Christopher Marlowe, Doctor Faustus

What does Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus tell us about the author and the time at which the play was written? This free course, Christopher Marlowe, Doctor Faustus, will help you to discover the intricacies of the play and recognise how a knowledge of the historical and political background of the time can lead to a very different understanding of the author's intended meaning.

• Introduction
• Learning outcomes
• 1 Christopher Marlowe
• 1 Christopher Marlowe
• 1.1 Marlowe: the man
• 1.2 Doctor Faustus
• 1.3 Reading a Renaissance play
• 2 Reading Doctor Faustus
• 2 Reading Doctor Faustus
• 2.1 Act 1, Scene 1: "Yet art thou still but Faustus, and a man"
• 2.1.1 The morality play
• 2.1.2 Faustus's first speech
• 2.1.3 The comic scenes
• 2.2 Act 2, Scene 1: Faustus and God
• 2.3 Acts 3 and 4: What does Faustus achieve?
• 2.4 Act 5, Scene 2: Faustus's last soliloquy
• 2.5 Morality play or tragedy?
• 3 Hero and author
• 3 Hero and author
• Conclusion
• References
• Acknowledgements