The question of what Doctor Faustus wanted is critical to
understanding whether his plan failed or succeeded and, in correlation, whether the
price he paid was worth the gain he procured. This, by extension, is critical to
understanding Marlowe's central thematic point in Doctor
Faustus.
In Act I, Scene i, Faustus is debating with
himself over what field of knowledge to make a life practice
of:
Settle thy
studies, Faustus, and begin
To sound the depth of that thou wilt profess
[teach/practice]
One by one,
he rejects every field of knowledge from "divinity" (religion) to "physic" (medicine)
and every field in between. What he finally decides upon is
the
readability="13">metaphysics of magicians,
And
necromantic books [of]
Lines, circles, scenes, letters, and
characters;
[...]
A sound magician is a mighty god:
Here,
Faustus, tire thy brains to gain a
deity.In the entire passage,
Faustus reveals that what he wants most--along with "a world of profit, ... of power,
... of omnipotence;" "command" over all that "moves between the quiet poles" of Earth;
and "dominion" that exceeds that of "emperors and kings"--is to be "a mighty god" as he
uses his "brains to gain a deity" [divinity]. In other words, Faustus wants knowledge
and power that exceeds the bounds of humankind’s natural limitations; knowledge and
power that rivals the most exalted of the cosmos. The answer to what Faustus wants is
compared to what he ultimately receives, true understanding of his story may be
gained.
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