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Gabrielle Mc Caffrey

Dramatic Duos: Classical to Contemporary

Dr. Todd Lidh

10 March 2009

Hell Itself

From birth, society requires us to assimilate notions of morals, logic, and reason.

Cultural, religious, social and other influences—or the absence thereof—act as formal

guidelines and therefore define a personal concept of what occurs in the afterlife. When

focusing on hell relative to the popular Heaven versus Hell dichotomy, Christopher

Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus considers hell to be an arena for torment and torture to the

metaphysical, or bodiless, soul. Contrarily, Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit distinguishes Hell

as psychological warfare by entrapping the characters in a space with others who echo

their faults superior to any mirror in the physical world. Where Doctor Faustus functions

as a conventional perception of hell, Sartre manages to overturn and redefine this

classification that lends itself to a more psychosomatic approach that uncovers and

tears into one’s neurosis. These depictions are merely speculation, as it would be too

late for anyone who found out to let us know how hell actually is, but also offer an

alternative to the other, rather than representing similar theories.

The character Mephistopheles in Doctor Faustus describes hell as “all places…

that are not heaven” (II.i.126). In other words, hell is a place without any physical,

mental, or emotional gratification described as a “vast perpetual torture-house”

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(V.ii.116). In this sense, Doctor Faustus and No Exit are similar. Both Dr. Faustus and

the three characters from No Exit are eternally damned to endure certain forms of

anguish; however the means in which they suffer stem from separate sources.

Dr. Faustus willing submits and signs his soul away to the prince of hell, Lucifer.

Often times throughout the play, Faustus is presented with opportunities to break this

contract with and repent for God’s forgiveness. Each time, Faustus comes painfully

close to saving his soul but rejects this initiative at the last second; until it is too late.

Doctor Faustus explores the conventional religious doctrine of heaven and hell, and

thus Faustus becomes sentenced to an eternal existence of blazing pitchforks. Such is

the finale of Doctor Faustus as the devils ascend from hell to retrieve Faustus’ soul.

No Exit characters Garcin, Estelle and Inez, come prepared to face “the

instruments of torture” and “red-hot pincers” (4) which is ultimately what Faustus was

greeted with at the gates of hell. Instead, they are forced to truly examine the means in

which brought them to hell and suffer for their shortcomings, as well as the people

around them, for all eternity. This was most considerably used to convey Sartre’s idea

of “the other,” or the theory that in order to justify our existences, we must not only

define ourselves to others but also separate ourselves from others. Garcin is forced to

justify himself as brave rather than a coward to Inez, Inez pines to justify herself as an

adequate lover to Estelle, and Estelle attempts to justify herself as a desirable woman to

Garcin. Accordingly, then, it is Garcin who conveys this fate as torture when he

concludes that “Hell is—other people” (45).

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Regardless of their similarities, whether No Exit supports Mephistopheles’

depiction of hell is virtually impossible to assert as both of the plays handle the

perception of hell in two completely diverse fashions.

Works Cited

Marlowe, Christopher. Doctor Faustus and Other Plays. New York: Oxford UP, 2008.

Sartre, Jean Paul. No Exit and Three Other Plays. New York: Random House Inc, 1989.

Doctor Faustus

1. Who is Beelzebub?

2. Does Faustus speak Latin at all times, or is it interjected?

3. Why does Faustus refer to himself in the third-person?

No Exit

1. Are there any contemporary metaphors implored by Sartre about Germany or

Paris?

2. Does every character no have eyelids or just the Valet?

3. Is the paper knife meant to be comedic relief, some sort of satirical bout, or

theory implored by Sartre?