Marlowe did not develop the character of Dr. Faustus or even the plot line for his play completely out of thin air. He was recreating a legend many in his audience would already have known. Review this background on the Faust site to become familiar with the extent of the legend.

Just as Marlowe was influenced by previous versions of the story, his play inspired others to offer their interpretations of the Faustian bargain. Now that you are familiar with Marlowe’s play, we will look at an earlier story and two versions that came later.

Read the following variations on the story to compare with Marlowe’s play.

Historia & Tale of Doctor Johannes Faustus

Faust by Goethe

“The Devil and Daniel Webster” by Steven Vincent Benet

1. Construct an essay (minimum 3 pages) examining the differences among the four versions. You should have an arguable thesis relating to some aspect of the Faust legend. (ex: Does the author’s historical context alter the message of the story? Do all the stories share a similar theme? structure? resolution? If not, what can be learned by the differences?)

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