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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

Psychoanalytic study of Christopher Marlow’s Dr. Faustus

Mashreen Hameed
University of Turbat (UOT)
English Literature (M.A 1st)
Subject: Drama

Introduction
As a person gets power and position, he suppresses the things and other people. Dr Faustus in

Marlow’s play is such kind of person who tries to overpower everything without realizing the

outcome. Like Icarus in ancient myth; when Icarus tries to fly near the sun with waxen wings he

falls down from the sky because of the heat of the sun; similarly, Dr Faustus falls down from the

height of his ego, hubris and opting the evil path for reaching his goal.

‘His waxen wings did mount above his reach

And melting, heaven conspired his overthrow’1

Christopher Marlow, the father of English tragedy, is well known for the genuine construction

of his plays which were embodied with the spirit of renaissance. Marlow as a man of

renaissance developed Dr.Faustus as a representation of this period. The era of 16 th century was

the period of great transition with the avarice for knowledge and learning lacking concern from

Christian doctrine ‘It was not just growing awareness of classical antiquity that drove its

development but also the growing desire to study and imitate nature.’ 2Dr.Faustus is a clear

2
Sohm,Philip.Style in the Art Theology of Early Modern Italy ( Cambridge: Cambridge University press,2001)ISBN
O_521_78069_1
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

portrait of the era.’ It is even more remarkable for density and complexity of meaning; an

archetypal dramatic fable, the play is one of the richest and most significant works in English

literature.’3 With much concern the psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus bears high priority.

Psychological analysis of literary text evolved near the development of psychology during the

20th century. Though Sigmund Freud, the father of psychology, developed the method of psycho

analysis as a means of therapy for neuroses but very soon expanded it to account for many

development and practice in the history of civilization including warfare, mythology, religion

and literature.4 Thus, literary texts express the secret unconscious desires and anxieties of an

author beyond the text. Simultaneously, Dr.Faustus undergoes some of Freudian Psychoanalytic

prospects.

Faustus; the Psyche

According to Freud, Mind is structured into two main parts: The conscious and the unconscious

mind. The conscious mind includes all the things we are aware of or can easily bring into

awreness.The unconscious mind secondly include all things outside of our awareness all of our

wishes, desires, hopes and memories that lie outside of our awareness but do have a great

influence on one’s behavior. Consequently, the unconscious mind is driven by three major

components which Freud called as ID, Ego and superego .The Id is the pleasure principle

(satisfying all basic instincts.)’ID is excessive impulsive, blind, irrigational, non social, selfish and

is to indulge into pleasure5s. It is of two kinds that Freud called Eros and Thanatas .Eros helps

3
McAdam,R.I(1991)The irony of Identity: Self and imagination in the dreams of Christopher Marlow: Ottawa
National Library of Canada
4
IAARR 2009:www.afrrevjc.com
5
Laing.(2011).ID,Ego,Suoerego in Pride and prejudice. International Education studies,177_181
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

the individual to survive as it directs the life activities like respiration, eating and sex. 6 The

energy created by life instincts is called libido and the Thanatas as a destructive force is present

in all human being.7 The ego is then derived from ID to satisfy the demands of ID in a safe and

acceptable way. And then the superego develops in childhood and is responsible for

maintaining moral standards. Dr.Faustus is a very compact depiction of the collision between ID

and the Superego. In the very first soliloquy of the play Faustus is tied with his desire principles

and other side caught in the acknowledgment of his educational values. His Id pushes him

towards the lust of knowledge while his superego tickles him to better move towards

sometimes law while other time medical science. But his ID wins the combat conquering over

his need and pleasures.’ Divinity Adieu.’8Thus, dismissing the all remarks of his superego he

moves towards necromancy seeking pleasure in that calling it ‘A sound magician is a mighty

god’9. Depending on his ID, he is still threatened by his superego shown in the appearances of

good angel and bad angel. The exposure of the angels is his unconscious mind which becomes a

hindrance for Faustus. His ID enveloping the good angle motivates him to go for the black art

and avail life’s all pleasures while the good angel, the superego warns him to remain far from

such dark art. The good angel remarks ‘Sweet Faustus, think of heaven and heavenly things’ 10

but opposing it bad angel coincides ‘No Faustus, think of honor and of wealth.’ 11

Sunk in the addiction of his pleasures principles Faustus keeps neglecting his superego .In time

of signing his soul to Lucifer his blood congeals and marks ‘run away’ which symbolizes him the

6
Freud,s.(1925).Negation.dtanderd Edition, 19,235_239
7
Freus,s(1920) Beyond the pleasure principle.SE,18.1_64
8
Christopher Marlow, Dr. Faustus(New Delhi: Educational publisher,2011) Act1,sci 1 p 88
9
Ibid.,p.88
10
Ibid, Act II,Sci I,P.19
11
Ibid.,p.21
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

warning of his superego but Faustus is already governed by his ID when he says’ Letting him

live in all voluptuousness.’12 Faustus does face the threats of his conscience realizing the

torments of hell and being deprived of heavenly bliss but the intense charms pouring out of Id

for power and pleasures of all kind don’t let him repent and surrender to divine force and he

calls’ Hell as old wives tales.’13After conquering all powers, there emerges a very sharp glance of

libidinal desire in Faustus’s character. This is drawn out when he wishes for a wife and gets

reconciled with Helen of troy.’ Here will I dwell, for heaven is in these lips.’ 14

In spite of all restraints of his superego, Faustus is yet overturned to his Id and dismisses the

commands of his conscience. There is a very little appearance of ego in the character of

Dr.Faustus which is a balancing force between ID and superego in their conflicts. It is only in the

last act where in a remorseful tone Faustus curses Necromancy and his ego in shape of old man

proclaims his guilt. It says’ Break heart, drop blood and mingle it with tears.’ 15But as he is

forsaken by the avarice of his pleasures, it is only the echo of his conscience that forces him to

remark,’ Let this hour be but a year, a month, a week, a natural day.’ 16Throughout the play

Faustus is governed by his ID.

Faustus; Interpretation of dream

12
Ibid, Act I, sci III,p.93
13
Ibid, Act II,Sci I, p.134
14
Ibid, Act V, sci !, p.96
15
Ibid, Act V,sci !, p. 40
16
Ibid, Act V,sci II,p.70
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

One of the other important theories implied on psychoanalysis is Freud’s book; the

Interpretation of Dreams. ‘Freud described the dreams to be the royal road to the unconscious

as it is in dreams that the repressed materials come through to awareness, albeit in distorted

form .Dreams perform important functions for the unconscious mind and serve as valuable

clues to how unconscious mind operates’17. ‘Dreams are undoubtedly caused by conflicts and

are characterized by other power to bring up memories that the dreamers have forgotten.’ 18In

the dream the dreamer merely seeks a manifested appearance of an object or a person who

he/she met the day or something that is currently in mind. But the latent meaning of the

appearance is something else which is present in unconscious mind.’ Early psychoanalytic

literary criticism would often treat the text of as if it were a kind of dream. The process of

changing from latent to manifest is known as dream work and involves operation of

concentration and displacement’.19 We merely see the similar posture applied by the

unconscious mind of Marlow in Dr.Faustus. In one way or other Dr.Faustus discloses the very

self of Marlow himself, his life and the unconscious mind which forcefully appeared in his play.

‘The Marlow we can speak of with most authority...is the one constructed by the texts.’ 20

Marlow being the man of renaissance depicted the picture of his pelf for knowledge through

Faustus which was the ambition of Marlow’s own ID.’to sound the depth of that thou wilt

profess.’21 ‘Marlow came of parents’ base of stock_ he was the son of shoe _maker.’ 22

17
Freud,s.(1900).The Interpretation of dreams.S.E.4.5
18
The interpretation of Dream.London:Tavistock
19
J.children /Hentzi ads.
20
Bartels 1993:XVII
21
Christopher Marlow Dr.Faustus(New Delhi:Educationa publisher,2011) Act I,sci I , l.2
22
Christopher Marlow Dr.Faustus(New Delhi:Educationa publisher,2011) p.224
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

Similarly in the initial lines of the play Marlow is introduced as ‘Now is he born, his parents base

of stock.’23Secondly, Marlow had often been deemed as an atheist who revolted against the

laws of Christianity and was condemned for this many times and was imprisoned.Dr. Faustus

also portrays some atheistic beliefs in the play calling hell ‘old wives tales’ and prioritizing his

perpetual pleasures more than heavenly bliss.’ Come, I think hell is a fable.’ 24

Marlow’s works face multiple criticisms in regards with his female characters .This is what most

of the time make the people remark if Marlow was really an impotent. He never married,

though he died young but one gets no trace of his relations with any females. The similar course

is applied in Faustus excluding his vision of Helen.Mephistophillis in his unconscious mind

considers ‘Marriage but a ceremonial toy.’ 25 in life Marlow had been far from sensual pleasures

but he fulfills them in his play through the character of Helen, ‘sweet Helen make me immortal

with a kiss.’26It is his libidinal desire acquired in his unconscious mind.Psychoanlysis deals with

motives, especially hidden or disguised motives as such it helps to clarify literature. It does

examine the most private anxieties and meanings to culture and give us a prospect on them.

Thus, it helps to discover the latent meanings behind the texts and the writer’s development of

anxieties, libido, repression and so forth.

Faustus; the defense mechanism

There is one more exposure of Freudian theory seen in Dr.Faustus commonly known as the

defense mechanism. A mechanism Freud introduced used by the ego to calm the ID from

23
Ibid, prologue ,l.11
24
Ibid, Act II,sci I,l.126
25
Ibid, Act II,sci,I,i.153
26
Ibid, Act V,sci I,l.99
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

turning violent when its wishes remain unfulfilled. The mechanism includes many tools but in

particular some of the genuine ones are commonly applied in literary texts including Dr.Faustus

including Displacement: taking out the frustrating feelings or impulses on people who are less

threatening, Denial: the escape from the things which one cannot cope up with,

Intellectualization: the mechanism protecting the ego to focus on intellectual components

avoiding thinning about stressful and emotional aspects and Sublimation: the act of engaging

oneself in a task to control the anger, aggressions and anxieties. In Faustus the mechanism is

used in many places. Displacement is applied in Act IV, scene IV when Faustus set horns on the

head of the person who mocks at his necromantic talent’. Your heads are all set with horns.’ 27

He takes out his furry and aggression on the character who he finds less harmful in the play. We

come across his forceful denial of the eternal damnation of hell and the intellectualization in

the character of Mephistopillis when he consoles Faustus ‘ Heaven was made for man,

therefore is man more excellent.’28 And there is a very vivid appearance of the mechanism of

ego through sublimation. Faustus for the relief of his anxieties is met with the show of seven

deadly sins to escape from the terror of the torments of hell ‘Talk not of paradise or creation;

but mark this show.’29

Conclusion

Marlow’s Dr.Faustus is a very real exposure of his unconscious mind with the inner conflicts

raised between ID and ego. It is a portrait gallery of Marlow’s latent mindset, his anxieties and

27
Ibid,l.12
28
Ibid, Act II,sci II,l.9
29
Ibid,l.110
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

the evoking desires of his life which he brought upon the readers in shape of Dr.Faustus.

’Poetry was a supremely efficient mechanism, containing our fear and anxieties and traumas in

a few carefully chosen words. No one deny that, the poet is an exquite craftsman, sometimes it

remains a mystery, sometimes the meaning is manifest, sometimes it is inexplicable even to

the poet himself or herself.’30

Bibliography
1. 1. Sohm, Philip. Style in the Art Theology of early Modern Italy(Cambridge: Cambridge university
Press,2001)ISBN O_521_78069_1
2. McAdam,R.I(1991)The Irony of Identity: self and imagination in the dream of Christopher
Marlow: Ottawa National Library of Canada

30
Jacque Lacan, poetry and psychology
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus

3. IAARR 2009:www.afrrevjc.com
4. Laing,(2011).ID,Ego,Suoerego in pride and prejudice. International Educational studies,177_181
5. Dr.S.Sen Christopher Marlow Dr.Faustus(New Delhi:Educationa publishers,2011)
6. Freud,s.(1900).The Interpretation of dreams.S.E.4.5
7. The interpretation of Dream London.Tavistock
8. Bartels 1993:XVII
9. Jacque Lacan, poetry and psychology

31

31
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Psychoanalysis of Marlow’s Dr.Faustus