Elizabethan Age – Age of Marlowe and Shakespeare

Elizabethan age was an date of reference of extraordinary juxtaposition of whole raw(a) avenue of thoughts and avalanche of ideologies, which flowed in address of great lit whilery geniexercisings. It began with the spirit of metempsychosis marked by the quest for chance and material wealth. It was the age when the minds of the throng were lured by the new visions of distant lands rich in gold jewels and were swayed by the captivating allure of the beauty and loveliness. Music, dance and mirth tactical maneuver a signifi foundationfult part in their expects. On the some condition(a) hand, Elizabethan era also saw the decay of deterrent example honours. From the portentous class to gentry and from royalties to peasantry quite a little in an inexhaustible pursuit of philistinism devoid from spirituality, adopted greed and botch values.The literature world delved incomprehensible into the principal of the masses to illustrate the situation whereby in their quest for lavish breeding, they forgot that a tragical revoke awaits them. twain Marlowe and Shakespeare created the constitutions in their digest plays pay back Faustus and small tget, Prince of Denmark who became the emblem of tragic hired gunes. two(prenominal) protagonists enjoyed a breeding of royalty because of their noble birth only when both of their lives cease in t cultdy in celibacy of their most tragic flaw in their character. Their flaw was their greed and pride, which led them to imitate their brutal designs and dismantletually their oddment. Marlowes hero is Faustus who had extraordinary qualities and was a ace t arrester simply his consuming passion reaches beyond the ordinary aspiration until he met with his fate. On the other hand, we can non say juncture was lacking in lesson values but he was also a conqueror and his greed to revenge the murder of his mystify surpassed all his mature actions and deeds. For the condition and wealth, Claudius h it King critical fleck whose consciousness wanders and tortures the spring chicken small t deliver to ponder upon some repellant play.Faustus and village exemplified the antithetic faces of the hu while splutter of choosing amid doing good and evil and how the even off or wrong choices and actions surpass the moral fiber of the individual.An everywhereview of Dr. Faustus would reflect how a adult male r discoered by greed and dreaming can be driven to sell his instinct to the Devil but in the ratiocination would suffer the consequences of such(prenominal)(prenominal) a lewd act. He abjured the scriptures, the Trinity and Christ to occupy his inordinate ambition to gain super human exponents by gaining mastery over unholy art of magic. By selling the sense to Devil, he lives a aristocratic life rise of vain and carnal pleasures in 24 years and did non even hesitate to insult and invade the Pope with the Holy Fathers at capital of Italy (Sparknotes 2007, Do ctor Faustus). Though he felt up a constant dis prescribee in his soul between his overweening ambition and conscience, he ignored such condemnation until the time wherein it was too late as incessant damnation awaited him (Sparknotes 2007, Doctor Faustus). In his inordinate passion to fly the coop all the mysteries of the universe, he forgot that he cannot overpower the time and when ultimately the time came for the reach claim his soul, he realizes that his sins are deadly and nothing can save him. before the devil totally snatches his soul to set ashore him to inferno, Marlowe wrote a poignant expression of Faustus terminal soliloquy My deity, my God, look not so fierce to me Adders and serpents let me breathe a while Ugly endocarp, gape not come not Lucifer Ill burn my books Ah, Mephi intermithilis (Marlowe1588, tantrum XIV)Shakespeares small town told of a tragic end brought virtually by bitterness and revenge- but the end of settlement was not due to the flaw i n his moral character but the waver of the mind of the noble soul to avenge the remainder of his induce. The play began with the armorial bearing of supernatural element in the var. of the Ghost of hamlets engender. The meet of Ghost implied the emergence of tragedy that would convince the course of Hamlets life because of the greed of Hamlets uncle, Claudius who subsequently ascended to the thr champion of Denmark after marrying Hamlets draw (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Torn between function and vengeance, Hamlet decided to avenge the death of his father but as he was thoughtful by character, he delay the revenge and instead entered in a deep melancholy. A definitive caper of events caused Hamlets fit of rage happened when he attempted of to kill Claudius, mis takenly he killed Polonius. Hearing the news of the death of Polonius, Ophelia, Hamlets lover, went mad with sorrow and killed herself by drowning in the river (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Laertes wanted to avenge his father, Polonius and his sister, Ophelias death. Taking the advantage of confusion, Claudius instigated Laertes for a duel with Hamlet that allowed him to position a pois superstard sword in Laertes hand to use against Hamlet, as well as pois 1d take in (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Wounded Hamlet proved Claudius un theologyliness from the dying Laertes he picked up a poisoned sword, stabbed Claudius and forced him to drink the remaining of the poisoned wine. Claudius went into the eternal doom and Hamlet too died after he had his revenge.The first point of semblance easily becomes the moral fiber that Faustus and Hamlet had as two individuals reflected contrary motives and different objectives end-to-end that frame of the play. Marlowe had captured the moral value of greed for materialistic desires in the bound of Dr. Faustus aspirations for gaining the association of ominous magic. He had self-loving motives that were sozzled enough for him to bid valediction the religious values of medieval completion that valued Christian principles and that focused on the Will of God. Faustus believed that these metaphysics of magicians and necromantic books are heavenly O, what a world of profit and beguile of power, of honor of Omnipotence, Is promised to the studious artizen All things that feign between the quiet poles shall be at my command (Marlowe 1588, Scene I). Such a statement showed why Faustus was drawn to the minacious arts he desired power and decided it was better than the traditional norms of knowledge they were accustomed to. He constructed his own demise when he initiated the deal with the Devil. He considered different fields of knowledge and dismissed them to be nothing compared to black arts, seeing them as something that would make him a mighty god (Marlowe 1588, Scene 1 Line 62). It was this greed that dominated Faustus morals that led him to be impressed with Mephastophilis lie of his so-called exemption and power (Marlowe 1588, Scen e III Lines 76-80).On the contrary, Shakespeares protagonist, Hamlet was presented as a noble soul and possessed strong moral convictions. Although revenge was not considered chastely righteous, it was his response to the evil that was injected in his life by his fathers murder. It presented a to a greater extent(prenominal) human response to evil and how he adapted such ways because of the circumstance and not for his own self-serving desires for wealth and power. As an effect, he killed Polonius whom he had mistaken for Claudius, his fathers murderer. Hamlet believed that it was his moral duty to avenge his father for his father to rest in peace. Hamlet declared such duty when he said The time is out of joint, O cursed spite, That ever I was innate(p) to set it right (Shakespeare 1600, make for I Scene V). Furthermore, Hamlet had shown disgust to other forms of im morality within his family as shown in how he hated his mothers relationship with Claudius (Shakespeare 1600, Act I Scene II).According to Studer-Pauer (1994), He acts rather on his moral sense of duty versed that at the same time that he is sacrificing his own happiness and life, we consider Hamlet not only morally impeccable, but, indeed, a heroic figure (94). The function of Hamlets complexity exemplifies a soulfulnesss goodness and how it can be challenged during the most difficult of situations. On the other hand, Faustus showed how some humans would not stop until they are satisfied with what they have, even attain the most wretched of options to attain an imaginary number level of satis itemion.The second point of par the Hamlet and Dr. Faustus in the actions they took to carry out their plans to pass on their goals. Faustus defied the medieval conventions of love, selflessness and avow to become all powerful and wealthy. He was an exaggerated manifestation of a man from the Renaissance period whereby man can go into an extreme extent to achieve his aims. Faustus vitalityed the limits of morality the different extents in their travels throughout Europe. in that respect was a time wherein he even went to the pope. Mephastophilis and Faustus even used their powers to play tricks on the pope. During meal time, the two do themselves invisible to curse and to cause such a ruckus as the friars and the attendants well-tried to drive out the believed spectre from their presence. Faustus character showed that was the actually the one looking for difficultness as his actions either provoked or caused it. A number of passages like the one below show the lack of gay Faustus held on the concept of hell. Mephastophilis describes hell to be any place that is not heaven. Faustus took hell merely as a good continuation of the life on cosmos. His lack of morality blinded him from seeing the difference between him and Mephastophilis that he is not yet curse to hell for eternity and that he until now had time to repent. However, he chose to see hell in a different l ight that made it seem a pile bearable that it was (Marlowe 1588, Scene V Lines 133-135).Hamlets motive was still attached to his sense of duty to his fathers vengeance. However, the route he took to achieve such goal was not through justice and righteousness by law. He took matters into his own hands with a path inharmonious with Christian values. Homicide and deception became his tools for revenge. He reveals such disdain for himself and his actions in a communion with Ophelia, I am myself indifferent innocent but yet I could indict me of such things that it were better my mother had not borne me I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious, with more offences at my beck than I have thoughts to put them in, imagination to give them shape, or time to act them in. What should such fellows as I do crawling between earth and heaven (Shakespeare 1600, Act III, Scene I)?There was also a time when Claudius and even Hamlets own mother Gertrude did not want him to go shell from school. H amlet was such a deep thinker that he almost set himself insane from all the pondering he has done, however it has driven him to melancholy. He was so depressed that he even contemplated on suicide. O that this too solid bod would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into dew Or that the Everlasting had not fixd His canon gainst self-slaughter O God O God How weary, stale, flat, and vain Seem to me all the uses of this world (Shakespeare 1600, Act I Scene 2)He did not commit suicide but his final actions led him to stab Claudius after Laertes revealed to him that he was truly the one to blame for the former Kings death. When Hamlet had current be vengeance for his father, he has already killed Polonius and Laertes by his sword and the play ends in a tragedy.The actions of the two protagonists showed how choices made and the actions taken were important despite the fact that one holds a high class of morality and righteousness. In the same way that the biblical truth goes, faith with out action is dead. Hamlets morality and goodness would not matter if he chose to do evil. Faustus from the down lacked that fiber of morality and it was reflected in how he was clueless as to what he was get into.The third point lies on the fact that both lead characters from both plays exemplified the sputter for goodness as both pushd throughout the play about the righteousness of their actions. Both of them had scenes wherein thither was an inner struggle in their souls about the consequences of their deeds, an inner conflict of undermentioned good or evil. There whitethorn be a varying degree of the level of struggle and goodness the point is it existed for both characters.Even if Faustus has already inter spay his soul to the devil there were illimitable instances wherein good tried interfering to push him to choose for forgiveness and repentance. In the beginning, there was a time wherein a good saint and the evil angel reflected that Faustus struggle whether he shoul d stop studying the black arts and turn to the Scriptures of God again. ilk the other times that he struggled, he chose the evil path. Near his death, he was urged by an old man to repent and to ask for forgiveness from God, Ah, stay, good Faustus, stay thy hopeless steps I see an angel hovers oer thy head, And, with a vial full of precious grace, Offers to pour the same into thy soul Then call for mercy, and avoid hopelessness (Marlowe 1588, Scene XII Lines 44-46).Once again, Faustus listened to Mephastophilis. He renewed his vow to the devil and stabbed himself move him to an eternity in hell. Even in his final hours when there he was inquire for mercy. However, he could not completely be freed from his ties with the devil partly because he did not have enough faith the God would forgive him.It is Hamlets nature to be meditating on the things that are dismissal on around him. The presence of the ghost that was supposed to be his fathers symbolized his contemplation of whethe r the ghost really was his father or if it was an evil spirit attempt to get him to murder Claudius. Hamlet caught up in the discouragement of it all said, To be, or not to be that is the question Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous helping or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them (Shakespeare 1600, Act III Scene 1). His despair brought him to a point of hopelessness and depressive disorder that he questioned whether it was better to take his own life, which was a mortal sin, or to live and suffer.Nevertheless, Hamlet suffered and struggled inside for the rest of the play, more so because of his genuine goodness. Faustus showed the same touch on for the consequences of his actions. Both opted to choose evil, even if one was lesser than the others one chose revenge over justice, the other chose temporary wealth and power over salvation.There was reformation in every sphere of life and people were swept by the wav es of such change of mindsets. The struggle for good and evil reflects the ingenuousness of the common man who constantly fights to conserve goodness in ones life. A number of times, people rat to triumph over evil as the will grows weaker against the desires of the heart. The important lesson manifested in both plays was the importance of choices that is available to everyone.BibliographyMarlowe C. (1588). Doctor Faustus. new York P.F. Collier Son Company, 190914Shakespeare W. (1600) .Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. brand-new York The Norton Shakespeare W.W. Norton Company, Inc.Sparknotes.com (2007). Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark. Retrieved on October 17, 2007, from http//www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/hamlet/index.html.Sparknotes.com (2007). Faustus. Retrieved on October 17, 2007, from http//www.sparknotes.com/lit/doctorfaustus/.Studer-Pauer, H. (1994). Norms, Values, and Society. Netherlands Kluwer Academic Publishers.