'How is Gothic language and imagery used to develop themes and characters in ‘Dr Faustus’?'

The Gothic play 'Dr Faustus', by Christopher Marlowe, is an Elizabethan Tragedy based on the German legend of Faust- a scholar who sold his soul to the devil. This legend is based on a (believed to be) 'actual magician' who lived in North Germany in the 15th Century. This play further explores the struggle for supremacy between the Protestants and the Roman Catholics in the 16th Century, a topic that caused mass spiritual terror in society. Through the use of Satire in Gothic elements such as language and imagery, Marlowe develops the themes and characters in the play which would have added to the total dramatic effect of the play that entertained thousands. An example of this is when Faustus uses his supernatural gifts to make a mockery of self-important figures like the Pope and his fellow friar's who cannot see their invisible tormentors. This was due to Catholicism (a key theme in the play) which was banned in England since Queen Elizabeth I had succeeded her sister making the Pope widely loathed and mocked or feared. Therefore there is an ironic joke for the Protestant audience who see one set of 'devils' tormenting the other. However it is key to note that Marlowe is essentially making the audience commit a sin through satire. This is for two reasons; one) that they are laughing at the torment of a human being suffering and two) with a man who sold his soul for the devil- the worst of sins. By using the Gothic he is blurring the boundaries of the hegemonic ideology society had imposed on society and making his audience question their beliefs.

The two big schisms between Protestants and the Roman Catholics in the 16th Century boiled down to 2 big schisms: communion and the soul. When taking communion the Catholics literally believed that the bread and wine used in mass had transformed into the blood and body of Christ (transubstantiation), whereas Protestants believed  that the bread and wine remained bread and wine and was just a celebration used in the memory of Christ- causing his spirit to be nearby (consubstantiation). 
Furthermore the second difference was the soul. The Protestants believed that God made us intrinsically good and the only way our soul would go to hell is if we did immoral acts, alternatively Catholics believed that we are born into original sin and that we must spend our mortal lives repenting for the sins of Adam and Eve through good moral acts. However an important addition to these theories is predestination. This is the idea that God has pre-decided where our immortal souls will go, to heaven or hell. This caused mass panic in society as there were different ideas of where the soul would go. 

Another significant Gothic theme that can be identified is Faustus as a doomed hero. The main reason for Faustus' downfall is due to his two main characteristics of intellect and ambition which was fuelled by is shamefulness of being products of 'base parentage' and aspires towards rewards which can be associated with the deadly sins. His predestined doom is forewarned by the chorus' clear condemnation in his use of 'cursed necromancy' in the Prologue- 'waxen wings did mount above his reach'. This is done through the classical referencing of the didactic myth about a boy called Icarus who over reached human limits due to greed and ambition causing his downfall through supernatural abilities. The foreshadowing of Faustus' fall from grace-embodies some aspects of the tormented, wilful yet romantic Gothic heroes that emerged in works of the early 19th century. This can be seen in classical works such as Macbeth by Shakespeare who's protagonist embodies the true qualities of human nature, such as a lust for power, treachery and madness.

The play is split up into 3 significant parts: Faustus' decision to pursue necromancy and to forsake God by making a perilous deal with the devil, his exploits with moments of wavering resolve and the climatic finale where Faustus' time has come (24 years) and he is dragged to hell for an eternity of torture.

Marlowe uses Faustus’s own words in Act 1 Scene 1 to expose Faustus’s blind spots. For example, Faustus establishes a hierarchy of disciplines by showing which are nobler than others. He does not want merely to protect men’s bodies through medicine, nor does he want to protect their property through law. He wants higher things, and so he proceeds on to religion. There Faustus selectively quotes passages from the bible, "Why, then, belike we must sin and so consequently die. Ay, we must die an everlasting death.", this is so he can manipulate himself into sinning without having to suffer any loss or bad consequences. Due to this idea he rejects theology altogether as if he is already determined to go to hell then what would be the point of studying it- it would be a worthless activity. This is a reflection of the Calvinist doctrine of predestination- that a mans fate is set in stone of salvation or eternal damnation before he was born. In addition, he uses religious language blasphemously to describe the dark world of necromancy that he enters ironically- “necromantic books are heavenly”. Having gone upward from medicine and law to theology, he envisions magic and necromancy as the crowning discipline, even though by most standards it would be the least noble.

However in the introduction of the play the audience are told that Faustus is not saved because he is refused divine grace. This opens up different debates that have surrounded religion and this is evident in the play as the conflict between belief and unbelief is a dominant motif in the play which is embedded in the dialogue and imagery. A significant Gothic image is in Act 2 Scene 1, when Faustus makes a blood pact with Lucifer however is first unable to as his blood congeals due to the divine intervention of the omni-benevolent God and later on when god inscribes on his arm "homo, fuge!" which translated from Latin means 'man, flee'. This therefore raises God's omni-potence into question, as if he is all powerful he could save someone even if they were already lost.  For God, all things are possible, and this should, presumably, extend to the ability to save someone who has damned himself. Or should it?

However structually the audience can see that as time goes by Faustus loses his enthusiam for power and gain and instead asks questions which is evident through Faustus' narrative sequence of; doubt, persuasion, resolve and gain. This is shown when Faustus experiences doubt in his choice to sell his soul for 'unlimited power' therefore he questions Mephistopheles 'what good will my soul do thy Lord?' however he is easily persuaded out of his doubt by Mephistopheles who appeals to Fastus' characteristic of greed by promising to give him 'more than thou hast wit to ask'. A Marxist critic would observe Faustus' need to obtain what he cannot have due to his birth which was 'low of stock' hence his desperation to climb up the hierarchy and achieve fame through his mastery of a wide range of subjects. However they would believe that Faustus' obsession with social class and money is due to societies effect of Capitilism which ensures the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.