The Rise of Individualism in Dr. Faustus

          Throughout the Renaissance, due to the greater availability and expansion of knowledge, new emphasis was added to the role of the individual while less emphasis was placed upon the divine.  Christopher Marlowe’s work Dr. Faustus portrays this new trend in individualism as humans made their own choices which determined their fate.  As a result, the active role of God was limited while Satan’s presence was magnified through the impetuous will and desires of Dr. Faustus.

            Throughout the Middle Ages, every aspect of life had been unified through the church.  The concept of a human as an individual was non-existent.  Rather, the divine assigned roles to everybody which established classes.  Even through the poor’s sustenance living, the shadow of the church regulated behavior, customs, get-togethers, and regular everyday life.  Most changes were decided upon by the church or the community.  The common people were permanently destined to maintain a struggling village existence while nobles and royalty enjoyed their birthright in lavish style and the clergy enjoyed a domineering power.  Yet, even the upper-classes were controlled by regulations and modes of behavior.  Regular options were not allowed to the individual.

            Although subtlety at first, as the Renaissance progressed, the methods in which men governed their lives changed due to several factors.  By the end of the Elizabethan era, due to the influence of Protestantism, humans were allowed to become individuals with direct connection to God.  Yet through this individualistic relationship between God and the individual, a sense of pride emerged.  Urged along by science and philosophy, the idea of the individual altered from a being who relied on God to a being who relied on himself (Melton).

            Because of self-reliance and self-love, God’s influence decreased in the minds’ of scholars such as Dr. Faustus who longed to distinguish themselves through their own devices.  Consequentially, as the acts of God dwindled to obscurity throughout Doctor Faustus, Lucifer’s actions and schemes, through his minion Mephastophilis, appeared on nearly every page as he encouraged the belief of self-sufficiency and self-power.  Faustus portrays this self-reliance as he scours his spell books for magic that would give him power to accomplish his own goals.  Indeed, he claims the power given him from Lucifer as his own majesty, “I am ready to accomplish your request…as by my art and power of my spirit I am able to perform” (Marlowe, 484, 36-37).

            However, pride alone would not have caused as much harm if it had not been accompanied by knowledge.  The sixteenth century is most commonly attributed to the latter end of the Renaissance or “rebirth” of knowledge.  By this time, information in books could be collected and read by more than priests and monarchs.  In addition to the literacy of nobility and affluent families, even some upper-middle class families could afford to have their children educated.  According to William Shepherd’s map “Medieval Universities” in his Historical Atlas, the number of Western European universities increased dramatically between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries (100).  This rebirth opened wide many new occupational avenues and yet with this rise in information came an increase in ambition.  Suddenly, the quest for knowledge became more than an end to ignorance; it became an insatiable thirst and a quest for power for the ordinary, individual man. 

            Scene I of Dr. Faustus commences with a bored and ambitious monologue by Faustus in which he discusses the nature of death, the drivel of common academics and the mysteries and intrigue of necromancy.  It is through this rant on the triviality of modern academia that he disclaimed the presence and impact of God or any divine being and assumed a fiery passion for the magic which would procure for him every desire and all power.  Indeed, in one passionate statement he adamantly proclaimed, “Divinity, adieu!” (Marlowe, 463, 48), rebuking any need for a higher power to bless or help him.  Rather, he embraces the occult and heretical practices of Lucifer.

            In fact, the aspect of the story where Faustus chose to sign away his immortal soul to the devil was another aspect of the rising individual.  In essence, it was a statement about the freedom of choice.  In that moment when he cut open his arm and used his life force to condemn himself to an eternity in hell, he made a volitional decision.  He, Dr. Faust, controlled his own soul.  He had the free will to choose to live his life as he pleased and to die as he pleased.  “Ay Mephastophilis, I [Faustus] give it to thee…And Faustus hath bequeathed his soul to Lucifer” (Marlowe, 472-473, 48, 75).  

            The rise of the individual was a gradual process which began with the limited role of God and continued evolving until the rise of knowledge and the concepts of free will and choice finalized the complete notion of the self-aware and self-sufficient being.  Doctor Faustus takes the audience through each of the steps as the doctor begins his transformation into a person that is so individualized he stands out among all others as someone whom “none in my [the Emperor’s] empire…can compare with…” (Marlowe, 483, 2-3).  Even at the end of his life, when he knew what would come of his decision, Faustus could still choose between heaven or hell.  Yet once again, the pride of the individual led him to choose that which tormented him as he cried, “Gentleman, farewell…Faustus is gone to hell” (Marlowe, 492, 54-55).

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Works Cited

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Marlowe, Christopher. “Doctor Faustus.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature, 8^th         Edition. Greenblatt, Stephen. New York: W. W. Norton, 2006, 460-493.

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Melton, Dr. Brian. “Medieval, Renaissance and Reformation History.” Liberty University,          Lynchburg, VA. 1 October,             2008.

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Shepherd, William. Medieval Universities [map]. In: William Shepherd. Historical Atlas. 2^nd ed.           New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1923, p. 100.