Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English playwright and poet of the Elizabethan era, a contemporary of Shakespeare who helped establish blank verse as the standard form for English drama.
His major works include *Tamburlaine the Great*, *Doctor Faustus*, and *The Jew of Malta*.
Marlowe was killed in 1593 at age 29 under disputed circumstances—officially a tavern brawl, though conspiracy theories persist.
The phrase Marlovian theory refers to the claim that Marlowe faked his death and secretly wrote Shakespeare's plays.
Historic English ecclesiastical seat
- CambridgeUniversity city, two countries
- Corpus ChristiLatin for Christ's body
- spyCovert information gatherer
- espionageCovert intelligence gathering
atheism · heresy · tavern · Deptford · stabbing · arrest warrant · freethinking · subversive
Play about eternal bargain
- blank verseUnrhymed iambic pentameter
- iambic pentameterUnstressed-stressed pattern, five feet
- tragedyDisastrous or sorrowful event
- dramaTheatrical art or turmoil
Elizabethan · stage · playhouse · prologue · soliloquy · monologue · dramaturgy · theatrical
Elizabethan dramatist and poet
- blank verseUnrhymed iambic pentameter
- iambic pentameterUnstressed-stressed pattern, five feet
- RenaissanceEuropean cultural reawakening
- innovatorCreator of new methods
pioneer · literary · humanism · contemporary · cultural impact · dramatic poetry · Peele · Greene
Metered poetic passage
- lyricSong's text
- pastoralOf countryside or clergy care
- coupletTwo successive verse lines
- meterDevice that measures usage
rhyme · stanza · elegy · translation · Ovid · sensuality · imagery · quill
Canterbury
Historic English ecclesiastical seat
- CambridgeUniversity city, two countries
- Corpus ChristiLatin for Christ's body
- spyCovert information gatherer
espionage · atheism · heresy · tavern · Deptford · stabbing · arrest warrant · freethinking · subversive · blasphemy
Doctor Faustus
Play about eternal bargain
- blank verseUnrhymed iambic pentameter
- iambic pentameterUnstressed-stressed pattern, five feet
- tragedyDisastrous or sorrowful event
drama · Elizabethan · stage · playhouse · prologue · soliloquy · monologue · dramaturgy · theatrical · repertoire
Shakespeare
Elizabethan dramatist and poet
- blank verseUnrhymed iambic pentameter
- iambic pentameterUnstressed-stressed pattern, five feet
- RenaissanceEuropean cultural reawakening
innovator · pioneer · literary · humanism · contemporary · cultural impact · dramatic poetry · Peele · Greene · English drama
verse
Metered poetic passage
meter · rhyme · stanza · elegy · translation · Ovid · sensuality · imagery · quill · Elizabethan
Mephistopheles
Soul-bargaining demon
- necromancyCommunicating with the deceased
- damnationEternal punishment decree
- pactFormal agreement between parties
devil · soul · hell · magic · temptation · hubris · morality · theology · ambition · knowledge
- Shakespeare AuthorshipFrancis Bacon, doubters, co-authorship, documentary evidence
- theatreBroadway, acting, theatre, stage, actor
- British TheatreWest End, Macbeth, Globe, King Lear, pantomime
- PlaywrightsWilliam Shakespeare, Shakespeare, Anton Chekhov, Chekhov, Ibsen
- theater historyGreek tragedy, vaudeville, William Shakespeare, Drury Lane, Greek comedy
- 1500sElizabeth I, Shakespeare, Spanish Armada, Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther
Christopher MarloweThomas More
Christopher MarloweGeoffrey Chaucer