MARLOWE, CHRISTOPHER

Marlowe, Christopher: translation

(1564—1593)

English playwright and poet, also known as a translator of Latin poetry (Ovid and Lucan) into English. Educated at the King's School in Canterbury and at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, he began his career as a dramatist withDido,Queen of Carthage(ca. 1587), with Thomas Nashe as co-author. HisTamburlaine the Greatwas performed in 1588 on a public stage at London by the Lord Admiral's Men and attracted much favorable attention. His other plays includeThe Jew of Malta,Edward II,The Massacre at Paris, andDoctor Faustus; the latter is probably his most important play. The dates and chronological order of his plays are un-certain. He led a disorderly life, being arrested and tried for manslaughter and forgery, and was accused both of planning to go over to the underground Catholic movement and of being an atheist. He was stabbed to death in a tavern brawl.