What is the audience supposed to think of Faustus?

DO NOT CRITICISE THE SPELLING. MY KEYBOARD IS WONKY.

The chorus creates a non-judgmentally basis for the audience as throughout the opening, it says "to patient judgements" and insinuates that there may be an unexpected ending, and to hold off on making judgements until that pouint. Towards the end of the opening, the chorus removes the inevitability of Faustus' judgement, which makes the audience wonder about Faustus and believe rthat he has an air of mystery about him. The chorus also makes the audience reserve judgement by not telling them the ending of the play- something that would usually be done in an opening. This creates suspense and furthers the audiences uncertainty around Faustus.

Secondly, the audience is supposed to believe that Faustus has sinned "falling to a devilish exercise" but mustn't be judged because there is a possibility that the reason for that sin "glutted now with learnings golden gifts" is not his fault. This makes them sympathise with Faustus, but also makes them doubt him, as during the time that this play was written, religion and sinning was a serious matter. However, Marlowe suggests that the sinning was not due to Faustus' negligence, but rather due to the Gods in heaven "heavens conspir'd his overthrow" which throws the audience as before Marlowe, no one really questioned the authority and goodness of the heavens. This all adds up to make the audience concerned for Faustus, but also wary of him.

Cleverly, the chorus says "Now is he born" which creates an automatic bond between the audience and Faustus, as when an audience can imagine knowing a character since he or she were born, they are more likely to empathise with them. Telling the detaikls of Faustus' personal life, "In Germany, within a town called Rhodes" helps create a companionship between the audience and Faustus, which makes the audience innately assume that whatever Faustus has done should not be worth exiling him for. Also, having the details of his social class spoken about "his parents, base of stock", helps the audience to relate to Faustus, as the majority of the audience would have been in the lower class. This, undoubtedly makes the audiences' opinion of Faustus grow higher, as they are connected further.

Another reason for having high thoughts of Faustus is that the chorus tell them that he is an educated man, in the subject that they would all have praised him for- Theology. The script reads "profits in divinity" whivh insists that Faustus worked hard during school, and so is admirable to the audience. He also is told to be "grac'd with a doctors name" which was quite an accomplishment at that time, and that he was so brilliantly intelligent that he even got a "scholarism grac'd". This makes the audience respect him and understand that he is a knowledgeable man, surely unworthy of committing such a great sin. As well as that, the fact that he has a doctorate in theology suggests to the audience that he is a superb believer in the heavens and so would do well not to disturb them.

HOWEVER, the audience may doubt Faustus because he is noted to have a connection with hell, as further down the opening, it says "Nothing so sweet as magic to him" which, at the time, was an unthinkable thing. It meant that he was into witchcraft and other unrespectable things, so in that case the audience were best to be wary of him.