Evil in Three Dramas
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Visions of evil operating in this world serve as the subject matter for the dramatist, especially in an era when good and evil were seen more clearly as battling for the human soul directly, often personified as angel and devil. In the Elizabethan era, William Shakespeare in Macbeth and Christopher Marlowe in Doctor Faustus in England explored these issues in different ways, though each saw evil as manifest and physical as well as sometimes supernatural. In Spain, Calder?n de la Barca a few years later similarly expressed the palpable nature of evil in human life in his El m?gico prodigioso. The Marlowe and Calder?n works are both based on the Faust legend, while Shakespeare's play is based on a historical individual reported. The three plays are related in that in all three cases, the protagonist is guided to success in this life by supernatural forces, imperiling his soul in the process. A comparison of the three illuminates the character of Dr. Faustus as depicted in the Marlowe play and suggests how Marlowe used the legend to create a sense of tragedy in terms of a character who has clearly over-reached himself. The story has its roots in the mid-sixteenth century, not long before these three works were written. Faust was a historical figure who died around 1540. He often alluded to the Devil as his "Schwager," or crony. He left behind a legend of sorcery and alchemy, astrology and sooth saying, studies both theological and diabolical. Contemporary accounts su
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han does Macbeth. Macbeth is not an evil man when he first meets the witches, but he allows his ambition to overcome his nature. Faustus, however, becomes involved by choice with necromancy, or black magic, and through this seeks godlike powers. He knows that this involves forbidden traffic with demons, with the evil forces that tempt humans and interfere in human life. Faustus conjures the demon spirit, Mephostophilis, and offers a deal--he will give his immortal soul to the devil in exchange for 24 years of magic and success in whatever he pursues.
Macbeth has the opportunity to refuse to do what his wife asks and to wait. He is told that he will be king--he could wait and become king. His wife counsels him to take action and to make this happen. Faustus also takes action to bring about what he wants, and in addition, Mephostophilis leaves him alone for a time during which he has the opportunity to reconsider and to see that what he is doing will destroy him. For Macbeth, any good he considers is countered by his wife. For Faustus, good and evil appear before him in visual form as a Good Angel, who tells him to flee and not to have anything to do with this evil, and Mephostophilis, who returns with an offer from Luc
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1647
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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