

Marlowe was a well-educated man who was frequently embroiled in religious and political controversy. He
studied theology at Cambridge, but in 1587 the university refused to grant his Master of Arts degree, accusing
him of visiting a Jesuit seminary in Rheims, France. Marlowe received his degree only after Queen Elizabeth's
Privy Council informed the university that he had been at Rheims to spy on exiled English Catholics who
were believed to be plotting against the English monarchy. In 1593 officials discovered a blasphemous
document in the home of Marlowe's friend and fellow dramatist Thomas Kyd. Facing imprisonment, Kyd
claimed the papers belonged to Marlowe. Another acquaintance, Richard Baines, then accused Marlowe of
making shockingly blasphemous and atheistic statements when he was a student. A warrant was issued for
Marlowe's arrest, but before it could be served, he was killed, stabbed to death at age 29. Historians have
debunked the popular story that Marlowe was killed in a dispute over "the reckoning," the bill for a night of
food and drink at a tavern. In fact, he died in a private house in the company of men who had also been
engaged as spies by the Privy Council. These men claimed that Marlowe attacked first, without provocation,
and the stabbing was ruled self-defense. Modern reexaminations of the circumstances of Marlowe's death do
not support the claim of self-defense, and a variety of theories have arisen to explain why someone might have
ordered Marlowe's assassination.

Scholars do not agree on how to interpret the charges of Marlowe's blasphemy and atheism. The reliability of
both Kyd and Baines remains a prominent issue. Whether or not Marlowe actually espoused religious heresy
may never be known for certain. Nevertheless, commentators do suggest that Marlowe's extensive education
in theology, his participation in the bitter conflicts between Catholicism and Protestantism, and his exposure
to atheistic doctrines made him uniquely prepared to dramatize the story of a man who rejects Christianity and
makes a pact with the devil.

Textual History

The text of Doctor Faustus survives, as Harry Levin wrote, in a "mangled and encrusted form." Marlowe
probably wrote the play between 1588 and 1589, following the success of both the first and second parts of
his drama Tamburlaine. Doctor Faustus was performed throughout the 1590s before the first edition, now
known as the A-text, was published in 1604. A second version, known as the B-text, was published in 1616.
These two versions of the play differ substantially. The A-text has speeches that are not in the B-text; the B-
text has almost 700 lines that are not in the A-text. Lines that appear in both versions have many verbal
differences, both small and large.

Changes may have been made to both versions during theatrical productions by directors or actors transcribing
the play text. Further complicating textual matters, the original publisher of the A-text paid two writers named
Samuel Rowley and William Bride to make revisions to Doctor Faustus. Because the A-text is know to have
been revised, many scholars maintain that the B-text is probably closest to Marlowe's original version. Some
critics have treated the texts as two distinct but related literary works, finding political and ideological
differences between the two versions.

Furthering complicating the textual history of Doctor Faustus is the probability that a collaborator wrote the
comic scenes in Doctor Faustusscenes that have long been considered different in style and awkwardly
inserted into the rest of the play. Elizabethan playwrights regularly collaborated on projects, and they often
divided their work by scenes. Word-frequency tests provide strong indications that the comic and tragic scenes
were written by different authors, while contradictions within the play indicate that the comic writer did not
know all the details of the tragic scenes.

Plot and Major Themes

The character of Faustus, already a renowned scholar and an accomplished physician when the play opens,
aspires to vast wealth, physical pleasures, and the power to restore life to the dead. When he realizes that living
a good Christian life will not bring him what he desires, he employs magic to invoke the devil. Mephistophilis,
an agent of Lucifer, appears and at first advises Faust not to forego the promise of heaven to pursue his goals.
Mephistophilis cites his own bitter fate as one "who saw the face of God / And tasted the eternal joys of
heaven" before his exile and fall into damnation. Faustus, however, rejects the warnings and willingly
exchanges his soul for the supernatural power and knowledge offered in exchange.

The play spans the next twenty-four years of Faustus's life. In the comic scenes most likely written by a
collaborator or inserted after Marlowe's death, Faustus visits the Vatican and mocks the Pope, performs magic
for continental royalty, and takes revenge on a horse dealer. These scenes are often considered unworthy of
the rest of the text as they seem to reduce the longing of a brilliant man to gain forbidden knowledge to an
adolescent delight in flouting authority and associating with the rich and powerful. Throughout his life,
Faustus is attended by a Good Angel, who begs him to repent while it is still possible, and a Bad Angel, who
assures him that he is past salvation and might as well make the best of his bargain. At one point Faustus
seems on the point of repentance, but he chooses instead to commit the sin of invoking and carnally embracing
Helen of Troy. In the final scene, he confesses to some scholars that he purchased his amazing powers at the
expense of eternal damnation, and retires to an inner room to await the appearance of Lucifer and
Mephistophilis to claim his soul.

Critical Reception

The greatest controversies surrounding Doctor Faustus have turned on the question of orthodoxy: whether the
play serves Protestant theology or subverts it. One school of critical thought holds that reformation theology
provides dramatic unity of the play. Douglas Cole argues that Doctor Faustus is "thoroughly Christian in
conception and import"; pointing out that Faustus sins knowingly, does not repent, and suffers eternal
damnation--a plot that in no way contraverts Christian doctrine. Other commentators emphasize the humanism
of the play, interpreting the character of Faustus as a Promethean image representing the aspirations of the
Renaissance. Although ultimately unsuccessful, the protagonist does revolt against the limitations of sin and
death, and by extension, against the Calvinist doctrine of predestination. In a biographically based
interpretation, Harry Levin suggests that Marlowe himself, like Faustus, was an "impenitent and wilful
miscreant" committed to subverting Christian values. The subversive nature of the play is a common theme
of late twentieth century criticism. Many critics now see the drama as raising questions without offering
affirmations of either a religious or a humanist nature.

--------------------------------

Doctor Faustus is probably Christopher Marlowes most famous work. A contemporary of William
Shakespeare, and author of nondramatic poetry as well, Marlowe wrote only seven plays. If Shakespeare had
died at an equally young agetwenty-nine rather than fifty-twoMarlowe might be the more famous of the
pair. Marlowe was one of the first English writers to perfect black verseunrhymed iambic pentameterand
to use it with flexibility and poetic effect in drama. He was killed in a tavern brawl.

The manuscripts of Doctor Faustus, surviving in different versions, were revised by theatrical companies after
Marlowes death in 1593. Printed versions of the play, one in 1604 and another in 1616, indicate further
editorial adjustments, particularly involving the comic scenes. Scholars do not agree about which version is
more authentic. They agree that Marlowe wrote the tragic scenes, but disagree about the authorship of the
comic scenes. Moreover, they question whether the comic scenes comment on or detract from the main plot.

The comic scenes of Doctor Faustus, however, follow the medieval practice of the farce or interlude
humorous, clownish, or boisterous amusement that entails variations on or exaggerations of Faustuss dealings
with Mephostophilis. For instance, the servants and the clowns try to conjure devils, and Faustuss sale of a
horse to a horse-courser, who returns to pull off Faustuss leg after the horse proves to be a creation of black
magic, parody Faustuss own more serious deviltry. The episode involving Faustuss pulled-off leg, actually
a bundle of hay that dissolves, suggests Faustuss own bodily disintegration at the end of the play and the
disintegration of his chances for salvation. Faustus remains giddy with hollow, short-lived successes. He never
experiences the somber reflection that usually grips the living in the presence of mortal decay. Overall, the
comic elements present thematic reminders of how evil lures by deceit and blunts or vulgarizes sensibility.

Marlowe based Doctor Faustus on the early sixteenth century German doctor Johann Faust, a practitioner of
magic, who was thought to have sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for knowledge and magical power.
Marlowe dramatizes tales that gathered around Faustuss name, those typically involving the conflict between
human aspiration and human limitation. His version of the life of Faustus greatly enriches and extends its
scope. He incorporates many literary, philosophical, and religious contexts.

In particular, Marlowe structures Doctor Faustus as a morality play combining religious instruction with vivid
entertainment. The morality play, a medieval poetic drama, mingles tragic and comic aspects of ordinary life
with Christian liturgical services and the homily. Its concern is humanitys earthly existence and spiritual state,
but especially humanitys well-being in the afterlife. Death stands as preoccupation, as in the play itself,
because it ought to bring every moment of life into sharp focus. The present should be viewed as a preparation
for eternal life; the struggle for salvation calls for faith, endurance, repentance, and constant alertness.
Furthermore, the morality play is allegorical; it personifies virtues and vices. Good and bad forces in a persons
heart and mind are presented in the likeness of living men and women, and they act in accord with their names
or natures. For example, in the morality play, the main character, representing all, encounters characters such
as Faith, Hope, and Charity as well as Pride, Lust, and Envy. The ensuing struggle demonstrates lifes trials
and the souls particular relation to God, and Christs blood is shed for its salvation. Medieval culture had
emphasized that believers should detach themselves as much as possible from things of this world.

Through elements of the morality play, Marlowe makes Doctor Faustuss situation expressive of the lives of
all believers. For example, he presents the conflicting dialogues of the Good and Evil angels and Faustuss
response to them as a form of spiritual decision-making in slow motion that is intended to teach through
contrasts. These dramatic encounters, as with those involving Faustus and Mephostophilis, and the varying
comic ones, illustrate that acts of choice and their motivations have temporal and eternal consequences.

In addition, Marlowe sets the morality-play framework of Doctor Faustus within the wider context of
Renaissance Christian humanism, in which intellectual and cultural currents greatly differ from the medieval
period. He makes Doctor Faustus represent the new learning that highlights the importance of individual
thought, expression, and worldly experience. Christian humanism seeks to extend boundaries of knowledge
beyond the religious sphere, with a revival of classical learning. It stresses all knowledge of human and
physical nature, the arts, and sciences together. It values and appreciates the present lifethe good things of
the here and now and the almost unlimited potential of humans to be, have, or do what they would. For
example, the discovery of the New World had greatly broadened physical, intellectual, and imaginative
horizons. Human beings, having wondrous capabilities and possibilities, should realize them through
generalized curiosity about all things. Struggles to understand how the world works and to discover how its
parts are connected makes humans more than they already are.

Initially, Faustus exemplifies the new humanistic learning and its open-ended possibilities; he is a person at
the height of human knowledge and is the greatest theologian in Europe, despite humble origins. Although
typifying the high aspiration of the Renaissance, he grows discontent, unhappy with the constraints of his
learning and his life, unable even to approximate his personal ambitions. He wants, for example, observable
proof of answers to ultimate or cosmic questions and increasingly seeks fame or worldly renown and sensual
gratification, epitomized in Helen of Troy. He turns to forbidden, occult things, acting against his better
knowledge.

Like some other humanists, Marlowes Faustus retains the superstitious belief that black magic or diabolism,
though unholy, is achievable and would raise him to the superhuman heights he seeks. He thinks the fact of
death and the dread of it, as well as the existence of evil and its depth, renders orthodox forms of knowledge
inadequate. He might make the tragic quality of life more manageable or tolerable by means of magical or
demoniac practices. He knows that these practices involve yielding his soul to the Devil or to one of the Devils
surrogates; the personal appearance of a devil in this world was accepted as proof that black magic works.
Faustus, in return for his soul, receives use of supernatural knowledge or power for twenty-four years, the
parallel with hours of the day indicating the brief time in comparison with eternity. His supposed supernatural
ability is a mystery operating outside the laws of God and nature. He thinks it attainable by select intellectuals
only. It was thought to bring worldly gratification and a sense of self-sufficiency, or independence from faith.
It would momentarily compensate for the destruction that haunts life and provide demonstrable answers to
lifes final questions, goals otherwise unreachable.

Still, Faustus realizes, though sporadically, that attempts to remedy somehow the brevity of human lifethe
toil and trouble inherent in itby means of a power other than God are sinful and false, bringing damnation.
Also, he wavers in convincing himself that the soul dies with the body, that he will accordingly escape
damnation, his contract with Lucifer voided. His indecision, a delirium of self-deception, demonstrates the
perversion or deformity that is the actual nature of evil, something he sees in the parade of the Seven Deadly
Sins but fails to understand. In addition, because of his pride, the root of the Seven Deadly Sins, Faustus never
recognizes Mephostophilis, Lucifer, and Beelzebub as sly, worldly-wise tempters and tricksters, temptation
always and everywhere being present in life; nor does he recognize the devils as unwilling servants of God, a
means of divine justice.

Furthermore, Marlowe adds another source of tension and conflict to his play, the doctrine of predestination.
Formulated by John Calvin, the sixteenth century reformer and theologian, the doctrine declared that Christs
redeeming death extended to the elect souls alone, those predetermined by God for salvation; others, for whom
it is denied, human nature being inherently sinful, will be damned. The English church, making concessions
to Calvinists within it, taught a form of the doctrine, that some souls are predestined to be saved, remaining
silent about the others. As Marlowe suggests through Faustus, the church, existing to draw people to Christ,
may, through its Calvinistic teaching, push them away.
In his opening soliloquy, Faustus reflects upon his life and the patterns of his thought and feeling, which had
been shaped by the morality play, Christian humanism, and predestination. Apparently, he develops a
pessimistic fatalism, a layer upon layer of inability or helplessness, a combination of perverse reasoning,
foolishness, delusion, and madness. He thinks that whatever he chooses the result is the samedeath in this
life and damnation in the next. He cites Saint Pauls Epistle to the RomansThe wages of sin is death
but he omits the rest of the verseBut the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord. His
refusal of that giftsomething Christ has already done for himis eventually revealed for the arrogance
and blindness it is. As the play unfolds, Faustus reaffirms his belief that his condemnation cannot be
transcended through an appeal to Gods grace, his pact with the Devil strengthening his certainty that his sins
are too great to be forgiven and that his destiny is predetermined. He ignores that a sincere prayer to Christ,
however briefly or humbly said, will be answered; that Gods mercy, without limit, open to all who ask, and
so easily acquired, will make whatever happens work for his good. Christs free gift will do for him what
he cannot and need not do for himself. Nevertheless, Faustus makes his assurance of doom a self-fulfilling
prophecy, rejecting the goodness of goodChrists redeeming sacrifice.

Faustuss disappointment in his pact with Lucifer begins immediately, as he learns what he already knows:
that God made the universe, that Hell is wherever God is not, and that his choices will lead him to Hell for
eternity. His dissatisfaction continues, his desire for power and fame reducing him to diversionary trifles:
mocking the pope, conjuring up grapes in winter, pursuing images of beautiful women; all are devils disguised
to fulfill his wishes. The comic subplot also illustrates the futility of his pact. For example, the least-educated
clown summons a demon; magic is shown to be nonexistent; and a demon appears whenever anyone disavows
Christ. Faustus surrenders true powerthe power of faith, choice, and intellectfor empty gestures that
perish with occurrence.

The final scene of the play summarizes the tragic irony of Faustuss life; the clock counts the minutes left in
the life of a person who, having determined lifes length, remains incapable of calling upon Christ when there
is no unpardonable sin. Faustus will not accept that divine mercy predominates over divine justice, and he
wants to hide from God. Hell, shadowing him throughout the play, completes its objective because the terms
of his contract have been fulfilled. Isolated, alienated from God, and screaming in futility that he will burn his
books, Faustus is confronted by devils, who tear him apart limb by limb; only his soul remains intact, taken
to Hell.

Social Criticism In Ben Jonsons Volpone English

Literature Essay
Benjamin Johnson is the third most important name in English drama after William Shakespeare and
Christopher Marlowe. Although he did not achieve much success with his tragedies, Ben Jonson became very
well-known for his comedies. "Volpone", which is part of his mature comedies, or second period, is his most
significant and most-performed play. Ben Jonson parodies the material "age of gold" referring to the Golden
age from Greek mythology. Human vices are the main reason for people's moral degradation and the
perversion of the Golden Age. He accentuates on people's tendency to deceive others out of greed, vanity,
sloth, lust and hedonism.

"Volpone" has a main plot and a subplot, which was very typical for plays of that time. The main plot reveals
the characters obsessed with greed, and the subplot "attacks" another vice - that of vanity. It bears the typical
characteristics of Jonson's drama. The action takes place over the course of one day (in seventeenth century
Venice). Jonson was an Italophile, though back then, Venice was considered to be the centre of sin and
corruption. Characters are historically bound to their place and time and each one of them represents a human
trait or eccentricity.
Volpone, whose name means fox, is a rich man who makes "good" use of his leisure time. He is not married
and childless which makes him a perfect target for legacy hunters. He pretends to be sick and on the verge of
dying, so as to delude people and make them wish for becoming his heirs. Volpone is the epitome of greed
and hedonism - he enjoys pleasure in all of its manifestations and indulges in the way he deceives three gullible
men, all of them bearing the names of predatory birds - Voltore (from Italian - meaning vulture), Corbaccio
(raven) and Corvino (crow). Thus greed is presented as "a characteristic of the society as a whole". But the
difference between Volpone and his would-be heirs is that Volpone is greedy not only for wealth, but for
"gaining more power over his victims". The protagonist is very much contented that he receives gifts, but what
gives him real satisfaction is the fact that his plans for manipulating people into giving him presents work very
well:

Yet I glory

More in the cunning purchase of my wealth,

Than in the glad possession

"Volpone" is reminiscent of Thomas Kyd's Spanish tragedy as it is another "play within the play". In Jonson's
play the protagonist and his "parasite" - Mosca, are the main actors and the rest are just puppets in their hands.

In the rest of Volpone's speech, Jonson indirectly makes an allusion to another cardinal sin - sloth:

since I gain

No common way; I use no trade, no venture;

I wound no earth with plough-shares; fat no beasts,

To feed the shambles; have no mills for iron,

Oil, corn, or men, to grind them into powder:

I blow no subtle glass; expose no ships

To threat'nings of the furrow-faced sea;

With the use of irony, the author indirectly accuses the audience of being idle because many people preferred
using tricks instead of working as a way to get money. It was a common practice among upper classes to find
an heirless "magnifico" who is expected to die soon. Then one starts ingratiating with him in hope of becoming
their heir. But in "Volpone" the author presents the idea of "the thief who becomes the victim of thieving" -
each of the three men tries to get Volpone's riches, but is actually robbed of their own. Since the three
competitors for Volpone's inheritance are so desperately trying to earn his favour, the protagonist is certainly
no worse than them. He is just taking advantage of their gullibility and is wrapping them around his finger
with Mosca's help.

Volpone "exults" that he has "no wife, no parent, child, ally". Nano (the dwarf), Castrone (the eunuch) and
Androgyno (the hermaphrodite) are his servants and their function in the play is "thematic and rhythmic".
They speak in heroic couplets as compared to the central characters. They constitute Volpone's household
which is "a parody of a family": the three grotesque characters are his children-freaks and Mosca is his
mistress. Such "travesties" have always indicated a "social or spiritual decadence". Jonson hints that the
concept of a family has been perverted in the society because blood bones do not have that much importance
as they used to. Volpone boasts that he does not have any blood relatives, Corbaccio disinherits his son and
Celia is betrayed by her own husband. The latter is not an example of betraying a blood relative, but it is a
good illustration of how corrupt the society has become, since Celia's husband compels her to sleep with
another man in order to get hold of his riches.
Hypocrisy is yet another vice that has spread like a disease in the Venice society of that time. It is a potent
tool for achieving one's goals and it goes hand in hand with the unlimited greed of some of the characters.
Everybody starts lying as soon as they realize that they can take advantage of their lies. The three men's desire
to get their hands on Volpone's money make them pretend that they are concerned about Volpone's health.
And they are, indeed, though it is not improvement, but deterioration of his health that will relieve their
anxiety. The dialogue between Volpone and Voltore is a perfect example of the "trickster tricked" idea:

The next victim is Corbaccio who is older than Volpone and is certainly nearer to death than him. His attempts
to become heir to "soon-to-die" Volpone suggest that people do not change over time. Either greed does not
know age, or Corbaccio is just another person who does not accept the fact that he is getting old and will not
be able to take his possessions with him when he dies. The raven's gift is worthless compared to the other two
competitors' presents. He offers a medicine that is supposed to improve Volpone's condition, but, of course,
the chances of the given drug to be actually a poison are very high. Corvino is the third person who is tricked
by Volpone and Mosca. Each of the would-be heirs is told that he is the one who will receive Volpone's
inheritance. As soon as the last competitor goes out of the house, Volpone and Mosca start mocking at their
gullibility. The fact that their actions are less dishonest compared to the actions of the three legacy-hunters is
the reason Ben Jonson still does not punish them for their lying.

Lady Politic Would-be "serves as Sir Politic Would-be's female counterpart in her vanity". Besides the fact
that she is vain about her looks, she also pretends to be very literate and tries to prove it by talking too much.
Thus Ben Jonson satirizes the loquacious woman who indulges too much in being the centre of attention.

The subplot is "directed towards Italophile Englishmen" (like Jonson himself) who travel to Italy to get to
know its civilization. But these people are endangered by succumbing to the corrupt manners of the society.
Sir Politic Would-be and his wife are two examples of how simple-minded people are easily corrupted once
they are influenced by the Italian way of life.