Key Playwrights of the English Renaissance: Marlowe & Jonson's Legacy

Christopher Marlowe: Elizabethan Playwright

One of the major playwrights of his time, Christopher Marlowe was considered a “University Wit” and would have been a serious rival to Shakespeare’s worldwide literary fame had he not died so young. It has been proven that he served as a secret agent for Queen Elizabeth I’s interests, working against English and foreign Catholicism. His death is believed to be related to his role as an “uncomfortable” spy who knew too much and was subsequently eliminated. He was also accused of atheism, free thought, and homosexuality—serious crimes at the time.

Marlowe's Major Tragedies

He is the author of famous tragedies such as:

• Tamburlaine the Great (two parts)
• The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus
• The Jew of Malta
• Edward II

Characteristics of Marlowe's Protagonists

His protagonists are known for their amorality, openly voicing their atheism and challenging divine justice. They are ambitious, exhibiting an overwhelming drive for power, and show no respect for legality. Their aspiration to power is often fulfilled through the use of black magic, brutality, or cruelty, breaking all laws if necessary. Marlowe’s characters also give free rein to their base passions, such as ambition, brutality, lust, or avarice.

Doctor Faustus: A Landmark Play

In Marlowe’s most renowned work, Doctor Faustus, his genius lies in transforming a morality play into what resembles the first modern play in English literature. Indeed, it blends traditional morality play elements with more modern Renaissance themes. The plot centers on Faustus, who, weary of conventional science, decides to embrace magic. He must choose to surrender his body and soul to the Devil in exchange for twenty-four years of absolute power and knowledge, before it is too late.

Ben Jonson: Master of Humours Comedy

A contemporary rival and friend of Shakespeare, Ben Jonson stands as another great name in Elizabethan and Jacobean comedy, largely due to his “comedies of humours”—a more learned and pessimistic approach to comedy compared to that of the “University Wits.”

The Comedy of Humours

In the “comedy of humours,” each character is dominated by a single obsessive emotion or “humour.”

Notable Works by Ben Jonson

Jonson’s most famous play is Volpone or the Fox. He also wrote other popular plays, including:

• Every Man in His Humour
• Every Man Out of His Humour
• The Alchemist

Jonson's Masques and Tragedies

He also wrote successful masques, featuring elaborate scenery, for the court. Masques reached their artistic zenith through the collaboration between Jonson as playwright and Inigo Jones as scenographer. As a writer of tragedy, Jonson was notably less successful.