Doctor Faustus By Christopher Marlowe Summary and Analysis Scene 8



SCENE 8

Enter ROBIN the Ostler, with a book in his hand.

ROBIN.
O, this is admirable! here I ha' stolen one of Doctor
Faustus' conjuring-books, and, i'faith, I mean to search some
circles for my own use. Now will I make all the maidens in our
parish dance at my pleasure, stark naked, before me; and so
by that means I shall see more than e'er I felt or saw yet.

Enter RALPH, calling ROBIN.

RALPH.
Robin, prithee, come away; there's a gentleman tarries
to have his horse, and he would have his things rubbed and made
clean: he keeps such a chafing with my mistress about it; and
she has sent me to look thee out; prithee, come away.

ROBIN.
Keep out, keep out, or else you are blown up, you are
dismembered, Ralph: keep out, for I am about a roaring piece
of work.

RALPH.
Come, what doest thou with that same book? thou canst
not read?

ROBIN.
Yes, my master and mistress shall find that I can read,
he for his forehead, she for her private study; she's born to
bear with me, or else my art fails.

RALPH.
Why, Robin, what book is that?

ROBIN.
What book! why, the most intolerable book for conjuring
that e'er was invented by any brimstone devil.

RALPH.
Canst thou conjure with it?

ROBIN.
I can do all these things easily with it; first, I can
make thee drunk with ippocras at any tabern in Europe
for nothing; that's one of my conjuring works.

RALPH.
Our Master Parson says that's nothing.

ROBIN.
True, Ralph: and more, Ralph, if thou hast any mind to
Nan Spit, our kitchen-maid, then turn her and wind her to thy own
use, as often as thou wilt, and at midnight.

RALPH.
O, brave, Robin! shall I have Nan Spit, and to mine own
use? On that condition I'll feed thy devil with horse-bread as
long as he lives, of free cost.

ROBIN.
No more, sweet Ralph: let's go and make clean our boots,
which lie foul upon our hands, and then to our conjuring in the
devil's name.
[Exeunt.]

Summary

Robin the ostler enters with a book in his hand and reveals that he has stolen a volume from Faustus' library. He intends to learn how to conjure in order to make all the maidens in the village appear before him and dance naked. Rafe (Ralph) enters and tells him that there is a gentleman waiting to have his horse taken care of. Robin ignores him, saying that he has more important things to do: he is going to conjure up a devil with his newly stolen book. He promises to procure the kitchen maid for Ralph, and then they both leave to clean their boots and continue with the conjuring.

Analysis

This scene is another low comic episode on conjuring. We see that Robin intends to use Faustus' books for his own pleasure. The first thing that he intends to do is to make the maidens dance before him stark naked, which is similar to the first thing that Faustus wanted. As soon as he got his new powers, Faustus also began to feel wanton and desired a woman.

In one sense, the tricks that Robin wants to perform are not much different from the tricks that Faustus has just been playing on the pope in Rome. Similar to the earlier comic scenes, this scene contrasts with the preceding scene of the main plot. The language is common and filled with obscene puns. Again a servant-master relationship is established; Robin promises Rafe powers for a condition of service in the same way that Mephistophilis promised Faustus power.