ABSTRACT
Doctor Faustus is many things to many people. In his opening speech, he tells us that he has achieved fame as a physician, a theologian, and a philosopher. In the course of Marlowe’s play he raises spirits, offers political advice, provides (and takes away) food, even deals in horses. In broader culture, Faustus is a warning, a moral fable against hubris, a condemnation of a life lived in defiance of God; or, conversely, a critique of a God who stacks the deck against a foolish soul. But above and beyond all this, Faustus might best be thought of as the consummate performer.
