Faust's Dream to Rise From the Dust

Today in class we approached the question: Why does Faust willingly make a pact with the devil, trading his soul in exchange for unearthly knowledge and pleasure? I believe that Faust sells his soul to satiate a desire to live divinely. He sees the Sign of the Macrocosm in his book and asks himself, "Am I a god? My mind's so clear!" (16). Shortly after, a Spirit calls him "superman" (18). He is infatuated with the gap between the heavens and his condemnation to the earth, where he writhes like a snake on its belly in the dust (22). 

The general public is depicted as an unintelligent, unmotivated mass. Outside the city gate, people are milling about: “I like a pint and a damn good smoke, but still/ There’s nothing like a housemaid dressed to kill” (27). A student persuades another to go after a group of servant girls: “They’re much more fun; believe me, if you want to score” (28). These are the mindless, vulgar multitudes that the Director is asking the Poet to cater to, prostitute his talents to, in the introduction. But, Faust is not interested in socializing or chasing after women. He is obsessed with the mechanics of the world around him. Natural imagery- valleys, mountains, and oceans, incessantly flows from Faust’s lips. This reminded me of the concept of the “transparent eyeball” advocated in Emerson’s essay Nature later in 1836.This transcendentalist essay urged the American public to genuinely appreciate and see the world through the lens of the phenomenon that is nature.

Faust’s conflict is that “Two souls are locked in conflict in [his] heart,/ they fight to separate and pull apart./ The one clings stubbornly to worldly things,/ And craves the pleasure of our carnal appetites,/ the other has an inborn urge to spread its wings, Shake off the dust of the earth and soar to loftier heights” (35). Faust struggles to find pleasure in earthly things- a good smoke and beautiful women, but his intelligence as a scholar and doctor leave him unsatisfied even though he is revered by the community. Ultimately, he sells his soul to the devil because of an arrogant belief that “man is fit to stand at the immortals’ side” (24). He craves answers, and it is his conceited conviction that he deserves to know the mechanics of the cosmos that leads him to forfeit the core of his being and his entrance to heaven. 

Faust..part 1

I enjoyed reading the first part of Faust.  I enjoyed the story line after I understood what was going on.  What I had a hard time with was understanding the language in the text.  The way it is written reminds me how Shakespearean plays are written.  I always have had a hard time understandinding old english, and I therefore had a hard time understanding this play.  So, I put down the book, went to sparknotes, and then picked the book back up, started fromn the beginning, and was then able to understand what was going on a bit more then when I started to read it cold. 

What I especially like about the story is that its main character Faust is a moral character but is constantly being tempted by the devil to be immoral.  I enjoy seeing that Faust does genuinely try to be moral, but ends up doing the wrong thing, at somebody else's expense.  I am interested to see how his character is going to develope in part two.  I want to see if he will get back in touch with his moral side and deny the devil or if he will allow himself to be persuaded into doing more evil acts that someone else will have to suffer for.


This is exactly the picture that came to my head while reading the first part of Faust.  I believe that Faust has a moral side, but I believe that he is easily persuaded by the devil.  For example Faust felt bad when he learned Gretchen was in jail because of what Faust and the Devil did.  Gretchen did not kill her brother Valentine, Faust and the Devil did.  So even though Faust is moral and felt bad and therefore tried to rescue Gretchen, this scene demonstrates how easily Faust is persuaded by the devil because it was Faust's fault why she was in jail in the first place.

A German Shakespeare?

            I feel like my tendency towards parallels might seem extreme sometimes, so let me preface this one with an explanation.  In my high school we were offered two electives a year, and one of our options after tenth grade was a crossover type of course called Parallels.  My favorite history teacher taught it in conjunction with an English teacher I had never had.  It was a challenging class, but thoroughly interesting.  We would learn history lessons and then read a book that went with it essentially, but moreover we were taught to find and draw parallels between everything.  After that class I find myself identifying similarities between a multitude of things, including works of literature.  While reading Faust I immediately thought back to the works of Shakespeare I have read in different classes.  My first indication was when I was reading and didn’t understand very much of what was happening on stage.  I knew that there must be things that I was missing, but much like Shakespeare, the hidden meanings and subtleties were lost on me.  I kept thinking I might better understand it if I were able to see it acted out, because that is how I ended up understanding some of Shakespeare’s plays better.  Upon further reading into Part 1, I realized (by looking at the footnotes) there were actually very many references or possible ties to works of Shakespeare.  Not to mention, the style of writing is very Shakespeare-esque, if my memory serves me.  After finishing Part 1 I realized I needed a bit of help in understanding what I had just read, so I did what every good student does, and I Sparknotesed it.   SO helpful.  I am posting a link to the website I used to review the summary and analysis of each chapter below.  While reading the analysis of “Walpurgis Night’s Dream” (page 120 in my book from the bookstore) online it mentioned that this poem showed the influence that Shakespeare had on Goethe.  Personally I thought it was really interesting that Goethe chose to include Puck and Ariel in it, as they are direct connections to A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Tempest and Goethe usually seems to reference Shakespeare more subtly, like on page 130 when Gretchen/Margarete says “My dearest hand!  But it feels wet!  Oh!  Wipe it off!  It would seem There’s blood on it.”  That is an obvious reference to Macbeth when after Lady Macbeth goes insane she keeps trying to wash of the invisible spot of blood on her hand that she always sees because of her guilt.

            Altogether I thought this was a pretty interesting book to read.  Admittedly I wouldn’t have understood nearly as much as I do now without Cliffnotes, but even when I didn’t understand it fully I found it interesting enough to read.  What did everybody else think of it?  Did anybody else notice any parallels within it to anything else?  There are definitely more to Shakespeare that I didn’t mention, but I just said what stuck out to me the most.  Did other things stick out to the rest of you?

So here is that link I mentioned, I hope it helps you guys like it helped me.  (it's specifically set to the page I mentioned also, just fyi)

Faust Cliffnotes

El Dorado: A true “Utopia”

[Before I start, an apology: I actually have a different edition of the book than most of the class, so I won’t be able to provide page numbers.]

It’s funny how often the word “Utopia” is used without a solid understanding of its meaning.  The word itself comes from Thomas Moore’s book of the same name published in 1516, in which he describes the archetypical Utopia.  However, many have wondered if Moore was being satirical in his work, as many of its themes (Euthanasia, Divorce, etc.) were deeply at odds with the strict Catholic Doctrine he eventually died for.  Perhaps the greatest clue was in the title; “Utopia”, when translated from Greek, literally means “No Place”.

So, with this in mind, let’s take a look at Voltaire’s El Dorado, another archetypical “Utopia”.  On the surface, it appears to be everything that Pangloss has ever dreamed of.  The people are kind and beautiful, the government is just and rewarding, and the culture on a whole seems to breathe the very essence of Voltaire’s enlightenment movement.  Gold, Silver and Jewels mean nothing here, while the Arts and Sciences are held in the highest regards.

The deeper we examine the society of El Dorado, however, the more faults and flaws emerge in its idyllic image.   Most glaring is the fact that Class and Poverty are still very much alive in the mythical city.  Take the comments that Candide and Cacambo’s hosts make in Chapter 17; “You had a bad meal here,” our heroes are told, “Because it’s a poor village.  But go elsewhere and you will be treated as you deserve.”  The humor here is that the “bad meal” was an opulent feast beyond compare in the European Candide’s eyes.  But this is simply a matter of perspective; the host’s comments make clear that, by El Doradoean standards, his entire village lives in poverty.  A different standard of poverty than we are used to, to be sure, but enough to show that the village lives a significantly less privileged life than others in their nation.

There are several other instances that seem to unravel the perception of El Dorado as a flawless Utopia.  For one, Chapter 18 makes it clear that the Old Man, and therefore most likely many others, still employ servants of low rank in society.  Secondly, the citizens of El Dorado do not turn down or refuse the concept of material wealth; only the gold and jewels that make up the “mud” of the nation.

So, can we say that El Dorado is just another vile city no different than any other in Voltaire’s work?  Of course not; the city and its people are leaps and bounds ahead of those shown in Paris and England.  However, it would be just as foolish to accept it as a faultless, perfect existence.  The only true place to find a “Utopia”, after all, is no place.

Candide: What is he thinking?

During the class discussions of Voltaire’s satire, a few classmates noted that Candide’s thought processes about his actions are not addressed. However, I believe that these three characters: Pangloss, Martin and   the old lady are symbolic of his id, ego and super ego respectively. The role of each of each character is to represent which aspect of his psyche is influencing his action at the moment.

Id is described as the part of the personality that contains basic needs. It operates on a pleasure system and seeks to avoid pain or discomfort. Voltaire uses the characterization of Pangloss’s extremely optimistic philosophy on life as an embodiment of Candide’s id.  A majority of Pangloss’ actions are pleasure-based and when met with harsh reality as a consequence, he avoids discomfort by focusing on positive aspects of the situation. His affair with Pacquette leads to him being infected with an STD. Yet, he recalls his encounters with her as being in paradise and full of love. And down plays the severity of the disease by stating that its spread lead to the introduction of chocolate into Europe.  Candide is depicted to be greatly influenced by the teachings of Pangloss which in the beginning causes him to act solely based to the need to seek pleasure and avoid discomfort. His kissing of Miss Cunegend was as a result of basic need for intimacy. To avoid his unease with her affair with the Jesuit, he kills him quickly only to comprehend the consequences later.

  The ego is the aspect that tries to deal with our desires in a realistic manner. Martin is a symbol of Candide’s ego. On the surface, he seems to be very negative in comparison to Candide optimistic view on life. However, his logical assessment of the world brings Candide the balance that he is in great need of. After being robbed by a Dutch skipper, Candide witness him drown. His id in the form of his philosophy delights in this event, because it eliminates his discomfort about being cheated. However, Martin serving as the “conscience” brings into being the cost of this event. In France, Candide seeks to enjoy the company of the Parisians, all though they are mostly taking advantage of him. Martin, distrust of the Parisians, illustrates Candide’s true thoughts about their manipulative ways and his assessment of the cost of acceptance in Paris.

            Super ego determines morality and chooses what is right based on each situation.  The old lady’s advice to Candide serves as his yard of mortality based on the situation he finds himself in. Candide justifies his impulsive killings of Inquisitor and the Jew on the depth of his love for Miss Cungend and the jealousy it arouses in him. The old lady provides the voice of reasoning by advising to flee. It serves as Candide’s interruption of his killing as right because it was a reaction to the harsh life of Cungend and his need to protect her at all cost. However, the old lady soon advises Candide to let Cungend go instead of being killed by the Governor. His love for Cungend, clouded his judgment about her need to be safe till his super-ego brought it to his attention.

Candide's thoughts processes are made clear by Voltaire creative use of these characters as an embodiment of his mind.