The cover page is adapted from Absorbed in His Studies, a painting completed in 1874 by Eilif Peterssen. The cover and title pages feature the League Spartan and Sorts Mill Goudy typefaces created in 2014 and 2009 by The League of Moveable Type. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eilif_Peterssenwww.theleagueofmoveabletype.com/
The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus
Chapters (18)
- Editor’s Note 0:00
- Chorus 1:26
- Scene I 3:07
- Scene II 13:13
- Scene III 15:58
- Scene IV 23:16
- Scene V 28:26
- Scene VI 40:46
- Scene VII 52:59
- Scene VIII 1:00:22
- Scene IX 1:03:57
- Scene X 1:07:42
- Scene XI 1:14:22
- Scene XII 1:20:56
- Scene XIII 1:23:27
- Scene XIV 1:24:03
- Scene XV 1:30:35
- Scene XVI 1:31:22
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The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, Christopher Marlowe’s classic interpretation of the Dr. Faustus legend, was first performed in London by the Admiral’s Men around 1592. It is believed to be the first dramatization of this classic tale wherein Faustus, a German scholar, trades his soul to Lucifer in return for magical powers and the command over the demon Mephistopheles. Faustus at first seeks to expand his knowledge of the universe, but soon finds that a deal with the devil brings little satisfaction. All too soon the contract expires, and Faustus is faced with the prospect of eternal damnation.
Two principal versions of this play exist, one based on the 1604 quarto (the A text) and a longer, emended version published in 1616 (the B text). This edition is based on Havelock Ellis’s 1893 edition of the 1604 text (the A text is currently believed by many scholars to be the closest to Marlowe’s original).
Often considered to be Marlowe’s greatest work, Doctor Faustus builds on the ancestry of the medieval morality play, but brings a more sympathetic view to the straying hero than those precursors to Elizabethan drama, and even ventures to pose questions of common Christian doctrine. This is the last play written by Marlowe before he was killed in a Deptford tavern.