ROLE OF THE GOOD ANGEL

AND THE BAD ANGEL

- S.T.Muthu mari
 INTRODUCTION
CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE:
• BORN - 1564
• DEATH – 1593
• The greatest of
Shakespeare’s predecessors
• Finished schooling in 1578
and M.A. degree in 1587
• Settled in London joined in
Lord Admiral’s company of
players
FAMOUS WORKS:

o TAMBERLAINE THE GREAT

o THE JEW OF MALTA

o EDWARD

o MASSACRE OF PARIS

o THE TRAGEDY OF DIDO

o HERO AND LEANDER

OUTLINE OF THE STORY:

 The hero, Faustus chooses necromancy in

order to become famous and to possess a
mass amount of money

 Surrenders his soul to Lucifer for 24 years

 Deviates from the path of divinity and is

condemned to death
 PURPOSE OF THE GOOD ANGEL
AND THE EVIL ANGEL
• Internal conflict is an essential feature of
a tragic hero

• While struggling between God and devil,

pleasures of magic and the desire for
repentance, the Good Angel and the Evil
Angel appear and aggravate it

• They represent Faustus’ mental conflicts

 ROLE OF THE GOOD
ANGEL:
o The Good Angel is an agent of God

o It is on the side of God

o It tries to make Faustus think about God

and of heavenly things

o It represents the good side in the

good/evil dichotomy
o What the Good Angel says mirrors what Faustus’

good nature is thinking

o The Good Angel’s main message to Faustus is

that it is never too late to turn to God

o In the depth of Faustus’ heart, there is a feeling

for repentance and so the Good Angel urges him

to return to God
 ROLE OF THE EVIL ANGEL
o The Evil Angel is an agent of Lucifer who appears in

pair with the Good Angel

o It tries to keep Faustus focused on power, wealth

and worldly pleasures

o In direct contrast to the Good Angel, the Evil Angel

represents the evil side in the good/evil dichotomy

o It mirrors what Faustus’ evil nature is thinking

o Its main message to Faustus is that God will

never accept his repentance

o Faustus is pretty sure that he is damned to

hell the minute he even contemplated

becoming the devil’s servant and that’s what

the Evil Angel wants him to believe

o The Evil Angel represents the evil half of

Faustus’ conscience
 CONCLUSION

o The Good Angel and the Evil Angel are actually a

literary device called allegory

o They are one of the features of the morality plays

o They are essential personifications of Faustus’

own good and evil impulses

o The interchanges between the Good Angel and the

Evil Angel reveal Faustus’ struggles within himself

o In a literary sense, the Good Angel and the Evil

Angel represent the good and evil side of Faustus’

conscience for Marlowe tries to show that Faustus,

like every human being, has two natures both good

and bad
THANK YOU