ABSTRACT
The Devil made frequent appearances in Victorian literature and theatre, featuring in numerous novels, ghost stories, poems, and plays. Victorian writers took advantage of the Devil’s mutability, with their work veering from the nonsensical humour of the pantomime to the terror of the ghost story. They inherited a variety of prominent diabolic works, including John Milton’s Paradise Lost and Goethe’s Faust. The latter was especially influential, with the majority of the Devil’s appearances in nineteenth-century literature and theatre being inspired by the Faust legend. Faustian narratives were especially versatile, being essentially a tool that writers could rework in any way they chose, whether that was an unnerving ghost story or a humorous play. They contained timeless messages about temptation, evil, and the need to make wise and moral choices but also provided plenty of scope for jokes, chills, and, in the case of stage productions, spectacular effects. The Devil’s use in literature and theatre drew on his theological role (especially his association with supernatural and human evil), but it was uncommon for diabolic literature and theatre to convey serious theological or philosophical messages. The diabolic was far more likely to be portrayed in ways that were humorous, spectacular, or sympathetic.
