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Christopher Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus" vs. William Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part 1"
Christopher Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus" and William Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part 1" are both two of history's most notable plays. Even with the fact that Marlowe has had a serious influence on Shakespeare, there are a series of differences between the two plays and one is likely to observe how each playwright employs a different attitude in speaking about the same concepts. "Doctor Faustus," for example, is a play that centers on a single character while "Henry IV, Part 1" is more complex and provides audiences with several characters as they progress and develop into individuals that are very different from how they were initially.
In contrast to Marlowe, Shakespeare focuses on humanizing his characters and on actually influencing audiences to identify with them. Marlowe only wants spectators to maintain their roles throughout the play, as he concentrates on presenting Faustus' character without actually expecting spectators to feel empathy for this individual. Faustus is not one of the most lovable characters that someone can possibly come across and Marlowe is well-acquainted with this. This is one of the reasons for which he is hesitant about trying to...
Shakespeare, however, wants audiences to relate to characters in his play and actually goes as far as to display negative characters as having positive traits and one can almost say that there are no negative characters in "Henry IV, Part 1."
While Marlowe paints his character in a negative light, he actually manages to captivate audiences as a result of displaying Faustus. People are practically influenced to accept that this character is not necessarily unlikeable. Even with the fact that he is arrogant and feels superior to others; his life is the product of a single bad choice. Shakespeare is generally focused on presenting his characters as being more sensible and as generally being more humane. Marlowe apparently wants audiences to acknowledge the harsh reality of life and is determined to use every means available in order to put across this feeling.
Plot construction is complex in both plays, taking into account that Marlowe and Shakespeare take audiences on a journey across the lives of Faustus, and, respectively, the numerous characters in "Henry IV, Part 1." Both writers apparently want to put across important lessons through their stories. Marlowe wants to emphasize the risks associated with the concept of hubris and the fact that one is likely to experience significant suffering as a result of taking on an attitude focused on extreme pride. Similarly, Shakespeare feels that by demonstrating the evolution experienced by the character of Hal, the play is more probable…
Works cited:
Logan, Robert A., "Shakespeare's Marlowe: The Influence of Christopher Marlowe on Shakespeare's Artistry," (Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2007)
Schuchard, Ronald, "Eliot's Dark Angel: Intersections of Life and Art," (Oxford University Press, 1999)
"Alex Jack's list of Literary Similarities Between Marlowe and Shakespeare," Retrieved December 4, 2012, from the Marlowe Studies Websites: http://themarlowestudies.org/literarysimilarities.html
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