Latin Literatures of Medieval and Early Modern Times in Europe and Beyond

The magician Faustus (or Faust, as he has been called since the eighteenth century), who enters a pact with the devil, is one of the most famous figures of world literature and can be said to symbolize the transition from the Middle Ages to the modern era. Even though the Faustus myth is genuinely modern, some medieval origins and predecessors can be identified. The gradual narrative formation of Faustus seems to be based on two literary and historical strands in particular, first the legends su