What was the audience supposed to think of Faustus?

Personally I think you should stop reading this now and go and find some other blog because I can certainly promise you a terrible blog. Just don't bother. Stop.

What was the audience supposed to think of Faustus? 

I started answering this question in class, albeit terribly, after we had finished reading the Prologue of the A text of Doctor Faustus. Here is what I wrote, it is terrible.

I believe Marlowe wants the audience to reserve their judgements of Faustus and his actions and possibly sympathise or even empathise with the character. Marlowe achieves this by using the chorus to suggest to the audience to "patient judgements we appeal our plaud" which therefore suggests they should keep an open and possibly unprejudiced mind towards the character and the play.

I also believe Marlowe implemented this idea further  to the audience (of reserving judgement on Faustus) by causing them to question whether the lines of good and bad are as straight forward as they believe and are taught. The reference to "heavens conspired to overthrow" suggests that even those who are perceived and believed to be of the purest kind can make mistakes and commit acts of evil and wrong doing. This therefore suggests to the audience that any condemnation towards Faustus should be reserved as almost anyone could be tempted and commit sins.

However, others may believe that Marlowe wanted the audience to question their beliefs in God rather than reserve their judgements on Faustus because Marlowe was a known atheist and is suggesting or implying that God and heaven related beings can be as corrupt and evil as the Devil.

Furthermore, I believe the audience is supposed to sympathise the character of Faustus as the chorus/prologue includes a simple detail of his upbringing and hints at a possible demise. The audience is told of how Faustus is "born of parents base of stock" yet he "shortly was graced with doctor's name" but became "glutted". A downfall is not mentioned, just hinted and so leaves a question as to whether there is one. However, I feel Marlowe included this detail to create a sense of sympathy in the character because a man of such greatness and potential can lose it all through one "glutted" mistake or decision.

Finally, I feel Faustus' simple upbringing and start creates further sympathy for the character from the audience as it makes him the 'every man', and suggests to the audience that this mistake which Faustus made could happen to anyone, not just people who are of greater social standing.

*I also believe Marlowe is trying to hint to the audience that only so much temptation can be thrown at a man, or a woman, before they can't resist any longer and can therefore happen to anyone.

So, if you've read that you are probably regretting it because it was so badly written, which I know it was, but I honestly struggled to write a decent and well written answer to that for some reason, so sorry!