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Dr Faust Research Paper

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The Influence Religion and Society had on Literature, and Changes That Resulted from Their Influence in the 17th and 18th Centuries. Throughout history, literature has continued to change, and social norms and religious beliefs have heavily influenced the changes in different areas. During the Renaissance, religious leaders maintained unimaginable power over literature, dictating what was or was not appropriate for writers to release to the public. However, there were some dramatists, like Christopher Marlowe, who produced works, such as Doctor Faustus, that openly defied the Catholic Church. Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus reflected English society in the Elizabethan era, and included the admired and advanced sciences of the Renaissance. Similarly, during the Age of Enlightenment, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust, represented the technological advances, the social issues …show more content…

Goethe’s story resembled Marlowe’s in that the main character was a man in a new technological era, seeking to gain more knowledge than was humanly possible. However, Goethe’s character, unlike Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, made the decision to trade his soul to the Devil without receiving any advice against doing otherwise. Faust’s deal with the Devil was also more casual than Doctor Faustus’ deal. Faust dealt with Mephistopheles who was the Devil, rather than Marlowe’s version where Mephistopheles was the Devil’s aid. Faust also received a lifetime of service from Mephistopheles in exchange for his soul, instead of the 24 years of service t Doctor Faustus received for the offer of his soul. Goethe’s protagonist received this lifelong service from Mephistopheles for merely signing a contract with him, whereas Doctor Faustus was required to mutilate his arm (48), and sign his soul over to Lucifer with his own blood

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