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ih,Googlc
I
OUT OP
HISS ESTHES BERKELEY
[HARVARD COLLEGE LlBRARYjgi
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FAUST
JOHANN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE
TRANSLATBD, IN THE OBICmAL MFTRES, BY
BAYARD TAYLOR
TWO VOLUMES IN ONE
VOL. I.
Wer die Didilkuiut will vcMeh«,
MuB iiu Und <kr DichtrniE gtheo I
Wa dm DichCi will veniihen,
UoH ID LiicDlen Lüde gchrn.
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY
CfK nibet^itit fvtit Cambcilgi
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JAN 3 01979
-7i i-'^:.
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PREFACE.
IT is twenty years since I first determined to
attempt the translation of ßausl, in the origi-
nal metres. At that time, although more than a
score of English translations of the First Part,
and three or four of the Second Part, were in ex-
istence, the experiment had not yet been made.
The prose version of Hayward seemed to have
been accepted as the standard, in default of any«
thing more satisfactory : the English critics, gener-
ally sustaining the translator in his views concern-
ing the secondary importance of form in Poetry,
practically discouraged any further attempt ; and
no one, familiar with rhythmical expression through
the needs of his own nature, had devoted the ne-
cessary love and patience to an adequate repro-
duction of the great work of Goethe's life.
Mr. Brooks was the first to undertake the task,
and the publication of his translation of the First
Part (in 1856) induced me, for a time, to give up
my own design. No previous English version ex- ■
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iv FAUST-
hibited such abnegation of the translator's own
tastes and habits of thought, such reverent desire
to present the original in its purest form. The
care and conscience with which the work had been
performed were so apparent, that I now state with
reluctance what then seemed to me to be its only
deficiencies, — a lack of the lyrical fire and flu-
ency of the original in some passages, and an
occasional lowering of the tone through the use
of words which are literal, but not equivalent.
The plan of translation adopted by Mr. Brooks
was so entirely my own, that when further resi-
dence in Germany and a more careful study of
both parts of Fnust had satisfied me that the field
was still open, — that the means furnished by the
poetical affinity of the two languages had not yet
been exhausted, — nothing remained for rae but to
follow him in all essential particulars. His exam-
ple confirmed me in the belief that there were few
difficulties in the way of a nearly literal yet thor-
oughly rhythmical version of Faust, which might
not be overcome by loving labor. A comparison
of seventeen English translations, in the arbitrary
metres adopted by the translators, sufficiently
showed the danger of allowing license in this
respect : the white light of Goetlie's thought was
thereby passed through the tin.ed glass of other
minds, and assumed the coloring of each. More-
over, the plea of selecting different metres in the
hope of producing a similar effect is unreasonably
where tlie identical metres are possible.
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The value of form, in a poetical work, is the
first question to be considered. No poet ever
understood this question more thoroughly than
Goethe himself, or expressed a more positive opin-
ion in regard to it The alternative modes of
translation which he presents (reported by Riemer,
quoted by Mrs. Austin, in her " Characteristics of
Goethe," and accepted by Mr. Hayward),* are
quite independent of his views concerning the
value of form, which we find given elsewhere, in
the clearest and most emphatic manner.f Poetry
• " ' There are two iiiMiins of translation,' says he : ' Ihe
me requires that the author, of a foreign nation, be brought
to >is in such a manner that we may regard him as our own ;
the other, on (he contrary, demands of us that we transport
ourselves over to him, and adopt his situation, his mode of
speaking, and his peculiarities. The advantages of both are
sufficiently known to all instructed persons, from masterly
Is it necessary, however, that there should always be this
alternative i Where the languages are kindred, and equally
capable of all varieties of metrical expression, may not both
these "maxims" be observed in the same translation?
Goethe, It is true, was of the opinion that Fitust ought to be
given, in French, in the manner of Cl<fment Marot ; but this
was undoubtedly because he fell the inadequacy of modern
French to express the naive, simple realism of many pas-
sages. The same objection does not apply to EnglisK
There are a few archaic expressions in fiiust, but no more
than are still allowed — nay, frequently encouraged — in tl.j
English of our day.
t ■■ You are riglit," said Goethe ; " there are great and
mysterious agencies included in the various forms of Poetry
If the substance of my ' Roman Elegies ' were to be «x-
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is not simply a fashion of expression : it is tht
form of expression absolutely required by a ce^
tain class of ideas. Poetry, indeed, may be dis-
tinguished from Prose by the single circumstance,
that it is the utterance of whatever in man cannot
be perfectly uttered in any other than a rhythmical
fonn : it is useless to say that the naked meaning
is independent of the form : on the contrary, the
form contributes essentially to the fulness of the
meaning. In Poetry which endures through its own
inherent vitality, there is no forced union of these
pressed in the tone and meisure of Byron's ■ Don Juan,' it
would reallj' have an atrodoua effect." — Erkermann.
" The rhylhni," said Goeihe, " is an unconscious result of
the poetic mood. If one sliould stop to consider it mechan-
ically, «then about to write a poem, one would become be>
wildered and accomplish notliing of real poetical value." —
IbUL
" AH that it pvttie in eharaclrr ihoutd bt rhylhmically treated I
Such is my conviction ; and if even a lort of poclic prose
•hould be gradually introduced, it would only show that the
distinction between prose and poetry had been completely
lost sight ot" — GettAt la Schiller, im.
Tycho Mommsen, in his excellent esaay, Ihe JCiaui da
Dtultchtn Ueitrtttteri au nmerrti Sprachm, goes so far as to
say : " The metrical or rhymed modelling of a poetical work
is so essentially the germ of its being, that, rather than by
giving it up, we might hope to construct a similar work of
art before (he eyes of our countrymen, by giving up or
changing the substance. The immeasurable result which
has followed works wherein the form has been retained —
such aa the Homer of Voss, and the Shakespeare of Tieck
and Schlegel — is an iDcontrovertible evidence of the vital-
ity of the endeavor."
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two elements. They are as intimately blended,
and with the same mysterious beauty, as the sexes
in the ancient Hermaphroditus. To attempt to
represent Poetry in Prose, is very much like at-
tempting to translate music into speech*
The various theories of translation from the
Greek and Latin poets have been admirably stated
by Dryden in his Preface to the " Translations
irom Ovid's Epistles," and I do not wish to con-
tinue the endless discussion, — especially as our
literature needs examples, not opinions. A recent
expression, however, carries with it so much au-
thority, that I feel bound to present some consid-
erations which the accomplished scholar seems to
have overlooked. Mr. Lewest justly says : " The
effect of poetry is a compound of music and sug-
gestion ; this music and this suggestion are inter-
mingled in words, which to alter is to alter the
effect For words in poetry are not, as in prose,
simple representatives of objects and ideas : they
are parts of an organic whole, — they are tones in
the harmony." He thereupon illustrates the effect
of translation by changing certain well-known
English stanzas into others, equivalent in meaning,
but lacking their felicity of words, their grace and
melody. 1 cannot accept this illustration as valid,
because Mr. Lewes purposely omits the very qual-
• "Goethe"» poems exerdse a great iway over me, not
only by their meaning, but also by Iheir rhythm. It is a lan-
gaage which stimulates me to compoMtion." — BtithsMiu
t Life of Goetbe (Book VL).
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ity which an honest translator should exhaust his
skill in endeavoring to reproduce. He turns away
from thec'v^ /«/word or phrase in the English lines
he quotes, whereas the translator seeks precisely
that one best word or phrase (having all the re-
sources of his language at command), to represent
what is said in another language. More than this,
his task is not simply mechanical ; he must feel,
and be guided by, a secondary inspiration. Sur-
rendering himself to the full possession of the
spirit which shall speak through him, he receives,
also, a portion of the same creative power, Mr.
Lewes reaches this conclusion : " If, therefore, we
reflect what a poem Faust is, and that it contains
almost every variety of style and metre, it will be
tolerably evident that no one unacquainted with
the original can form an adequate idea of it from
translation,"* which is certainly correct of any
translation wherein something of the rhythmical
variety and beauty of the original is not retained.
That very much of the rhythmical character may
be retained in English, was long ago shown by
Mr. Carlyle,t in the passages which he translated,
• Mr. Lewes gives the following advice: "The English
reader would perhaps best succeed who should tirst read
Dr. Anster's brilliant paraphrase, atid then carefully go
through Hayward's prose translaiion." This is singularly
at variance with the view he has just expressed. Dr.
Anster's version is an almost incredible dilution of the
original, written in othtr metres; while Hayward's enCirelj
omits the element of poetry.
t Foreign Review, i8l8.
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both literally and rhythmically, from the Helena
(Part Second). In fact, we have so many in-
stances of the pyossibility of reciprocally transfer-
ling the finest qualities of English and German
poetry, that there is no sufficient excuse for an
unmetrical translation of Faust. I refer especially
to such subtile and melodious lyrics as " The Cas-
tle by the Sea," of Uhland, and the " Silent Land "
of Sails, translated by Mr. Longfellow ; Goethe's
"Minstrel" and "Coptic Song," by Dr. Hedge;
Heine's "Two Grenadiers," by Dr. Fu mess, and
many of Heine's songs by Mr. Leiand ; and also
to the German translations of English lyrics, by
Freiligrath and Strodtmann."
I have a more serious objection, however, to
Ut^e against Mr. Hayward's prose translation.
Freiligrath can thus give us Walter Scott : —
" Konml, wie d« Wi
d kommt.
WennWUdereniiu
»dudf
Wenn Floilen icnp
ScJineUhenn,Khne
ih«.b.
Schntller kommt AI
HKupJiDE und Bub'
uxIXaam
HtrruiHiVaill.1"
It Strodtmann thus reproduce Tennyson : —
** £« ailt der Strahl auf Bins i">d Thai,
Und ichiKnge Gipdl, nich in Sagen :
Viel' Lkhiermhn »uf blauen Seen,
Bergab die Wioentüne jsEen I
Blaa. Hflfthom, blu. in WiederhaK enchanend:
Bb^ Horn — antwortet, Ech«, hiUend, hillend, huOoid ! "
— it must be a dull earwhich would be satisfied with the
of rhythm and rhyme.
ih,Googlc
Where all the restraints of verse are flung asid^
we should expect, at least, as accurate a reproduc-
tion of the sense, spirit, and tone of the original,
as the genius of our language will permit. So far
from having given us such a reproduction, Mr.
Hayward not only occasionally mistakes the exact
meaning of the German text,* but, wherever two
phrases may be used to express the meaning with
equal fidelity, he very frequently selects that which
has the less grace, strength, or beauty.t For there
are few things which may not be said, in English,
in a twofold manner, — one poetic, and the other
prosaic In German, equally, a word which in
• On hii second page, the line Mrin Litd irtönt der tat-
itItannttH Menge, "My song sounds to the unknown multi-
tude," is translated : " My sorrma voices itself to the strange
throng." Other English translators, I notice, have followed
Mr. Hayward in mistaking Liid for Lrid.
t I take bui one out of numerous instances, for the sake
of illustration. The close of the Soldier's Song (Pan I.
Scene IL) is: —
" Kfibn il du Mähen.
Hnrlicfa der Lohn I
Und die Soldil«
Litetalljr :
This Mr. Hayward translates : —
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ordinary use has a bare prosaic character may
receive a fairer and finer quality from its place in
verse. The prose translator should certainly be
able to feel the manifestation of this law in both
languages, and should so choose his words a3 to
meet dieir reciprocal requirements. A man, how-
ever, frtio is not keenly sensible to the power and
beauty and value of rhythm, is likely to overlook
these delicate yet most necessary distinctions.
The author's thought is stripped of a last grace ia
passing through his mind, and frequenüy presents
very much the same resemblance to the original as
an unhewn shaft to the fluted column. Mr. Hay-
ward unconsciously illustrates his lack of a refined
appreciation of vtrx, "in giving," as he says, "«
sari of rhythmkai arrangemaii to the lyrical parts,"
his object being "to convey some notion of the
variety of versification which fortns cme great
charm of the poem." A literal translation is al-
ways possible in the unrhymed passages ; but even
here Mr, Hayward's ear did not dictate to him the
necessity of preserving the original rhythm.
While, therefore, I heartily recognize his lofty
appreciation of Faust, — while I honor him for the
patient and conscientious labor he has bestowed
upon his translation, — I cannot but feel that he
has himself illustrated the unsoundness of his ar-
gument Nevertheless, the circumstance that his
prose translation of Faust has received so much
acceptance proves those qualities of the original
work which cannot be destroyed by a test so vio-
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lent From the cold bare outline thus produced,
the reader unacquainted with the German language
would scarcely guess what glow of color, what rich-
ness of changeful life, what fluent grace and energy
of movement have been lost in the process. We
must, of course, gratefully receive such an outline,
where a nearer approach to the fonn of the origi-
nal is impossible, but, until the latter has been
demonstrated, we are wrong to remain content
with the cheaper substitute.
It seems to me that in all discussions upon this
subject the capacities of the English language
have received but scanty justice. The intellectual
tendencies of our race have always been somewhat
conservative, and its standards of literary taste
or belief, once set up, are not varied without a
struggle. The English ear is suspicious of new
metres and unaccustomed forms of expression :
there are critical detectives on the track of every
author, and a violation of the accepted canons is
followed by a summons to judgment Thus the
tendency is to contract rather than to expand the
acknowledged excellences of the language." The
* I cannot resist the temptition of quoting the followiiig
passage from Jacob Grimm : " No one of all the modern
languages has acquired a greater force and strength than the
English, through the derangement and relinquishment of its
ajicient lanr» of sound. The unteachablc (nevertheless learn-
ablt) profusion of its middie-tones has conferred upon it an
intrinsic power of expression, such as no other human tongue
ever possessed. Its entire, thoroughly intellectual and won-
derfully sunxssful foundation and perfected development
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difficulties in the way of a nearly literal translation
of Faust in the original metres have been exagger-
ated, because certain affinities between the two
languages have not been properly considered.
With all the splendor of versification in the work,
it contains but few metres of which the English
tongue is not equally capable. Hood has famil-
iarized us with dactylic (triple) rhymes, and they
are remarkably abundant and skilful in Mr. Low-
ell's " Fable for the Critics " : even the unrhymed
iambic hexameter of the Helena occurs now and
then in Milton's Samson Agonis/es. It is true that
the metrical foot into which the German language
most naturally falls is the trochaic^ while in English
it is the iambU : it is true that German is rich,
involved, and tolerant of new combinations, while
»sued from a marvelloiii union of the two noblest tongues
of Europe, the Germanic and the Romanic. Their mutual
relation in the English language is well known, since the
former furnished chiefly (he material basil, while ihe latter
added the intellectual conceptions. The English language,
by and through which ihe greatest and most eminent poet
of modem times — as contrasted with ancient classical
poelry — (of course I can refer only to Shakespeare} was
begoiien and nourished, has a just claim lo be called a lan-
guage of the world ; and it appears to be destined, like ttie
English race, to a higher and broader sway in all quarters
of the earth. For in richness, in compact adjustment of
parts, and in pure intelligence, none of the living languaReS
can lie compared with it, — not even our German, which is
divided even as we are divided, and which must cast oif myny
knpeTfectionB before it can boldly enter on its career.- --
Utitr JtK Ursfruttg dtr Sfratht.
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English is simple, direct, and rather shy of com-
pounds ; but precisely these differences are so
modified in the German of Faust that there is a
mutual approach of the two languages. In Faust,
the iambic measure predominates ; the s^le is
compact ; the many licenses which the author
allows himself are all directed towards a shorter
mode of construction. On the other hand, Eng-
lish metre compels the use of inversions, admits
many verbal liberties {»^hibited to prose, and so
inclines towards various flexible features of its
sister-tongue that many lines of Faust may be
repeated in English without the slightest change
of meaning, measure, or rhyme. There are words,
it is true, with so delicate a bloom upon them that
it can in no wise be preserved ; but even such
words will always lose less when they carry with
them their rhythmical atmosphere. TTie flow of
Goethe's verse is sometimes so similar to that of
the corresponding English metre, that not only its
hannonies and ctesural pauses, but even its punc-
tuation, may be easily retained.
I am satisfied that the difference between a
translation of Faust in prose or metre is chiefly
one of labor, — and of that labor which is success-
ful in proportion as it is joyously performed. My
own task has been cheered by the discovery, that
the more closely I reproduced the language of the
original, the more of its rhythmical character was
transferred at the same time. If, now and then,
there was an inevitable alternative of meaning or
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music, I gave the preference to the former. By
the term " original metres " I do not mean a r^id,
unyielding adherence to every foot, line, and
rhyme of the German original, although this has
veiy nearly been accomplished. Since the greater
part of the work is written in an irregular measure,
the lines varying from three to six feet, and the
rhymes arranged according to the author's will, I
do not consider that an occasional change in the
number of feet, or order of rhyme, is any violation
of the metrical plan. The single sUght liberty I
have taken with the lyrical passages is in Marga-
ret's song, — "The King of Thule," — in which,
I^ omitting the alternate feminine rhymes, yet re-
taining the metre, I was enabled to make the trans-
lation strictly literal. If, in two or three instances,
I have left a line unrhymed, I have balanced the
omission by giving rhymes to other lines which
Stand unrhymed in the original text For the same
reason, I make no apology for the imperfect
rhymes, which are frequently a translation as well
as a necessity. With all its supreme qualities,
^auH is tar from being a technically perfect work.*
■ "Ai preaent, everything runs in technical grooves, and
the critica] gentlemen begin to wrangle whether in a rhyme
an t ihonld correspond with an j- and not with st. \t I were
young and reckless enough, I would purposely ofTend all
■udi technical caprices : I would use alliteration, assonance,
&lae rhyme, just according to my own will or convenience —
but, at the same time, I would attend to the main thing, and
endeavor to say lo many good things that every 0ne would
be attracted to read and remember them." — Goitki,'\a 183L
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xvi FAUST.
The feminine and dactylic rhymes, which have
been for the most part omitted by all metrical
translators except Mr. Brooks, are indispensable.
The characteristic tone of many passages would
be nearly lost, without them. They give spirit and
grace to the dialogue, point to the aphoristic por-
tions (especially in the Second Part), and an ever-
changing music to the lyrical passages. The
English language, though not so rich as the
German in such rhymes, is less deficient than
is generally supposed. The difficulty to be over-
come is one of construction rather than of the
vocabulary. The present participle can only be
used to a limited extent, on account of its weak
terminadon, and the want of an accusative form
to the noun also restricts the arrangement of
words in English verse. 1 cannot hope to have
been always successful ; but I have at least la-
bored long and patiently, bearing constantly in
mind not only the meaning of the original and
the mechanical structure of the lines, but also
that subtile and haunting music which seems to
govern rhythm instead of being governed by it.
The ^Second Part of Faust has been translated
five times into English (by Birch, Bernays, Mac-
donald, Archer Gurney, and Ansler), but not one
of the versions has ever been published in the
United States. Inasmuch as this part was in-
cluded in Goethe's original design, the First Part,
althougU apparently complete as a tragic episode,
is in reality but a fragment, wherein the deeper
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problems upon which the work is based are left
unsolved. 1 consider, therefore, that the Second
Part is necessary (as necessary, indeed, as the
/'aradiso to the Divina Commedia of Danle); and
my aim, in the second volume of this translation,
will be to make that necessity clear, alike to the
English reader and to those who follow various
German and English critics in disparaging the
original.
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CONTENTS.
Pbkliidi on thk St*gb .
PfM>LCICUK IN Hkavkn .
SCKKX !• Night (Famfi Mmulcgiu)
IL Bbfori thi Citv-Gatb
lU. Thk Study (Tie Exoreüm)
IV. Thk Study (TTie Camfact) .
V. AuIKBACH'S CllXAK
VL WiTCHKS' KiTCHIN
VII. A Street .
VIII EVININO
IX. PROHBNADB
X Tm Nuohbok's Houn
XL Strut ....
XII. Garden
XIIL A Gardbn-Arbor .
XiV. Forest amd Cavern .
138
146
148
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XI CONTENTS.
XV, Margaret's Room 154
XVI. Martha's Garden .... 156
XVIL At the Fountain 163
XVIII. Donjon [Margarefs Pnytr) . . 166
XIX. VlGKT {VaUttHti/s DeaiA) ... 168
XX. Cathedral 175
XXI. Walpürois-Niokt 178
XXII. Obbron and Titania's Golden Wei>-
">'NG 19S
XXIII. Drearv Day 303
XXIV. Night . . 206
XXV. DuNCBON 207
NOTES 317
APPENDIX.
I. Thb Faust-Legend 337
IL Chronology of Faust ... - 345
IIL Scene FROM Marlowe's "Faustus" . 354
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AN GOETHE.
pRHABENER Geist, im Gästerreick verloren /
Wi> immer Deine iickte Wohnung sey,
Zum höh'ren Schaffen bist Du neugeboren.
Und sinkst dort die voll're Litanei.
Von jenem Streben das Du auserkitren,
Vom reinsten j£ther, drin Du athmest frei,
0 nei^ Dich tu gnädigem Erwiedem
Des kitten Wiederhalls von Deinen Liedern /
Den alten Musen die bestäubten Kronen
Nahmst Du, tu neuem Glant, mit kühner Hand:
Du löst die Rätksel ältester ^onen
Durch jüngeren Glauben, helleren Verstand,
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aii AN GOETHE.
Und Markst, mo rtg^ Meiuckengeisler wokMeti,
Du gatae Erde Dir zum Vaterland;
Und Deint Jünger sehn in Dir, verwundert.
Verkörpert schon das werdende Jahrhundert.
Was Du gesunffH, A lUr Lust und KtapH,
Des Lebens WiederspriUhe, neu vermählt, —
Die Harfe tausendstimmig frisch geschlagen.
Die Skakspeare einst, di* einst Homer getoöklt, —
Darf ich infiemde Klänge übertragen
Das Alles, wo so Mancher schon gefehlt t
Last Deinen Geist in meiner Stimme klingen.
Und was Du sangst, iass mich es Dir nachsingen /
B. T.
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DEDICATION."
AGAIN ye come, ye hovering Formst I find ye,
As early to my clouded sight ye shone [
Shad 1 attempt, this once, to seize and bind ye?
Still o'er my heart is that illusion thrown F
Ye crowd more near ! Then, be the reign assigned y^
And away me from your misty, shadoyry zone I
My bosom thrills, with youthful passion shaken,
From magic airs that round your march awaken.
Of joyous days ye bring the blissful vision ;
The dear, familiar phantoms rise again,
And, like an old and half-extinct tradition.
First Love returns, with Friendship in his train.
Renewed is Pain : with mournful repetition
Life tracks his devious, labyrinthine chain,
And names the Good, whose cheating fortune tore them
From happy hours, and left me to deplore them.
They hear no longer these succeeding measures,
The souls, to whom my earliest songs I sang :
Dispersed the friendly troop, with all its pleasures.
And still, alas ! the echoes first that rang I
VOL. I. 1
ih,Googlc
3 FAUST.
I bring the unknown multiiude my treasures ;
Their very plaudits give my heart a pang.
And those beside, ivliose joy my Song so flattered,
If still they live, wide through the world are scattered.
And grasps me now a long-unwonted yeamlDg
For that serene and solemn Spirit-Land:
My song, to faint .£olian murmurs turning.
Sways like a barp-string by the breezes fanned.
1 thrill and tremble; tear on tear is burning.
And the stern heart is tenderly unmanned.
What 1 possess, I see tar distant lying.
And what I lost, grows real and undying'
ih,Googlc
PRELUDE ON THE STAGE.*
l:;er. Dramatic Poet. Merry-Andrew,
YOU two, who oft a helping hand
Have lent, in need and tribulation,
Come, let me know your expectation
Uf this, our enterprise, in German land !
I ivish the crowd to feel itself well treated.
Especially since it lives and lets me live ;
'I he posts are set, the booth of boards completed,s
And each awaits the banquet 1 shall give.
Already there, with curious eyebrows raised.
They sit sedate, and hope to be amazed.
1 know how one the People's taste may flatter,
Yet here a. huge embarrassment I feel :
What they're accustomed to, is no great matter.
Uut then, alas ! they 've read an awful deal.
How shall we plan, that all be fresh and new, —
Important matter, yet attractive too?
For 't is my pleasure to behold them surging.
When to our booth the current sets apace.
And with tremendous, oft-repeated urging,
Squeeze onward through the narrow gate of grace:
By daylight even, they push and cram in
ih,Googlc
4 FAUST.
Tu reach the seller's box, a fighting host,
And as for bread, around a baker's door, in famin
To get a ticket break their necks almost
This miracle alone can work the Poet
On men so various ; now, my friend, pray show it
Speak not to mc of yonder motley masses.
Whom but to see, puts out the fire of Song !
Hide from my view the surging crowd that passes,
And in its wtiirlpool forces us along!
No, lead me where some heavenly silence glasses
The purer joys that round the Poet throng, —
Where Love and Friendship still divinely fashion
The bonds that bless, the wreaths that crown liis passion!
Ah, every utterance from the depths of feeling
The timid lips have stammeringly expressed, —
Now failing, now, perchance, success revealing, —
Gulps the wild Moment in its greedy breast;
Or oft, reluctant years Its warrant sealing.
Its perfect stature stands at last confessed I
What dazzles, for the Moment spends its spirit;
What 's genuine, shall Posterity Inherit
MERRY-ANDREW.
Posterity! Don't name the word to met
If / should choose to preach Posterity,
Where would you get cotemporary fun?
That men will have it, there 's no blinking ; '
A fine young fellow's presence, to my thinking.
Is something worth, lo every one.
Who genially his nature can outpour.
Takes from the People's moods no irritation ;
The wider circle he acquires, the more
ih,Googlc
PS ELUDE. 5
Securely works his inspiratioa.
Then pluck np heart, and give lu sterling c<^ 1
Let Fancy be with her attendants fitted, —
Sense, Reason, Sentiment, and Passion jmn, —
But have a care, lest Folly be omitted I
MANAGER.
Chiefly, enough of bddent prepare I
They come to look, and they prefer to stare.*
Reel off a host of threads before their faces,
So that they gape in stupid wonder: then
By sheer diffuseness you have won their graces,
And are, at once, roost popular of men.
Only by mass you touch the mass ; for any
Will finally, himself, his bit select :
Who offers much, brings something unto many^
And each goes home content with the effect.
If you 've a piece, why, just in pieces give it :
A hash, a stew, will bring success, believe itl
T is easily displayed, and easy to invent.
What use, a Whole compactly to present ?
Yonr hearers pick and pluck, as soon as they receive itl
Yon do not feel, how such a trade debases ;
How ill it suits the Artist, proud and true!
The botching work each fine pretender traces
Is, I perceive, a principle with you.
UANAGER.
Such a reproach not in the least offends;
A roan who some result intends
Must use the tools that best are fitting.
Reflect, soft wood is given to you for splitting
And then, observe for whoro you write I
ih,Googlc
6 FAUST.
If one comes bored, exhausted quite.
Another, satiate, leaves the banquet's tapers.
And, worst of all, full many a wight
Is fresh from reading of the daily papers.
Idly to us they come, as to a masquerade,
Mere curiosity their spirits wanning :
The ladies with themselves, and with their finery, aid.
Without a salary their parts performing.
What dreams are yours in high poetic places?
You 're pleased, forsooth, full houses to behold ?
Draw near, and view your patrons' faces !
The half are coarse, the half are cold.
One, when the play is out, goes home to cards;
A wild night on a wench's breast another chooses :
Why should you rack, poor, foolish bards,
For ends like these, the gracious Muses?
1 tell you, give but more — more, ever more, they ask:
Thus shall you hit the mark of gain and glory.
Seek to confound your auditory I
To satisfy them is a task. —
What ails you now? Is 't suffering, or pleasure?
POET.
Go, find yourself a more obedient slave I
What ! shall the Poet that which Nature gave,
The highest right, supreme Humanity,
Forfeit so wantonly, to swell your treasure?
Whence o'er the heart his empire free ?
The elements of Life how conquers he?
Is 't not his heart's accord, urged outward far and dim,
To wind the world in unison with him ?
When on the spindle, spun to endless distance,
By Nature's listless hand the thread is twirled,
And the discordant tones of all existence
In sullen jangle are together hurled.
ih,Googlc
PRELUDE. 3
Who, then, the changeless orders of creation
Divides, and kindles into rhythmic dance?
Who brings the One to join the genera) ordinatioD,
Where it may throb in grandest consonance?
Who bids the storm to passion stir the bosom?
In brooding souls the sunset bum above?
Who scatters every fairest April blossom
Along the shining path of Love?
Who braids the noteless leaves to crowns, requiting
Desert with tune, in Action's every field ?
Who makes Olympus sure, the Gods uniting?
The might of Man, as in the Bard revealed.
HER KV-A.V DREW.
So, these fine forces, in conjunction.
Propel the high poetic function,
As in a love-adventure they might play 1
You meet by accident ; you feel, you stay,
And by degrees your heart is tangled ;
Bliss grows apace, and then its course is jangled;
You 're ravished quite, then comes a touch of woe.
And there's a neat romance, completed ere you know!
Let us, then, such a drama give !
Grasp the exhaustless life that all men live !
Each shares therein, though few may comprehend :
Where'er you touch, there 's interest without end. '
In motley pictures little light,
Much error, and of truth a glimmering mite.
Thus the best beverage is supplied.
Whence all the world is cheered and edified.
Then, at your play, behold the fairest flower
Of youth collect, to hear the revelation !
Each tender soul, with sentimental power.
Sucks melancholy food from your creation ;
And now in this, now that, the leaven works.
ih,Googlc
6 FAUST.
For each beholds what in his bosom hirks.
They still are moved at once to weeping or to htughter.
Still wonder at your flints, enjoy the show they see :
A mind, once fonned, is never suited after ;
One yet In growth will ever grateful be.
POET.
Then give me back that lime of pleasures,
While yet in joyous growth I sang, —
When, like a fount, the crowding measures
Uninterrupted gushed and sprang I
Then bright mist veiled the world before me,
In opening buds a marvel woke,
As I the thousand blossoms broke,
Which every valley richly bore me I
I nothing had, and yet enough for youth —
Joy in Illusion, ardent thirst for Truth.
Give, unrestrained, the old emotion,
The bliss that touched the verge of pain,
The strength of Hate, Love's deep devotion, ••«
O, give me back my youth again !
UERRY-ANDREW.
Youth, good ray friend, you certainly require
When foes in combat sorely press you j
When lovely maids, in fond desire,
Hang on your bosom and caress you ;
When from the hard-won goal the wreath
Beckons afar, the race awaiting;
When, after dancing out your breath,
You pass the night in dissipating : —
But that familiar harp with soul
To play, — with grace and bold expression.
And towards a self .erected goal
To walk with many a sweet digression, —
ih,Googlc
This, aged Sirs, belongs to you,'
And we no less revere you for that reason :
Age childish makes, they say, but 't is not true ;
We 're only genuine children still, in Age's season I
MANAGER.
The words you 've bandied are sufficient ;
T is deeds that I prefer to see :
In compliments you're both proficient,
But might, the while, more useful be.
What need to talk of Inspiration ?
'T is no companion of Delay.
If Poetry be your vocation,
Let Poetry your will obey I
Full well you know what here is wanting ;
The crowd for strongest drink is panting,
And such, forthwith, 1 'd have ycu brew.
What's left undone to-day. To-morrow will not da
Waste not a day in vain digression :
With resolute, courageous trust
Seize every possible impression,
And make it firmly your possession ;
You 11 then work on, because you must.
Upon our German stage, you know it,
Each tries his hand at what he will ;
So, take of traps and scenes your fill,
And all you find, be sure to show it 1
Use both the great and lesser heavenly light,—
Squander the stars in any number,
Beasts, birds, trees, rocks, and all such lumber,
Fire, water, darkness. Day and Night t
Thus, in our booth's contracted sphere,
The circle of Creation will appear,
And move, as we deliberately impel,
From Heaven, across the World, to HeU 1 '
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
PROLOGUE IN HEAVEN.'
The Lord. The Heavenly Hosts. After-
viards Mephistopheles.
{7%i Three Archangels came fonaard.)
RAPHAEL.
THE sun-orb singa, in emulation,
'Mid brother-spheres, his ancient round :
His path predestined through Creation
He ends with step of thunder- sound.
TTie angels from his visage splendid
Draw power, whose measure none can say;
The lofty works, uncomprehended.
Are bright as on the earliest day.
And swift, and swift beyond conceiving,
The splendor of the world goes round.
Day's Eden-brightness still relieving
The awful Night's intense profound:
The ocean-tides in foam are breaking,
Against the rocks' deep bases hurled,
And both, the spheric race partaking.
Eternal, swift, arc onw.ird whirled I
ih,Googlc
13 FAUST.
MICHAEL.
, And rival storms abroad are surging
From sea to land, from land to sea.
A chain of deepest action forging
Round all, in wrathful energy.
There flames a desolation, blaiing
Before the Thunder's crashing way :
Yet, Lord, Thy messengers are praising
The gentle movement of Thy Day,
THE THREE.
Though still by them nncomprehended.
From these the angels draw their power.
And all Thy works, sublime and splendid,
Are bright as in Creation's hour.*
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Since Thou, O Lord, deign'st to approach again
And ask us how we do, in manner kindest,
And herelofore to meet myself wert fain.
Among Thy menials, now, my face Thou findest
Pardon, this troop I cannot foUoiv after "^
With lofty speech, though by them Bcomed and spumed
My pathos certainly would move Thy bughter.
If Thou hadst not all merriment unlearned.
Of suns and worlds I 've nothing to be quoted ;
How men torment themselves, is all I 've noted.
The little god o' the world sticks to the same old way,
And is as whimsical as on Creation's day.
Life somewhat better might content him.
But for the gleam of heavenly light which Thou hast
lent him :
He calls it Reason — thence his power 's increased.
To be far beastlier than any beast.
Saving Thy Gracious Presence, he to me
ih,Googlc
PROLOGUE IN HEA VEN. 3
A long'legged gr^isshoppier appears to be,
That springing flies, and flying springs.
And in the grass the same old ditty sings.
Would he stili lay among the grass he grows in!
Each bit of dung he seeks, to stick his nose in.
THE LORD.
Hast thon, then, nothing more to mention ?
Com'st ever, thus, with ill intention?
Find'st nothing right on earth, eternally?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
No, Lord ! I find things, there, still bad as they can be;
Man's misery even to pity moves my nature ;
1 've scarce the heart to plague the wretched creature.
Know'st Faust?
THE LORD.
MEPHISTOPMELES.
The Doctor Faust?
THE LORD.
My servant, he!
UEPHISTOPHZLES.
Forsooth ! He serves you after strange devices :
No earthly meat or drink the fool suffices :
His spirit's ferment far aspiretli ;
Half consdous of his frenzied, crazed unrest,
The fairest stars from Heaven he requireth,
From Earth the highest raptures and the best,
And all the Near and Far that he desireth
Fails to subdue the tumult of his breasL
THE LORD.
rtiongh Still confused his service unto Me,
I MKHt shall lead him to a clearer morning.
ih,Googlc
Sees not the gardener, even while buds his tree.
Both flower and fruit the future year» adoraing?
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
What will you bet ? There 's still a chance to gain him,
If unto me full leave you give,
Gently upon my road to train him !
As long as he on earth shall live,
So long I make no prohibition.
While Man's desires and aspirations stir.
He cannot choose but err."
MEPmSTOPHELES.
My thanks ! I find the dead no acquisition,
And never cared to have them in my keeping.
I much prefer the cheeks where ruddy blood is leaping,
And when a corpse approaches, close my house :
It goes with me, as with the cat the mouse.
THE LORD.
Enough ! What thou hast asked is granted.
Turn off this spirit from his fountain-head ;
To trap him, let thy snares be planted.
And him, with thee, be downward led;
Then stand abashed, when thou art forced to say;
A good man, through obscurest aspiration.
Has still an instinct of the one true way."
HEFHISTOPHELES.
Agreed ! But 't is a short probation.
About my bet I feel no trepidation.
If I fulfil my expectation.
You 11 let me triumph with a swelling breast :
ih,Googlc
PROLOGUE Itf HEAVEN. 15
Dust shall he eat, and with a zest.
As did a certain snake, my near relation.
THE LORD.
Therein thou 'rt free, according to thy merits ;
The like of thee have never moved My hate.
Of ail the bold, denying Spirits,
The waggish knave least trouble doth create.
Man's active nature, flagging, seeks too soon the Ievel|
Unqualified repose he learns to crave;
Whence, willingly, the comrade him 1 gave,
Who works, excites, and must create, as Devil.
But ye, God's sons in love and duty, 'J
Enjoy the rich, the ever-living Beauty!
Creative Power, that works eternal schemes,
Clasp you in bonds of love, relaxing never,
And what in wavering apparition gleams
Fix in its place with thoughts that stand forever I
(HameH cltaes: Iht Archangels leparait.)
MEPHISTOPHELES {solus).
I like, at times, to hear The Ancient's word,
And have a care to be most civil :
It 's really kind of such a noble Lord
So humanly to gossip with the Devil 1
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
FIRST PART OF THE TRAGEDY.
\A Ufiy-arcieJ, narmti, Gothic chamber. Faust, in a
chair at hit dak, reitUu. )
FAUST,"
I'VE Studied now Philosophy
And Jurisprudence, Medicine, —
And even, alas ! Theolc^, —
From end to end, with labor keen ;
And here, poor fool ! with all my lore
I stand, no wiser than before :
I 'm Magister — yea, Doctor — high t,
And straight or cross-wise, wrong or right,
These ten years long, with many woes,
I 've led my scholars by the nose, —
And see, that nothing can be known 1
That knowledge cuts me to the bone.
I 'm cleverer, true, than those fops of teachers,
Doctors and Magisters, Scribes and Preachers;
Neither scruples nor doubts come now to smite me,
Nor Hell nor Devil car longer affright me.
For this, all pleasure am 1 foregoing;
I do not pretend to aught worth knowing.
ih,Googlc
i8 PAUST.
I do not pretend I could be a teacher
f o help or convert a fellow-creafwr«.
Then, too, I 've neither lands nor gold.
Nor the world's least pomp or honor hold —
No dog would endure such a cursl existence I
Wherefore, from Magic I seek assistance,
That many a secret perchance I reach
Through spirit-power and spirit-Kpeech,
And thus the bitter task forego
Of saying the things I do not know, —
That 1 may detect the inmost force
Which binds the world, and guides its course;
Its germs, productive powers explore.
And rummage in empty words no more!
O full and splendid Moon, whom J
Have, from this desk, seen climb the sky
So many a midnight, — would thy glow
For the last time beheld my woe !
Ever thine eye, most mournful friend.
O'er books and papers saw me bend;
But would that I, on mountains grand,
Amid thy blessed light could stand.
With spirits through mountain<avems hover,
Float in thy twilight the meadows over,
And, freed from the fumes of lore that swathe me,
To health in thy dewy fountains bathe me !
Ah, me I this dungeon still I see.
This drear, accursed masonry,
Where even the welcome daylight strait»'
But duskly through the painted panes.
Hemmed in by many a toppling heap
Of books worm-eaten, gray with dust.
Which to the vaulted ceiling creop.
ih,Googlc
Against the Einoky paper thnist, —
With glasses, boxes, round roe stacked,
And instruments together burled.
Ancestral lumber, stuffed and packed —
Such is my world : and what a world I
And do I ask, wherefore my heart
Falters, oppressed with unknown oeeds i
Why some inexplicable smart
All movement of my life impedes?
Alaa ! in living Nature's stead,
Where God His human creature set.
In smoke and mould the fleshless dead
And bones of beasts surround me yet I
Fly! Up, and seek the broad, free landl ■!
And this one Book of Mystery
From Nostradamus' very hand,"
Is 't not sufficient company ?
When I the starry courses know,
And Nature's wise instruction seek,
With light of power my soul shall glow.
As when to spirits spirits speak.
*T is vain, this empty brooding here,
Though guessed the holy symbols be :
Ye, Spirits, tome — ye hover near —
Oh, if you hear me, answer mel
/Zf ofieni iht Book, and ptrciivts the sign of tie Matrocot
Ha! what a sudden rapture leaps from this
I view, through all my senses swiftly flowing!
I feel a youthful, holy, vital bliss
In every vein and fibre newly glowing.
Was it a God, who traced this sign.
With calm across my tumult stealing
ih,Googlc
My troubled heart to joy ujiseaJii^,
With impulse, mystic and divine.
The powers of Nature here, around my path, revealing?
Am 1 a Godf — so clear mine eyes!
In these pure features 1 beliold
Creative Nature to my soul unfold.
What says the sage, now first 1 rect^iie :
" The spiril-world no closures fasten ;
Thy sense is shut, thy heart is dead :
Disciple, up I untiring, hasten
To bathe thy breast in moming-red ! "
{He (enUrn flairs the tign.)
How each the Whole its substance gives,
Each in the other works and lives !
like heavenly forces rising and descending,
Their golden ums reciprocally lending,
With wings that winnow blessing
From Heaven through Earth I see them pressin|^
Filling the All with harmony unceasing !
How grand a show ! but, ah ! a show alone.
Thee, boundless Nature, how make thee my own?
Where you, ye breasts? Founts of all Being, shining,
Whereon hang Heaven's and Earth's desire,
Whereto our withered hearts aspire, —
Ye flow, ye feed : and am I vainly pining ?
(He turns the leaves impatiently, and fertthvs thi sign if th*
Eartk'Spirit.Y*
How otherwise upon me works this sign!
Thou, Spirit of the Earti«, art nearer:
Even now my powers are loftier, clearer;
I glow, as drunk with new-made wine :
New strength and heart to meet the world incite me,
The woe of earth, the bliss of earth, invite me.
ih,Googlc
And though the shock of storms may smite me,
No crash of shipwreck shall have power to fright me 1
Clouds gather over me —
The moon conceals her light —
The lamp 's extinguished 1 —
Mists rise, — red, angry rays are darting
Around my head i — There falls
A horror from the vaulted roof.
And seizes me t
1 feel thy presence, Spirit I invoke!
Reveal thyself!
Ha 1 in my heart what rending stroke !
With new impulsion
My senses heave in this convulsion !
1 feel thee draw my heart, absorb, exhaust me :
Thou must! thou musti and though my life it cost met
\Ht lehei Ikt toeiy and mysterimaly preneunct! fkt lipi ef tht
Spirit. A ruddy ßame flashei: tht Spirit apptars in Iht
FAUST (loiM atirrted htad\.
Terrible to see 1
Me hast thou long with might attracted,
Long from my sphere thy food exacted.
And now —
FAUST.
Woe ! I endure not thee t
To view me is thine aspiration.
My vcnce to hear, my countenance to see ;
ih,Googlc
22 FAUST.
Thy powerful yearning moveth me.
Here am I ! — what mean perturbation
Thee, superhuman, shakes? Thy soul's high calliDg^
where ?
Where is the breast, which from itself a world did bear,
And shaped and cherished — which with joy expanded,
To be our peer, with us, the Spirits, banded ?
Where art thou, Faust, whose voice has pierced to me.
Who towards me pressed with all thine energy?
He art thou, who, my presence breathing, seeing,
Trembles through all the depths of being,
A writhing worm, a terror-stricken form?
FAUST.
Thee, fonn of flame, shall I then fear?
Yes, I am Faust ; 1 am thy peer 1
SPIRIT.
In the tides of Life, in Action's stom,»
A fluctuant wave,
A shuttle free.
Birth and the Grave,
An eternal sea,
A weaving, flowing
Life, all-glowing.
Thus at Time's humming loom 't is my hand premres
The garment of Ufe which the Deity wears [
FAUST.
Thou, who around the wide world wendest,
Thou busy Spirit, how near I feel to thee !
SPIRIT.
Thou 'rt like the Spirit which ihou comprehcndest,
Not me !
[Düaffiari.)
ih,Googlc
SCENE I, 3
FAUST [overmkiltHttti.
Not thee I
Whom thi.n?
I, inuge o( the Godhead !
Not even like thee !
[A iiinci.)
0 Death ! — I know it — 't is my Famulus ! ■•
My fairest luck finds no fruition :
In all the fulness of my vision
The soulless sneak disturbs me thus !
[Enter WaGN eR, iit dnsiing-ginaii and nigkl-atf, a lamp i
Ait hand. FaUST lurtis impatiimly.)
WAGNER."
I'ardon, I heard your declamation ;
'T was sure an old Greek tragedy you read?
Id such an art 1 crave some preparation,
Since now it stands one in good stead.
1 've often heard it said, a preacher
Might lean), with a comedian for a teacher.
FAUST.
Yes, when the priest comedian is by nature,
As haply nov and then the case may be.
WAGNER.
Ah, when one studies thus, a prisoned creature,
That scarce the world on holidays can see, —
Scarce through a glass, by rare occasion.
How shall one lead it by persuasion 7
FAUST.
You II ne'er attain it, save you know the feeling,
Save from the soul it rises clear,
Serene in primal strength, compelling
ih,Googlc
24
FAUST.
The hearts and minds of all who hear.
You sit forever gluing, patching ;
You cook the scraps from others' fare ;
And from your heap of ashes hatching
A starveling flame, ye blow it bare !
Take children's, monkeys' gaze admiring,
If such your taste, and be content ;
But ne'er from heart to heart you 11 speak inspiring,
Save your own heart is eloquent J
WAGNER.
Yet through delivery orators succeed ;
I feel that I am far behind, indend.
FAUST-
Seek thou the honest recompense !
Beware, a tinkling fool Co be 1
With little art, clear wit and sense
Suggest their own delivery ;
And if thou 'rt moved to speak in earnest,
What need, that after words thou yearnest?
Yes, your discourses, with their glittering show.
Where ye for men twist shredded thought like paper,""
Are unrefreshing as the winds that blow
The rustling leaves through chill autumnal vapor I
WAGNER.
Ah, God ! but Art is long,''
And Life, alas ! is fleeting.
And oft, with leal my critic-duties meeting.
In head and breast tliere 's something wrong.
fiow hard it is to compass the assistance
Whereby one rises to the source !
And, haply, ere one travels half the course
Must the poor devil quit existence.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Is parchment, then, the holy fount before thee,
A draught wherefrom thy tliirst forever slakes?
No true refreshment can restore thee.
Save what from thine own soul spontaneous breaks.
WAGNER.
Pardon! a great delight is granted
When, in the spirit of the ages planted.
We mark how, ere our time, a sage has thought.
And then, how far his work, and grandly, we have
broughL
FAUST.
O yes, up to the stars at last !
Listen, my friend : the ages that are past
Are now a book with seven seals protected :
What you the Spirit of the Ages call
Is nothing but the spirit of you all.
Wherein the Ages are reflected.
So, oftentimes, you miserably mar it !
At the first glance who sees it runs away.
An offal-barrel and a lumber-garret.
Or, at the best, a Punch-anti-Judy play,"
With maxims most pragmatical and hitting,
As in the mouths of puppets are befitting!
WAGNER.
But then, the world — the human heart and brainl
Of these one covets some slight apprehension.
FAUST.
Yes, of the kind which men attain !
Who dares the child's true name in public mention ?
The few, who thereof something really learned,
ih,Googlc
z6 FAUST.
Unwisely frank, with heans that spumed concealing,
And to the mob laid bare each thought and feeling
Have evermore been crucified and burned.'^
I pray you, Friend, 't is now the dead of night ;
Our converse here must be suspended.
WAGKER.
I would have shared your watches with delight,
That so our learned talk might be extended,*
To-morrow, though, I '11 ask, in Easter leisure.
This 37id the other question, at your pleasure.
Most zealously I seek for erudition :
Much do 1 know — but to know all is my ambition.
\Lvii
FAUST (setui).
That brain, alone, not loses hope, whose choice is
To stick in shallow trash forevermore, —
Which digs with eager hand for buried ore.
And, when it finds an angle-worm, rejoices !
Dare such a human voice disturb the flow.
Around me here, of spirit-presence fullest?
And yet, this once my thanks I owe
To thee, of all earth's sons the poorest, dullest !
For thou hast torn me from that desperate state
Which threatened soon to overwhelm my senses;
The apparition was so giant-great.
It dwarfed and withered all my soul's pretences !
I, im.iEe of the Godhead, who began —
Deeming Eternal Truth secure in nearness —
To sun myself in heavenly lij^hi and clearness.
And laid aside the earthly man; —
I, more than Cherul>, whose free force had planned
To flow through Nature's veins in glad pulsation.
ih,Googlc
To reach beyond, enjoying in crealioa
The life of Gods, behold my expiation!
A thunder-word hath swept me from my stand.''
With thee I dare not venture to compare me.
Though 1 possessed the power to draw thee near m^
The power to keep thee was denied my hand.
When that ecstatic moment held me,
I fell myself so smallj.so great;
But thou hast ruthlessly repelled me
Back upon Man's uncertain fate.
What shall I shun ? Whose guidance lx>nx>W ?
Shall I accept that stress and strife?
Ah ! every deed of ours, no less than every sorrow,
Impedes the onward march of life.
Some alien substance more and more is cleaving
To all the mind conceives of grand and fair ;
When this world's Good is won by our achieving,
The Better, then, is named a cheat and snare.
The fine emotions, whence our lives we mould,
Lie in the earthly tumult dumb and cold.
U hopeful Fancy once, in daring flight.
Her longings to the Infinite expanded.
Yet now a narrow space contents her quite.
Since Time's wild wave so many a fortune stranded.
Care at the bottom of the heart is lurking:
Her secret pangs in silence working.
She, restless, rocks herself, disturbing joy and rest ;
In newer masks her face is ever drest,
By turns as house and land, as wife and child, pre-
sented,—
As water, tire, as poison, steel :
We dread the blows we never feel,
Aiid what we never lose is yet by us lamented I
ih,Googlc
,8 FAUST.
\ um not like the Gods ! That truth is felt too deep :
The worm am I, that in the dust doth creep, —
That, while in dust it lives and seeks its bread.
Is crushed and buried by the wanderer's tread.
Is not this dust, these walls within them hold,
The hundred shelves, which cramp and chain m^
The frippery, the trinkets thousand-fold,
That In this mothy den restrain me?
Here shall I tind the help I need?
Shall here a thousand volumes teach me only
That men, self- tortured, everywhere must bleed, —
And here and there one happy man sits lonely?*"
What mean'st thou by that grin, thou hollow skull,
Save that thy brain, like mine, a cloudy mirror.
Sought once the shining day, and then, in twilight dull,"
Thirsting for Truth, went wretchedly to Error?
Ye instruments, forsooth, but jeer at me
With wheel and cog, and shapes uncouth of wonder;
I found (he portal, you the keys should be;
Your wards are deftly wrought, but drive no boltr
asunder ]
Mysterious even in open day.
Nature ret^ns her veil, despite our clamors:
That which she doth not willingly display
Cannot be wrenched from her with levers, screws, and
hammers.
Ye ancient tools, whose use I never knew.
Here, since my father used ye, still ye moulder :
Tiiou, ancient scroll, hast worn thy smoky hue
Since at this desk the dim lamp wont to smoulder.
'T were better far, had I my little idly spent,
Than now to sweat beneath its burden, 1 confess it!
What from your fathers" heritage is lent,
Eain it anew, to really possess it ! "
ih,Googlc
Wliat serves not, is a sore impediineiit :
The Moment's need creates the tbing to serve and bless
itt
Yet, wherefore tnrna my ga« to yonder point so li^tly ?
Is yonder flask a magnet for mine eyes ?
Whence, all around me, glows the air so brightly.
As when in woods at night the mellow moonbeam lies?
I hail thee, wondrous, rarest vial !
I take thee down devoutly, for the trial:
Man's art and wit I venerate in thee.
Thou summary of gentle slumber-juices.
Essence of deadly finest powers :±ad uses.
Unto thy master show thy favor free !
t see thee, and the stings of pain diminish;
I grasp tbee, and my struggles slowly finish :
My spirit's flood-tide ebbeth more and more.
Out on the open ocean speeds my dreaming ;
The glassy flood before my feet is gleaming,
A new day beckons to a newer shore !
A fiery chariot, borne on buoyant pinions.
Sweeps near me now 1 I soon shall ready be
To pierce the ether's high, unknown dominions.
To reach new spheres of pure activity 1
This godlike rapture, this supreme existence.
Do I, but now a worm, deserve to track?
Yes, resolute to reach some brighter distance.
On Earth's fair sun I turn my back ! >'
Yes, let me dare those gates to flin^ asunder,
Which every man would fain go slinking by !
"T is time, through deeds this word of truth to thunder:
That with the height of Cods Man's dignity may viel
Nor from that gloomy gulf to shrink affrighted.
ih,Googlc
30 FAUST.
Where Fancy doth herself to self-bom pangs compel, —
To stni^ie toward that pass benighted.
Around whose narrow mouth flame all the fires <^
Hell,—
To take this step with cheerful resolution.
Though Nothingness ehould be the certain, swift con-
clusion !
And now come down, thou cup of cr)-stal clearest !
Fresh from thine ancient cover thou appearest,
So many years foigotten to my thought 1
Thou shon'st at old ancestral banquets cheery,
The solemn guests thou madest merry.
When one thy wassail to the other brought.
The rich and skilful figures o'er thee wrought.
The drinker's duty, rhyme-wise to explain them,
Or in one breath below the mark to drain ihem,
From many a night of youth my memory caught.
Now to a neighbor shall I pass thee never.
Nor on thy curious art to test my wit endeavor:
Here is a juice whence sleep is swiftly born.
It fills with browner flood thy crystal hollow ;
I chose, prepared it: thus 1 follow, —
With all my soul the final drink I swallow,
A solemn festal cup, a greeting to the mom I
\Hi stti thi gtbtct te k<t matuh.
(Chimt ofbflls undtkeral song.]
CHOKUS OF ANGELS."
Christ is arisen !
Joy to the Mortal One,
Whom the unmerited,
Clinging, inherited
Needs did imprisou.
ih,Googlc
What hollow humming, what a sharp, clear nlroke,
Drives from my lip the goblet's, at thfir meeting ?
Announce the booming bells already woke
The first glad hour of Easter's festal greeting ?
Ye choirs, have ye begun the sweet, consoling chant,
Which, through the night of Death, the angels raini»-
trant
Sang, God's new Covenant repeating ?
5 OF WOMEN.
With spices and precious
Balm, we arrayed him ;
Faithful and gracious.
We tenderly laid him:
linen to bind him
Cleanlily wound we:
Ah 1 when we would lind him,
Christ no more found we .'
CHORUS OF ANGELS.
Christ is ascended 1
Bliss hath invested him, —
Woes that molested him,
Trials that tested him.
Gloriously ended !
FAUST.
Why, here in dust, entice me with your speli.
Ye gentle, powerful sounds of Heaven ?
Peal rather there, where tender natures dwell.
Your messages I hear, but faith has not been g
The dearest child of Faith is Miracle.
I venture not to soar to yonder regions
Whence the glad tidings hither float ;
ih,Googlc
And yet, from childhood up tuniliar with the note,
To Life it now renews the old allegiance.
Once Heavenly Love sent down a burning kiss
Upon my brow, in Sabbath silence holy;
And, filled with mystic presage, chimed the church-bell
slowly.
And prayer dissolved me in a fervent bliss.^
A sweet, uncomprehended yearning
Drove forth my feet through woods and meadows free,
And while a thousand tears were burning,
I felt a world arise for me.
These chants, to youth and all its sports appealing,
Proclaimed the Spring's rejoicing holiday;
And Memory holds me now, with childish feeling.
Back from the last, the solemn way.
Sound on, ye hymns of Heaven, so sweet and n.ilil !
My tears gush forth : the Earth takes back her child !
CHORUS OF DISCIPLES.
Has He, victoriously.
Burst from the vaulted
Grave, and all-g!oriously
Now sits exalted f
Is He, in glow of birth.
Rapture creative near ? »
Ah! to the woe of earth
Still are we native here.
We, his aspiring
Followers, Him we miss ;
Weeping, desiring.
Master, Thy bliss!
CHORUS OF ANGELS.
Christ is arisen,
Out of Corruption's womb :
ih,Googlc
SCEfi^E I.
Borat ye the prison.
Break from your gloom t
Praising and pleading him,
Lovingly needing him.
Brotherly feeding him.
Preaching and speeding him.
Blessing, succeeding Him,
Thus is the Master near, —
Thus is He here !
ih,Googlc
BEFORE THE CITY-CATE.js
(Pedeitriatii of all iinds tome forth.)
SEVERAL APPRENTICES.
^\ 7 H Y do you go that way ?
OTHERS.
We 're for the Hunters'-lodge, to-day.
THE FIRST.
We II saunter to the Mill, in yonder hoUow.
AN APPRENTICE.
Go to the River Tavern, I should say.
SECOND
But then, it 's not a pleasant way.
THE OTHERS.
And what will _yi>i(f
A THIRD.
As goes the crowd, I follow.
A FOURTH. r
Come «p to Burgdorf ? There you II find good cheer,
The finest lasses and the best of beer,
And jolty rows and squabbles, trust me \
ih,Googlc
SCENE II.
A FIFTH.
You swaggering fcUow, is your hide
A third time itching to be tried ?
1 won't go there, your jolly rows disgust me I
SERVANT-GIKL.
No, — not I'U turn and go to town again.
ANOTHEK.
We II surely fiitd him by those poplars yonder.
That 's no great luck for me, 't is plain.
Vou II have him, when and where you wander :
His partner in the dance you '11 be, —
But what is all your fun to me ?
THE OTHER.
He 's surely not alone to-day :
He 'II be with Ctirly-bead, 1 heard him say.
Deuce ! how they step, the buxom wenches !
Come, Brother I we must see them lo the benches.
A strong, old beer, a pipe that stings and bites,
A girl in Sunday clothes, — these three are my dF:li^ht&
citizen's daughter.
Just see those handsome fellows, there !
It's really shameful, I declare; —
To loUow servant-giris, when they
Might have the most genteel society to-day !
J STUDENT {lo Ike Firsi).
Not quite so fast ! Two others come behind, -
Those, dressed so prettily aud neatly.
ih,Googlc
My neighbor 's one of them, I find,
A girl that takes my heart, completery.
They go their way with looks demure.
But they'll accept us, after all, I 'm sure.
THE FIRST.
No, Brother ! not for me their fonnal ways.
Quick ! lest our game escape us in the press :
The hand that wields the broom on Saturdays
Will best, on Sundays, fondle and caress.
CITIZEN.
He suits me not at all, our new-made Burgomaster I
Since he 's installed, his arrogance grows faster.
How has he helped the town, I say?
Things worsen, — what improvement names he?
Obedience, more than ever, claims he.
And more than ever we must pay !
BEGGAR {liHgl).
Good gentlemen and lovely ladles.
So red of cheek and fine of dress.
Behold, how needful here your aid is.
And see and lighten my distress !
Let me not vainly sing my ditty ;
He 's only glad who gives away ;
A holiday, that shows your pity.
Shall be for me a harvcat-day !
On Sundays, holidays, there 's naught I take delight in,
Uke gossiping of war, and war's array.
When dowii in Turkey, far away.
The foreign people are a-fighting.
One at the window sits, with glass and friends,
ih,Googlc
,4nd sees all sorts of ships go down the river glidiog :
And blesses then, as home he wends
At ni^t, our times of peace abiding.
THIRD CITIZEN.
Yes, Neighbor! that's my notion, too:
Why, let them break their heads, let loose their pas^ona,
And mix things madly through and through,
So, here, we keep our good old fashions !
OLD WOMAN (to lit Cilitfit's Daughlir\
Dear me, bow fine! So handsome, and so youngt
Who would n't lose his heart, that met you?
Don't be so proud I I 'U hold my tongue.
And what you 'd Uke I '11 undertake to get you.
CmZEN'S DAUGHTER.
Come, Agatha I I shun the witch's sight
Before folks, lest there be misgiving ;
'T is true, she showed me, on Saint Andrew's Night,*
My future sweetheart, just as he were living.
THE OTHER.
She showed me mine, in crystal clear,^
With several wild young blades, a soldier-lover:
I seek him everywhere, I pry and peer.
And yet, somehow, his face I can't discover.
SOLDIERS.
Castles, with lofty
Ramparts and toweis,
Maidens disdainful
In Beauty's array.
Both shall be ours I
Bold is the venture,
Splendid the pay I
ih,Googlc
Lads, let the trumpet»
For us be suing, —
Calling to pleasure,
Calling to ruin.
StcHmy our life is ;
Such is its boon !
Maidens and castles
Capitulate soon.
Bold is the venture,
Splendid the pay!
And the soldiers go marching
Marching away !
Faust and Wagner.
FAUST.
Released from ice are brook and river ^
By the quickening glance of the gracious Spring;
The colors of hope to the valley cling.
And weak old Winter himself must shiver.
Withdrawn to the mountains, a crownless king;
Whence, ever retreating, he sends again
Impotent showers of sleet that darkle
In belts across the green o' the plain.
But the suD will permit no white to sparkle ;
Everj'where form in development movcth :
He will brighten the world with ihe tints he lovetb,
And, lacking blossoms, blue, yellow, and red.
He takes these gaudy people instead.
Turn thee about, and from this height
Back on the town direct thy sight.
Out of the hollow, gloomy gale,
The motley throngs L'ome forth elate ■
E^ch will the joy of the simsliine hoard.
To honor the Day of the Risen Lord I
ih,Googlc
SCEATS //.
They feel, themselves, their
From the low, dark rooms, scarce habitable ;
From the bonds of Work, from Trade's restriction;
From the pressing weight of roof and gable ;
From the narrow, crushing streets and alleys ;
From the churches' solemn and reverend night.
All come forth to the cheerful light.
How lively, see ! the multitude sallies.
Scattering through gardens and lields remote.
While over the river, that broadly dallies.
Dances so many a festive boat;
'And overladen, nigh to sinking.
The last full wherry takes (he stream.
Yonder afar, from the hill-paths blinking.
Their clothes are colors that softly gleam.
I hear the noise of the village, even ;
Here is the People's proper Heaven ;
Here high and low contented see I
Here I am Man, — dare man to be !
WAGNER.
To stroll with you. Sir Doctor, flatters ;
T is honor, profit, unto me.
But 1, alone, would shun these shallow matterS;
Since all that 's coarse provokes my enmity.
This fiddling, shouting, ten-pin rolling
I hate, — these noises of the throng:
They rave, as Satan were their sports conlroUiDg,
And call it mirth, and call it song !
PEASANTS, UNDER THE LINDEN-TREE.
(.Da«« aHdSp„g.)
All for the dance the shepherd dressed,"
In ribbons, wreath, and gayest vest
Himself with care arraying :
ih,Googlc
Around the linden lass and lad
Already fooled it like mad :
Hurrah ! hurrah !
Hurrah — tarara-la !
The fiddle-bow was playing.
He broke the ranks, no whit afraid,
And with his elbow punched a maid.
Who stood, the dance surveying;
The buxom wench, she turned and said:
" Now, you 1 call a stupid-head ! "
Hunah ! hurrah !
Hurrah — tarara-la !
" Be decent while you 're staying ! "
Then round the circle went their flight,
They danced to left, they danced to right :
Their kirtles all were playing.
They first grew red, and then grew warm.
And rested, panting, arm in arm, —
Hurrah I hurrah t
Hurrah — tarara-la I
And hips and elbows slrajdng.
Now, don't be so familiar here 1
How many a one has fooled his dear.
Waylaying and betraying!
And yet, he coaxed her soon aside,
And round the linden sounded wide:
Hurrah ! hurrah !
Hurrah — tarara-la !
And the fiddle-bow was playing.
OLD PEASANT.
Sir Doctor, it is good of you,"
That tlius you condescend, to-day,
ih,Googlc
SCENE II.
Among this crowd of merry folk,
A highly- learned man, to stray.
Th«n also take the finest can,
We fill with fresh wine, for your sake:
I offer it, and humbly wish
That not alone your thirst it slake, —
That, as the drops below its brink,
So many days of life you drink !
FAUST.
I take the cup you kindly reach,
With thanlcs and health to all and each.
( Tht PivpU gather in a circle aiaiil Aim.)
OLD PEASANT.
In truth, t is well and fitly timed,
That now our day of joy you share,
Who heretofore, in evil days.
Gave us so much of helping care.
Still many a man stands living here,
Saved by your father^s skilful hand.
That snatched him from the fever's rage
And stayed the plague in all the land.
Then also you, though but a youth,"
Went Into every house of pain :
Many the corpses carried forth.
But you in health came out again.
No test or trial you evaded :
A Helping God the helper aided.
Health to the man, so skilled and tried,
That for our help he long may bide 1
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
To Him above bow down, my friend»,
Who teaches help, and succor sends !
(He gees on with Wagner.)
WAGNER.
With what a feeling, thou great man, must thou
Receive the people's honest veneration!
How lucky he, whose gifts his station
With such advantages endow !
Thou 'rt shown to all the younger generation :
Each asks, and presses near to gaze ;
The fiddle stops, the dance delays.
Thou goest, they stand in rows to see.
And all the caps are lifted high ;
A little more, and they would bend the knee
As if the Holy Host came by.
FAUST.
A few more steps ascend, as far as yonder stone! —
Here from our wandering will we rest contented.
Here, lost in thought, I 've lingered oft alone,
When foolish fasts and prayers my life tormented.
Here, rich in hope and firm in faith.
With tears, wrung hands and sighs, 1 've striven.
The end of that far-spreading death
Entreating from the Lord of Heaven !
Now like contempt the crowd's applauses seem :
Couldst thou but read, within mine inmost spirit.
How littie now I deem
That sire or son such praises merit!
My father's was a sombre, brooding brain,
Which through the holy spheres of Nature ^oped and
wandered.
ih,Googlc
SCENE II.
And hoaestly, in his own fashion, pondered
With labor whimsical, and pain:
Who, in his dusky vork-shop bending,
With proved adepts in company.
Made, from his recipes unending.
Opposing substances agree.
There was a Uon red, a wooer daring,"
Within the Lily's tepid bath espoused,
And both, tormented then by tiame unsparing.
By turns in either bridal chamber housed.
If then appeared, with colors splendid,
The young Queen in her crystal shell.
This was the medicine — ihe patients' woes soon e
And none demanded : who got well ?
Thus we, our hellish boluses compounding.
Among these vales and hills surrounding.
Worse than the pestilence, have passed.
Thousands were done to death from poison of my gi
And I must hear, by all the living.
The shameless murderers praised at last !
WAGNER.
Why, therefore, yield to such depression?
A good man iloes his honest share
In exercising, with the strictest care.
The art bequeathed to his possession!
Dost thou Üiy father honor, as a youth ?
Then may his teaching cheerfully impel thee :
Dost thou, as man, increase the stores of truth ?
Then may thine own son afterwards excel thee.
O happy he, who still renews
The hope, from Error's deeps to rise forever I
That which one does not know, one needs to us
ih,Googlc
44
FAUST.
And what one knows, one uses never.
But let us not, by such despondence, so
The fortune of this hour embitter !
Mark how, beneath the evening sunlight's glow,
The green-embosomed houses glitter !
The glow retreats, done is the day of toil ,
It yonder hastes, new fields of life exploring;
Ah, that no wing can lift me from the soil.
Upon its track to follow, follow soaring 1
Then would 1 see eternal Evening gild
The silent world beneath me glowing.
On fire each mountain-peak, with peace each valley
filled.
The silver brook to golden rivers flowing.
The mountain-chain, with all its gorges deep.
Would then no more impede my godlike motion ;
And now before mine eyes expands the ocean
With all its bays, in shining sleep I
Yet, finally, the weary god is sinking ;
The new-born impulse fires my mind, —
I ha.sten on, his beams eternal drinking.
The Day before me and the Night behind.
Above me heaven unfurled, the floor of waves beneath
A glorious dream ! though now the glories fade.
Alas ! the wings thai lift the mind no aid
Of wings to lift the body can bequeath me.
Yet in each soul is born the pleasure
Of yearning onward, upward and away.
When o'er our heads, lost in the vaulted aiure,
The lark sends down his flickering lay, —
When over crags and piny highlands
The poising eagle slowly soars.
And over plains and lakes and islands
The crane sails by to other shores.
ih,Googlc
WAGNER.
I 've had, myself, at times, some odd caprices,
But never yet such impulse felt, as this is.
One soon fatigues, on woods and fields to look,
Nor would I beg the bird his wing to spare us ;
How otherwise the mental raptures bear us
From page to page, from boolt to book !
Then winter nights take loveliness untold.
As warmer life in every limb had crowned you ;
And when your hands unroll some parchment rare and
old,
All Heaven descentls, and opens bright around yon ! <
FAUST.
One impulse art thou conscious of, at best;
O, never seek to know the other I
Two souls, alas '. reside within my breast.
And each withdraws from, and repels, its brother.
One with tenacious organs holds in love
And clinging lust the world in its embraces ;
The other strongly sweeps, this dust above,
Into the high ancestral spaces-
If there be airy spirits near,'}
'Twixt Heaven and Earth on potent errands fleeing,
Let them drop down the golden atmosphere,
And bear me forth to new and varied being!
Yea, if a magic mantle once were mine.
To waft me o'er the world at pleasure,
I would not for the costliest stores of treasure —
Not for a monarch's robe — the gift resign,
WAGNER.
Invoke not thus the well-known throng.
Which through the firmament diffused is faring,
And danger thousand-fold, our race to wrong.
ih,Googlc
46 FAUST.
In every quarter is preparing.
Swift from the North the spirit-fangs so sharp*«
Sweep doivn, and with their barbed points assail vou;
Then from the East they come, to drj' and wr.rp
Your lungs, till breath and being fail j-ou :
If from the Desert sendeth them the South,
With fire on fire your throbbing forehead crowning,
The West leads on a host, to cure the drouth
Only when meadow, field, and you are drowning.
They gladly hearken, prompt for injury, —
Gladly obey, because they gladly cheat us ;
From Heaven they represent themselves to be,
And lisp like angels, when with lies they meet us
But, let us go ! 'T is gray and dusky all :
The air is cold, the vapors fall
At night, one leams his house to prize : —
Why stand you thus, with such astonished eyes?
What, in the twilight, can your mind so trouble P
FAUST.
Seest thou the black dog coursing there, through com
and stubble ?*>
WAGNER.
Long since : yet deemed him not important in the leasL
FAUST.
Inspect him close : for what tak'st thou the beast ?
WAGNER.
Why, for a poodle who has lost his master.
And scents about, his track to find.
FAUST.
Seest thou the spiral circles, narrowing faster.
Which he, approaching, round us seems to wind?
ih,Googlc
A streaming trail of fire, If I see rightJy,
Follows his path of mystery.
It may be that your eyes deceive you slightly;
Naught but a plain black poodle do I see.
It seems to me that with enchanted cunning
He snares our feet, some future chain to bind
WAGNER.
I see him timidly, tn doubt, around us nmning.
Since, in his master's stead, two strangers doth he find
The circle narrows : he is near !
WAGNER.
A dog thou seest, and not a phantom, here !
Behold him stop — upon his belly crawl —
His tail set waging : canine habits, all !
FAUST,
Come, follow us ! Come here, at least !
WAGNER.
'T is the absurdest, drollest beast.
Stand still, and you will see him wait ;
Address him, and he gambols straight ;
If something 's lost, he '11 quickly bring it, ■ —
Your cane, if in the stream you fling iL
No doubt you 're right : no trace of mind, I own,
Is in the beast -. I see but drill« alone.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
WAGNER.
The dog, when he 's well educated,
Is by tlie wisest tolerated.
Yes, he deserves your favor thoroughly, —
The clever scholar of the students, he !
( Tluy fats in the eity-gaie. )
ih,Googlc
SCEWE m.
THE STUDY.
FAUST.
[Enleriag, with tie poodle)
BEHIND me, field and meadow sleeping,
1 leave in deep, prophetic night,
Within whose dread and holy keeping
The better soul awakes to light ,
The wild desires no longer win us.
The deeds of passion cease to chaia;
The love of Man revives within us.
The love of God revives again.
Be still, thou poodle ! make not such racket and riot t
Why at the threshold wilt snuffing be ?
Behind the stove repose thee in quiet!
My softest cushion I give to thee.
As thou, up yonder, with running and leaping
Amused us hast, on the mountain's crest,
So now 1 take thee into my keeping,
A welcome, but also a silent, guest
Ah, when, within our narrow chamber
The lamp with friendly lustre glows.
Flames in the breast each faded ember.
And in the heart, itself that knows.
Then Hope again lends sweet assistance,
And Reason then resumes her speech :
One yearns, the rivers of existence,
The very fount« of Ufe, to reach.
vol- 1. 3 D
ih,Googlc
so f'AUST.
Saart not, poodle I To the sound that rises,
The sacred tones that my soul embrace,
This bestial noise is out of place.
We are used to see, that Una despises
What he never comprehends.
And the Good and the Beautiful \ilipends,
Finding them often hard to measure :
Will the dog, like man, snarl his displeasure?
But ah ! 1 feet, thongh will thereto be stronger.
Contentment flows from out my breast no longer.
Why roust the stream so soon lun dry and fail us,
And burning thirst again assail us?
Therein I *ve borne so much probation !
And yet, this want may be supplied us ;
We call the Sopematursl to guide us ;
We pine and thirst for Revelation,
Which nowhere worthier is, more nobly sent.
Than here, in our New Testament
I feel impelled, its meaning to determine, —
With honest purpose, once lor all.
The hallowed Original
To change to my beloved German.
\He eptnt a veliane, and cemmtticii.^
"Tis written: "In the Beginning was the tVtmi."'''
Here am I balked : who, now, can help afford ?
The IVardf — impossible so high to rate it ;
And otherwise must I translate it.
If by the Spirit I am truly taught.
Then thus : " In the Beginning was the Thought-'
This first line let me weigh completely,
l,est my impatient pen proceed loo fleetly.
Is it the Thtmght which works, creates, indeed ?
" In the Beginning was the Pawtr" I read.
ih,Googlc
SCEJi/E HI.
Tet, as I write, a warning is m^ested,
That I the sense may not have fairly tested.
The Spirit aids roc : row I see the light 1
" In the Beginning was the Ad," I write.
If I must share my chamber with the^
Poodle, stop that howling, prithee J
Cease to bark and bellow .'
Such a noisy, disturbing fellov
1 '11 DO longer suffer near me.
One of us, dost hear me 1
Mast leave, I fear me.
No longer guest-right I besknr ;
The door is open, art free to go.
But what do 1 see in the creature?
Is that in the course of nature ?
Is 't actual fact ? or Fancy's shows ?
How long and broad my poodle gvowsl
He rises mightily :
A canine form that cannot t>e 1
What a spectre I 've harbored thns!
He resembles a hippopotamus,
With fiery eyes, teeth terrible to see:
O, now am I sure of thee !
For all of thy half-hellish brood
The Key of Solomon is good.«
SPISITS ((» t^ cfrridm).
Some one, within, is caughti
Sixif without, follow him notl
Like the fox in a snare.
Quakes the old helV-lynx there.
Take heed — kwk about !
Back and forth hover.
Under and over.
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FAUST.
And he '11 work himself oat
If your aid can avail him.
Let it not fail him ;
For he, without measure,
Has wrought for our pleasure.
FAUST.
First, to encounter the beast.
The Words of the Four be addressed .■ *•
Salamander, shine glorious !
Wave, Undine, as bidden !
Sylph, be thou hidden !
Gnome, be laborious \
Who knows not their sense
(These elements), —
Their properties
And power not sees, —
No mastery he inherit«
Over the Spirits,
Vanish in flaming ether.
Salamander !
Flow foamingly together,
Undine !
Shine in meteor-sheen,
Sylph !
Bring help to hearth and shelf.
Incubus \ Incubus I
Step forward, and finish thus '
Of the Four, no feature
Lurks in the creature.
Quiet he lies, and gtins disdain :
Not yet, it seems, have I given him p^n.
ih,Googlc
SCENE III. 53
Now, to undisguise thee,"
Hear me exorcise theet
Art thou, my gay one.
Hell's fugitive stray-one ?
The sign witness now.
Before which they bow,
The cohorts of Hell !
With hair all bristling, it begins to swelL
Base Being, hearest thou ?
Knowest and fearest thou
The One, unoriginale,*"
Named inexpressibly,
Through all Heaven impermeatev
Pierced irredressibly !
Behind the stove still banned.
See it, an elephant, expand !
It fills the space entire,
Mist-like melting, ever foster.
T is enough : ascend no higher, —
Lay thyself at the feet of the Master I
Thou seest, not vain the threats I bring thee:
With holy fire 1 11 scorch and sting thee !
Wait not to know
The threefold dazzling glow !
Wait not to know
The strongest art within my hands!
MEPHISTOPHELES ^
\tokili iht vap^ h dUsifaling, aepi forth frmn behind thi itevt.
in thi aatumt ef a Travilling Scholar).
Why such a noise? What are my lord's commands*
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
This was the poodle's reaJ core,
A travelling scholar, then? The casus is divertinj
MEPHISTOPH ELES.
The teamed gentleman I bow before :
You 've made me roundly sweat, that 's certain t
HBPHISTOFKELES.
A question small, it seems,
For one whose mind the Word so much despises ;
Who, scorning all external gleams.
The depths of being only prizes.
FAUST,
With all you gentlemen, the name 's a test,
Whereby the nature usually is expressed.
Cleady the latter it implies
In names like Beelzebub, Destroyer, Father of Ues.s*
Who art thou, then ?
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Part of that Power, not understood,
Which always wiUs the Bad, and always works the Good.
FAUST.
What hidden sense in ihis enigma lies ?
MEPHISTOPKELES.
I am the Spirit that Denies I"
And justly so : for all things, from the Void
Called forth, deserve to be destroyed ;
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SCENE III. 55
T were better, then, were oanght created.
Thus, all which you as Sin have rated, —
Destruction,— aught with Evil blent, —
That is my proper element
FAUST.
Thou nam'st thyself a part, yet show'st complete to me ?
HEPHISTOP HELES.
The modest truth I speak to thee.
If Man, that microcosmic fool, can see
Himself a whole so frequently,
Part of the Part am I, once All, in primal Night, —
Part of the Darkness which brought forth the Light,
The haughty Light, which now disputes the space.
And claims of Mother Night her ancient place.
And yet, the struggle fails ; since Light, ho we'er it weaves.
Still, fettered, unto bodies cleaves :
It flows from bodies, bodies beautifies i
By bodies is its course impeded ;
And so, but little time is needed.
I hope, ere, as the bodies die, it dies !
FAUST.
I see the plan thou art pursuing:
Thou canst not compass general ruin,
And hast on smaller scale begun.
HEP HI STOP HELES.
And truly 't is not much, when all is done.
That which to Naught is in resistance set, —
The Something of this clumsy world, — has yet.
With all that 1 have undertaken.
Not been by me disturbed or shaken :
From earthquake, tempest, wave, volcano's brand.
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jö FAUST.
Back Into quiet settle sea and land !
And that damned stuff, the bestial, human brood,—
What use, in having that to play with ?
How many have 1 made away with I
And ever circulates a newer, fresher blood.
It makes me furious, such things beholding:
From Water, Earth, and Air unfolding,
A thousand germs break forth and grow,"
In dry, and wet, and warm, and chilly ;
And had I not the Flame reserved, why, really,
There 's nothing special of my own to show !
FAUST.
So, to the actively eternal
Creative force, in cold disdain
You now oppose the fist infernal,
Whose wicked clench is all in vain I
Some other labor seek thou rather,
Queer Son of Chaos, to begin I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Well, we 11 consider \ thou canst gather
My views, when next I venture in.
Mi^t I, perhaps, depart at present?
FAUST,
Why thou shouldst ask, I don't perceive.
Though our acquaintance is so recent,
For further visits thou hast leave.
The window 's here, the door is yonder ;
A chimney, also, you behold.
DELES.
I must confess that forth I may not wander, '
My oteps by one slight obstacle controlled, —
The wizard's-foot, that on your threshold made is
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The pentagram prohibits thee?
Why, tell me now, thou Son of Hades,
If that prevents, how Cäm'st thou in to me ?
Could such a spirit be so cheated ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Inspect the thing : the drawing 's not completed.
The outer angle, you may see.
Is open left — the lines don't lit it
Well, — Chance, this time, has fairly hit it !
And thus, thou'rt prisoner to me?
It seems the business has succeeded.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
The poodle naught remarked, as after thee he speeded;
But other aspects now obtain :
The Devil can't get out again.
FAUST.
Try, then, the open window-pane !
MEPHISTOPHELES.
for Devils and for spectres this is law:
Where they have entered in, there also they withdraw.
The first is free to us; we're governed by the second.
FAUST.
In Hell itself then, laws are reckoned?
That's well ! So might a compact be
Made with you gentlemen ~> and bindin;;, — «urely?
ih,Googlc
M EPKISTO PH ELES.
AU that is promised sliall delight thee purdj}
No skinflint bai^in shalt thon see.
But this is not of swift conclusiiHi;
We 'U talk about the matter soon.
And now, I do entreat this boon —
Leave to withdraw from my intrusion.
FAUST.
One moment more I ask thee to remaiiif
Some pleasant news, at least, to tell me.
HEFHISTOPHELES.
Release me, now ! I soon shall come again ;
Then thou, at will, roayst question and compel me.
FAUST.
1 have not snares around thee cast ;
Thyself bast led thyself into the meshes.
Who traps the Devil, hold him fast '.
Not soon a scctmd time he 'II catch a prey so predons.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
An 't please thee, also t 'm content to stay,
And serve thee in a social station;
But stipulating, that I may
With arts of mine afford thee recreatioo.
FAUST.
Thereto I willingly agree.
If the diversion pleasant be.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
My friend, thou It win, past all pretences,
More in this hour to soothe thy senses,
Than in the year's monotony.
ih,Googlc
SCENE III.
That which the dainty spirits sing thee,
The love]]' pictures they shall bring tliee.
Are more than magic's empty show.
Thy scent will be to bliss invited;
Thy palate then with taste delighted,
Thy nerves of touch ecstatic glow I
All unprepared, the charm I spin :
We're here together, so begin !
SPIRITS.^
Vanish, ye darkling
Arches above hiro I
Loveliest weather.
Bom of blue ether.
Break from the sky I
O that the darkling
Qouds had departed !
Starlight is sparkling
Tran quiller-hearted
Suns are on high.
Heaven's own children
In beauty bewildering
Waveringly bending,
Pass as they hover ;
Longing onending
Follows them over.
They, with their glowing
Garments, out-flowing.
Cover, in going.
Landscape and bower.
Where, in seclusion.
Lovers are plighted,
Lost in illusion.
Bower on bower 1
Tendrib unblighted 1
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FAUST.
Lo ! in a shower
Grapes that o'ercluster
Gush into must, or
OE foaming and flashing
Wine, that Is dashing
Gems, as it boundeth
Down the high places,
And spreading, surroundetb
With crystalline spaces,
In happy embraces,
Blossoming forelands.
Emerald shore-lands !
And the winged races
Drink, and fly onward —
Fly ever sunward
To the enticing
Islands, that flatter.
Dipping and rising
Light on the water !
Hark, the inspiring
Sound of their quiring!
See, the entrancing
Whirl of their dancing I
All in the air are
Freer and fairer.
Some of them scaling
Boldly the highlands,
Others are sailing.
Circling the islands ;
Others are flying ;
Life-ward all hieing, — ■
Ali for the distant
Star of existent
Rapture and Lovei
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SCENE III. 6 1
MEPHISTO PHELES.
He sleeps ! Enough, ye fays ! your airy number
Have sung him truly into slumber :
For this perfonnance I your debtor prove. —
Not yet art thou the man, to catch the Fiend and bold
With fairest images of dreams infold him.
Plunge him in seas of sweet untruth!
Yet, for the threshold's magic which controlled him.
The Devil needs a rat's quick tooth.
I use no lengthened invocation :
Here rustles one that soon will work my liberation.
The lord of rats and eke of mice,
Of flies and bed-bugs, frogs and lice,
Summons thee hither to the door-sill.
To gnaw it where, with just a morsel
Of oil, he paints the spot for thee ; —
There com'st thou, hopping on to me !
To work, at once ! The point which made me craven
Is forward, on the ledge, engraven.
Another bite makes free the door :
So, dream thy dreams, O Faust, until we meci unce
FAUST (awaking).
Am I again so foully cheated ?
Remains there naught of lofty spirit-sway,
But that a dream the Devil counterfeited,
And that a poodle ran away ?
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A
THE STUDY.
Faust. Mephistopkbles.
FAOST.
KNOCK ? Come in I Again my quiet broken ?
HEPH ISTOPHELES.
Tis I!
Come ii
MEPHISTO P KELBS.
Thrice must the words be spoken.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Thus thou pleasest me.
I hope we 'U suit each other well ;
For now, thy vapors lo dispel,
I come, a squire of high degree,''
In scarlet coat, with golden trimming,
A cloak in silken lustre swimming,
A tall cock's-feather in my hat,
A long, sharp sword for show or quarrel, —
And I advise thee, t>rief and flat,
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SCENE IV.
To don the self-same gay apparel.
That, from this den released, and free,
Life be at last revealed to thee t
FAUST.
This life of earth, whatever my attire,
Would pain me in its wonted fashion.^
Too old am I to play with passion ;
Too young, to be without desire.
What from the world have I to gain ?
Thou shah abstain — renounce — refrain I
Such is the everlasting song
That in the ears of all men rings, —
That unrelieved, our whole life long,
Each hour, in passing, hoarsely sings.
In very (error I at mom awake,
Upon the verge of bitter weeping.
To see the day of disappointment break.
To no one hope of mine — not one — its promise
ing: —
That even each joy's presentiment
With wilful cavil would diminish,
With grinning masks of life prevent
My mind its fairest work to finish !
Then, too, when night descends, how anxiously
Upon my couch of sleep I lay me :
There, also, comes no rest to me,«
But some wild dream is sent to fray me.
The God that in my breast is owned
Can deeply stir the inner sources ;
The God, above my powers enthroned.
He cannot change external forces.
So, by the burden of my days oppressed,
Death Is deüred, and Life a thing unblesti
ih,Googlc
UEPHISTOPHBLES.
And yet is never Death a wholly welcome guest
FAUST.
O fortunate, for whom, when victory glances,
The bloody laurels on the brow he bindeth 1
Whom, after rapid, maddening dances,
In clasping maiden-arms he findeth !
O would that I, before that spirit-power,
Ravished and rapt from life, had sunken I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
And yet, by some one, in that nightly hour,
A certain liquid was not drunken.
Eavesdroppmg, ha I thy pleasure seems to be.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Omniscient am 1 not ; yet much is known to me.
FAUST,
Though some familiar tone, retrieving
My thoughts from torment, led me on.
And sweet, clear echoes came, deceiving
A faith bequeathed from Childhood's dawn,
Yet now I curse whate'er entices
And snares the soul with visions vain;
With dazzling cheats and dear devices
Confines it in this cave of pain 1
Cursed be, at once, the high ambition
Wherewith the mind itself deludes !
Cursed be the glare of apparition
Thai on the finer sense intrudes 1
ih,Googlc
SCENE IV.
Cursed be the lying dream's impression
Of name, and fame, and laurelled brow 1
Cursed, all that flatters as possession,
As wife and child, as knave and plow !
Cursed Mammon be, when he with treasures
To restless action spurs our fate !
Cursed when, for soft, indulgent leisures,
He lays for us the pillows straight!
Cursed be the vine's transcendent nectar, —
The highest favor Love lets fall !
Cursed, also, Hope ! — cursed Faith, the spectre !
And cursed be Patience most of al] !
CHORUS OF SPIRITS [iMiisiUt)."
Woe! woe!
Thou hast it destroyed,
The beautiful world,
With powerful fist :
In ruin 't is hurled.
By the blow of a demigod shattered !
The scattered
Fragments into the Void we carry,
Deploring
The beauty perished beyond restoring.
Mightier
For the children of men,
Brightlier
Build it again.
In thine own bosom build it anew I
Bid the new career
Commence,
With clearer sense.
And the new songs of cheer
Be sung thereto !
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MEPHISTOFH ELES.
These are the small dependants
Who give me attendance.
Hear them, to deeds and passion
Counsel in shrewd oid-fashion I
Into the world of strife,
Out of this lonely life
That of senses and sap has betrayed thee,
They would persuade thee.
This nursing of the pain forego thee.
That, like a vulture, feeds upon thy breast !
The worst society thou find'st will show thee
Thou art a man among the rest
But 't Is not meant to thrust
Thee into the mob thou batest I
I am not one of the greatest.
Yet, wilt thou to me entrust
Thy steps through life, I '11 guide thee, —
Will willingly walk beside thee, —
Will serve thee at once and forever
With best endeavor.
And, if thou art satisfied,
Will as servant, slave, with thee abide.
FAUST.
And what shall be my counter-service therefor ?
MEPHISTOFH ELES.
The time is long : thou need'st not now insist
FAUST.
No — no! The Devil is an egotist.
And is not apt, without a why or wherefore,
" For God's sake," others to assbt
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SCENE /K 6)
Speak thy conditions plain and clear !
With such a servant danger comes, I fear.
HEFH ISTOPHELES.
Here, an unwearied slave, I 'U wear thy tethv»
And to thine every nod obedient be :
When There again we come t(^ther,
Then shalt thou do the same for me.
FAUST.
The There my scruples naught increases.
When thou hast dashed this world to pieces.
The other, then, its place may fill.
Here, on this earth, my pleasures have their sources}
YoD sun beholds my sorrows in his courses ;
And when from these my life itself divorces.
Let happen all that can or will !
1 1] heaf no more : 't is v^n to ponder
If there we cherish love or hate.
Or, in the spheres we dream of yonder,
A High and Ij}w out souls await*'
HEPHISTOPH ELES.
In this sense, even, canst thou venture.
Come, bind thyself by prompt indenture.
And thou mine arts with joy shalt see :
What no man ever saw, 1 11 give to thee.
FAUST.
Canst thou, poor Devil, give me whatsoever ?
When was a human soul, in its supreme endeavor.
E'er understood by such as thou?
Vet, hast thou food which never satiates, now, —
The restless, ruddy gold hast thou.
That runs, quicksUver-like, one's fingers through, —
ih,Googlc
68 FAUST.
A game whose winnings no man ever knew, —
A maid, that, even from my breast,
BeckoDs my neighbor with her wanton glances.
And Honor's godlike lest,
The meteor that a moment dances, —
Show me the fruits that, ere they 're gathered, rot,"
And trees that dally with new leafage clothe them I
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Such a demand alarms me not :
Such treasures have I, and can show them.
But still the time may reach us, good my friend,
When peace we crave and more luxurious diet.
When on an idler's bed I stretch myself io
There let, at once, my record end !
Canst thou with lying flattery rule me,
Until, self-pleased, myself I see, —
Canst thou with rich enjoyment fool me,
Let that day be the last for me I
The bet I offer.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Done!
And heartily !
When thus I hail the Moment fiying:
" Ah, still delay — thou art so fair ! " 'J
Then bind me in thy bonds undying,
My final niin then declare !
Then let the death-bell chime the token,
Then art thou from thy service free !
The clock may stop, the hand be broken,
Then lime be finished unto me!
ih,Googlc
SCENE IV.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
C4ii3ider well: my inemnry good is rated.
Thou hast a perfect right thereto.
M}' powers I have not rashly estimated :
A slave am I, whate'er I do —
If thine, or whose? 't is need'ess to debate It
mephistophei.es.
Then at the Doctors '-banquet I, to-day,*»
Will as a servant wait behind thee.
But one thing more I Beyond all risk to bind thee,
Give me a line or two, I pray.
Demand's! thou. Pedant, too, a document ?
Hast never known a man, nor proved his word's int*nt?
Is 't not enough, that what 1 speak today
Shall stand, with all my future days agreeing?
In all its tides sweeps not the world away,
And shall a promise bind my being?
Yet this delusion in our hearts we bear:
Who would himself therefrom deliver?
Blest he, whose bosom Truth makes pure and fair I
No sacrifice shall he repent of ever.
NathJess a parchment, writ and stamped with care,
A spectre is, which all to shun endeavor.
The word, alas ! dies even in the pen,
And wax and leather keep the lordship then.
What wilt from me, Base Spirit, say ? —
Brass, marble, parchment, paper, clay?
The terms with graver, quill, or chisel, stated?
1 freely leave the choice to thee.
ih,Googlc
70 FAUST.
HEPH ISTO PHELBS.
Why beat thyself, thus instantly,
Witli eloquence exaggerated?
Each leaf for such a pact is good ;
And to subscribe thy name thou 'It take a drop of blood
If thou therewith art fully satisfied,
So let us by the farce abide.
MEP HISTOP HELSS.
a juice of rarest quality.
Fear not that 1 this pact shall seek to sever
The promise that 1 make to thee
Is just the sum of my endeavor.
I have myself inflated all too high \
My proper place is thy estate :
The Mighty Spirit deigns me no reply,
And Nature shuts on me her gate.
The thread of Thought at last is broken,
And knowledge brings disgust unspoken.
Let us the sensual deeps explore.
To quench the fervors of glowing passion I
Let every marvel take form and fashion
Through the impervious veil it wore !
Plunge we in Time's tumultuous dance^
In the rush and roll of Circumstance 1
Then may delight and distress.
And worty and success.
Alternately follow, as best they can;
Restless activity proves the mani
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SCENE IV.
HEPHISTOPHELBS.
For you no bound, no term is set.
Whether you everywhere be trying.
Or snatch a rapid bliss in flying.
May it agree with you, what you get!
Only fall to, aud show no timid balking.
But thou hast heard, 't is not of joy we 're talking.
I take the wildering whirl, enjoyment's keenest pain,
Enamored hate, exhilamnt disdain.
My bosom, of its thirst for knowledge sated,
Shall not, henceforth, from any pang be wrested,
And all of life for all mankind created*'
Shall be within mine inmost being tested :
The highest, lowest forms my soul shall borrow.
Shall heap upon itself their bliss and sorrow.
And thus, my own sole self to all their selves expanded,
I too, at last, shall with them all be stranded!
Believe me, who for many a thousand year
The same tough meat have chewed and testatL
That from the cradle to the bier
No man the ancient leaven has digested!
Trust one of us, this Whole surpernal
Is made but for a Cod's delight!
Ht dwells in splendor single and eternal,
But us he thrusts in darkness, out of sight,
And^M< he dowers with Day and Night.
Na7, but 1 will!
HePHISTOPBELBS'
A good reply '
ih,Googlc
7 J FAUST.
One only fear still needs repeating :
The art is long, the time is fleeting.
Then let thyself be taught, say 1 !
Go, league thyself with a poet.
Give the rein to his imagination.
Then wear the crown, and show it.
Of the qualities of his creation, —
The courage of the lion's breed,
The wild stag's speed.
The Italian's fiery blood.
The North's finn fortitude I
Let him find for thee the secret tether
That binds the Noble and Mean together,
And teach thy pulses of youth and pleasure
To love by rule, and hate by measure !
I 'd like, myself, such a one to see :
Sir Microcosm his name should be.
What am I, then, if 'tis denied my part
The crown of all humanity to win me.
Whereto yearns every sense »rithin me ?
MEPHISTO PHEL ES.
Why, on the whole, Ihou 'rt — what thou art
Set wigs of million cur's upon thy head, to raise Ihe^
Wear shoes an ell in height, — the truth 'uielrays the^
And thou remainest — what th„u art.
1 feel, indeed, that I have made the tt
Of human thought and knowledge mine, in ^
And if I now sit down in restful leisure.
No fount of newer strength is in my brain ;
ih,Googlc
I am no hair's-breadth more \n height,
Nor nearer to the Infinite.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Good Sir, you see the facts precisely
As they are seen by each and all.
We must arrange ihem now, more wisely.
Before the joys of life shall palL
Why, Zounds ! Both hands and feet are, truly —
And head and virile forces — thine:
Yet all that I indulge in newly,
Is't thence less wholly mine ?
If 1 've six stallions in my stall,
Are not their forces also lent me ?
I speed along, completes! man of all.
As though my legs were four-and- twenty.
Talte hold, then ! let reflection rest,
And plunge into the world with zest!
1 say lo thee, a speculative wight
Is like a beast on moorlands lean.
That round and round some fiend misleads to evil plight,
While all about lie pastures fresh and green.
FAUST.
Then how shall we begin ?
MEFHISTOPHELBS.
We '11 try a wider sphere
What place of martyrdom is here !
Is 't life, I ask, is 't even prudence.
To bor« thyself and bore the students ?
Let Neighbor Paunch to that attend !
Why plague thyself with threshing straw forever?
The best thou leamest, in the end
vou 1. 4
ih,Googlc
Thou dar'st not tell the youngsters — never I
I hear one's footsteps, hither steering.
FAUST.
To see him now I have no heart.
So long the poor boy w^ts a hearing.
He must not unconsoled depart
Thy cap and mantle straightway lend me t
I '11 play the comedy with art
\Hi disguises himstlf.)
My wits, be certain, will befriend me.
But fifteen minutes' time is all J need ;
For our fine trip, meanwhile, prepare thyself with speed '.
[Exit Faust
HBPHISTOFHEt.ES.
[Ih Faust's long mantlt. )
Reason and Knowledge only thou despise.
The highest strength in man that lies !
Let but the Lying Spirit bind thee
With magic works and shows that blind thee,
And I shall have thee fast and sure !" —
Fate such a bold, untrammelled spirit gave him,
As forwards, onwards, ever must endure;
Whose over-hasty impulse drave him
Past earthly joys he might secure.
Dragged through the wildest life, will I enslave him,
Througli flat and stale indifference ;
With struggling, chilling, checking, so deprave him
That, to his hot, insatiate sense.
The dream of drink shall mock, but never lave him :
ih,Googlc
SCENE tV.
7S
Refreshment shall bis lips in vain implore —
Had he not made himself the Devil's, naught could save
him,
Still were he lost forevennore !
{A Stvdkwt fn/ers.)
STUDENT.
A short time, only, am 1 here,
And come, devoted and sincere.
To greet and know the man of fame,
Whom men to me with reverence name.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
Your courtesy doth flatter me :
You see a man, as others be.
Have you, perchance, elsewhere begun ?
STUDENT.
Receive me now, I pray, as one
Who comes to you with courage good,
Somewhat of cash, and healthy blood :
My mother was hardly willing to let me ;
But knowledge worth having I fain would get me.
MEFHISTOPHELES.
Then you have reached the right place now.
STUDENT.
1 'd like to leave it, I must avow ;
I find these walls, these vaulted spaces
Are anything but pleasant places.
'T is alt so cramped and close and mean;
One sees no tree, no glimpse of green.
And when the lecture-halls receive me.
Seeing, hearing, and thinking leave me.
ih,Googlc
All that depends od habitude.
So from its mother's breasts a child
At first, reluctant, takes its food,
But soon to seeli them is beguiled.
Thus, at the breasts of Wisdom clinging.
Thou 'It find each day a greater rapture bringing.
1 11 hang thereon with joy, and freely drain them;
But tell me, pray, the proper means to gain thetn.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
Explain, before you further speak,
The special faculty you seek.
STUDENT.
I crave the highest erudition ;
And fain would make my acquisition
All that there is in Earth and Heaven,
In Nature and in Science too.
HEPHISTOPil ELBS.
Here is the genuine patli for you j
Body and soul thereon I '11 wreak ;
Yet, truly, 1 've some inclination
On summer holidays to seek
A httle freedom and n
MEPmSTOPHELES.
Use well your time! It flies so swiftly from us;
But time through order may be won, 1 promise.
ih,Googlc
SCENE IV. 7;
So, Friend, (my views to briefly sum,)
First, the collegium logicum.
There will your mind be drilled and braced,
As if in Spanish boots 't were laced.
And thus, to gntver paces brought,
'T will plod along the path of thought,
Instead of shooting here and there,
A will-o'-lhe-wisp in murky air.
Days will be spent to bid you know,
What once you did at a single blow,
Uke eating and drinking, free and strong, —
That one, two, three I thereto belong.
Truly the fabric of mental fleece
Resembles a weaver's masterpiece.
Where a thousand threads one treadle throws,
Where fly the shuttles hither and thither.
Unseen the threads are knit together,
And an infinite combination grows.
Then, the philosopher steps in
And shows, no otherwise it could have been :
The first was so, the second so.
Therefore the third and fourth are so;
Were not the first and second, then
The third and fourth had never been.
The scholars are everywhere believers,
But never succeed in being weavers.
He who would study organic existence,
First drives out the soul with rigid jjersistence ;
Then the parts in his hand he may hold and class.
But the spiritual link is lost, alas !
Eiuheiresin nalvm, this Chemistry names,''
Nor knows how herself she banters and blames I
I cannot understand you quite
ih,Googlc
H EPHISTOPHBLES.
Your mind will shortly be set aright,
When you have learned, all things reducing,
To clasGÜy them for your using.
1 feel as stupid, from all you 've said.
As if a mill-wheel whirled in my head !
UEPHISTOPRELES.
And after — ürst and foremost duty —
Of Metaphysics learn (he use and beauty !
See that you most profoundly gain
What does not suit the human brain !
A splendid word to serve, you 'II find
For what goes in — or won't go in — your mind.
But first, at least this half a year,
To order ripdly adhere ;
Five hours a day, you understand,
And when the clock strikes, be on hand 1
Prepare beforehand for your part
With paragraphs all got by heart.
So you can better watch, and look
That naught is said but what is in the book:
Yet in thy writing as unwearied be,
As did the Holy Ghost dicute to thee I"
STUDENT.
No need to tell me twice to do it !
I think, how useful 't is to write ;
For what one has, in black and white.
One carries home and then goes through iL
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Yet choose thyself a faculty !
ih,Googlc
STUDENT.
I cannot reconcile myseU to Jumprudence.
HEFHISTOPH ELES.
Nor can I therefore greatly blame you students:
1 know what science this has come to be.
All rights and laws are still transmitted
Uke an eternal sickness of the race, —
From generation unto generation fitted,
And shifted round from place to place.
Reason becomes a sham, Beneficence a worry :
Thou art a grandchild, therefore woe to thee !
The right bom with us, ours in verity,
This to consider, there 's, alas ! no hurry.
My own disgust is strengthened by your speech *
0 lucky he, whom you shall teach !
1 've almost for Theology decided.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
I should not wish to see you here misguided :
For, as regards this science, let me hint
T is very hard to shun the false direction ;
There 's so much secret poison lurking in 't,
So tike the medicine, it baffles your detection.
Hear, therefore,' one alone, for that is best, in sooth,
And simply take your master's words for truth.
On words let your attention centre!''
Then through the safest gate you '11 enter
The temple-balls of Certainty.
STUDENT.
Yet in the word must some idea be.
ih,Googlc
UBPHISTOPH ELES.
Of course! But only shun too over-sharp a tendon.
For just where fails the comprehension,
A word steps promptly in as deputy.
With words 't is excellent disputing;
Systems to words 't is ea^y suiting;
Od words 't is excellent believing;
No word can ever lose a jot from thieving.
STUDENT.
Pardon I With many questions I detain you,
Yet must I trouble you again.
Of Medicine ] still would fain
Hear one strong word that might explain you.
Three years is but a little space,
And, God I who can the field embrace?
If^ne some index could be shown,
T were easier groping forward, truly.
HEPHISTOPHELES {lU'iU),
I "m tired enough of this dry tone, —
Must play the Devil again, and fully.
{Altmd.)
To grasp the spirit of Medicine is easy :
Learn of the great and little world your fill,
To let it go at last, so please ye.
Just as God will !
In vain thatthrough the realms of science you may drift;
Each one learns only — just what learn he can :
Yet he who grasps the Moment's gift,
He is the proper man.
Well-made you are, 't is not to be denied.
The rest a bold address will win you ;
If you but in yourself confide,
At once confide all others in you.
ih,Googlc
SCENE IV. %x
To lead the women, leam the special feeling t
Their everlasting aches and groans,
In thousand tones.
Have all one source, one mode of heaUng;
And if your acts are half discreet,
You '11 always have them at your feet.
A title first must draw and interest them,
And show that yours all other arts exceeds ;
Then, as a greeting, you are free to touch and test them,
While, thus to do, for years another pleads.
Yon press and count the pulse's dances,
And then, with burning sidelong glances,
Yon clasp the swelling hips, to see
If tightly laced ber corsets be.
STUDENT.
That '9 better, now ! The How and Where, one sees.
H EPH I5TO PHELES.
My worthy friend, gray are all theories.
And green alone Life's golden tree.
STUDENT.
I swear to you, 't is like a dream to me.
Might I again presume, with tnist unbounded,
To hear your wisdom thoroughly expounded ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Most willingly, to what extent 1 may.
I cannot really go away :
Allow me that my album first I reach you,—
Grant me this favor, I beseech you !
ih,Googlc
83 FAUST.
UEPKISTOPHELBS.
Assuredly.
(Ä vrittt, and ritumi /Af ifiot.)
STUDENT (rtai/i).
Erilis ticMt Deus, iciattes bmtum et malum.
( Ct»itt tke tt«i witA nvrmu-r, and witkärmos. ]
HEPHISTOPHELES.
FoHow the ancient text, and the siuike thou wast ordered
to trample !
With all thy likeness to God, thou 1t yet be a aony
example I
(Faust futert.)
FAUST.
Now, whither shall we go ?
As best it pleases thee.
The little world, and then the great, we '11 see."
With what delight, what profit winning,
Shalt thou sponge through the term beginning!
Yet with the flowing beard I wear,
Both ease and grace will fail me there.
The attempt, indeed, were a futile strife-,
I never could team the ways of life.
I feel so small before others, and thence
Should always find embarrassments.''
MEPHISTO PRELES.
My friend, thou soon shall lose all such misgiving:
Be thou bnt self-possessed, thou hast the art of living)
ih,Googlc
SCENE IV.
PAUST.
How shall we leave the house, and start f
Where hast thou servaot, coach and horses?
We 11 spread this cloak with proper art.
Then through the air direct our courses.
But only, on so bold a flight,
Be sure to have thy luggage light.
A little burniog air, which 1 shall soon prepare ns.
Above the earth will nimbly bear us.
And, if we 're light, we '11 travel swift and clear:
I gratulate thee on thy new career Ii*
ih,Googlc
AUERBACH'S CELLAR IN LEIPZIG.»
Carousal op Jollv Coupamons.
T S no one laughing? no one drinking?
'- 1 '11 teach you how to grin, I 'm thinking.
Today you 're like wet straw, so tame;
And usually you 're all aflame.
Now that 's your lault ; from you n
No beastliness and no stupidity.
lPmirtaiiattf^mtuffverBUiHDKg:.'sAeaä.)
There 's both blether 1
Twice a swine 1
FROSCH.
Yon wanted them : 1 've given you mine.
SIEB EU
Tum out who quarrels — out the door !
With open throat sing chorus, drink and roar!
Up! hollaj ho!
ih,Googlc
ALTMAVBR.
Woe 's me, the fearful bellow !
Bring cotton, quick ! He 's split my ears, that fellow.
SIEBEL.
When the vault echoes to the song.
One fiist perceives the bass is deep and strong.
FROSCH.
Well said ! and out witli him that takes the least offence I
Ah, tara, lara, da /
ALTHAVER.
Ah, tara, lara, da!
FROSCH.
The throats are tuned, commence !
Tke dear old holy Roman realm.
How does it hold together T
BR.VKDER.
A nasty song ! Fie 1 a political song" —
A most offensive sor^! Thank God, each morning
therefore.
That you have not the Roman realm to care for !
At least, I hold it so much gain for me,
That I nor Chancellor nor Kaiser be.
Yet also we must have a ruling head, I hope,
And so we 'II choose ourselves a Pope.
You know the quality that can
Decide the choice, and elevate the man.
FROSCH (j>'»ffT).
Soar up, soar up. Dame Nightingale f"
Ten thousand timet my sweetheart hail /
ih,Googlc
SIBBEL.
No, greet my sweetheart not ! I tell yoa, 1 11 resent it
FROSCH.
My sweetheart greet and kiss ! I dare you to prevent it !
Draw the latch / the darktuss makes:
Draw the latch ! the lover wakes-
Shut tht latch I the morning breaks.
SIEBBL.
Yes, sing away, sing on, and praise, and brag of her!
I '!! wait my proper time for laughter :
Me by the nose she lead, and now she 11 lead you aftec
Her paramour should be an ugly gnome.
Where four roads cross, in wanton piay to meet her:
An old he-goat, from Blocksbei^ coming home,
Should his good-night in lustful gallop bleat her I
A fellow made of genuine flesh and blood
Is for the wench a deal too good.
Greet her? Not I : unless, when meeting
To smash her windows be a greeting I
R {pounding on the taile).
Attention I Hearken now to me I
Confess, Sirs, I linow how to live.
Enamored persons here have we,
And I, as suits their quality.
Must something fresh for Iheir advantage give.
Take heed ! 'T is of the latest cut, my strain.
And all strike in at each refrain !
{Hedngs.)
There was a rat in the cellar-nest,"*
Whom fat and butter made smoother :
ih,Googlc
SCBNB V. 8;
He had a paunch beneath his vest
Like that of Doctor Luther.
The cook laid poison cunningly,
And then as sore oppressed was he
As if he had love in bis bosom.
CHORUS (shoutittg).
At if he had love in his bosom !
BRANDER.
He ran around, he ran about,
His thirst in puddles laving ;
He gnawed and scratched the house throughout
But nothing cured his raving.
He whirled and jumped, with torment mad,
And soon enough the poor beast had,
As if he had love in his bosom.
BR AN DER.
And driven at last, ia open day.
He ran into the kitchen.
Fell on the hearth, and squirming lay.
In the last convulsion twitching.
Then laughed the murderess in her glee '
" Ha ! ha ! he 's at his last gasp," said she.
" As if he had love in his bosom ! "
As if he bad love in his bosom !
SIEBEL.
How the dull foob enjoy the nutter'
To me it is a proper art
Poium for such poor rats K> scatter.
ih,Googlc
Perhaps you 'U warmly take their part ^
ALTMAVER.
The bald-pate pot-belly 1 have noted :
Misfortune tames him by degrees;
For in the rat by poison bloated
Hb own most natural form he sees.
Faust and Mephistophei^s.
mephistopheles.
Before all else, I bring thee hither
Where boon companions me«t together,
To let thee see how smooth life runs away.
Here, for the folk, each day 's a holiday :
With little wit, and ease to suit them.
They whiri in narrow, circling trails,
Uke kittens playing with their tails ;
And if no headache persecute them.
So long the host may credit give,
They merrily and careless live.
BRAN DER.
The fact is easy to unravel.
Their air's so odd, they 've just returned from travel:
A single hour they've not been here.
You 've verily hit the truth 1 Leipzig to me is dear :
Paris in miniature, how it refines its people!"
Who are the strangers, should you guess?
ih,Googlc
SCENE f. 89
FROSCH.
Let me alone ! 1 '11 set tbero first to drinking,
Aad then, as one a child's tooth draws, with cleverness,
1 '11 worm their secret out, 1 'm thinking.
They're of a noble house, that 's very clear:
Haughty and discontented they appear.
BRANDER.
They 're mountebanks, upon a revel
ALTUAVER.
Perhaps.
FROSCH.
Look out, I 'U smoke Ihem now I
MEPHISTOPHELES (/O FaUST).
Not if he had them by the neck, I vow.
Would e'er these people scent the Devil I
FAUST.
Fair greeting, gentlemen !
StEBEI~
Our thanks : we give the same.
{Afurmttrt, iiufectiitftit.FHisroeuE,Lis/rvm lie side.]
In one foot is the fellow lame?
HEPHISTOPKELES .
Is it permitted that we share your leisure P
In place of cheering drink, which one seeks vainly here.
Your company shall give us pleasure.
ALTHAVER.
A most fastidious person you appear.
ih,Googlc
FROSCH.
No doubt 't was late when jon from Rippach started ?'"
Aod snppiog there with Hans occasioned your delay ?
MEPHISTO P HELES.
We passed, without a call, lo-daj.
At oor last interriew, before we parted
Much of his cousins did he speak, entreating
That we shonld give to each his kindly greeting.
(Hi hmn it Fkoscr.)
ALTUAYER (flriat).
Yoj have it now I he nnderetands.
A knave sharp-set!
FROSCH.
Jttst wait awhile : I II hare him yet
MEPHISTOPHELES.
If I am right, we heard the sound
Of well-tcained voices, singing choms ;
And traly, song mnst here reboimd
SuperUy from the aiches o'er us.
FROSCH.
Are yon, perhaps, a virtuoso ?
O no ! my wish is great, my power is only so4a
ALTHAYER.
ih,Googlc
KEPRISTOFRELGS.
If you dcEire, a number.
SIEBEL.
So that it be a bfan-new strain I
HEPHISTOPHELES.
We "ve jtist retraced our way from Spain,
The lovely land of wine, and song, and slumber.
Tliere vas a king once reigning,''
Wbo had a big blaclc flea-
Hear, hear! A flea! D'yerightly take the jot?
I call a flea a tidy guest.
HEPHISTOPHELES (si'ngl).
There was a king once reigning.
Who had a big black flea.
And loved him past explainii^.
As his own son were he.
He called his man of stitches ;
The tailor came straightway :
Here, measure the lad for breeches,
And measure his coat, I say !
But mind, allow the tailor no caprices:
Enjoin upon him, as his head is dear.
To most exactly measure, sew and shear.
So that the breeches have no creases !
ih,Googlc
HEPH I5TOPHELES.
In silk and velvet gleamii^
He now was wholly drest —
Had a coat with ribbons streaming
A cross upon his breast.
He had the first of stations,
A minister's star and name ;
And also all his relations
Great lords at court became.
And the lords and ladies of honor
Were plagued, awake and in bed ;
The queea she got them upon her,
The maids were bitten and bled.
And they did not dare to brush them,
Or scratch them, day or night :
We crack them and we crush them,
At once, whene'er they bite.
CHORUS {shmiling).
We crack them and we crush them,
At once, whene'er they bite !
FROSCH.
Bravo ! bravo ! that was fine.
StEBEL.
Every flea may it so befall !
BRANDER.
Point your fingers and nip them all I
ALTUAYER.
Hurrah fur Freedom ! Hurrah for wine !
ih,Googlc
I ^n would drink with you, my glass to Freedom
clinking,
If 't were a better wine that here I see you drinking.
SIEBEI~
Don't let us hear that speech again !
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Did I not fear the landlord might complain,
I 'd treat these worthy guests, with pleasure,
To some from out our cellar's treasure.
SIEBEL.
Just treat, and let the landlord me arraign I
FROSCH.
And if the wine be good, our praises shall be araple.
But do not give too very small a sample ;
For, if its quality 1 decide,
With a good mouthful I must be supplied.
ALTHAYER (aHdi).
They "re from the Rhine .' I guessed as much, before.
UEPHtSTOPHELES.
Bring me a gimlet here I
BRANDER.
What shall therewith be done t
You 've not the casks already at the door?
ALTMAYER.
Yonder, within the landlord's box of tools, there 's
ih,Googlc
MEPHISTOPHELES {lairi the gimltt).
( To Frosch.)
Now, give me of your taste some intimatioD.
FROSCH.
How do you mean ? Have you so many kinds ?
HEPHISTOFHELBS.
The cbc^ce is free : make up your minds.
ALTUAYER (W FKOSCH).
Aba t you lick your chops, from sheer anticipation.
FROSCH.
Good! if I have the choice, so let the wine be
Rhenish 1
Our Fatherland can best the sparkling cup replenish.
UEPHISTOPHELES
{toring a lieft in tht edge ef the table, at the ftaci when
Frosch silt).
Get me a little wax, to make the stoppers, quick I
ALTHAYEK.
All ! I perceive a juggler's trick.
MEPHISTOPHELES (W BRAHDER>
And you?
BR ANDER.
Champagne shall be my wine.
And let it sparkle fresh and fine !
ih,Googlc
UBPHISTOPHELES
What 's foreign one can't always keep quite dear of,
For good things, oft, are not so near ;
A German can't endure the French to see or hear of,*"
Yet drinlü their wines with hearty cheer.
SIEBEL
{at Mbfkistofhelks appraachts hu tiat).
For me, I grant, sour wine is out of place ;
Fill up my glass with sweetest, will you ?
HBFHISTOFHELES {dariHf).
Tokay shall flow at once, to fill you 1
ALTMAVER.
No— look me, Sirs, straight in the face I
I see you have your fun at our expense.
IIEPHISTOPHELBS.
O no I with gentlemen of such pretence.
That were to venture far, indeed.
Speak out, and make your choice with speed I
With what a vintage can I serve you ?
ALTMAVER.
With any — only satisfy our need.
{Aßir tht hala Mam iem tared and plitgpd.)
IIEPHISTOFHELES
[iviiÄ singular gisiure^^.
Grapes the vine- stem bears,
Horns the he-goat wears I
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
The grapes are juicy, the vines are wood,
The wooden table gives wine as goodl
Into the depths of Nature peer, —
Only believe, there 's a miracle herel
Now draw the stoppers, and diink your fill ! *■
\at tkty drino aul tkt äafpers, and Iht vtim wkkh h
desirtdfiirwi into tht glass efiatk),
O beautiful fountain, that flows at will!
MEPHISTOPHELES.
But have a care, that you nothing spill I
( They dritii rtpiaUdlji.)
ALL {siitgt.
As 't were five hundred hogs, we feel
So cannibolic jolly I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
See, now, the race is happy — it is freet
To leave them is my inclination.
Take notice, first ! their bestiality
Will make a brilliant demonstration.
SIEBEL
\drinit tardisify : /it viine spills uptti iki tartX, and A
flame).
Help! Fire! Help! Hell-fire is sent!
ih,Googlc
SCENE V. 95
MEPHISTOPHELES
(ektoTiiing amay theflami).
Be quiet, friendly element!
{To Ihe revellers.)
A bit of purgatory 't was for this time, merely.
SIEBEL.
What mean you ? Wait ! — you '11 pay for 't dearly I
You '11 know us, lo your detriment.
FROSCH.
Don't try that game a second time upon us I
ALTMAVER.
I think we 'd better send him packing quietly.
SIEBEL.
What, Sir! you dare to make so free.
And play your hocus-pocus on us !
MEPKISTOPKEI.ES.
Be still, old wine-tub.
SIEBEL.
Broomstick, you 1
You face it out, impertinent and heady f
BR ANDER.
Just wait! a shower of blows is ready.
{draaii a stopper mä »fthi table : fireJUes in his /ace).
I bum ! I bum !
SIEBEL.
'T is magic ! Strike —
The knave is outlawed ! Cut him as you like '.
{TTter drata their kniots, and rush upon MephistOPHELES.)
VOL. Li O
ih,Googlc
98 FAUST.
HEPHISTOPHELES
(»iM leltmn giititTti).
False word and form of air.
Change place, and sense ensnare!^
Be here — and there !
( TTicy tiand amattd and loek at each tither.)
ALTMAYER.
Where am I ? What a lovely land I
FROSCH.
Vines ? Can 1 trust my eyes 7
And purple grapes ai tiand!
BKANDER.
Here, over this green arbor bending,
See, iriiat a vine ! what grapes depending !
(A*/ taka SiBBEL fy fit nott: Iht mieri do tht amt nafra-
tally, and raiu ihar inaiet,)
MEPHISTOPHELES (ai abovi).
Loose, Error, from their eyes the band.
And how the Devil jests, be now enlightened I
(fft diiafftari vriik Faust : tkt ranlieri itart and leparatt. )
What happened ?
How
FROSCH.
Was that your nose I tightened f
ih,Googlc
BRANOBR (to SiniL).
And j'oora UM. stiD I have in hand ?
ALTMAYER.
It was a blow that went through every limb I
Give me a chair ! 1 sink ! my senses swim.
FROSCH.
Bnt what has happened, tell me now?
Where is he ? If I catch the scoundrel hiding
He shall not leave alive, I vow.
ALTMAYER.
I saw him with these eyes upon a wtneosk riding
Out of the cellar-door, jnst now.
StiU in my feet the fright like lead is weighing.
(/fr hatu toteords lie taNi )
Why ! If the fount of wine should still be playing ?
SIEBEL.
T was all deceit, and lying, false design I
FROSCH.
And yet it seemed as I were drinking wine.
BRANDER.
Bnt with the grapes how was it, pniy 7
ALTMAYER.
Shall one believe no miracles, just say I
ih,Googlc
WITCHES' KITCHEN.")
\UpOH a Imo hiarth slattds a greal caldron, under which a fim
is burning. Variant ßgures appear in the vapors lahiih
Tin frem tht ccädron. An ape sits bisidi it, skims it, and
viatiAel Itsf it boil over. Tht he-ape, with the young ones,
sits Htar and viannt himstlf. Ceiling and toalli are covered
with the most /aniaslie 'wilch-imp!ementi.\
Faust. Mephistopheles.
FAUST.
THESE crazy signs of witches' craft repel mel
I shall recover, dost thou tell me,
Through this insane, chaotic play?
From an old hag shall I demand assistance?
And will her foul meas take away
Full thirty years from my existence ? **
Woe 's me, canst thou naught better find !
Another baffled hope must be lamented :
Has Nature, then, and has a noble mind
Not any potent balsam yet invented?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Once more, my friend, thou talkest sensibly.
There is, to make thee young, a simpler mode and apter;
But in another book 't is writ for thee,
And IB a roost eccentric chapter.
FAUST.
Vet will I know It
ih,Googlc
SCENE Vt. 10
HEPHISTOFH ELB3.
Good ! the method is revealed
Without or gold or magic or physician.
Betake thyself to yonder field,
There hoe and dig, as thy condition;
Restrain thyself, thy sense and will
Within a narrow sphere to flourish;
With unmixed food thy Ixidy nourish;
Uve with the ox as ox, and think it not a theft
That thou manur'st the acre which thou reapest; —
Tliat, trust me, is the best mode left.
Whereby for eighty years thy youth thou keepest I
FAUST.
I am not used to that ; 1 cannot stoop to try it —
To take the spade in hand, and ply it.
The narrow being suits me not at all.
Then to thine aid the witch must call
FAUST.
Wherefore the hag, and her alone 7
Canst thou thyself not brew the potion 7
UEPHISTOPHELES.
That were a charming sport, I own:
1 'd build a thousand bridges meanwhile, I 've a notion.
Not Art and Science serve, alone ;
Patience must in the work be shown.
Long is the calm brain active in creation ;
Time, only, strengthens the fine fermentation.
And all, belonging thereunto.
Is rare and strange, howe'er you take it *■
The Devil taught the thing, 't is true,
And yet the Devil cannot make it
ih,Googlc
3 FAUST.
{Ptraioingitu /Im'maii.)
Sec, what a delicate race they be !
That is the maid r the mao is he !
{Tir tit Ammalt.)
It seems the mistress has gone away?
THE ANIMALS.
Carousing, t<Mlay I
OfE and about.
By the chimney out !
MZFH I STO PK ELES.
What time takes she for dissipating?
THE ANIMALS.
While we to warm our paws are waiting.
HEPHISTOPHELES (» FaUST).
How findest thou the tender creatures?
FAUST.
Absurder than I ever yet did see-
MEPHISTOFHELES.
Why, just such taik as this, for me.
Is that which has the most attractive features 1
{To tie Animiiti.)
But tell me now, ye cursed puppets,
Why do ye stir the porridge so?
THE ANIMALS.
We 're cooking watery soup for beggars.»)
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Then a great public you can show.
ih,Googlc
SCSNE VI. 103
THE HE-AFB ,
(<«MM up and foams a» MlPHlSTOPHBLIS).
O cast thou the dice !
Make me rich in a trice,
Let me win in good season !
Things are badly controlled,
And had I but gold,
So had 1 my reason.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
How would the ape be sure his luck enhances,
Could he but try the lottery's chances I
\/h tki mta» time the ymtng afts havt ttrtt playing viUh a
largt hail, vhUh they now roll firaard.)
THE HE-APE.
The worW's the bail;
Doth rise and fall,
And roll incessant :
Like glass doth tin^
A hollow thing, —
How soon vrill 't spring.
And dropy quiescent?
Here bright it gleama.
Here brighter seems :
1 live at present t
Dear son, I say.
Keep thou away !
Thy doom is spoken 1
'T is made of clay.
And will be broken.
KBPHtSTOPHELBS.
Wtut means the sieve ?
ih,Googlc
104 FAUST.
, THE VOi-KVt. {takir^ il dmm).
Wert thou the thie^*"
I 'd know him and shame him.
(Ht nau le Ißu %».%-Kii., and ttti ktr l0Ok thrffl^k ii.\
Look through the sieve !
Know'st thou the thief.
And darest not name him?
MEPHISTOPHELES IfiffreackiHg tkt finY
And what 'b this pot?
HE-APE AND SHE-APE.
The fool knows it not I
He knows not the pot.
He knows not the kettle 1
HEPHUTOPHELES.
Impertinent beast !
THE HE-APE.
Take the brush here, at least,
And sit down on the settle !
(Hi imilti MEPHISTOPHELES Ic til dmm.)
FAVST
{teha during all this timt hat ban ilanding btfort a mirrnr, ntnt
approaching and nam TitrialiHg from it\.
What do I see ? What heavenly form revealed"
Shows through the glass from Magic's fair dominions 1
O lend me, Love, the swiftest of thy pinions.
And bear me to her beauteous field I
Ah, if I leave this spot with fond designing,
If I attempt to venture near.
Dim, as through gathering mist, her charms appear ! —
ih,Googlc
SCENE VI. 105
A woman's form, in beauty shinii^ !
Can woman, then, so lovely b« ?
And must I find her body, there reclining,
Of all the heavens the bright epitome ?
Can Earth with such a thing be mated?
HEPHISTOPHELE5.
Why, surely, if a God first pbgues Himself six days.
Then, self-contented. Bravo! says.
Must something clever be created.
This time, thine eyes be satiate !
I 'U yel detect thy sweetheart and ensnare her.
And blest is he, who has the lucky fate,
Some day, as bridegroom, home to bear her,
(FaUST ^uki continually in Ihi mirror. MepKISTOPMELES.
strfUhitig hivisilf out on thesitlit, and playing viilk thi brush,
conlitmti la sfieai.)
So sit I, like the King upon his throne:
I hold the sceptre, here, — and lack the crown alone,
THE ANIMALS
llRti? up to Ihit Hmt havt ietn making all tinds ef fantastic
mtvcminli together, bring a crown to MEPHlSTOPHELy!<
mlA grea/ naiii],
O be thou so good
With sweat and with blood
The crown to belimel
I T^iejf haitJU the erovm awkwardly and break it iittc Am
piecet, -with which they sprii^ around. )
'T is done, let it be I
We speak and we see.
We hear and we rhyme !"
FAUST {before the mirror).
Woe '9 me ! I fear lo lose my wits.
ih,Googlc
UEPHISTOPHBLBS {peimtingtc tkt AiUmalt).
Hj own head, now, is really nigh to sinking;
THE ANIMALS.
If lucky our hits,
And everything fits,
T is thoughts, and we 're thinkingi
FAUST (as abovt).
My bosom burns with that sweet vision ;
Let uii, with speed, away from here !
MEPHISTO PHELES (in 1^ '"mt aUituät).
One must, at least, make this admission —
They 're poets, genuine and sincere.
( 7iU caUron, akick tkt ShBiApe hat up to Mi tima Ktgiected
to wattk, itgitir la 6oiI aver: tktre ensues a great ßame,
taiük bliuei out lie ekimney. The Witch aimet careering
dffmtt tkre^gk tkeßame, taitk terrible criei.)
THE WITCH.
Ow! ow! ow! ow!
The damned beast— the curs&l sow!
To leave the kettle, and singe the Frau !
Accursed fere !
{Perceiving Faust and Mbfhistophblbs.)
What is that here ?
Who are you here ?
What want you thus ?
Who sneaks to us ?
The fire-pain
Bum bone and brain !
\Skeflutiget Ike elamming-ladle into tke taldrtn, and teaUert
flames Imeards Faust, MbphisTOPHEles, and tke Ant-
malt. Tke Amwtait tvkimfier.)
ih,Googlc
SCENE VI. 107
ySPHtSTOPHBLES
Irmrtimg Ike brush, vkich lu hai ietm h^dii^ in kit hand,
and ttriking among the Jari and gtiuset\.
In two! in two!
There lies the brew !
There lies the glass !
The joke will pass,
As time, foul ass !
To the singing of thy crew.
{At the Witch starts back, full of-wratk and karr» .-)
Ha ! know'st thou me ? Abomination, thou !
Know'st thou, at last, thy Lord and Master?
What hinders me from smiting now
Thee and thy nwnkey-spriles with fell disaster?
Hast for the scarlet coat no reverence?
Dost recogniie no more the tall cock's-feather?
Have I concealed this countenance? —
Must tell my name, old face of leather ?
THE WITCH.
0 pardon. Sir, the rough salute !
Yet I perceive no cloven foot ;
And both your ravens, where are they now ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
This time, 1 '11 let thee 'scape the debt;
For since we two together met,
T is verily full many a day now.
Culture, which smooth the whole world licks.
Also unto the Devil sticks.
The days of that old Northern phantom now are over:
Where canst thou horns and tail and claws discover ?
And, as regards the foot, which I can't spare, fn truth,
T wonki only make the people shun me ;
ih,Googlc
Therefore I 've worn, Uke many a spindly youth,
Falae calves these many years upon me.
THE WITCH {dancing).
Reason and sense forsa.ke my brain.
Since 1 behold Squire Satan here again!
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
Woman, from such a name refrain !
THE WITCH,
Why so ? What has it done to thee?
HEPH ISTOPH EI.E5.
It 'a long been written in the Book of Fable ; •»
Yet, therefore, no whit better men we see :
The Evil One has left, the evil ones are stable.
Sir Baron call me thou, then is the matter good ;
A cavalier am I, like others in my bearing.
Thou hast no doubt about my noble blood :
See, here 's the coat-o£-arms that I am weariogl
{ffi maiei an indneni gtshirt.)
TBE WITCH {loMght immaderiUt!y).
Ha ! ha ! That 's just your way, I know :
A rogue you are, and you were always so.
H EPH ISTOPHELES (to Faust).
My friend, take proper heed, 1 pray !
To manage witches, this is just the way.
THE WITCH.
Wherein, Sirs, can I be of use?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Give us a goblet of the well-known juice 1
ih,Googlc
SCEl^E Vf. 109'
But, 1 must b^ you, of the oldest brewage ;
The years a double strength produce.
THE WITCH.
With an my heart ! Now, here 's a battle,
Wherefrom, sometimes, I wet my throttle,
Which, also, not the slightest, stinks ;
And willingly a glass I 'II fill him.
(iVhilflring.)
Yet, if this man without due preparation drink%
As well thou know'st, within an hour 't will kill him.
HEPH ISTOPHELES .
He is a friend of mine, with whom it will agree.
And he deserves thy kitchen's best potation :
Come, draw thy circle, speak thine adjuration.
And fill thy goblet full and free 1
\wU/i famlaslk gtilura dratel a drcit ami platei myslerious ar-
HtUt thtrtin ; matnuikili the giaisei begin to ring, Ikt ciddrgH
te iouhJ, and mail a Muiiaii aceemfaniment. Finally lit
iiingi a grcal book, and staiiant in the circle the Apes, who
are oiligtd to serve as readiitg-desk, and la kM Ihe larches.
She lien ttctons Faust A> afpraaeh).
FAUST {la MEPH ISTOPHELES).
Now, what shall come of this? the creatures antic,
The crazy stuff, the gestures frantic, —
All ihe repulsive cheats I view, —
Are known to me, and hated, too.
MEPBISTOPHELES.
0, nonsense I That 's a thing for laughter ;
Don't be so terribly severe 1
ih,Googlc
She juggles you as doctor now, that, after,
The beverage may work the proper cheer.
(Hi persuada Faust ta liep into tht eirtU.)
THE WITCH
ibtgini te dalaim, -orith muih emphasis,ß-em thiboei
See, thus it 's done 1
Make ten of one,
And two let be.
Make even three.
And rich thou 'It be.
Cast o'er the four !
From five and six
(The witch's tricks)
Make seven and eigh^
'T b finished straight 1
And nine is one.
And ten is none.
This is the witch's once-one's-one |t°
FAUST.
She talks like one who raves in fever.
Thou It hear much more before we leave her.
'T is all the same: the book I can repeat.
Such time I 've squandered o'er the history:
A contradiction thus complete"
Is always for the wise, no less than foob, a mystery.
The art is old and new, for verily
All ages have been taught ihe matter, —
By Three and One, and One and Three,
Error instead of Truth to scatter.
They prate and teach, and no one interferes ;
All from the fellowship of fools are shrinking.
ih,Googlc
SCEJVE Vf. Ill
Min usiully believes, if only words he hears,
That also with them goes material for thiakiog I
THE WITCH {caniimiti).
The lofty skill
Of Science, still
From all men deeply hidden t
Who takes no tbot^ht.
To him 'tis broi^ht,
T is given unsought, unbidden !
FAUST.
What nonsense she declaims before us 1
My head is nigh to split, 1 fear :
It seems to me as if I hear
A hundred thousand fools in chorus.
KEPKISTOPHELES.
O Sibyl excellent, enough of adjuration !
But hither bring us thy potation.
And quickly fill the beaker to the brim !
This drink will bring my friend no injuries :
He is a man of manifold degrees,
And many draughts are known to him.
( 73< Witch, wtrt ntaaji eertmoniet. ftiurs tht drink into a
fufi ; at Faust it/i it W Aii lipi, a light flam arües.)
Down with it quickly ! Drain it off !
'T will warm thy heart with new desire :
Art with the Devil hand and glove,
And wilt thou be afraid of 6re ?
(Tht ^ ITCH brtakt till lircU : Vwsi ittfi/trtk.t
IfEPHlSTOPHEXBS.
And now, away 1 Thou dar'st not rest
ih,Googlc
THE WITCH.
And much good may the liquor do thee 1
UEPHISTOPHELES {U tie VftTCH).
Thy wish be on Walpui^s Night expressed',
What boon I have, shall then be given unto tli
Here is a soog, which, if you sometimes sing,
You 'li find it of peculiar operation.
HEPHI5TOPHELES (/i> FauST).
Come, walk at once ! A rapid occupation
Must start the needful perspiration,
And throu^ thy frame the liquor's potence fling.
The noble indolence 1 11 teach thee then to treasure,»
Andsoon thou 'Itbeaware, with keenest thrills of pleasure,
How Cupid stirs and leaps, on light and restless wing.
FAUST.
One rapid glance within the mirror give me,
How beautiful that woman-form !
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
No, no ! The paragon of all, believe me.
Thou soon shall see, alive and warm.
iAxiJt.)
Thou 'It find, this drink thy blood compelliu^
Each woman beautiful as Helen I
ih,Googlc
Faust. Margaret (fiuanefy).
FAUST.
FAIR lady, let it not offend you,
That arm and escort I would lend yon I
MARGARET."
I 'm neither lady, neither iaii,
And home 1 can go without your care.
[Sie nUant htralf, and ti
By Heaven, the girl is wondrous fair !
Of all I 've seen, beyond compare;
So sweetly virtuous and pure.
And yet a little pert, be sure !
The lip so red, the cheek's clear dawn,
I '11 not forget while the world rolls on !
How she cast down her timid eyes.
Deep in my heart imprinted lies :
How short and sharp of speech was she,"
Why, 't was a real ecstasy !
<Mbi
Hear, of that girl 1 'd have possession !
ih,Googlc
WhkhftheD?
FAUST.
The one who j'usi vrent by.
HEPH ISTO PMELBS.
She, Üiere ? She 's coming from confession.
Of every sin al>solved ; for I,
Behind her chair, was listening nigh.
So innocent is she, indeed,
That to confess she had no need.
1 have no power o'er souls so green.
FAUST,
And yet, she 's older than fourteen.
IIBPRISTOrHEt.ES.
How now! You 're talking like Jack Rake,
Who every flower for himself would take.
And fancies there are no favors more.
Nor honors, save for him in store ;
Yet alway» does n't the thing succeed.
FAUST.
Most Worthy Pedagt^e, take heed!«
Let not a word of moral law be spoken I
I claim, 1 tcU thee, all my right ;
And if that image of delight
Rest not within mine arms to-night,
At midnight is onr compact broketL
MEPHISTOPLELES.
But think, the ch^uices of the case t
1 need, at least, a fortnight's space.
To find ao t^iportnne occa&ion.
ih,Googlc
SCEXE VII.
FAUST.
Had I but Mven hours for all,
I should not on the Devil call,
But win her by my ovn persuaswn.
You almost ^ke a Frenchman prate ;
Yet, pray, don't take it as annoyaoce 1
Why, all at once, exhaust the joyance?
Your bUss is by no means so great
As if you 'd use, to get control,
All sorts of tender rigmarole.
And knead and shape her to your thaagh^
As in Italian tales 't is taught.^
FAUST.
Witbont tiiat, 1 have appetite.
UEFKISTO PU ELES.
But now, leave jesting out of sight I
I tell yoo, once for ^ that speed
With this ixa girl will not succeed j
By storm she cannot captured be ;
We must make use of strategy.
FAUST.
Get me something the angel Iceq» 1
Lead me thither where she deeps !
Get me a kerchief from her breast, —
A gaiter that her knee has prosed 1
HBPHtSTOPUELBS.
That you may see ho« much I 'd fain
Further aad satisfy your pain.
We will no longer lose a ounule ;
I 'U find her room to-day, and take you is it
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
And shall I see — possess her?
Unto a neighbor she must go,
And nKanwhile thou, alone, mayst glow
With every hope of future pleasure.
Breathing her a.tniosphere in fullest measure;
Can we go thither ?
HEFHISTOF HELBS.
T is too early yet
FAUST.
A gift for her t bid thee get !
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Presents at ooce ? That's .^ood: he 's certain to get ai
Full many a pleasant j^ce 1 knon.
And treasures, buried long ago :
1 must, peiforce, look up the matter.
ih,Googlc
SCENE Vllf.
A Shall, keatlv kept Ckauber.
MARGARET
\plaiting and Mndiitg up the braids ef ktr klär).
I'D something give, could I but say
Who was that gentleman, to-day.
Surely a gallant nun was he,
And of a noble family ;
So much could 1 in his face behold, —
And he would n't, else, have been so bold I
\Exit
Mephistopheles. Faust.
Come in, but gently : follow me I
FAUST {afier aiHomenet tiitna).
Leave me alone, 1 beg of thee I
MEPHISTOPHELES [frying aiauft-
Not every girl keeps things so neat
FAUST [leaking around].
0 welcome, twilight soft and sweet,"
That breathes throughout this hallowed shrine 1
Sweet pain of love, bind thou with fetters fleet
The heart that on the dew of hope must i»ne]
ih,Googlc
How all around a sense impresses
Of quiet, order, and coatent 1
This poverty what bounty blesses I
What bliss within this narrow den is pent!
\Ht throws hmsilfitÜB a Itathtm arm-chair near th* bid.)
Receive me, thou, that in thine open arms
Departed joy and pain wert wont to gather!
How oft the children, with their ruddy charms.
Hung here, around this throne, where sal the iatherl
Perchance my love, amid the childish band.
Grateful for gifts the Holy Christmas gave her,
Here meekly kissed the grandsire's withered hand.
1 feel, O maid ! thy very sou!
Of order and content around me whisper, —
Which leads thee with its motherly control.
The cloth upon thy board bids smoothly thee unroll,
The sand beneath thy feet makes whiter, crisper.
O dearest hand, to thee 't is given
To change this hut into a lower heaven !
And here I
\He Hflt oiu of Iht bed-curtaim.)
What sweetest thrill is in my blood 1
Here could I spend whole hours, delaying:
Here Nature shaped, as if in sportive playing.
The angel blossom from the bud.
Here lay the child, with Life's warm essence
The tender bosom filled and fair,
And here was wrought, through holier, purer presuncb
The form diviner beings wearl
And I ? What drew me here with power?
How deeply am I moved, this hour I
ih,Googlc
SCENE Vm. 115
Wliat seek I P Why so full my heart, and son: ?
Miserable Faust ! 1 linow thee now no more.
Is there a magic vapor here?
I came, with lust of instant pleasure.
And lie dissolved in dreams of love's sweet leisure I
Are we the sport of every changeful atmosphere ?
And if, this moment, came she in to me,
How would I for the fault atonement render )
How small the giant lout would be,
Prone at her feet, relaxed and tender!
MEFHISTOFHELES.
Be quick! I see her there, returning.
FAUST,
Go I go I I never will retreat
UBPHISTOPHELES.
Here is a casket, not unmeet.
Which elsewhere I have just been earning.
Here, set it in the press, with haste.'
1 swear, 't will turn her head, to spy it :
Some baubles I therein had placed.
That you might win another by iL
True, child is child, and play is play.
FAUST.
I know not, should I do it ? ^
UEPHISTOPKELES.
Ask you, pray \
Yourself, perhaps, would keep the bubble?
Then 1 suj^st, 't were fair and just
ih,Googlc
ö FAUST.
To spare the lovely daj your lust,
And spare to me the further trouble.
You are not miserly, I trust ?
I rub my hands, in expectation tender —
(He ^aai Ike eoiket in tkt preu, and le<ki il again.)
Now quick, away I
The sweet young maiden to betray,
So that by wish and will you bend her ;
And you look as though
To the lecture-hall you were forced to go, —
As if stood before you, gray and loath,
Physics and Metaphysics both !
But away I
MARGARET {mlh a lomf).
It is 80 close, so sultry, here !
{Sit opens the wind<7w. )
And yet 't is not so warm outside.
I feel, I know not why, such (ear I —
WouU mother came 1 — where can she bide ?
My body 's chill and shuddering, —
I 'm but a silly, fearsome thing!
{She hf^ns to ling, vihilt undrtssing.\
There was a King in Thule,"
Was faithful till the grave, —
To whom his mistress, dying,
A golden goblet gave.
Naught was to him more precious ;
He drained it at every bout :
His eyes with tears ran over.
As oft as he drank thereout
ih,Googlc
SCEXE vni. i:
When came his time of dyiog.
The towns in his land he told,
Naught else to his heir denying
Except the goblet of gold.
He sat at the royal banquet
With his luughts of high degree,
In the lofty baU of his fathers
In the Castle by the Sea.
There stood the old carouser.
And drank the last life-glow,
And hurled the hallowed goblet
Into the tide below.
He saw it plunging and filling,
And sinking deep in the sea ;
Then fell his eyelids forever,
And never more drank he !
\ßhe »ptHt thtpTtis in erdtr la arran^ her tiftkn, and f
aims tht (oiket ofjeaxh. )
How comes that lovely casket here to me?
I locked the press, most certainly.
'T is truly wonderful! What can within it be?
Perhaps 't was brought by some one as a pawn,
And mother gave a loan thereon ?
And here there hangs a key to fit:
1 have a mind to open iL
What is that? God in Heaven! Whence came
Such things? Never beheld 1 aught so fair!
Rich ornaments, such as a noble dame
On highest holidays might wear!
How would the pearl^chain suit ray hair?
Ah, who may all this splendor own ?
VOL, I. 6
ih,Googlc
(Sit aJonu htrttif VKlh Ikr jeailTy, and ittft htfvrt Iki
Were bot the ear-rings mine, alone !
One has at once another air.
What helps one's beauty, youthful blood?
One may possess them, veU and good ;
But none the more do others care.
They praise ns half In pity, sure :
To gold still tends,
On gold depends
AU,aUI Alas,wepaorl
ih,Googlc
IX.
PROMENADE.
(FAVSt,wi»aitfg:ti«iig*ifiiifyiifm$daniat. Ti Aim MsPHta-
TOPHELES.)
HEPHISTOF HEI.KS.
BY aD love ever rejected 1 By hell-fire hot and on-
sparing 1
I wish I knew something worse, that 1 might use it fot
aw*aringt
FATJST.
What ails theeF What Is 't gripes thee, elf ?
A face like thine beheld I never.
I would myself onto the Devil deliver.
If 1 were not a Devil myself !
FAUST.
Thy head is out of order, sadly :
It much becomes thee to be raving madly.
Just think, the pocket of a priest should get
The trinkets left for Margaret I
The mother saw them, and, instanter,
A secret dread began to haunt her.
Keen scent has she for tainted air;
She snuffs within her book of prayer.
ih,Googlc
4 FAUST.
And smells each article, to see
If sacred or profane it be ;
So here she guessed, from every gem,
That not much blessing came with them.
" My child," she said, " ill-gotten good
EnsEUU^s the soul, consumes the blood.
Before the Mother of God we '11 lay it ;
With heavenly manna shell repay it !"™
But Margaret thought, with sour grimace,
" A gift-horse is not out of place.
And, truly ! godless cannot be
The one who brought such things to me."
A parson came, by the mother bidden :
He saw, at once, where the game was hidden,
And viewed it with a favor stealthy.
He spake : " That is the proper view, —
Who overcometh, winneth too.
The Holy Church has a stomach healthy:
Hath eaten many a land as forfeit,
And never yet complained of surfeit :
The Church alone, beyond all question.
Has for ill-gotten goods the right digestion."
A general practice is the same.
Which Jew and King may also claim.
MEPHtSTOPHELES.
Then bagged the spangles, chains, and rings,
As if but toadstools were the things.
And thanked no less, and thanked no more
Than if a sack of nuts he bore, —
Promised them fullest heavenly pay.
And deeply edified were they.
ih,Googlc
SCENE IX.
FAUST.
Sits UDrestfuI still,
And knows not what she should, or will ;
Thinks on the jewels, day and night.
But more on him who gave her such delight
FAUST.
The darling's sorrow gives me pidn.
Get thon a set (or her again I
The first was not a great display.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
O yes, the gentleman finds it all child's-play 1
FAUST.
Fix and arrange it to my will ;
And on her neighbor try thy skill !
Don't be a Devil stiff as paste,
But get fresh jewels to her taste 1
Yes, gracious Sir, in all obedience !
\Exii Faust
Such an enamored fool in air would blow
Sun, moon, and all the starry legions.
To give his sweetheart a diverting show.
[Exit
ih,Googlc
THE NEIGHBOR'S HOUSE.-
MARTHA {seliu).
GOD forgive my husband, yet he
Has n't done his duty by me!
Off in the worid he went straightway, —
Left me lie in the straw where I lay,
And, truly, I did naught to fret him :
God knows I loved, and t^an't iorget him I
(She weefis.)
Perhaps he 's even dead 1 Ah, woe ! —
Had 1 a certificate to show I
UARQARET {comet).
Dame Martha I
MARTHA.
Margaret ! what 's happened thee?
MARGARET.
I scarce can stand, my knees are trembling I
1 find a box, the first resembling.
Within my press '. Of ebony, —
And things, all splendid to behold,
And richer far than were the old.
MARTHA.
You must n't tell it to your mother!
T would go to the priest, as did the other.
ih,Googlc
MARGARET.
Ah, look jtnd see — just look and see !
MARTHA [adanang fur).
O, what a blessed luck for thee !
MARGARET.
But^i ! in the streets I dare not bear them.
Nor in the church be seen to wear them
Yet thou canst often this way wander,
And secretly the jewels don,
Walk up and down an hour, before the mirror yonder, —
We 11 have our private joy thereon.
And then a chance will come, a holiday,
When, piece by piece, can one the things abroad display,
A chain at first, then other ornament :
Thy mother will not see, and stories we 'II invenL
Whoever could have brought me things so precious f
That something 's wrong, 1 feel suspicious.
{A htoci.)
Good Heaven ! My mother can that have been 7
MARTHA iftefing /hreugA the ilirufi.
T is some strange gentleman. — Come in !
MEPHISTOPHELES.
That I so boldly introduce n:
I beg you, ladies, to excuse i
ih,Googlc
{Sfeft tact Tcvtrtnily, tu tiring Marcakit.)
For Martha Schwerdtleio I 'd inquire !
MARTHA.
I 'm she : what does the gentleman desire?
HEPHISTOPHELES [astät tu Aer].
It Is enough that you are she :
You 've a visitor of high degree.
Pardon the freedom I have ta'en, —
Will after noon return again.
MARTHA {alDud).
Of all things in the world ! Just hear —
He takes thee for a lady, dear I
HABOARET.
I am a creature young and poor :
The gentleman 's too kind. I 'm sure.
The jewels don't belong to me.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Ah, not alone the jewelry 1
The look, the manner, both betray—
Rejoiced am I that 1 may stay !
MARTHA.
What is your business ? I would fain —
UEPHISTOPKELES.
I would I had a more cheerful strain I
Take not unkindly its repeating :
Your husband 's dead, and sends a greeting.
ih,Googlc
HAKTHA.
Isdead? Alao, thatheart sotniel
My husband dead I Let me die, too )
U ARG A RET.
Ab, dearest dame, let not your courage faQ I
HEPHISTOPH ELES.
Hear mc relate the mournful tale I
MARGARET.
Therefore I 'd never love, believe me I
A loas like this to death would grieve me.
HEPHISTOPKBLES.
ioy follows woe, woe after joy comes flyiuj^
MARTHA.
Relate his life's sad close to me !
MEPHlSTOPHELEa.
In Padua buried, he is lying
Beside the good Saint Antony,*™
Within a grave well conseciaied.
Fix- cool, eternal rest created.
MARTHA.
He gave you, further, no commission ?
Me?H I5TOPHELES.
Yes, one of weight, with many sighs:
Three hundred masses buy, to save him from perdition]
My hands are empty, otherwise.
6» 1
ih,Googlc
What ! Not a pocket-piece ? no jewelry i
What every journeyman within his wallet spares,
And as a token with him bears,
Aod rather starves or begs, than loses f
HEPKISTOPHELES.
Madam, it is a grief to me ;
Yet, on my word, his cash was put to proper nses.
UARGARET.
Alack, that men are so unfortunate !
Surely for his soul's sake full many a prayer 1 11 pro£Fec
MEPHISTOPHELES.
You well deserve a speedy marriage-offer :
Vou are so kind, compassionate.
HARGARBT.
0, no t As yet, it would not do.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
If not a husband, then a beau for yon 1
It is the greatest heavenly blessing.
To have a dear thing for one's caressing.
MARGARET.
The country's custom is not so,
HEPHISTOPHEI.ES.
Custom, or not ! It happens, though.
ih,Googlc
SC£JfE X. 131
MARTHA.
Continue, pray t
HEPHtSTOPItCLES.
I Stood beside his bed of dying.
T was something better than manure, —
Half-Totten straw: and yet, he died a Christian, sure.
And found that heavier scores to his account were lying
He cried : " I find my conduct wholly hateful !
To leave my wife, my trade, in manner so ungrateful I
Ah, the remembrance makes me die !
Would of my wrong to her I might be shriven 1"
MARTHA {■wer^ng).
The dear, good man t LcHig since was be for^ven.
MEPHISTOFHEt^S.
" Yet she, God knows I was more to blame than I."
MARTHA.
Heliedl What! On the brink of death he slaaderedl
KEPHISTOPHELES.
In the last throes his senses wandered,
If I such things but half can judge.
He said: "I had no time for [>lay, for gaping freedran:
First children, and then work for bread to feed 'en», —
For bread, in the widest sense, to drudge,
And could not even eat my share in peace and quiet!"
Had he all love, all faith forgotten in his riot i*
My work and worry, day and night t
MKF HISTOPK ELES.
Not so: the memory of it touched him quite.
Said be : " When 1 frun Malta went awa;
ih,Googlc
Ijj FAUST.
My prayers for wife and little ones were zealous,
And such a luck from Heaven befell us,
We made a Turkish merchantman our prey,
That to the Soldan bore a mighty treasure.
Then I received, as was most fit,
Since bravery was paid in fullest measure.
My well-apportioned share of it"
MARTHA.
Say, how P Say, where ? If buried, did he own it P
HEFHISTOFHELES.
Who knows, now, whither the four winds have blown it)
A fair young damsel took him in her care,
As he in Naples wandered round, unfriended;
And she much love, much f^th to him did bear.
So that he felt it tiU his days were ended.
MARTHA.
The villain ! From his children thieving !
Even all the misery on him cast
Could not prevent his shameful way of living I
MEPMI5T0PH EI.ES.
But see I He 's dead therefrom, at last.
Were I in ^^wr place, do not doubt me,
1 'd mourn him decently a year.
And for another keep, meanwhile, my eyea about me.
MARTHA.
Ah, God ! another one so dear
As was my first, this world will hardly give me.
There never was a sweeter fool than mine.
Only he loved to roam and leave me,
And foreign wenches and foreign wine,
And the damned throw of dice, indeed.
ih,Googlc
SCBfiTe X. 133
HEPHISTOPHEXBS.
Well, well ! That might have done, however,
If he had only been as clever,
And treated your slips with as little heed.
I swear, with this condition, too,
! would, myself change rings with you.
MARTHA.
The gentleman is pleased to jest.
HEPHISTOPHELES {aiidt).
1 11 cut away, betimes, from here :
She 'd take the Devil at his word, I fear.
{To Marcarbt.}
How larti the heart within your breast ?
MARGARET.
What means the gentleman ?
MEPHlSTOPKEI.ES {aiide).
Sweet innocent, thou art!
{Al<mit.\
Ladies, farewell I
MARGARET.
Farewell !
MARTHA.
A moment, ere we parti
I *d like to have a legal witness.
Where, how, and when he died, to certify wiih fitness.
Irregular ways I 've always hated ;
I want his death in the weekly paper stated."»
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Ves, my good dame, a pair of witnesses
Always the truth establishes.
ih,Googlc
I have a friend of high condition,
Who '11 also add his deposition.
1 11 bring him here.
MARTHA.
Good Sir, pray do I
MEPHISTOF HELES.
And this young lady will be present, too?
A gallant youth ! has travelled far :
Ladies with him delighted are.
MARGARET.
Before him I should blush, ashamed.
Before no king that could be named !
MARTHA.
Behind the house, in my garden, then,
This ere we 'U expect the gentlemen.
ih,Googlc
H
XI.
STREET.
Faust. Mephistophbles.
FAUST.
OW b it? uader way? and soon complete?
MEPHISTOPBELES.
Ah, bravo ! Do I find you burning ?
Well, Margaret soon will still your yearning :
At Neighbor Martha's you '11 this evening meet
A litter woman ne'er was made
To ply the pimp and gypsy trade I
TiswelL
UEPKI5TOFHEL.ES.
Yet something is required from uo.
FAUST.
One service pays the other thus.
lfEPHI5TOPHEI.ES.
We 've but to make a deposition valid
That now her hustiand's limbs, outstretched and pallid,
At Padua rest, in consecrated soil.
Most wise I And first, of course, we '11 make the jour-
ney thither?
ih,Googlc
Ijö FAUST.
KEP HISTOP K ELE5.
Sancta timplicitas ! no need of such a toil ;
Depose, with knowledge or without it, either !
FAUST.
If you 'vc naught better, then, I 'II tear your pretty plan t
MEPKISTOPHELES.
Now, there you are I O holy man \
Is it the first time in your life you 're driven
To bear false witness in a case ?
Of God, the world and all that in It has a place.
Of Man, and all that moves the being of his race.
Have you not terms and definitions given
With brasen forehead, daring breast?
And, if you '11 probe the thing profoundly,
Knew you so much — and you '11 confess it roundly I — -
As here of Schwerdtlein's death and place of restf
FAUST.
Thou art, and thou rem^n'st, a sophist, liar.
HEFHISTOPKELES.
Yes, knew I not more deeply thy desire.
For wilt thou not, no lover ^irer.
Poor Margaret flatter, and ensnare her.
And all thy soul's devotion swear her?
FAUST,
And from my heart
MEfHlSTOPHELES.
'T is very fine!
Thine endless love, thy faith assuring.
The one almighty force enduring, —
Will that, too, prompt this heart of thine?
ih,Googlc
SCENE XI. 13;
FAUST.
Hold! hold! It viU<— If such my flame,
And for the sense and power intense
I seek, and cannot find, a name ;
Then range with all my senses through creation,
Craving the speech of inspiration,
And call this ardor, so supernal.
Endless, eternal and eternal, —
Is that a devilish lying game ?
UEPHISTOPHBLES.
And yet I 'm right J
FAUST.
Mark this, 1 beg of thee I
And spare my lungs henceforth : whoever
Intends lo have the right, if but his tongue be clever,
Will have it, certainly.
But come : the further talking brings disgust.
For thou art right, especially since I must""
ih,Googlc
(Masgaret oh Faust's am. Maktka aiui MsrHtSToFU-
ELES vralÜHg up and dirwH. )
MARGARET.
IFEEL, the gentleman allows for me.
Demeans himself, and shames me by it;
A traveller is so used to be
Kindly content with any diet
I know too well that my poor gossip can
Ne'er entertain such an experienced man.
PAUST.
A look from thee, a word, more entertains
Than all the lore of wisest brains.
(Hi kiaes her hand.)
MARGARET.
Don't incommode yourself! How could you ever kiss it!
It is so ugly, rough to see !
What work I do, — how hard aJid Steady is it 1
Mother b much too dose with me.
[Tkeyfatt.
MARTHA.
And you. Sir, travel always, do you not ?
MEPHISTOPHELGS.
Alas, that tnde and duty us so harry I
ih,Googlc
Wth what a pang one leaves so many a spot,
And dares not even now and then to tarry I
In young, wild years it suits your ways,
This round and round the world in freedom swee^dng ;
But then come on the evil days,
And so, as bachelor, into his grave a-ct«eping,
None ever found a thing to pnäse.
UEPHISTOPHBLBS-
I dread to see how such a fate advances.
UARTHA.
Then, worthy Sir, improve betimes your chances I
MARGARET.
Yes, out of sight is out of mind !
Your courtesy an easy grace is ;
But you have friends in other places.
And sendbler than I, you '11 find.
FAUST.
Trost me, dear heart ! what men call sensible
Is oft mere vanity and narrowness.
MARGARET.
How so?
FAUST.
Ah, that simplidty and imiocence ne'er know
Themselves, their holy value, and their spell I
That meekness, lowliness, the highest graces
Which Nature portions out so lovingly —
ih,Googlc
MARGARET.
So you but think a moment's space on me.
All times I 'U have to think on you, all places I "«
FAUST.
No doubt you 're much alone?
MARGARET.
Yes, for our household small has grown.
Yet must be cared for, you will own.
We have no maid : 1 do the knitting, sewing, sweeping
The cooking, early work and late, in lact;
And mother, in her notions of housekeeping,
Is so exact !
Not that she needs so much to keep expenses down :
We, more than others, might take comfort, rather;
A nice estate was left us by my father,
A house, a litüe garden near the town.
But now my days have less of noise and hurry;
My brother is a soldier.
My little sister 's dead.
True, with the child a troubled life I led.
Yet I would take ag^n, and willing, all the worry,
So very dear was she.
An angel, if like thee I
U ARC A RET.
I brought it up, and it was fond of me.
Father had died before it saw the light,
And mother's case seemed hopeless quite,
So weak and miserable she lay ;
And she recovered, then, so slowly, day by day.
She could not think, herself, of giving
ih,Googlc
SCEJfE XII. 141
The poor wee thing its natural living;
And so I nursed it all alone
With millc and water : 't was my own.
Lulled in my lap with many a song.
It smiled, and tumbled, and grew strong.
FAUST,.
The purest bliss was surely then thy dower.
MARGARET.
But surely, also, many a weary hour.
I kept the baby's cradle near
My bed at night : if 't even stirred, I 'd guess it,
And waldng, hear.
And I must nurse it, warm beside me press it,
And oft, to quiet it, my bed forsake,
And dandling back and forth the restless creature take^
Then at the wash-tub stand, at morning's break;
And then the marketing and leite hen-tending,
Day after day, the same thing, never-ending.
One's spirits. Sir, are thus not always good,
But then one learns to relish rest and food.
\T1uyfaa
MARTHA.
Yes, the poor women are bad off, 'I is true :
A stubborn bachelor there 's no converting.
UEPHISTOPHBL.BS.
It but depends upon the like of you,
Aud I should turn to better ways than flirtiof^
MARTHA.
Speak plainly. Sir, have yon no one detected?
Has not yoar heart been anywhere subjected?
ih,Googlc
The proverb says : One's own warm heaidi
And a good wife, are gold and jewels worth.
UARTHA.
I mean, have yon not felt desire, though ne'er so slightly ?
HSPHISTOPHELES.
I 've everywhere, in fact, been entertained politely.
MARTHA.
I meant to say, were you not touched in earnest, ever?
HEP K ISTO PHELES.
One shotild allow one's self to jest with ladies never.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
1 'm Bony I 'm so blind:
Ah, you doa't
But I am sure — that you are very kind.
PAUST.
And me, thou angel 1 didst thou recognize.
As through the garden-gate I came i
MARGARET.
Did you not see it? I cast down my eyes.
FAUST.
And thou forgiv|st my freedom, and the blame
To my impertinence befitting.
As the Cathedral thou wert quitting?
ih,Googlc
SCENE XII. 143
HARGARET.
1 was confused, the like ne'er happened me ;
No one could ever speak to my discredit
Ah, thought I, in my conduct has he read it —
Something immodest or unseendy free ?
He seemed to have the sudden feeling
That with this wench 't n«re very «asy dealinj^
I will confess, 1 knew not what appeal
On your behalf, here, in my bosom grew ;
But 1 was angry with myself, to feel
That I could not be angrier with you.
FAtlST.
Sweet darling !
MARGARET.
Wait a while !
{SMt flueiu a itar\/Uwtr,"^ and pulls off tht lemitt, one afttr
tht ether.)
FAUST.
Shall that a nosegay l>e ?
HABQARET.
No^ it is just in play.
FAUST.
How?
UARS A RET.
Go I you 11 laugh at me.
iSiepiilli efflAe leavt^ and nainmtn.)
PAUST.
What munnunst tfaou 7
ih,Googlc
UAROARET {Mal/ aleud).
He loves me — loves me not
FAUST.
Thou sweet, angeUc sonll
MARGARET (tentinutt).
Loves me — not — loves me — not —
(pluiking tlu hat Itaf, tht cries with fnmJi dtlig^ :)
He loves me !
FAUST,
Yea, child ! and let this blossom-word
For thee be speech divine ! He loves thee !
Ah, know'st thou what it means ? He loves thee ! .
{Me gratpi both her kands.\
MARGARET.
I 'm all a-tremble !
FAUST.
O tremble not ! but let this look,
Let this wann clasp of hands declare thee
What is unspeakable !
To yield one wholly, and to feel a rapture
In yielding, that must be eternal!
Eternal ! — for the end would be despair.
No, no, — no ending I no ending I
MARTHA {turning forward).
The ni^t is falling.
H EPHISTOPHELES.
Ay I we must awar.
ih,Googlc
SCElfE XII. 14J
HARTHA.
I 'd ask ycMi, longer here to tarry,
But evil tongues in this town have full play.
It 's as if nobody had nothing to fetch and carry,'"
Nor other labor.
But spying all the doings of one's neighbor ;
And one becomes the talk, do whatsoe'er one may.
Where is our couple now ?
MBPHISTOPBELES.
Fkiwn up the alley yonder,
The wilful summer-birds !
MARTHA.
He seems of her sliU fonder.
HBSHISTOPHGLES-
And she of him. So runs the world away .'
ih,Googlc
XIII.
A GARDEN-ARBOR.
(Makgaiet coma in, cvntiah htrsetf behind Iht doar.piOtktr
fingrr It her lift, and peepi thravg^ tkt cratM.)
W
UARGARET.
FAUST (en/eritf^).
Ah, rogue I a tease tKou art :
HARGAR&T
{flaiping him, and rOurmng tkt hin).
Dearest man I 1 love thee from my heart
(Mefhistofkbles hnocki.)
FAUST {slamping hii fool).
MEP HISTOPHELES.
A friend !
FAUST.
A beast!
UEPHISTOPHELES.
T is time to separate.
ih,Googlc
SCENE XIII. i^j
MARTHA {coming^.
Yes, Sir, t is late.
FAUST.
May I Dot, then, upoa yen wait i
HARGARET.
My mother would — farewell !
FAUST.
Ah. can I Qot remain ?
Farewell!
MARTHA.
Adieu!
MARGARET.
And soon to meet again !
\Ejcti«tl Faust amd HapHiSTOPHtLBSj
MARGARET.
Dear God I However is it, such
A maacas think and know so much f
I stand ashamed and in amaze.
And answer " Yes " to all he says,
A poor, unknowing child ! and he —
I can't think wtat he finds in me 1
ih,Googlc
148
FOREST AND CAVERN.-*
FAUST iinlut).
SPIRIT sublim«, thou gav'sl me, gav'sl me aH
For which I prayed Not unto mc in vain
Hast thou thy countenance revealed in fire.
Thou gav'st me Nature as a kingdom grand,
With power to feel and to enjoy it Thou
Not only cold, amazed acquaintance yield'st,
But grantest, that in her profoundest breast
I gaze, as in the bosom of a friend.
The ranks of living creatures thou dost lead
Before me, leaching me to know my brothers
In air and water and the silent wood.
And when the storm in forests roars and grinds,
The giant firs, in falling, neighbor boughs
And neighbor trunks with crashing weight bear down.
And falling, till the hills with hollow thunders, —
Then to the cave secure thou leadest me,
Then show'st me mine own self, and in my breast
The deep, mysterious miracles unfold.
And when the perfect moon before my gaze
Comes up with soothing light, around me float
From every precipice and thicket damp
The silvery phantoms of the ages past,
And temper the austere delight of thought.
That nothing can be perfect unto Man
1 now am conscious. With this ecstasy,
ih,Googlc
SCENE XIV. ,4,,
Which brings me near ajid aearer to the Gods,
Thou gav'st the comrade, whom I now no more
Can do without, though, cold and scornful, he
Demeans me to myself, and with a breath,
A word, transforms thy gifts to nothingness.
Within my breast he fans a lawless tire,
Unwearied, for that fair and lovely form :
Thus in desire 1 hasten to enjoyment,
And in enjoyment pine to feel desire.
(MEFHITrOFHILES tMUrt.)
MEFHISTOPHELE5-
Have you not led this life quite long enough P
How can a further test delight you F
T is very well, that once one tries the stuff,
But something new must then requite you.
FAUST.
Would there were other work for thee 1
To plague my day auspicious thou retumest
WEPHISTOPHELES.
Well ! 1 '11 engage to let iBee be :
Thou darest not tell me so in earnest
The loss of thee were truly very slight, —
A comrade crazy, rude, repelling :
One has one's hands full all the day and night;
If what one does, or leaves undone, is right,
From such a face as thine there is no telling.
FAUST.
There is, ^ain, thy proper tone ! —
That thou hast bored me, 1 must thankful be I
UEPHISTOPHBLES.
Poor Son of Earth, how couldst thou thus alone
Have led thy life, bereft of me 7
ihyGoogFc
ISO
FAUST.
I, for A time, at least, have worked thy cure;
Thy fancy's rickets plague thee not at all :
Had I not been, so hadst thou, sure,
Walked thyself off this earthly ball.
Why here to caverns, rocky hollows slinking,
Sit'st thou, as 't were an owl a-blinking?
Why suck'st, from sodden moss aad dripping stone,
Toad-like, thy nourishment alone ?
A fine way, this, thy time to fill I
The Doctor 's in thy body stilL
FAUST.
What fresh and vital forces, canst thou guess.
Spring from my commerce with the wilderness?
But, if thou hadst the power of guessing,
Thou wouldst be devil enough to grudge my soul the
blessing.
MEPHI STOPHELES.
A blessing drawn from supernatural fountains I
In night and dew to lie upon the mountains ;
All Heaven and Earth in rapture penetrating;
Thyself to Godhood haughtily inflating;
To grub with yearning force through Earth's dark
Compress the six days' work within thy bosom nar-
To taste, I know not what, in haughty power,
Thine own ecstatic life on all things shower,
Thine earthly self behind thee cast,
And then the lofty tnstiDCt, thus —
at last,—
I dare n't say how — to pluck the final flowerl
ih,Googlc
Shame od thee I
SCENE XtV.
FAUST.
MEPHISTO PHELES.
Yes, thou findest that unpleasant !
Thou hast the moral right to cry me " shame \ " at present
One dares not that before chaste ears declare,'"
Which chaste hearts, notwhhstanding, cannot spare;
And, once for all, I grudge thee not the pleasure
Of lying to thyself in moderate measure.
But such a course thou wilt not long endure ;
Already art thou o'er-excited,
And, if it last, wilt soon be plighted
To madness and to horror, sure.
Enough of that ! Thy love sits lonely yonder,'"
By all things saddened and oppressed ;
Her thoughts and yearnings seelc thee, tenderer, fondei,.--
A mighty love is in her breast.
First came thy passion's flood and poured around her
As when from melted snow a streamlet overflows;
Thou hast therewith so filled and drowned ber,
That now tky stream all shallow shows.
Methinks, instead of in the forests lording
The noble Sir should find it good.
The love of this young silly blood
At once to set about rewarding.
Her time is miserably long;
She haunts her window, watching clouds that stray
O'er the old city-wall, and far away.
" Were I a Kltle bird ! " so runs her song,'"
Day long, and half night long.
Now she is lively, mostly sad.
Now, wept beyond her tears ;
Then again quiet she appears, —
Always love-mad.
ih,Googlc
■ FAUST.
FAUST.
USPHISTOPHBLBS (oiulr).
Ha! do I trap thee!
FAUST.
Get thee away with thine ofiences,
Reprobate ! Name not that fairest thing
Nor the desire for her sweet body bring
Again before my half-dbtracted senses 1
MEPHISTO PHELES.
What wouldst thou, then ? She thinks that thou ail
And half and half thou art, I own.
FAÜST.
Yet am 1 near, and love keeps watch and ward ;
Though I were ne'er so far, it cannot ^ter :
I envy even the Body of the Lord
the toncliing of her lips, before the altar.
UEPKISTOPHELES.
T is very well I My envy oft reposes
On your twin-pair, that feed among the roses.""
Yon rail, and it is fun to me.
The God, who fashioned youth and maid,
Perceived the noblest purpose of His trad^
And also made their opportunity.
Go on I It is a woe profound I
ih,Googlc
T is for your sweetheart's room you "re boond,
And not for death, indeed.
FAUST.
What are, within her arms, the heavenly blisses ?
Though I be glowing with her kisses,
Do I not always share her need?
1 am the fugitive, all houseless roaming,
The monster without aim or rest,
That like a cataract, down rocks and gorges foaming,
Leaps, maddened. Into the abyss's breast 1
And side-wards she, with young unwakened senses,
Within her cabin on the Alpine field
Her simple, homely life commences,
Her Uttle world therein concealed.
And I, God's hate flung o'er m^
Had not enough, to thrust
The stubborn rocks before me
And strike them into dust !
She and her peace I yet must undermine :
Thoo, Hell, hast claimed this sacrifice as thine I
Help, Devil 1 through the coming pangs to push me ;
What must be, let it quickly be I
Let fall on me her fate, and also crush me, —
One ruin whelm both her and me I
UBPHISTOPHELES.
Again it seethes, again it glows !
Thou fool, go in and comfort her !
When such a head as thine no outlet knows,
It thinks the end must soon occur.
Hail him, who keeps a steadfast mind I
Thou, else, dost well the devil-nature wear :
Naught so insipid in the world I find
As is a devil in despair.
ih,Googlc
MARGARET'S ROOM.
M^
MARGARET ■■)
(^ tkt tpiiming'VikttI, alotid^
fY peace is gone,
My heart is sore:
I never shall find it,
Ah, nevermore !
Save I have him near,
The grave is here ;
The world is gall
And bitterness aU.
My poor weak head
Is racked and crazed}
My thought is los^
My senses mazed.
My peace is gone,
My heart is sore ;
I never shall find i^
Ah, I
To see hini, him only.
At the pane 1 sit;
To meet him, him only.
The house I quit
ih,Googlc
Mb lofty gait,
His noble size.
The smile of his mouth,
The power of his eyes,
And the magic flow
Of his talk^ the bKss
In the clasp of his hand,
And, nh t his kiss I
My peace is gone.
My heart \a sore :
I never shall find it,
Ah,n
My bosom yearns
For him alone ;
Ah, dared 1 clasp him.
And hold, and own I
And kiss his mouth,
To heart's desire,
And on his kisses
At last expire 1
ih,Googlc
MARTHA'S GARDEN.
Margaret. Faust,
uargaret.
pROMISE me, Henry ! —
FAUST.
What I cant
MARGARET.
How ts 't with thy religroo, pray?
Thou art a dear, good-hearted man.
And yet, I think, dost not incline tliat way.
FAUST.
Leave that, my child I Thou knon'st my iove is tender;
For love, my blood and life would I surrender,
And as for Faith and Church, 1 grant to each his own.
MARGARET.
That 's not enough : we must believe thereon.
Would that I had some influence !
llien, too, thou honorest not the Holy Sacraments.
ih,Googlc
SCENE XVI.
Desiring no possession.
T is long since thou hast been to mass or to confession.
Believest thou in God ?
FAUST.
My darling, who shall dare
"I believe In Godi" to say P
Ask priest or sage the answer to declare,
And it win seem a mocking play,
A sarcasm on the asker.
HARGAIIET.
Then thou believest not 1
Hear mc not falsely, sweetest couDtenaoce \"*
Who dare express Him ?
And who profess Him,
Saying: 1 believe in Himt
Who, feeling seeing,
Deny His being.
Saying: I believe Him not!
The AU-enfolding,
The All-upholding,
Folds and upholds he not
Thee, me. Himself P
Arches not there the sky above us ?
Lies not beneath us, firm, the earth ?
And rise not, on us shining.
Friendly, the everlasting stars ?
Look I not, eye to eye, on the^
ih,Googlc
And feel'st not, thronging
To head and heart, the force,
Still weaving its eternal secret,
Invisible, visible, round thy life?
Vast as it is, fill with that force thy heart,
And when thou in the feeling vhoUy blessed ar^
Call it, then, what thou vrilt, —
Call it Bliss I Heart ! Love .' God 1
I have no name to give itl
Feeling is all in aU :
The Name is sound and srooke,
Obscuring Heaven's clear glow.
UARGARBT.
AH that is fine and good, to hear it so :
Much the same way the preacher spokey
Only with slightly different phrases.
The same thing, in all places.
All hearts that beat beneath the heavenly da^—
Each in its language — say ;
Then why not I, in mine, as well ?
MARGARET.
To hear it thus, it may seem passable;
And yet, some hitch in 't there must bo
For thou hast no Christiaaily.
MARGARET.
I 've long been grieved ti
That thou art in such company.
ih,Googlc
SCEi^B XVI. 15g
FAUST.
How SO 7
MARGARET.
The man wbo with thee goes, tby mate,
Within my deepest, inmost soul I hate.
In all my life there 's nothing
Has given my heart so keen a pang of loathii^
As bis repulsive face has done.
FAUST.
Nay, fear liim not, my sweetest one !
MARGARET.
1 feel bia presence like something ilL
I 've ebe, for all, a kindly will,
But, much as my heart to see thee yeametb,
The secret horror of him retumeth ;
And I think the man a knave, as I live t
If 1 do him wrong, may God forgive I
FAUST.
There must be sucb queer birds, however.
MARGARET.
Live with the like of him, may I neverl
When once inside the door comes he.
He looks around so sneeringly,
And half in wrath :
One sees that in nothing no interest he hath :
T is written on his very forehead
That love, to him, is a thing abhorrfti.
I am so happy on thine aim,
So free, so yielding, and so warm,
And Id his prsKoce stifled seems my heart
ih,Googlc
PAUST.
F<M«bodiiig angel that thoa ait t
MARGARET.
It overcomes me in such degree,
That wheresoe'er he meets us, even,
I feel as though 1 'd lost my love for thee.
When he is by, 1 could not pray to Heaven.
That bums within me like a flame,
And surely, Hemy, 't is with thee the same.
FAUST.
There, now, is thine antipathy !
MARGARET.
But I must go.
FAUST.
Ah, shall there never be
A quiet hour, to see us fondly plighted,
With breast to breast^ and soul to soul united
MARGARET.
Ah, if 1 only slept alone I
I 'd draw the bolts to-night, for thy desire-.
But mother's sleep so light has grown.
And if we were discovered by her,
'T would be my death upon the spot I
Thou angel, fear it not !
Here is a phial: in her drink
But three drops of it measure.
And deepest sleep will on her senses «nk.
ih,Googlc
SCEJVE XVI.
MARGARET.
What would I not, to give thee pleasure?
It will not barm her, when one tries it?
If 't would, my love, would I advise it?
Ah, dearest man, if but thy face 1 see,
I know not what compels me to thy wiU :
So much have I already done for thee,
That scarcely more is left me to fulliL
(Bnttr MbpHISTOFBBLES.)
MEFHISTOPHELES,
The monlcey I Is she gone ?
FAUST.
Hast played the spy again?
HEPHISTOPKELES.
I "tc heard, most fully, how she drew thee.
The. Doctor has been catechised, 't is plain ;
Great good, I hope, the thing will do thee.
The girls have much desire to ascertain
If one is prim and good, as ancient rules compel :
If there he 's led, they think, he '11 follow them as well
FAUST.
Thou, monster, wilt nor see nor own
How this pure soul, of faith so lowly.
So loving and ineffable, —
The faith alone
That her salvation is, — with scruples holy
Pines, lest she hold as lost the man she loves so well I
ih,Googlc
HEPUISTOPKELES.
Thou, ftiU of Mosual, super-seosual desire^
A girl by the noee is leading thee.
FAUST.
Abortion, thou, of filth and fire 1
UE?HISTOFHELBS.
And then, bow masterly she reads physiognomy I
When I am present she 's impressed, she knows not bow;
She in my mask a hidden sense would read :
She feels that surely I 'm a genius now, —
Perhaps the very Devil, indeed!
Well, well, — to-night — ?
FAUST.
What 's that to thee f
MEPHIBTOPHELES.
Yet my delight 't will also be !
ih,Googlc
SCENE XV^IL
XVIL
AT THE FOUNTAIN.-J
Maroaket atut LiSBETK taiih piuhers.
LISBETK.
T I AST nothing heard of Barbara ?
UARGARET.
No, not a word. I go so little out.
USBETH.
It's true, Sibylla said, to-day.
She 's played the fool at last, there 's not a doubt.
Such taking-oa of airs !
lURGARET.
How so 7
LISBETH.
It Stinks )
She 's feedhig two, whene'er she eats and drinks.
And so, at last, it serves her rightly.
She clung to the fellow so long and tighdy 1
That was a promenading \
At village and dance parading!
ih,Googlc
4 FAUST.
As the first they must everywhere shine,
Aad he treated her always to pies and wine,
And she made a to-do with her face so fine ;
So mean and shameless was her behavior,
She took all the presents the fellow gave her.
'T was kissing and coddling, on and on !
So now, at the end, the flower is gone.
MARGARET.
The poor, poor thing 1
LISDETK.
Dost pity her, at that ?
When one of us at spinning sat,
And mother, nights, ne'er let us out the door
She sported with her paramour.
On the dooT-bencb, in the passage dark.
The length of the time they 'd never mark.
So now her head no more she '11 lift,
But do church-penance in her sinner's shift I
MARGARET.
He 11 surely take her for his wife.
He 'd be a fool ! A brisk young blade
Has room, elsewhere, to ply his trade.
Besides, he 's gone.
HAKGARET.
That is not fair !
LISBETH.
If him she gets, why let her beware I
ih,Googlc
SCENE XVn. 165
Tbc boys shall dash her wreath on the floor,
And we 'U scatter chaff before her door ! "*
\BxU.
UARGARET {retuming kernt).
How scornfully I ODce reviled.
When some poor maiden was beguiled 1
More speech than any tongue suffices
I craved, U censure others' vices.
Black aa It seemed, I blackened still,
And blacker yet was in my will ;
And blessed myself, and boasted high, —
And now — a living sin am I !
Yet — all that drove my heart therett^
God 1 was so good, so dear, so true I
ih,Googlc
a nickt tf tike wall a thriiu, with an imagt sf tXt Mai^
Doloraia. Pots of ßawers bifert it.)
[fnttätgfrtskflewert m thtpm).
INCLINE, O Maiden,
Thou sorrow-laden,
Thy gracious countenance upon my pain 1
The sword Thy heart in.
With ang;uish smarting,
Thou lookest up to where Thy Son is slain I
Thou seest the Father ;
Thy sad sighs gather,
And bear aloft Thy sorrow and His pain !
Ah, past guessing.
Beyond expressing.
The pangs that wring my flesh and bone t
Why this anxious heart so bumeth.
Why it tretnbleth, why it yeameth,
Knowest Thou, and Thou alone I
Where'er I go, what «orrow,
What woe, what woe and sonxiw
ih,Googlc
SCEKTE XVm.
Within my bosom aches !
Alone, and ah ! unsleeping,
I 'm weeping, weeping, weeping,
The heart within me breaks.
The pots before my window,
Alas I my tears did wet.
As in the early morning
For thee these flowers I set.
Within my lonely chamber
The morning sun shone red :
Already on my bed.
Help ! rescue me from death and stain !
O Maiden !
Thou sorrow-laden.
Incline Thy countenance upon my paiu i
ih,Googlc
w
Street before Margaret's door,
valentine"'
{a saldier, Margaket's bredier).
HEN I have sat aX some carouse.
Where each to each his brag allows,
And many a comrade praised to me
His pink of girls right lustily,
With brimming glass that spilled the toast,
And elbows planted as in boast :
I sat in unconcerned repose,
And heard the swagger as it rose.
And stroking then my beard, I 'd say.
Smiling, the bumper in my hand:
" Each well enough in her own way,
But is there one in all the land
Like sister Margaret, good as gold, —
One that to her can a candle hold ? "
Cling ! clang ! " Here 's to her ! " went around
The board: " He speaks the truth!" cried some;
" In her the flower o' the sex Is found ! "
And all the swaggerers were dumb.
And now ! — 1 could tear my hair with vexation,
And dash out my brains in desperation I
With tumed-up nose each scamp may face me,
With sneers and stinging taunts disgrace me,
ih,Googlc
SCENE XIX. 169
And, like a bankrupt debtor sitting,
A chance-dropped word may set me sweating!
Yet, though 1 thresh them all tt^ther,
1 cannot call them liars, either.
But what comes sneaking, there, to view?
If I mistake not, there are two.
If ht 's one, let me at him drive t
He shall not leave the spot alive.
Faust. Mephistopheles.
FAOST.
How from the window of the sacristy
Upward th' eternal lamp sends forth a glimmer,
That, lessening side-wards, fainter grows and dimmer,
Till darkness closes from the sky i
The shadows thus within my bosom gather.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
I 'm like a sentimental tom-cat, rather.
That round the tall fire-ladders sweeps,
And stealthy, then, along the coping creeps :
Quite virtuous, withal, 1 come,
A litüe thievish and a little frolicsome.
I feel in every limb the presage
Forerunning the grand Walpurgis-Night :
Day after to-morrow brings its message,
And one keeps watch then with delight
FAUST.
Meanwhile, may not the treasure risen b^
Which there, behind, 1 glimmering see ?
HEPHISTOP HELES.
Shalt soon experience the pleasure.
To lift the kettle with its treasure.
VOL. L 8
ih,Googlc
I lately gave therein a squint —
Saw splendid lion-doIIars In 't"
Not even a jewel, not a rin^
To deck therewith my darling girl \
HEPHISTOPH ELES.
1 saw, among the rest, a thing
That seemed to be a chain of pearL
FAUST.
That 's well, indeed I For painful is it
To bring no gift when her I visit
MEPUISTOPHELES.
Thou shouldst not find it so annoying,
Without return to be enjoying.
Now, while the sky leads forth its starry thron^^
Thou 'It hear a masterpiece, no work completer :
I 'U sing her, first, a moral song.
The surer, afterwards, to cheat her,
{Sings lo the dther.'i
What dost thou here '"
In daybreak dear,
Kathrina dear.
Before thy lover's door ?
Beware! the blade
Lets in a mud.
That out a maid
Departeth nevermore I
The coaxing shun
Of such an one !
When once 't is done
ih,Googlc
SCB^TE XIX. xtx
Good-night to thee, poor thing !
Love's time is brief :
Unto no thief
Be warm and lief.
But with the wedding-ring !
VALENTINE (caiHts forwar^.
Whom wilt thon lure ? God's-element !
Rat-catching piper, thou I — perdition ! ™
To the Devil, first, the instniment t
To the Devil, then, the curst musician I
H EP H ISTOP HELES.
The either 's smashed ! For nothing more 't is fitttn^
There 's yet a slcull I must be splitting 1
HEPHISTOPKEI.ES \,le Faust).
Sir Doctor, don't retreat, 1 pray !
Stand by; I '11 lead, if you'll but tarry;
Out with your spit, wiüiout delay ! '"
You 've but to lunge, and I will parry.
VALENTINE.
Tlien parry that I
HEPHISTOPH BLES.
Why not? 't Is light.
VALENTINE.
That, too!
MZPHISTOPH ELES.
Of course.
VALENTINE.
I think the Devil must fight!
How is it, then ? my hand 's already lame.
ih,Googlc
KEPHISTOPHELES (/f FaUSI).
Thrust home I
VALENTINE (falls).
OGodI
HBPHISTOFHELES.
Now is the lubber tame I
But come, away I 'T is time for us to fly ;
For there arises now a murderous cry.
With the police 't were easy to compound it,
But here the penal court will sift and sound it.
{ExitwM Favsi.
MARTHA [ai Ih windno).
Come out ! come out !
MARGARET [at tlie Ji/indmo).
Quick, bring a light I
MARTHA (aj aietie).
They swear and storm, they yell and fight I
PEOPLE.
Here lies one dead already — see I
MARTHA (ceming/rim (At Aouu).
The murderers, whither have they run?
r {cBiHing out].
Who lies here ?
PEOPLE.
T is thy mother's son I
MARGARET.
Almighty God I what misery 1
ih,Googlc
SCENE XIX.
TALENTtNB.
I 'm dying t That is quickly said.
And quicker yet 't is done.
Why howl, you women there? Instead,
Come here and listen, every one !
{All gather areund him )
My Margaret, see I still young thou art,
But not the least bit shrewd or smart,
Thy business thus to slight:
So this advice 1 bid thee heed —
Now that thou art a whore indeed.
Why, be one then, outright !
MARGARET.
My brother I God ! such words to me ?
VALENTINE.
In this game let our Lord God be I
What 's done 's already done, alas !
What follows it, must come to pass.
With one begin'st thou secretly.
Then soon will others come to tliee,
And when a dozen thee have known,
Thou 'rt also free to all the town.
When Shame ia bom and first appears,
She is in secret brought to light,
And then they draw the veil of night
Over her head and ears ;
Her life, in fact, they 're loath to spare her.
But let her growth and strength display,
She walks abroad unveiled by day.
Yet Is not grown a whit the fairer.
The uglier she is to sight.
The more she seeks the day's broad ligfaL
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
The time I verily can discern
When all the honest fotk will turn
From thee, thou jade ! and seek protectioo
As from a corpse that breeds infection.
Thy guilty heart shall then dismay thee.
When they but look thee in the face : —
Shalt not in a golden chain array thee,
Nor at the altar take thy place !
Shalt not, in lace and ribbons tiavnng,
Make merry when the dance is going 1
But in some comer, woe betide thee t
Among the be^ars and cripples hide theej
And so, though even God forgive,
On earth a damned existence live !
MARTHA.
Commend your soul to God for pardon,
That you your heart with slander harden 1
Thou i^mp most infamous, be still I
Could I thy withered body kill,
'T would bring, for all my sinful pleasure,
Forgiveness in the richest measure.
HARGARBT.
My brother I This is Hell's own pain I
VALENTINE.
1 tell thee, from thy tears refrain !
When thou from honor didst depart
It stabbed me to the very heart
Now through the slumber of the grave
I go to God as a soldier brave.
ih,Googlc
CATHEDRAL.-»
Service, Organ and Amthbh.
;Ma»Ga»£T ttmeng mici ptoptt: Iht EVIL SPIUT U^ni
Marcakbt.)
evil spirit.
HOW otherwise was it, Margaret,
When thou, still innocent,
Here to the altar cam'st,
And from the worn and lingered book
Thy prayers didst prattle,
Half sport of childhood.
Half God within tbee I
Margaret!
Where tends thy thought ?
Within thy bosom
Wliat hidden crime "i
Pray'st thou for mercy on thy mother's soul,
That fell asleep to lon^ long torment, and through thee t
Upon thy threshold whose the blood ?
And stiireth not and quickens
Something beneath thy heart.
Thy life disquieting
With most foreboding presence ?
II ARC AR ET.
Woe! woe!
Would I were free from the thoughts
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
That cross me, drawing hither and thither.
Despite me 1
CHORUS.
Düi ira, dUi ilia,"*
Solvit imclum in/avilla /
{Sminä a/lkt organ.)
EVIL SPIRIT.
Wrath takes thee I
The trumpet peals I
The graves tremble I
And thy heart
From ashy rest
To fiery torments
Now again requickened,
Throl» to life !
MARGARET.
Would I were forth I
I feel as if the organ here
My breath takes from me,
My very heart
Dissolved by the anthem I
yudex ergo cum tedeMi.'V
Quidquid lattt, adparebit.
Nil inultum remantbit.
MARGARET.
I cannot breathe !
The massy pillars
Imprison me I
The vaulted arches
Crush me ! i~ Air 1
ih,Googlc
SCEJVE XX.
Hide thyself ! Sin and shame
Stay never hidden.
Air? Light?
Woe to thee I
CHORUS.
Q^idsum miser tunc dicturus,'^
Quem patrtmum rogaturus.
Cum vix Justus sit secuntsf
EVIL SPIRIT.
They turn their faces.
The glorified, from thee :
The pure, their hands to oSer,
Shuddering, refuse thee I
Woe!
CHORUS.
Q)iiJ sum miser tunc dicturmt
MARGARET.
Neighbor ! your cordial ! ■"
\ShefalU in a rt«KW.4
ih,Googlc
WALPURGIS-NIGHT.-
The Hartz Mountains.
District of Schurke and EUnd.
Faust. Mephistopheles.
uep histopheles.
DOST thou not wish a broomstick-steed's assistance?
The sturdiest he-goat I would gladly see :
The m.j we take, our goal is yet some distance
FAUST.
So long as in roy l^is I feel the fresh existence.
This knotted staff suffices me.
What need to shorten so the way ?
Along this labyrinth of vales to wander,
Then climb the rocky ramparts yonder,
Wherefrom the fountain flings eternal spray, ,
Is such delight, my steps would fain delay.
The spring-time stirs mthin the fragrant birches,
And even the fir-tree feels it now :
Should th^n our limbs escape its gentle searches?
I notice no such thing, I vow !
T is winter still within my body ;
Upon my path 1 wish for frost and snow.
ih,Googlc
SCE^/£ XXI. 171
How sadly rises, incomplete and ruddy,
The moon's lone disk, with its belated glow,*^
And lights so dimly, that, as one advances.
At every step one strikes a rock or tree !
Let us, then, use a Jack-o'-Iantera's glances :
I see one yonder, burning merrily.
Ho, there ! my friend ! I 'II levy thine attendance ;
Why waste so vainly thy resplendence ?
Be kind enough to light us up the steep !
WI LL-3 '-THE- WISP.
My reverence, I hope, will me enable
To curb my temperament unstable ;
For zigzag courses we are woat to keep.
Il&PHISTOPHELES.
Indeed ? he 'd like mankind to imitate !
Now, in the Devil's name, go straight.
Or 1 11 blow out his being's flickerii^ spark I
will-o'-the-wisp.
Yon su% the master of the house, I mark,
And I shall try to serve you nicely.
But then, reflect : the mountain 's magic-mad t»day,
And if a will-o'-the-wisp roust guide you on the way.
You must n't take things too precisely.
FAUST, MEPHISTOPHELES, WILL-O'-THE-WISP
(hi alternating lon^.
We, it seems, have entered newly
In the sphere of dreams enchanted.
Do thy bidding, guide us truly,
That our feet be forwards planted
In the vast, the desert spaces I
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
See them swiftly changing places.
Trees on trees beside us trooping,
And the crags above us stooping.
And the rocky snouts, outgrowing, —
Hear them snoring, hear Ihem blowing ! ■'
O'er the stones, the grasses, flowing
Stream and streamlet seek the hollow.
Hear I noises? songs that follow?
Hear 1 tender love-petitions ?
Voices of those heavenly visions ?
Sounds of hope, of love undying I
And the echoes, like traditions
Of old days, come faint and hollow.
Hoo-hoo I Shoo-hoo ! Nearer hover
Jay and screech-owl, and the plover, —
Are they all awake and crying ?
Is 't the salamander pushes,
Bloated-bellied, through the bushes ?
And the roots, like serpents twisted,
Through the sand and boulders toiling.
Fright us, weirdest links uncoiling
To entrap us, unresisted :
Living knots and gnarls uncanny
Feel with polypus-antennse
For the wanderer. Mice are flying,
Thousand-colored, herd-wise hieing
Through the moss and through the heather!
And the fire-flies wink and darkle,
Crowded swarms that soar and sparkle,
And in wildering escort gather I
Tell me, if we still are standing,
Or if further we 're ascending?
All is turning, whirling, blending,
Trees and rocks with grinning faces,
ih,Googlc
SCEJV£ XXI. 1 8
Wandering lights that spin in mazes.
Still increasing and expanding 1
MEFHISTOFHELES.
Grasp my skirt with heart undaunted I
Here a middle-peak is planted,
Whence one seSth, with atnaze,
Mammon in the mountain blaze.
PAUST.
How strangely glimmers through the hollows
A dreary light, like that of dawn !
Its exhalation trades and follows
The deepest gorges, faint and wan.
Here steam, there rolling vapor sweepeth ;
Here bums the glow through film and haze :
Now like a tender thread it creepelh,
Now like a fountain leaps and plays.
Here winds away, and in a hundred
Divided veins the valley braids :
There, in a comer pressed and sundered,
Itself detaches, spreads and fades.
Here gush the sparkles incandescent
Uke scattered showers of golden sand ; —
But, see ! in all their height, at present,
The Focky ramparts blazing stand.
MEPHISTOPHELBS.
Has not Sir Mammon grandly lighted
His palace for this festal night?
T is lucky thou hast seen the sight ;
The boisterous guests approach that were invited.
How raves the tempest through the air I '''
With what fierce blows upon my neck 't is beatingi
ih,Googlc
IM FAUST.
KEPHISTOPH ELES.
Under die old ribs of the rock retrea.tiDg,
Hold fast, lest thou be hurled down the abysses there 1
The night with the mist is black ;
Hark 1 how the forests grind and crack I
Frightened, the owlets are scattered :
Hearken I the pillars are shattered,
The evergreen palaces shaking !
Boughs are groaning and breaking,
The tree-trtinks tembly thunder.
The loots are twisting asunder I
In frightfully intricate crashing
Each on the other is dashing,
And over the wreck-strewn gorges
The tempest whistles and surges I
Hear'st thou voices higher ringing?
Far away, or nearer singing?
Yes, the mountain's side along.
Sweeps an infuriate glamouring song I
WITCHES \i* cAenu).
The witches ride to the Brocken's top, '3*
The stubble is yellow, and green the crop.
There gathers the crowd for camii-al :
Sir Urian sits over all.
And so they go over stone and stock ;
The witch she s, and s the buck.
A VOICE.
Alone, old Baubo 's coming now;*^
She lides upon a farrow-sow.
CHORUS.
Then honor to whom the honor is duel
Dame Baubo first, to lead the crew !
ih,Googlc
SCMNE XXI. 183
A tough old sow and the mother thereon,
Then follow the witches, every one.
A VOICE.
Which way com'st thou hither 7
VOICE.
O'er the Ilaen^tone.
I peeped at the owl in her nest alone :
Mow she stared and glared !
VOICE.
Betalce thee to Hell !
Whyso&standsofeUP
She has scored and has Hayed me :
See the wounds she lias made me I
WITCHES (tkonu).
The way is wide, the way is long :
See, what a wild and crazy throng I
The broom it scratches, the fork It throsts,
The child is stiaed, the mother bursts.
s (ftmkh»rui).
As doth the snail in shell, we crawl :
Before us go the women all.
When towards the Devil's House we tread,
Woman's a thousand steps ahead. ■»
OTHER SEMICHORUS.
We do not measure with such care :
Woman in thousand steps is there,
But howBoe'er she hasten may,
Man in one leap has cleared the way.
ih,Googlc
l84 FAUST.
VOICE (from cbotn).
Come on, come on, from Rocky Lake !
VOICE (from ieloai).
Aloft we'd fain ourselves betake.
We 've washed, and are bright as ever you irill,
Yet we 're eternally sterile stiU.>3s
BOTH CHORUSES.
The wind is hushed, the star shoots by,
The dreary moon forsakes the sky ;
The magic notes, hke spark on spark.
Drizzle, whistling through the dark."**
VOICE {Jrem Mva).
Halt, there 1 Ho, there!
VOICE {/ram atave).
Who calls from the rocky deft below there ?
VOICE (Motu).
Take me, too t take mc, too 1
I 'm climbing now three hundred years,"
And yet the summit cannot seei
Among my equals 1 would be.
BOTH CHORUSES.
Bears the broom and bears the stock.
Bears the fork and liears th« buck :
Who cannot raise himself to-night
Is evermore a ruined wight
HALF-wrrcH (bclfw).
So long I stumble, ill bestead.
And tlie others are now so far ahead !
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXI.
At home 1 've neither rest nor cheer,
And yet I cannot gain tfaem here.
CHORUS OF -o
To cheer the witch will salve avail ;
A rag will answer for a sail;
Each trough a goodly ship supplies ;
He ne'er will fly, who now not flies.
BOTH CHORUSES.
When round the summit whirls our flight
Then lower, and on the ground alight ;
And far and wide the heather press
With witchhood's swarms of wantonness I
(Tliey stItU dman.)
HEPHISTOPHELES.
They crowd and push, they roar and clatter I
They whirl and whisde, pull and chatter!
They shine, and spirt, and stink, and bum !
The true witch-element we learn.
Keep close ! or we are parted, in our turn.
Where art thou ?
FAUST {in thi disUmce).
Here!
HEPHISTOPHELES.
What ! whirled so iax astray!
Then house-right 1 must use, and clear the way.
Make room J Squire Voland comes ! '^ Room, genti*
rabble, room !
Here, Doctor, hold to me : in one jump we 'il resume
An easier space, and from the crowd be free :
It '■ too much, even for the like of me.
ih,Googlc
1 86 FAUST.
Yonder, with special light, there 's something shinii^
clearer
Within those bushes ; I Ve a mind to see.
Come on t we 'U slip a little nearer.
Spirit of Contradiction ! On ! I 'II follow straight
'T is planned most wisely, if I judge aright:
We climb the Broclcen's top in the Walpur^s-Nigh^
That arbitrarily, here, ourselves we isolate.
HEPHISTOPH ELES.
But see, what motley flames among the heather)
There is a lively club together :
In smaller circles one is not alone.
FAUST.
Better the summit, I must own:
There fire and whirling smolce I see.
They seek the Evit One in wild confusion:
Many enigmas there might find solution.
HEPHISTOPH ELES.
But there enigmas also knotted be.
Leave to the multitude their riot !
Here will we house ourselves in quiet
It is an old, transmitted trade,
That in the greater world the little worlds are made.
I see stark-nude young witches congregate,
And old ones, veiled and hidden shrewdly:
On my account be kind, nor treat them rudely!
The trouble 's small, the fun is great
I hear the noise of instruments attuning, —
Vile din ! yet one must leam to bear the crooning.
Come, come alongt It must be, I declare!
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXt. i8y
1 11 go ahead and iDtroduce thee there,
Thine obligation newly earning.
That is no little space: what say'st thou, friend?
Look yonder ! thou canst scarcely see the end :
A hundred fires along the ranks are burning.
They dance, they chat, they cook, they drink, thej
court:
Now where, just tell me, is there better sport 7
FAUST.
Wilt thou, to introduce us to the revel,
Assume the part of wizard or of devil?
ItBPRISTOFHELES.
I 'm mostly used, 't is true, to go incognito,
But on a gala-day one may his orders show.
The Garter does not deck my suit,
Bnt honored and at home is here the cloven foot
Perceiv'st thou yonder snail f It cometh, slow and
steady;
So delicately its feelers pry,
That it hath scented me ah^ady :
I cannot here disguise me, if 1 try.
But come ! we 'U go from this fire to a newer :
1 am the go-between, and thou the wooer.
(7I> snrni, leka are sittitig arvHiid dying tmbtri :)
Old gentlemen, why at the outskirts ? Enter I
I 'd praise you if I found you snugly in the centre,
With youth and revel round you like a zone :
You each, at home, are quite enough alone.
Say, who would put hts trust in nations,
Howe'er fir them one may have worked and planned?
ih,Googlc
For with the people, as with women,
Youth always has the upper hand.
HimSTER.
They 're now too far from what is just and sag&
1 praise the old ones, not unduly :
When we were all-in-all, then, tndy,
TluH was the real golden age.
PARVENU.
We abo were not stupid, either,
And what we should not, often did ;
But now all things have from their bases slid,
Just as we meant to hold them fast together.
Who, now, a work of moderate sense will read?
Such works are held as antiquate and mossy;
And as regards the younger folk, indeed.
They never yet have been so pert and saucy.
HEFHtSTOPHEt-BS
[who aU at enei appears very ulii).'^
I feel that men are ripe for Judgment- Day,
Now for the last time I 've the witches'-hill ascended:
Since to the lees mji cask is drained away,
The world's, as well, must soon be ended.
HUCKSTER- WITCH.
Ye gentlemen, don't pass me thus I
Let not the chance neglected be I
Behoki my wares attentively:
The stock is rare and various.
And yet, there 's nothing I 've collected —
No shop, on earth, like this you '11 find ! —
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXI. 189
Which has not, once, sore hurt inflicted
Upon the world, and on mankind.
No dagger 's here, that set not blood to flowing ; ■"
No cup, that hath not once, within a healthy frame
Poured speedy death, in poison glowing :
No gems, that have not brought a nudd to shame ;
No sword, but severed ties for the unwary,
Or from behind stniclc down the adversary.
HEP HISTOPH ELES.
Gossip 1 the times thou badly comprehendest;
What 's done has happed — what haps, is done!
T were better if for novelties thou sendest ;
By such alone can we be won.
FADST,
Let me not lose myself in all this pother I
This is a fair, as never was another !
HEPHtSTOPHELES.
The whirlpool swirls to get above :
Thou 'rt shoved thyself, ima^ning to shove.
FAUST.
But who ts that?
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Note her especially,
TisUHth.
UEPHISTOPHBLES.
Adam's first wife is sbc.***
Beware the lure within her lovely tresses,
The sfdendid sole adornment of her hair I
ih,Googlc
When she succeeds therewith a youth to snare,
Mot soon again she frees him from her jesses.
FAUST.
Those two, the old one with the young one sitting,
They "ve danced already more than fitting.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Mo rest to-night for young or old I
They start another dance : come now, let us takeholdl
FAUST [Jaitängviilh Iheyotmgmtek),
A bvely dream once came to me ; "■
1 then beheld an apple-tree.
And there two fairest apples shone :
They lured me so, I climbed thereon.
THE PAIR ONE.
Apples have been desired by you.
Since first in Paradise they grew ;
And 1 am moved with joy, to know
That such within my ^rden grow.
HEPHISTOPnBLBS {danetHg milk the tldeiu).
A dissolute dream once came to me :
Therein I saw a cloven tree,
Which had a ;
Yet, as 't was, I fancied iL
THE OLD ONE.
I offer here my best salute
Unto the knight with cloven foot !
Let him a prepare.
If him does not scare.
ih,Googlc
SCEii/E XXI. ,ji
PROKTOPHANTASinST. "»
AccursM folk! How dare you venture thns ?
Had you not, lODg since, demonstration
That ghosts can't stand on ordinary foundation ?
And now you even dance, like one of us \
THE FAIR ONE (atmnn^.
Why docs he come, then, to our ball ?
FAUST {daneittg^.
0, everywhere on him you fall !
When others dance, he weighs the matter;
If he can't every step bechatter,
Then 'tis the same as were the step not made;
But if yov forwards go, his ire is most displayed.
If you would whirl in regular gyration
As he does in his dull old mill,
He 'd show, at any rate, good-will, —
Especially if you heard and heeded his hortation.
PROKTOPHANTASUIST.
You still are here ? Nay, 't is a thing unheard I
Vanish, at once ! We 've said the enlightening word.
The pack of devils by no rules is daunted :
We are so wise, and yet is Tegel haunted.'«
To clear the folly out, how have I swept and stirred I
T will ne'er be clean : why, 't is a thing unheard I
THE FAIR ONE.
Tlien cease to bore us at our ball I
FROKTO PHANTASM 1ST.
I tell you, spirits, to your face,
I give to spirit-despotism no place;
My spirit cannot practise it at all.
ih,Googlc
19« FAUST.
( 7Xf datut cantinati.)
Hanght win succeed, I see, amid such revets ;
Vet something from a tour I always save,>*>
And hope, before my last step to the grave,
To overcome the poets and the devik.
MEPHISTO PH ELES.
He now will seat him in the nearest puddle ;
The solace this, whereof he '« most assured :
And when upon his rump the leeches hang and fuddl^
He 'II be of spirits and of Spirit cured.
( Ta Faust, viko hai left the dance :)
Wherefore forsakest thou the lovely tnaideo,
That in the dance so sweetly sang \
Ah 1 in the midst of it there sprang
A red mouse from her mouth — sufficient reason!'*
MEPH 1ST OPH ELES.
That 'b nothing I One must not so squeamish be ;
So the mouse was not gray, enough for thee.
Who 'd think of that in love's selected season ?
FAUST.
Then »aw I —
HEPHtSTOPBELES.
What?
Mephisto, seest thou there,
Alone and iax, a girl most pale and fair ?
She falters on, her way scarce knowing.
As if with fettered feet that stay her going.
ih,Googlc
I must confess, it seems to me
As if my kindly Margaret were she.
HBPHISTOPHELES.
Let the thing be ! All thence have evil drawn i
It is a magic shape, a lifeless eidolon.
Such to encounter is not good :
Their blanlc, set stare benumbs the human blood,
And one is almost turned to stone.
Medusa's tale to thee is Icnown.
Forsooth, the eyes they are of one whom, dyin^
No band with loving pressure closed ;
That is the breast whereon I once was lying, —
The body sweet, beside which 1 reposed I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
T is magic all, thou fool, seduced so easily 1
Unto each man bis love she seems to be.
The woe, the rapture, so ensnare me,
That from her gaze I cannot tear me !
And, strange ! around her fairest throat
A single scarlet band b gleaming,
No broader than a Imife-blade seeming I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Quite right ! The mark 1 also note.
Her head beneath her arm she '11 sometime.^ car:7;
'T was Perseus lopped it, her old adversary.
Thou crav'st the same illusion still !
Come, let us mount this little hill ;
The Prater shows no livelier stir,'«
VOL. L 9 M
ih,Googlc
And, if they 've not bewitched my Kiue,
I verily see a theatre.
What 's going on?
SERVIBILIS."»
'T will shortly recomm^iice:
A new performance — 't is the last of seven.
To give that number is the custom here ;
'T was by a Dilettante written,
And Dilettanti in the parts appear.
That now I vanish, pardon, I entreat you !
As Dilettante I the curtain raise.
HEFHISTOPHELES.
When I upon the Blockabei^ tneet you,
I find it good : tor that 's your proper place
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXII.
XXII.
WALPURGIS-NIGHT'S DREAM.
Oberon and Titania's Golden Wedding.'«
intermezzo.
MANAGER.
SONS oE Mieding, rest to-day I ■»
Needless your machinery:
Misty vale and mountain gray.
That is all the scenery.
That the wedding golden be,
Must fifty years be rounded:
But Ute Golden give to me,
When the strife 's compounded.
Spirits, if you 're here, be seci
Show yourselves, delighted!
Fairy king and fairy queen,
They are newly plighted.
Cometh Puck, and, light of limb.
Whisks and whirls in measure :
Come a hundred after bim.
To share with him the pleasure.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
ARIEL.'S"
Ariel's song is heavenly-pure,
His tones are sweet and rare oi
Though ugly faces he allure,
Yet he allures the fair ones.
Spouses, who would fain agree.
Learn how we were mated !
If your pairs would loving be,
First be separated !
TITANIA.
If her whims the wife control,
And the man berate her.
Take him to the Northern Pole,
And her to the Equator I
ORCHESTRA. TÜTTI.'53
Forlitämo.
Snout of fly, mosquito-bill.
And kin of all conditions,
Frog in grass, and cricket-trill, —
These are "
SOLO.'«
See the bagpipe on our track I
'T is the soap-blown bubble :
Hear the schnecke-sckHicke^chnack
Through his nostrils double 1
SPIRIT, JUST GROWING INTO FORM.'»
Spider's foot and paunch of toad.
And little wings — we know 'em I
ih,Googlc
SCE/fE XXII.
A little creature 't will not be,
But yet, a little poem.
A LITTLE COUPLE.*
Little step and lofty leap
Through honey-dew and fragrance :
You 'II never mount the airy steep
With all your tripping vagrance.
INQUISITIVE TRAVELLER.'"
Is 't but masquerading play I
See 1 with precision ?
Oberon, the l>eauteou3 fay.
Meets, to-night, my vision I
ORTHODOX.'*
Not a claw, no tail I see t
And yet, beyond a cavil,
Like " the Gods of Greece," must he
Also be a devil.
NORTHERN ARTIST."»
I only seize, with sketchy air.
Some outlines of the tourney ;
Yet I betimes myself prepare
For my Italian journey.
PURIST.
My bad luck brings me here, alas I
How roars the orgy louder !
And of the witches in the mass.
But only two wear powder.
YOUNG WITCH.
Powder becomes, like petticoat^
A grey and wrinkled noddy ;
ih,Googlc
So I sit naked od my goat,
And show a strapping body.
UATRON.
We "ve too much tact and policy
To rate with gibes a scolder;
Yet, young and tender though you b^
1 hope to see you moulder.
LEADER OP THE BAND.
Fly-snout and mosquito-biU,
Don't swarm so round the Naked !
Frog in grass and cricket-trill.
Observe the time, and make it!
WEATHERCOCK {tcaardi ant tide).'*'
Society to one's desire !
Brides only, and the sweetest !
And bachelors of youth and fire,
And prospects the completest I
WEATHERCOCK (Unuardi tht OtHtr sidt\.
And if the Earth don't open now
To swallow up each ranter,
Why, then will 1 myself, I vow.
Jump into hell instanter !
XENIES."*'
Us as little insects see I
With sharpest nippers flitting.
That our Papa Satan we
May honor as is fitting.
How, in crowds tc^ether massed,
They are jesting, shameless !
ih,Googlc
SCENE XX/f.
They will even say, aX last,
That their hearts are blameless.
HUSAGETES.
Among this witches' reveliy
His way one gladly loses ;
And, truly, it would easier be
Than to command the Muses.
a-DEVAKT GENIUS OF THE AOb
The proper folks one's talents laud:
Come on, and none shall pass us I
The Blocksberg has a summit broad,
like Germany's Parnassus.
INQUISITIVE TRAVELLER.
Say, who 's the sti£E and pompous man?
He walks with haughty paces:
He snuffles all he snuffle can :
" He scents the Jesuits' traces."
CRANE."''
Both dear and muddy streams, for me
Are good to fish and sport in :
And thus the pious man you see
With even devils consorting.
WOBLDUNG.*
Yes, for the pious, I suspect.
All instruments are fitting ;
And on the Blocksberg they erect
FuU many a place of meeting.
DANCER.
A newer chorus now succeeds I
I hear the distant drumming.
ih,Googlc
" Don't be disturbed ! 't fa, (n the reeds,
The bittern's changeless booming."
DANCING-UASTBtt.
How each his legs in nimtle trip
Lifts up, and malces a clearance!
The crooked jump, the heavy skip,
Nor care for the appearance.
GOOD FELLOW,"*
The rabble by such hate are held.
To maim and slay delights them :
As Orpheus' lyre the brutes compelled.
The bagpipe here unites them.
DOGHATIST.
I Ml not be led by any lure
Of doubts or critic-cavils;
The Devil must be something, sure,--
Or how should there be devils ?
This once, the fancy wrought in me
Is really too despotic :
Forsooth, if I am all I see,
I must be idiotic I
This racking fuss on every hand.
It gives me great vexation ;
And, for the first time, here 1 stand
e foundation.
SUPERNATURALIST.
With much delight I see the play,
And grant to these their merits,
ih,Googlc
SCEJVB XXII.
Since from the devils I also may
lofer the better spirits.
The flame they follow, on and on.
And think they 're near the treasure :
But Devil rhymes with Doubt alone,
So 1 am here with pleasure.
LEADER OF THE BAND.
Frog in green, and cricket-trill.
Such dilettants ! — perdition !
Fly-anout and mo5quito-bill, —
Each one 's a fine musician 1
THE ADROIT.'"
Sanssouci, we call the clan
Of merry creatures so, then;
Co a-fool no more we can.
And on our heads we go, then.
THE AWKWARD.
Once many a bit we sponged; but now,
God help us ! that is done with :
Our shoes are all danced out, we trow,
We 've but naked soles to run with.
WILL-O'-THE-WISPS."»
From the marshes we appear,
Where we originated ;
Vet in the ranks, at once, we 're here
As glittering gallants rated.
SHOOTING-STAR,
Darting hither from the sky.
In star and fire light shooting,
ih,Googlc
Cross-wise now in grass I lie ;
Who 11 help me to my footing?
THE HEAVY FELLOWS,
Room ! and round about us, room
Trodden are the grasses :
Spirits also, spirits come.
And they are bulky masses.
PUCK.
Enter not so statl-fed quite,
Like elephant-calves alx>ut one !
And the heaviest weight tonight
Be Puck, himself, the stout one I
If loving Nature at your back,
Or Mind, the wings uncbscs,
Follow up my airy track
To the mount of roses !
ORCHESTRA.
PiaHiiama.
Cloud and trailing mist o'erhead
Are now Illuminated :
Air in leaves, and wind In reed.
And all is dissipated.""
ih,Googlc
SCEAfE XXIII.
XXIII.
DREARY DAY."-
A FiELa
Faust. Mephi5tofhei.es.
FAUST.
IN miser}- ! In despair ! Long wretchedly astray on
the face of the earth, and now imprisoned! Tliat
gracious, fD-starred creature shut in a dungeon as a
criminal, and given up to fearful tomeDta ! To this
has it come 1 to this ! — Treacherous, contemptible spir-
it, and thou hast concealed it from me ! — Stand, then,
— standi Roll the devilish eyes viathfully in thy head!
Stand and defy me with thine intolerable presence 1
Imprisoned! In irretrievable misery! Delivered up
to evil spirits, and to condemning, unfeeling Man ! And
thou hast lulled me, meanwhile, with the most insipid
dissipations, hast concealed from me her increasii^
wretchedness, and suffered her to go helplessly to ruin I
HEPHISTOPHELES.
She is not the first.
FAUST.
Dog ! Abominable monster ! Transform him, thou
Infinite Spirit ! transform the reptile again into his dog'
shape, in which it pleased him often at night to scamper
on before me, to roll himself at the feet of the unsus-
n,g,t,7rJM,GOOglC
»04
FAUST.
pcctli^ wanderer, and hang upon his shoulders when
he fell ! Transform him again into his favorite lilceness,
that he may crawl upon his belly in the dust before me,
— that I may trample him, the outlawed, under foot!
Not the first J O woe ! woe which no human soul can
grasp, that more than one being should sink into the
depths of this misery, — that the first, in its writhii^
death-agony under the eyes of the Eternal Forgiver, did
not expiate the guilt of all others ! The misery of this
single one pierces to the very marrow of my life ; and
thou art calmly grinning at the fate of thousands I
'HELBS.
Now we are already again at the end of our wits,
where the understanding of you men runs wild. Why
didst thou enter into fellowship with us, if thou canst
not carry it out? Wilt fly, and art not secure against
dizziness 7 Did we thrust ourselves upon thee, or thou
thyself upon us 7
FAUST.
Gnash not thus thy devouring teeth at me I It fills
me with horrible disgust. Mighty, glorious Spirit, who
tiast vouchsafed to me Thine apparition, who knowesl
my heart and my soul, why fetter me to the felon-com-
rade, who feeds on mischief and gluts himself with
FAUST.
Rescue her, or woe to thee ! The fearfuUest curse
be upon thee for thousands of ages 1
HEPH ISTOPH ELES.
I cannot loosen the bonds of the Avenger, nor undo
ih,Googlc
SCENE xxirr. 305
his bolts. Rescue her i Who was it that plunged her
into ruin ? I, or thouP
(FnUST looki around loildly.)
Wilt thou grasp the thunder? WeU, that it has not
been given to you, miserable mortals ! To crush to
pieces the bnocent respondent — that is the tyrant-
fashion of relieving one's self in embarrassments.
FAUST.
Take me thither ! She shall be free 1
HBPHISTOPMELES.
And the danger to which thou wilt expose thyself?
Know that the guilt of blood, from thy band, still lies
npon the town ! Avenging spirits hover over the spot
where the victim fell, and lie in wait for the returning
murderer.
That, too, from thee i Murder and death of a world
upon thee, monster 1 Take me thither, I say, and lib-
erate her I
MCPHISTOFHELBS.
I will convey thee there ; and hear, what I can do t
Have I all the power in Heaven and on Earth P I will
becloud the jailer's senses : get possession of the key,
and lead her forth with human hand! I will keep
ifatch : the m^c steeds are ready, I will cany you off.
So much is in my power.
ih,Googlc
XXIV.
NIGHT.
(Faust and MlFHisropHBi^a spttding emoarä cn Mark
\ T rHAT weave they there round the raven-stone ?
MEPHISTO PH ELES.
1 know not what they are brewing and doing.
FAUST,
Soaring up, sweeping down, bowing and bending !
HEPHISTOPHELES.
A wilches'-guild
FAUST.
They scatter, devote and doom I
HEFRISTOPRBLBS.
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXV.
XXV.
DUNGEON.
FAUST
(tn/t a hmei ofktys and a lamp, hi/art an iron door\.
A SHUDDER, long unfelt, comes o'er me:
Mankind's collected woe o'erwhelms me. here.
She dwells within the dark, damp walls before me.
And all her crime was a delusion dear 1
What! I delay to free her?
1 dread, once again to see her 7
On ! ny shrinking but lingers Death more near.
{fit graipi tie leek : the tound ef singing it A*arä insiiü.)
My mather, thi harlat,'^'
Who put me to death;
My father, the varlet,
IVko eaten me kath !
Little sister, so good.
Laid my tones in the wood.
In the damp moss and clay :
Then was I a beautiful bird d the wood;
Fly away / Fly away !
FAUST {UHlocking),
She does not dream her lover listens near;
That be the rattling chain, the rustling straw, can hear.
(Jie enter,.)
ih,Googlc
2o8 FAUST.
KARGARET (hiding heralf im thf pallefl.
Woe ! woe ! They come. 0 death of bitterness !
FAUST (wAitperiifg).
Hush ! hush I The hour b come that ^es thee.
MARGARET (ikrateing herul/ before him).
Art thou a man, then pity my distress !
FAUST,
Thy cries will wake the guards, and they will seize thee I
{He takti AMof the fetters taunioek them.)
MARGARET {m her inees).
Who, headsman ! unto thee such power
Over me could give ?
Thou 'rt come for me at midnight-hour :
Have mercy on me, let me live !
Is 't not soon enough when morning chime has rung?
{She rim.)
And I am yet so young, so young 1
And now Death comes, and ruin I
I, too, was iaJT, and that was my undoing.
My love was near, but now he 's far ;
Torn lies the wreath, scattered the blossoms are.
Seize me not thus so violently I
Spare me ! What have I done to thee?
Let me not vainly entreat thee !
I never chanced, in all my days, to meet thee I
FAUST.
Shall I outlive this misery?
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXV.
Now am I wholly In thy might
But let me suckle, first, my baby I
I blissed it all this livelong night ;
They toolc 't away, to vex roe, maybe,
And now they say I killed the child outright
And never shall I be glad again.
They sing songs about me I 'tis bad of the folk to do it I
There 's an old story has the same refrain ;
Who bade them so construe it ?
PAUST i/allir^ufien Mil tiun).
Here lieth one who loves thee ever,
The thraldom of thy woe to sever.
MARGARET <,ßingitig Aentlf UäJe Um).
0 let ns Icneet, and call the Saints to lüde us !
Under the steps beside us,
The threshold under,
Hell heaves in thunder !
The Evil One
With terrible wiath
Seeketh a path
His prey to discover!
PADST {aletit).
Margaret ! Margaret I
MARGARET {attentitsly lüttimg).
That was the voice of my lover I
(Skitfni^ieherfitt: tht fetten felt aff.\
Where is he F I heard him call me.
1 am free ! No one shall enthrall me.
ih,Googlc
To his neck will I fly,
On his bosom lie !
On the threshold he stood, and Afarptrtt.' calling
Midst of Hell's howling and noises appalling.
Midst of the wmthfui, infernal derision,
I knew the sweet sound of the voice of the vision !
'T is thou ! O, say it once again !
{Clatfiiig JUm.)
T is he I 't is he ! Where now is all my pain ?
The anguish ti the dungeon, and the chain ?
T is thou I Thou comest to save me.
And 1 am saved 1 —
Again the street I see
Where first 1 looked on thee ;
And the garden, brightly blooming,
Where I and Martha w^t thy coming.
Faust {jhTiggihig i» lecax).
Come I Come with me I
MARGARET.
Delay, now!
So fain I stay, iriien thou delayest [
( Carität^ kim. )
FAUST.
Away, DOW !
If longer here thou stayest.
We shall be made to dearly roe rt.
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXV. %\
MAXOAXBT.
Kiss me ! — canst no longer do it 7
My friend, so short a time thou 'rt misäng;,
And hast unlearned thy kissing ?
Why is my heart so anxious, on thy breast ?
Where once a heaven thy glances did create me,
A heaven thy loving words expressed,
And thou didst kiss, as thou wouldst sufEbcate me —
Kiss me I
Or !<» kiss thee I
{Skt tmhracu ktm.\
Ah, woe I thy lips are chni,
AndstiU.
How changed in fashion
Thy passion I
Who has done rae tbb Ul }
{S/uturjuam^/rvm Urn.)
FAUST.
Come, follow me ! My darling, be more bold :
I 1i clasp thee, soon, with warmth a thoitsand-fold ;
But follow now f 'T is all I beg of tbee.
HAROARET {turniHg l9 Mm).
And is it thon ? Thou, snrely, certainly 7
T Is II Come on I
HAKGAKET.
Thou wilt unloose mjr chain,
And in thy lap wilt take me once again.
How comes it that thou dost not shrink from me P —
Say, dost thoa know, my friend, whom thou mak'st free?
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Come ! come ! The nif^t already vanisbeäi.
BIARGARET.
My mother have I put to death ;
I 've drowned the baby bom to thee.
Was it not given to thee and me ?
Thee, too! — 'Tfa thoo! It scarcely true doth seem—
Give me thy band ! 'T is not a dream t
Thy dear, dear hand t — But, ah, 't is wet t
Why, wipe it o£E ! Methlnks that yet
There 's blood thereon.
Ah, God ! what hast thou done ?
Nay, sheathe thy sword at last I
Do not aSny me !
O, let the past be pastl
Thy words will slay me !
UARGABET.
No, not Thou must outlive us.
Now 1 11 tell thee the graves to give us :
Thou must begin to-morrow
The work of sorrow !
The best {dace ^ve to my modier,
Then close at her side my brother.
And me a little away,
But not too very far, I pray !
And here, on my right breast, my baby layt
Nobody else will lie beside me ! —
Ah, within thine arms to hide me.
That was a sweet and a gracious bliss.
But no more, do more can I attain it !
I would force myself on thee and constrain i^
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXV.
And it seems thou repellest my kiss :
And yet 't is thou, so good, so kind to see I
FAUSI.
If thou feel'st it is I, then come with me !
MARGARET.
Out yonder ?
To freedom.
HARGARBT.
If the grave is there,
Death lying in wait, then come !
From here to eternal rest :
No further step — no, no 1
Thou goest away! O Henry, if I could go t
PAUST.
Thou canst ! Just will it ! Open stands the door.
I dare not go : there 's no hope any more.
Why should I fly? They 11 stiU my steps waylay I
It is so wretched, forced to beg my living,
And a bad conscience sharper misery giving I
It is so wretched, to be strange, forsaken,
And I 'd still be followed and taken I
1 11 stay with thee.
Be quick ! Be quick \
Save thy perishing child I
Away I Follow the ridge
ih,Googlc
314
FAUST.
Up by the brook,
Over the bridge,
IdIo the wood,
To the left, where the plank ia [daced
In the pool!
Seize it in haste I
'T is trying to rise,
'T is struggling still 1
Save it! Save it!
Faust.
Recall thy wandering will !
One step, and thou art free at last 1
IE the mountain we had only passed !
There sits my mother upon a stone, —
I feel an icy shiver !
There sits my mother upon a stone,
And her head is wagging ever.
She l>ec1(ons, she nods not, her heav}' head falls o'er ;
She Riept so long that she wakes no more.
She slept, while we were caressing :
Ah, those were the days of blessing!
FAUST.
Here words and prayers are nothing worth ;
I '11 venture, then, to bear thee forth.
MARGARET. '
No — let me go! I '11 suffer no force!
Grasp me not so murderously !
I 've done, else, all things for the love of thee.
FAUST.
The day dawns : Dearest ! Dearest I
ih,Googlc
SCENE XXV. 3
MARGARET.
Day? Yesjthedaycomes, — the last day breaks form
My wedding-day it was to be I '"
Tell no one thou has been with Margaret !
Woe for my garland t The chances
Are over — 't is all in vain 1
We shall meet once again,
But not at the dances !
The crowd is thronging, no word is spoken :
The square below
And the streets overflow :
The death-bell tolls, the wand is broken.
I am seized, and bound, and delivered —
Shoved to the block — they give the sign I
Now over each neck has quivered
The blade that is quivering over mine.
Dumb lies the world like the grave 1
FAUST.
O had I ne'er been bom !
UEPHISTOPHELBS {apftari miOide).
Off ! or jrau 're lost ere mom.
Useless talking, delaying and praying !
My horses are neighing:
The morning twilight Is near.
What rises up from the threshold here ?
He.' he I suffer him not !
What does he want in this holy spot ?
He seeks me I
FAUST.
Thou shalt live.
ih,Googlc
MARGARET.
Jodgment of God I myself to thee I give.
UEPHISTOPHELES {to FaUST).
Come ! or 1 '11 leave her in the lurch, and thee I
Thine am I, Father t rescue me !
Ye angels, holy cohorts, guard me,'"
Camp around, and from evil ward me I
Henry! 1 shudder to think of thee.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
She is judged ! "*
VOICE (Jrom abav^.
She is saved I
(Ä dUapptars wUh Faust )
VOICE {from iBÜkin, dying aviay^.
Henry I Henry !
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
BD bei dan allvn lieben Todten
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
INTRODUCTION.
IN a work nhich has been the subject of such extenaive
and continual comment, the passages which seem to re-
qnire elucidation have, (or the most part, been already de-
termined At every point where the reader is siip]>o<ied (o
be doabtftil in regard lo the true path, not one, but a score
of tracks has been prepared for him. From the exhaustive
and somewhat wearisome work of DUntzer lo the latest crit-
ical essay which has issued from the German press, the ref-
erences in the text to contemporary events or fashions of
Itioagbt have been detected ; the words of old or new coin-
age have been tested and classified ; and the obscure pas-
sages have received such a variety of interpretation, that
tbey finally grow clear again bj the force of contrast.
My first intention was, to give Ihe substance of German
criticism concerning both parts of Faust ; but the further I
advanced, Ihe more unprofitable appeared such a plan. The
work itaelf grew in clearness and coherence in proportion as
I withdrew from the cloudy atmosphere of ils inlerptelers.
I have examined every commentary of importance, from
Sdiubanh (iSzo) and Hinrichs (iSls) lo Kreyssig {lS66),
with this advantage, at least, — that each and all have led
me back to find in the author of Faust his own best com-
mentator. After toaking acquaintance, sometimes at the
ih,Googlc
a20 FAUST.
cost of much patience, with the theories of rninjr nncete
though self- asserting minds, and ascertaining what marvel-
lous webs of meaning may be spun by the critic around a
point of thought, simple enough In its poetical »ense, I bav«
always relumed to Goethe's other works, to his correspond*
ence (especially with Schiller and Zelter) and his convet-
satiotis, sure of gaining new light and refreshment.*
I should only confuse the reader by attempting to set Ibrth
all the Ibmis of intellectual, ethical, or theological signifi-
cance which have been attached to the characters of FausL
The intention of the work, reduced to its simplest element,
is easily grasped ) but if every true poet builds larger (halt
he knows, this drama, completed by the slow accretion of
sixty years of thought, may be assumed to have a vaster
background of design, change, and reference than almom
anything else in Literature. Like an old Gothic pile, its
outline is sometimes oliscured in a labyrinth of details.
White, in tlie Notes wtuch succeed, it will now and then be
oecessaiy for me to give the conflicting interpretations, I
thall endeavor to wander (rom the text as little as possible,
and, even when dealing with enigmas, to keep open a way
fail, if not through them. The embarrassing abundance
of the material is somevbat diminished for me by the omis-
sion of all technical or philological criticism, and my chief
task will be to distinguish between those helps which all
* 1 UD ^Ud to find Ilut Lhü ahetbod, drMm from ray own B^mienc^ is
nbiuiKially confirnwd by Mr. Leim, who, in bii L^i if Gtttlu (Book
VI.), BTii "Crilict Diually devote Iheir »hole allention to u eipoB-
iearcli aFWr i nmotB eipluution tlKf han overlooked the mora obviois
ud nannl oplanition finnithed l>r iha work itaeK The ruder vbo
hie (cillomd me Ihoe hx will be anre that I bave little fynpathr wilb
thai Fhiloiophy of An which cowieu io Iiaailaling Ait into PhiloiDphy,
Idea.' Experience leili ine Ihu the Anim iheniKl*« had quile «bei
ol^ecti in view than that of deTcloping an Idea : and eiperience furthei
lain <bal the Artiu'a public i> by no meaiia ptimarily aoiioui about llw
Idea, but leant it eniinly to tlie criiici, — who cunot igrcg upon iba
point amoni theoMlica."
ih,Googlc
NOTES. -i-ii
readers require and the points which are intereating only to
«pedal students of the work.
In many instances, 1 have stinply iUostraied the text
. by parallel passages. Where I have discovered these, in
Goethe's works or correspondence, they have often been of
MTvice in si^gesting (in Uie absence of any direct evidence)
the probable time when certain scenes were written, and
thereby the interests or influences which may have then
swayed the author's mind. The variation in tone between
diflerent parts of the work, though sometimes very delicate,
b always perceptible ; and ihe reader to whom the original
is an unknown tongue needs all the side-lights which can be
thrown upon its translated forms.
The "Paralipomena" (Supplementary Fragments) to Faust
oave not heretofore been given by any English translator.
Vet in a work of such importance we ma; also learn from
what the author has omitted, not less than from what he
has accepted. The variations made in his original design
assist us to a clearer comprehension of the design itself I
consider, therefore, that the passages of the " Paralipomena"
have, properly, the character of explanatoiy notes ; and for
this reason I have inserted each, as nearly as possible, tn its
appropriate place, instead of giving them in a body, as in
the standard German edition of Goethe;
Perhaps the most satisfactory commentary on Faust would
be a Uography of Goethe, written with special reference to
this one woriL In the Chronolt^ of Faust (Appendix tl.)
I have given such particulars as are necessary to the illus-
tration of its interrupted yet life-long growth. It has not
been found possible to combine the Notes and the Chro-
nology without confusing the material ; yet the two should
be taken as parallel explanations, which the reader needs to
follow at the same lime. In conclusion, let me beg him not
to be discouraged, if, an the first reading, the meaning of
some passages, and their significance as portions of an "in-
commensurable" plan, — as Goethe himself characlerized
k, — should not be entirely clear. When he has become
ih,Googlc
332 FAUST.
bmiliar with Che history of the «oik, and is able to overtook
it as a whole, the fitness — or the unfitness — of the multi-
tude of parts becomes gradually evident ; the compiessed
meanings expand into breadth and distinctness ; and even
those enigmas which seem to defy an ultimate analysis will
charm him by dissolving into new ones, or by showing him
forma of thought which fade and change as be seeks to r«-
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
I. Dedicatiow.
The Dedkab'cHi was certaioly not irritten «arlier thin the
jear 179;, when Goethe, encouraged by Schiller's hearty In-
terest in the work, determined to complete Che " Fragment "
of the Fir«t Fart of Faust, published in 1790. Twenty-four
years had therefore elapsed since the flcsi scenes of the work
nere written : the puet was forty-eight j-ears old, and the
conceptions which had haunted him in his iwenty-tirüt year
seemed already to belong 10 a dim and temote Pnnl The
shadovry forms of the drama, which he again anemjits to
seize and hold, bring with them the phantoms of the friends
to whom his earliest songs were sung. Of these friends, his
sister Cornelia, Merck, Lenz, Basedow, and Goiter were
dead; Klopatocli, Lavatet, and the SColbergs were estranged;
and Jacobi, Klingcr, Kestnet, and others were seiiaraied
from him by the drcumstancea of iheir lives. Goiter died
in March, 1797, and, as it is evident from Goethe's letters
to Schiller that he worked upon. Faust only in the months
of May and June, in that year, the Dedication was probably
then written.
Noüiing of Goethe has been more frequently translated
than these four stanzas, — and nothing, I may add, is moT«
difficult to the translator.
ih,Googlc
aj4 FAUST.
a. Preludb on the Stage.
I am unable to ascertain precisely when this was written i
from Goethe's cotiespondence, some inferences, which point
lo ihe year 1798, may be drawn. It is unnecessary to follow
the critics in their philosophical analyses of this prelude,
which is sufficiently explained by calling it a " poetic pref-
ace " to the work. Göschen's edition of Goethe's works, in
1790. had not been a successful ventur« 1 the " Fragment "
of Faust, although fully appreciated by the few, seemed (o
have made no impression upon the public, while it had been
assailed and ridiculed by the author's many literary enemies.
Goethe always published his poetical works without' a pref-
ace ; but in the " Prelude on the Stage " he makes use of
the characters to contrast the Poet's purest activity with the
tastes and desires of the Public, two classes of which are
represented by the Manager and Merry-Andrew. The dia-
logue indicates, in advance, the various elements — imagina-
tion, fancy, shrewd eiperience, folly, and " dramatic non-
tense" — which will be woven into the work. At the same
time, it indirectly admits and accounts for the author's un-
popularity, and Ihe lack of recognition which he still intid-
3. Tiefiffttt are jet, lie iooih ofbcardi cempleted.
The "booth of boards" purposely refers to the md^
transportable puppet theatres in which Goethe first saw
Faust represented. There is already a foreshadowing of
some of the qualities of Fauat and Mephistopheles in the
Poet and Manager.
4. Thty come to Äv*, and tluy prefer to Hare.
Goethe writes, in iSoi (" Wiimaristha Maftheatir") : "One
can show the public no greater respect than in forbearing to
treat it as a mob. The mob hurry unprepared to the theatre,
demand that which may be immediately enjoyed, desire to
stare, be amazed, laugh, weep, and therefore compel the
managers, who are dependent on thero, to descend more or
less to their level."
ih,Googlc
Notes.
325
J. Who tffert muck, iringj samtlhhig taUo man):
" One should give his «rorlcs the greatest possible varietir
and excellence, so that each reader may be able to selea
«omeihing for himself, and thus, in his own way, become a
participant" — GeetAe to Schiller (1798).
6. TUi, agfd Siri, Mengt teynt.
It is the Poets whom the Merry-Andrew thus addresses.
His assertion of the perpetual youlh of Genius is not ironi-
cal, but (as appears from the Manager's remarks) is intended
" To carry on the feelings of childhood into the powers of
manhood, to combine the child's sense of wonder and nov-
elty with the appearances which every day, for perhaps forty
years, bad rendered familiar, —
this is the character and privilege of genius, and one of the
marks which distinguish genius from talent" — Coleridge.
7. Fi-mt Heaven, aeroit the World, ft> H^l.
Goethe says to Eckermann (in 1S27) : " People cone and
ask, what idea I have embodied in my Faust i As if I knew,
myself^ and could express it ! * From Heaaen, aeroit tie
World, to Hell ' — that might answer, if need were ; but it
is Dot an idea, only the course of the action."
Tbe reference in this line, curiously enough, is to the
coarse of action in tbe old Faust-Legend, not to tbe close of
the Second Part, the scene of which is laid in Heaven, in-
stead of HelL Vet at the time when the line was written
the project of the Second Part — in outline, at least — was
CMUpleted. Did Goethe umply intend to keep his secret
from the reader?
8. Pkologdb in Heaven.
Some of Goethe's commentators suppose that this Pro-
logue was added by him, from the drcumstancc that the
ih,Googlc
126 FAUST.
design of Fault was not understood, in the " Fragment " first
published. It appears to have been nritteu in June, 1797,
before the " Prelude on the Stage," and chiefly far Ihc puT>
pose of setting forth the moral and intellectual problem
vhich underlies the drama. Although possibly suggested
iiy the Prologue in Hell of two of the puppet-plays, its
character is evidently drawn from the intervieirs of Satan
with the Lord, in the first and second chapters of Job.
Upon this point, Goethe (in 1S351 said to Eclcennann:
" My Mephistophelcs sings a song of Shaliespeare ; and why
should he not F Why should I give myself the trouble to
compose a new song, when Shakespeare's was just the right
one, saying exactly what was necessary "> If, therefore, the
scheme oE my Faust has some resemblance to that of JoU.
that is also quite right, and I should be praised rather than
cuisured on account of it."
The earnest reader will require no explanation of tha
liroblem propounded in the Prologue. Goethe states it
without obscurity, and solves It in no uncertain terms at
the close of the Second Part. The mocking irreverence of
Hephistophelcs, in the presence of the Lord, althou^ it
belongs lo Che character which he plays throughout, seems
to have given some difficulty to the early English transla-
tors, Ixird Leveson Gower terminates the Prologue with the
Chant of the Archangels ; Mr. Blackie omits it entirely, but
adds it in an emasculated form, as an Appendix ; while Dr.
A nster satisfies hisspirit of reverence by printing Dek Hbrk
where the English text requires, " The Lord." Coleridge's
charge of " blasphemy " evidently refers lo this Proli^ue;
but at the time when he made the charge, Coleridge was
hardly capable of appreciating the spirit in which Faust ?ra«
It is very clear, from hints which Goethe let GUI, that he
at one time contemplated Che introduction into Faust of the
doctrine ascribed to Origen, — that it was possible for Satan
to repent and be restored Co his former place as an angel of
light. Falk reports GocChc as saying : " Yet even the clever
Madame de Stael was greatly scandalized that I kept the
ih,Googlc
NOTES. aaj
dcri) in uich good-hninor. In the presence at God the
Father, she bsUled upun it, he ought to be mure grim and
»pileful. What will she &ay if she sees him promoted a step
higher, — nay, perhaps, meets him in heaven ?" On another
occasion, he exclaimed (if we may trust FalL): "At bottom,
the most of us do not know how either to love or to hutr.
They 'don't like' met An insipid phrase! — I don't like
them either. Especially when, after my death, my Walpur-
gis-Sack comes to be opened, and all llie tormenting Stygian
spirits, imprisoned until then, shall be let loose to plague &11
even as they plagued me ; or if, in the continuation of Faust,
they should happen to come upon a passage where the
Devil himself leceivcs Grace and Mercy from God, — Ihat,
I should say, they would not soon forgive I "
9. Chant op the Archancils.
The three Archangels advance in the order oftheir dignity,
as it is given in the "Celestial Hierarchy" of Dionysius
Aceopagiia; who was also Dante's authority on this point
{Paradise, Caalo XXVIII), Raphael, the inferior, com-
mences, and Michael, the chiei; doses the chant.
Shelley speaks of this "astonishing chorus," and very
truly says: "It is impossible to represent in another lan-
guage the melody of the versiflcation : even the volatile
strength and delicacy of the ideas escape in the crucible of
translation, and the reader is surprised to find a 1*0/»/ nor
I shall not, however, imitate Shelley in adding a literal
translation. Here, more than in almost any other poeiii,
the words acquire a new and indescribable power from their
rhythmical collocation. The vast, wonderful aimosphere of
space which envelops the lines could not be retained in
prose, however admirably literal. The movement of the
original is as important as its meaning. Shelley's transla-
tion of the stanzas, however, is preferable to Hayward'»
which contains Eve inaccuracies.
The magnificent word Dettaergang — "thunder-march*
ih,Googlc
(first stmca, fourth tine) — had alreadj occmred in a fina
line of one of Schiller's earliest poems, — " Elfsium" : —
" Bcije bebtBi nnter Atmea Docmerguif."
la Pardon^ this treop I canntit /allm after.
Mephistopheles here refers to the Chint of (he Archan-
gels. His mocking spirit is at once manifi^ted in these
lines, and in his ironical repetilion of" the earliest day."
II. fVkile Man't lUtiret and aifitnttUm iHr,
Re caimat ciaoie 6ut err.
The original of this is the single, wril-known lin; : Ej irrt
der Metuch, so lang er ttrtit. Il has aeemed to me impossi-
ble to give ihe hill meaning of these words — that error is a
natural accompaniment of the struggles and aspirations of
Man — in a single line. Here, as in a few other places, I do
not feel bound to confine myself to the exact roeasitre and
limit of the original. The reader may be intetest:d in com-
paring some other versions : —
Havwakd. — Man i* liable to error, «bile his struggle
U.sts.
Ahstei. — Man's hoar on Earth is weakness, error, strife.
BROOKt. — Han errs and staggers from his birth.
SWANWICK. — Man, while he striveth, is prone to err.
Blackik — Man must still err, so long he strives.
Maktcn. — Man, while his struggle lasts, is prone lostn;.
Bebesford. — Man etrs as long as lasts his strife.
BiiCH- — Man 's prone to err in acquisition. (1)
Blazb. — L'homme s'egare, tant qu'il cherche son but
13. A good mam. thrau^ ebscurtit aiptraUim,
Hat etill an instinct of the one true ■aay.
In these lines the direction of the plot is indicated. Thej
suggest, in advance, its moral dirtoutmenl, at the close of
the Second Part. Goethe, on one occasion, compared the
" Prologue in Heaven " to the overture of Moiart's Dan
^mooMm, in which a certain musical pbraae occurs which ia
ih,Googlc
not repeated until the finale; and Ub compaiUon bad refer-
ence to the idea expressed in Ibese lines.
13. Bulyt, God's soiu in love and duty.
Here the Lord, taming an^y from Mephistopheles, sud-
denly addresses the Archangels and the Heavenly Hosts.
The expression Das Werdende, in the third ibllowing line,
which I liave translated "Creative Power," means, literally,
"that which is developing into being." Shelley, »ho was
Dot, and did not pretend to be, a good German scholar, en-
tirely misses the meaning of the closing quatrain, notwith-
staading he avoids the rhymed translation. His linen,
" Let IhH which ever opetalet ind livei
dup you withm ttie Itnita of its Iotb :
And leiic with meet wxi melancholy thought
The doalinE phuilomi of i» lovElineu,"
ii»*e nothing of the suggestive force and fulness of the angi-
na].
Hayward quotes, apparently from a private letter, Carlyle's
interpretation of the passage : " There is, clearly, no trans-
latitig of these lines, especially on the spur of the moment ;
jet it seems to me that the meaning of them is pretty dis-
tinct The Lord has just remarked, tliat man (poor fellow)
needs a devil, as travelling companion, to spar him on by
means of Denial ; whereupon, turning round (to the angels
and other perfect characters), he adds, ' But ye, the genuine
sons of Heaven, joy ye in the living fulness of the beautiful
(not of the logical, practical, contradictory, wherein man toils
imprisoned) : let Being (or Existence), which is everywhere
■ glorious birth, into higher being, as it forever works and
lives, endrcle you with the soft ties of love ; and whatsoever
wavers in the doubtful empire of appearance ' (as all earthly
things do), ' that do ye, by enduring thought, make firm.'
Thus would Das Wcrdtndi, the thing that is a-being, mean
no less than the universe (the visible universe) itself ; and I
paraphrase it by ' Existence, which is everywhere a birth,
kito higher Existence,' and make a comfortable enough kind
tf sense out of that quatrain."
ih,Googlc
ajo
FAUST.
Th« intention of (he passage, we miglit luppo««, is euffi-
cienlly cleat. It was Goethe's habit, as an author, to quiellj
ignore the conventional theology of his day : yet Mr. He-
Taud insists that "The Lord "of the Prologue Is the Sec
ond Person of the Trinity, and that the four line» com-
mencing with Dm Wcrdtnde are simply another fcim uf
invoking "the fellowship of the Holy Ghost 1" The
unusual construction of these lines — the first iialf implying
a benediction, and the second half a command — has been
retained in the tianalatiorL
14. Fausl'i Monologui.
This scene, from its commencement to the close of Wag.
net's interview with Faust, was probably written as early as
1773. In style, as well as in substance, it suggests the pup-
pct-play rather tlian the published Faust legend. In Wahr-
heit und DUhtimg, Goethe says, in describing his intercourse
with Herder, in Strasburg (1770): "The puppet-play echoed
and vibrated in many tones through my mind. I, al^o, had
gone from one branch of knowledge to another, and was
early enough convinced of the vanity of all. I had tried life
in many forms, and the experience had led me only the more
unsatisfied and worried. I now carried these thoughts about
with me, and indulged myself in them, in lonely hours, but
without committing anything to writing. Most of all, I
concealed from Herder my mystic-catialistic chemistry, and
everything connected with it."
The text of various puppet-ptays, which has been recov-
ered by Simrock, Von der Hagen, and other lealoii« i lerman
scholars, enables us to detect the source of Goeihe'-^ runcep-
tion, — the original cotner.stone whereupon he biiildeil. In
the play, as given in Ulm and Strasburg, there is n brief
Prologue in Hell, in which Pluto orders the templalion of
Faust. Notwithstanding the variation of the action in the
diderent piays, the opening scene possesses scry much the
same character in all of them. As performed by Schiiti,
about [he beginning of this century, Faust is represented as
seated ai a table, upon which lies an open boolc His
ih,Googlc
wtikxfdy commencM thai : " With all my leaming, I,
Johannes Fmust, have accomplUhed jutt so much, that I
most oliuh with self-shame. I am ridiculed everywhere,
no one reads my books, all despise me. How fain am I to
become more perfect ! Therefore I am rigidly resolved (o
ioilnict myself in necromancy."
In Geisselbiecht's puppet-play, Fausi also sjts at a table
and turns over the leaveE of a boolt. He says : " I seek for
learning in this book and cannot fitid it. Though 1 study all
books from end to end, I cannot discover the touchstone of
wisdom. O, bow unfortunate art thou, Faust I I have all
along thought that my luck must change, but in vain. ....
0 Katherland 1 thus thou tewardest my industry, my tabor,
>he sleepless nights I have spent in ^thoming the mysteries
ofTheology 1 But, no ! By Heaven, I will no longer delay.
1 will take upon myself all labor, so that I may penetrate
into that which is concealed, and ^tbom the mysteries, of
In the Augsburg puppet-play, Faust exclaims: "I, too,
have long investigated, have gone through all arts and
sciences. I became a Theologian, consulted authorities,
weighed all, tested all, — polemics, exegesis, dogmatism.
All was babble : nothing breathed of Divinity I I became a
Jurist, endeavored to become acquainted with Justice, and
learned how to distort justice. I found ag idol, shaped
by the hands of self-interest and self-conceit, a bastard of
Justice, not herself. I became a Physician, intending to
leam (he human structure, and the methods of supporting it
when it gives way ; but 1 found not what I sought, — 1 only
found (be art of methodically murdering men. I became a
Philosopher, desiring to know the soul of man, to catch
Truth by the wings and Wisdom by the forelock ; and I
found shadows, vapors, follies, bound into a system I "
The reader is refeired to the " Faust-Legend " (A]>pen-
dix 1.) for further information concerning these plays. I
have given the above quotations, to indicate Goethe's start-
ing-point — which is also his point of divergence — from the
popular story.
ih,Googlc
I have also added the opening acene of Marlowe's " Faus-
tus" (Appendix III.) tor the sake of convenient compiti.
15. Fly! Up, and aekththroad, fret land t
" Moreover, there are forces wbich increase one's produc.
tiveness in rest and sleep ; but they are also found in move.
menL There are such forces in water, and especially in the
atmosphere. In the fresh air of the open fields is where we
properly belong ; it is as if the Spirit of God is there imme-
diately breathed upon man, and a divine power excrdses its
influence over him." — GxtAe to EciermanH ( 1828).
16. Frtmt ffettradamai very hand.
The astrologer Nostradamus (whose real name was
Michel de Nötre-Dame) was born at St. Remy, in Provence,
in the year 1503, At first celebrated as a physician, he
finally devoted himself to astrology, and published, in 1555,
a collection of prophecies in rhymed quatrains, entitled Lts
pTBpkicies dc Michd Noslradanms, which created an imme-
diate sensation, and found many believers ; especially as
the death of Henry II. of France seemed to verily one of
Uis mystical predictions. He was appointed physician to
Charles IX. and continued the publication of his prophe-
cies, asserting, however, that the study of the planetary
aspects was not alone sufficient, but that the gift of second-
sight, which God grants only to a few chosen persons, is
also necessary. He died in the year 1566 ; and even as late
as the year 1781 his prophecies were included in the Roman
Indtx Expurgatorius, for the reason that they declare the
down^l of the Papacy,
17. Tht Sign Bftht MacriKtistn.
The term " Macrocosm " was used by Pico di Mirandola,
Paracelsus, and other mystical writers, to denote the uni-
verse. They imagined a mysterious correspondence between
the Macrocosm (the world in large) and the Microcosm (the
world in little), or Man : and most of the astrological theo-
ries were based on the influence of the former upon the latter.
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
"33
From some of Goethe's notes, still Id existence, vre leun
that during the time when the conception of Faust first
occupied his mind (1770- 73), he read Welling's Ofta itagi>-
Cahialiiticiim, Paracelsus, Valentinus, the Aurea Catena He-
miri, and even tlw Latin poet Manilius.
Mr. Blackie, in his Notes, quotes a description of the
Macrocosm from a Latin work of Robert Fludd, published
at Oppenheim in t6i9; but the theory had already been
given in the Hiftaplus of Pico di Mirandola (about 1490).
The univeise, according to him, consists of three worlds,
the earthly, the heavenly, and the super-heavenly. The äist
includes oar planet and its enveloping space, as lar a&
the ortni of the moon ; the second, the sun and stars ; the
third, the governing Divine influences. The same phenom-
ena belong to each, hut have different grades of manifesta-
tion. Thus the physical element of fire exists in the earthly
sphere, the warmth of the sun in the heavenly, and a seraphic,
spiritual fire in the empyrean; the first burns, the second
quickens, the third loves. " In addition to these three
worlds (the Macrocosm)," »ay« Pico, " there is a fourth (the
Mivocosn), containing all embraced within (hem. This is
Han, in whom are included a body formed of the elements,
■ heavenly spirit, reason, an angelic soul, and a resemblance
to God."
The work of Cornelius Agrippa. De Occulta Philosopkia,
which was also known to Goethe, contains many references
10 these three divisions of the Macrocosm, and their recip-
rocal influences. The latter are described in the passage
commencing : " How each the Whole its substance gives [ "
Hayward quotes, as explanatory of these lines, the follow-
ing sentence from Herder's Idtcn tur Pkiloiophit der Ge-
»ekichie der Menschheiz : " When, iherefote, I open the great
book of Heaven, and see before me this measureless palace,
which alone, and everywhere, the Godhead only has power
to fill, I conclude, as undistractedly as I can, from the whole
to th« particular, and from the particular to the whole."
The four lines which Faust apparently quotes ("What
•ays the sage, now first 1 recognize ") are not from Nostra-
ih,Googlc
234
FAUST.
damuiL They may poMibly h^ve be«ii tuggcnsd by •ome-
thing in Jacob Bo«hiae's first wurk, " Aurora, or Ibe Rising
Dawn," but it is not at all necessary that they should be an
actual quotation.
i& Tht SigH a/ Ike EarlK-Spirit.
"The AichKus of the Orphic doctrine, the spirit of the
elementary world, of the poweKuJ, multiformed earthly uni-
verse, to which Faust (eels himself nearer." — Dünlur.
"The mighty and multiform universality of the. Earth
itself." — Ä/i
" But few succeed in calling up, that is to say, grasping;
in inspired contemplation, — the Earth-Spirit, the spirit of
History, of the movement of the human race ; and still fewer
is the number of those who can endure the ' form of fUme,' —
whose individuality is strong enough not to be swallowed up
in it," — JCreyitig.
19. Ih tht tidci ef Life, i* ActMi't ttarm.
This chant of the Earth-Spirit recalls the " Creative Power
which eternally works and lives " in the Prologue in Heaven.
The closing line may have been suggested by a passage in
the work. De Seiuu Rtmm, ai the Dominican monk, Campa-
nella : " Mandia ergo letm est tenius, vita, amma, torpta
statua Dei alliisimi." The " living garment of the Deit]',"
however. Is a much finer expression. The Spirit's chant
probably lingered In Shelley's memory, when he wrote : —
30. O DialA ' — / inom it — 'I it my Famulus !
The Latin word famulus (servant) was applied, in the
Middle Ages, to the shield-bearers of the knights, and also
to persons owing the obligation of service to the feudal
lords. The Famulus of Faust, however, is at the same time
■ student, an amanuensis, an assistant in his laboratory, and
a teroii^r, in the academic sense. The lenn is still applied
ih,Googlc
m the Gennan Universities, to those poor students who fill
various minor offices tor the aa.ke of eking out their ratsaa
by the small salaries attached to thero.
XI. Wacnkr.
The name — and perhaps also the primal suggestion of
the character — of Faust's Famulus is taken bom the old
legend, in vbich Christopher Wagner (see Appendix I.).
■Iter Faust's tragic end, succeeds to his knowledge and en-
ters on a similar, if not so brilliant a career.
It is an interesting coincidence that one of Goethe's early
■asodatea, during his residence in Strasburg and Frankfort,
was Heinrich Leopold W^ner (who died in 1779), and who
was also an author. Goethe not only read 10 him the early
tcenes of fauie, but imparted to him, in confidence, the &te
of Margaret, as be meant to develop it ; and Wagner was
Pithless enough to make use of the material for a tragedy
of his own — 7%e Infantkidt — which was published in
1776. Schiller's poem, with the same title (apparently sug-
gested by Wagner's play), and Burger's ballad of " The
Pastor of Taubenhetm's Daughter," in which the subject is
very similar, were both written in the year 1781.
According to Hinrichs, Faust represents Philosophy, and
WagiKr Empiricism. Dlintzer calls the latter "the repre-
sentative of dead pedantry, of kivowledge mechanically ac-
quired " ; while other critics consider that he symb0li7.es the
PhiliiHiu element in German life, — the hopelessly material,
prosaic, and commonplace. Deycks says of Wagner : " His
thoroughly prosaic nature forms the sharpest contrast to
Fatist, and it is impossible for him to enter into any rela-
tion with Mephistopheles, because he restricts himself to
beaten tracks, and is repelled by all tricksy wantonness, even
by all fresh, natural indulgence. He is the driest caricature
of pure rational, formal knowledge, without living thought or
poetry, and especially without religion."
It was probably enough fur Goethe that Wagner furnishes
a dramatic contrast of character, — a foil to the boundless
ideal cravings (rf Faust. He betrays his nature in the very
ih,Googlc
Gnt words he utiers, and is so adinirably consistent throiiRh-
out, that the reader a never at a lose how to interpret him.
31. Wkert yi for mm twist skridded thought Hie fafer.
This tine, which reads, literally, " In which ye twist (or
curl) paper-shreds for mankind." has been curiously mis-
urderslood by moat translators. The article dtr befo.e
Menschktit was supposetl by Hayward to be in the gtnitive
instead of the dative case, and he gives the phrase thus ; " in
which ye rrisp the shreds of humanity " ! Blackie even say?
" the shavings of mankind." and niost of the other English
versions repeat the mistake, in one or another f<>rm. In the
French of Blaze and Slapfer, however, the reading is correct.
Goethe employs the word Schmttel (shreds or clippings! as
a contemptuous figure of speech for the manner in which
thought is presented to mankind in the discourses described
by Faust. Therefore by using the expression "shredded
thought " in English, the exact sense of the original is pre-
23, Ah, God! but Art ii long.
Goethe was very fond of using the " art longa, tHta hrri-is"
of (lippocrates. It occurs again in Scene IV,, where hu
puts it into the mouth of Mephistopheles. The American
reader is already familiar with the phrase, from Mr. I.ong-
fellow'a beautiful application of it, in his " Psalm of Life."
14. Or, at the best, a Punch-anJ-fuily play.
The German phrase, Ilaupt-und Staats-aition, was .ipptied,
alumt the end of the seventeenth century, to the popular
puppet-plays which represented famous pa.'isnges of history
It seems to have been, originally, a form of announcement
invented by some proprietor of a wandering pup pet -theatre,
and may therefore be equivalently translated, as a " First-
Class I'olilical Performance ! " The phrase was afterwards
applied to plays acted upon the stage, and Goe'hc even
makes use of it to designate Shakespeare's historical dramas.
In ttie puppet-plays the heroic figures (Alexander, Pompey,
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
237
Charlemagne, etc.) wfere in the habit of attrring the most
grandiloquent, oracular sentences ; they were as didactic in
speech as they were reckless >nd melodramatic in action.
The word frragmathal, which I have adapted as il stands
in the original, has a somewhat different signiticalion in Ger-
man. It indicates — here, ai least — a pedantic assumption
and ostentation, in addition to the sense of meddlesome inter-
ference which it possesses in English.
35. Havi tvtrmeri been crucified and burned.
" There were need," said I, " of a second Redeemer com-
ing, to deliver us from the austerity, the discomfort and the
tremendous pressure of the circumstances under which we
live."
" If he should come," Coeihe answered, " the people
would crucify him a second time." — Cottht to Ectermann,
tSsg.
26. That ID mr learned tali might be exlenjed.
In "Faust: a Fragment," published in 1790, Wagner's
conversation terminates with this line. The first four tines
of Faust's following soliloquy are then added, and the scene
suddenly ends. Then we abruptly break upon the couver-
sation between Faust and Mephistopheles, in Scene IV., at
the line,
" And *I1 oTlilä for all nukind created."
The remainder of the Monologue, the scene before the city-
gate, the first scene in Faust's study, and all of the second
as far as the line just quoted, were first published in the
completed edition of 1808. Il is very certain, however, that
poriions of these omitted scenes were written before 1790,
and were then withheld on account of their incompleteness.
37. ^ thundcT'tvord katk ruteft me from my stand.
Faust here refers to the reply of the Earth-Spirit ; —
" Thoo 'rt tike the ipiril which thou comprohendctt,
Not me 1 "
The overwhelming impression produced upon him by iM*
ih,Googlc
phrase is oaly suspended during Wagner's Tisit> and no«
works with renewed force upon his morlNd mood, until it
swells to a naluial climax.
28. Ana Aeri ami thirt ent happy man tilt lontly.
In the conversations of Goethe, recorded by Eckermann,
Riemer, and Falk, he more than once, in referring to his
early impressions of life, repeats the pessimislic idea con-
tuned in these lines. This was one of the causes which
Itirred in him the resolution to achieve, as far as possible,
his own independent developmenL The subjective charac-
ter of the early scenes of Fault is so clearly indicated that
we should have recogniied it without Goethe's admission.
In l3z6, he said to Eckermann : " In Weriher and Faust^ I
was obliged to delve in my own breast ; for the source of
that which I communicated lay near at hand."
39, Sought ante the tiiitiiig- day, and then in twilight dull.
The two adjectives in this line are leichl (easy, buoyant)
and schvier (heavy). Haitung thinks that the former is a
misprint for lickl (shining, bright) ; but he is evidently mis-
taken, since the adjectives are chosen to express opposite
qualities, and the phrase lirhien Tag occurs in ihe sixth line
following. I have chosen English words which are not pre-
cisely lileial, but, by their antithetic character, convey a
similar meaning.
30. Bam it tolas. It naily pattest it !
It was a favorite maxim of Goethe that no man can really
possess that which he has not personally acquired. He
considered his own inherited wealth and the many opportu-
nities of his life as means, the value of which must be meas-
ured by the results attained by their use. On one occasion
he said : " Every ban mot which I have uttered, has cost me
a purse of money \ half a million uf my private property has
run through my hands, to enable me to learn «hat I know —
not only the entire estate of my father, but also my salary
and my considerable literary income for more than fiftj
ih,Googlc
fears." At the dose of the Second Part, he makes tbe
^d Faust say i —
" He oaif «tnii bii frndom *ad eiulsncc.
Who daily coDqucn thtu uuw."
31. Oh lartk'sfair lun / tuminy baei.
Here, again, Goethe recalls a phase of bis own psycholo^-
cal eiperienoe, which he describes at some length in WaÄr-
ieü und Ditktmg (Book XIII.). Even before Jerusalem's
luiddc at Wetzlar had furnished him with tbe leading idea
of Wirthtr, he had been drawn, by what he calls Che gloomy
clement in English literature, — especially by HamUt, Young's
Night Thoughis, and the melancholy rhapsodies of Osiian,
— to study the phenomena of self-murdet and apply them,
in imagination, to himself. Among all the instances with
which be was acquainted, none seemed to him nobler than
that of the Emperor Otho, who, aller a cheerful banquet
wilb his friends, thrust a dagger into his heart. " This was
the only deed," he says (and in what follows, I suspect,
there is as much Dichtung as WakrhHt\, " which seemed to
mc worthy of imitation, and I was convinced that one who
could not act like Otho had no right to go voluntarily out
of the world. Through this conviction I rescued myself
both from the intention and Che morbid ^cy of suicide,
which haunted an idle youth in those fair times of peace.
I possessed a tolerable collection of weapons, wherein there
«as a valuable, keen-edged dagger. This I placed con-
stantly beside my bed, and, before putting out the light,
endeavored to try whether it was possible to pierce my
breast, an inch or two deep, with tbe sharp point. Since,
however, the experiment never succeeded, 1 finally laughed
at myself, discarded all hypochondric distortions of fancy,
and determined to live."
32. Chokus of Ancels.
In this first chorus I have been forced, by the prime neces-
li^ of preserving tbe meaning, to leave the second line un-
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
rhymed. The word sckleiihenden. In the fourth line, whict
1 have endeavored to express by " dinging" (Hayward has
"creeping," Blackie " through his veins creeping." and Dr.
Hedge "trailing"), is nearly equivalent to the English
phrase " dogging one's steps." The tirsi of the three Angelic
Choruses rejoices over Christ's release from Mortality, thi^.
second exalts him as the " Irving One," and the third cele-
brates his restoration to the Divine creative activity.
Goethe heard a similar chant sung by the common people
in Rome, in the yeai 178S; but his immediate model was
andoubledly the German Easter-hymn of the Middle Ages,
many variations of which are given in Wackernagel's work.
One of these, dating from the thirteenth century, thus com-
From all hit twndi
it hs nleucd.]
The universal Easter greeting, at this day, among the
Greeks, is Chriilei anesU ! and the answer : aiethos anisu !
The same custotn prevails ibroughoul Russia, and in some
parts of Catholic Germany.
In 1772, Goethe, writing to Kestner on Christmas Day,
says : " The watchman on the tower trumpeted his hymn
and awakened me : Praised it Iheu, Jtsus Christ f 1 dearly
love this time of the year, and the hymns that are sung."
33. And prayer dissolired me in a fervent bliss.
Again Goethe recalls his own early memories. These
lines describe the religious exaltation excited in his boyish
nature by Fräulein vor Klettenburg, whom he has intro-
duced into Wilhelm Meisler (Book VI.). in the " Confessions
of a Fair Spirit." The above line suggests a passage nf this
episode; "Once I prayed, out of the depth of my heart i
ih,Googlc
NOTES 241
'now, Almighty One, give me faith r' I was then in tht
condition in which one mu!t be, but Eeldoiu is, when one'<
prayers may be accepted by God. Who could palnl what
1 then fell 1 A powerful impulse drew my soul to the Cross,
on which Jesus perished. Thus my soul was near to Him
who became Man and died on the Cross, and in Ihat mo-
men. I knew what faith is. 'This is faith I ' I cried, and
sprang up, almost as in terror. For such emotions as these,
■11 words fail us."
34. Is He, iitglowi of birth.
Rapture creatwt near f
These two lines, in the original, are a marvel of com-
pressed expression. The closest literal translation is : "Is
He, in the bliss of developing into (higher) being, near to
the joy of creating," — that is, the bliss of being bom into
the higlier life to which He has ascended is soi.'cely less
than the joy of the Divine creative activity. The 'disciples,
left behind and still sharing the woes of Earth, t«wail the
beatitude which parts Him from them.
The final Chorus of the Angets, which follow», is a stum-
blin(!'t>lock to the translator, on account of its fivefold dac~
^lic rhyme. The lines are, literally : —
AcüitVf pniiing him,
MuilcBting love,
Bnlherl; giving Toad,
In order to retain the rhyme, I have been obliged to express
done it unto the least of one of these my brethren, ye havL
done it unto me," — which is implied in the original. Dr.
Hedge, I believe, is the only one who has hitherto endeav-
ored to reproduce the difficult structure of this Chorus. He
thus
ih,Googlc
I THB CITV-GaTI.
Goethe's Undscapcs, like those of an artist, were always
drawn Tiom teal studies ;* and some of his commentators,
iberelbre, have tried to discover the original of this scene.
Strasburg, Frankfurt, and even Weimar, have been sug-
gested 1 bat the first of these pUces, on the level plain of
the Rhine, does not fit the desciiptian ; while, judging from
iBtetnal evidence, the opening of the scene roust have been
written before Goethe's migiation to Weimar. Such lea-
tnies as the river and vessels, the ferry, the suburban places
of resort, and the view of the town from a neighboring
height, iodtcate Frankftnt ; and the gay, motley life of the
BmltittKle is another point of resemblance.
36. ' Tit trtu, tkt ünnoed wie, on Saint Andren^ 1 NigHL
St. Andrew's Night is the 39tb of November. It is cele-
tvated, in some parts of Germany, by Ibtms of divination
very similar to those which are practised in Scotland on
Hallow E'en tOctobet 31M}. The maidens, as in Keats^
Evtpf St. Agnei, believe that by calling upon St. Andrew,
naked, before getting into bed, the fatnre sweetheart will
appear to ibem in a dream. Another plan is, to potn melted
lead ihiough the wards of a key wherein there is the form
of a cross, into a hosm of water fetched betweeit eleven
o'clock at>d midnight ; the cooling lead will then take the
form of tools which indicate the trade of the destined lover.
37. SAt skovxd tat mine, in €ryslal cltar.
A m^ic crystal, sometimes iit the form of a sphere, but
* Tbe KM* of Us E/icHire AgbtUin, for 'n
ih,Googlc
frequenÜT, no doabt, as a lens, «as emplo^ for ibe pur-
pose of divination. The methods, in fact, were varied (o
suit Ibe supostitiOD »hieb employed them. In Pictor's
" Varieties of Ceremonial Magic " (given in Scbeible's KIm-
frr), twenty-seven forms of divination arc described at lengtb,
but Crystallomancy is not among tbem. The ancteota en-
ph^ed between forty and fifty diSErent methods.
38, ReUandJrom ia art brook and rkur.
If this patugc was not added, or at least re-urritten, be-
tween 1797 and 1S08, — as is possible, — it is inltrestii^ a«
one of tbc first evidences of Goethe's interest in Color, an
interest wliich finally developed into a posskm, and quite
deceived him in regard to the importance of his obaervaxions.
His Fai^ienleire (Science of Colors) was commenced in 1790
and completed in 1805, the year of Schiller's death, although
it was not pobtisbed forfour or five years afterwards. Either,
(berefote, the alluaions to color in this early scene harmo-
«iied with the aKhor'a later views, or they were aficiwards
changed for the «ake of faannony.
39. All /or the dance tlu shtpkerd drtutd.
There is a relereooe to this song of the sbepherds in WU-
lulm Malier ( Appicnticeship), where Philine says: "'Old
out, dost thou know the tnelody ; " All for the dance Ibe
shepherd dicssed "? ' * Oh, yes,' he replied, ' if you wilt Mng
and represent the song, I shall not £JI in my part.' Plüline
arose and stood in readiness. The old man stratlc ap the
melody, and she sang a song which we cannot communicate
to oar readers, because they perhaps night find it absurd
or even improper, " This portion of Wilhetm Meiiter was
published in 1795, which is another evidence of the early
origin of the scene. The gnweful measure of the song,
whidi nevertheless expresses the roughest realism of Ger-
man peasant-life, can only be appraxiiaately given in another
This episode, also, is suggested by Goethe's earliest meat-
«nesoftbevarioos popularfestivalsin FranUint. In fVakr-
ih,Googlc
241
FAUST.
keit und DiehUiag (Book 1-1. he sa^ : " On the right bank
of the Main, below ihe dty, Ihere is a sulphur spring, neatif
enclosed, and surrounded with immemorial linden-trees
Not far from it stands the ' Good People's Hall," fotmerly
an hospital, built on account <if this >|iring. The cattle of
the neighborhood were brought together upon Ihe adjoining
commons, on a certain day of the year, and the herdsmen,
with Iheit maidens, had a rural festival, with dances and
songs, wiih menimcnt and rough pranks. . . . The nurses
and maids, who are always ready to treat themselves to a
walk, never failed, from our earliest years, to lake us with
them to such places, so that these country diversions are
among the very ürst impressions which I now recall.''
40, Sir Doclar, il is geed of you.
It is very rarely that the first and third lines of a quatrain
■re unrhymed in German. I have no dniibt that Goethe in-
tended to represent, by a less musical verso, the more pro-
saic nature and speech of the common pcuplc. The word*
he employs in the two addresses of the Old Peasant are the
siioplest and plainest ; the lane of the verse is entirely that
4t. 7%t« alsBjnm, though bul ayeulh.
Dfintzer conjeaures that Goethe derived the idea of ihja
helpfiil activity of Fai:sl, upon which rests the episode with
the peasants, from the history of Nostradamus. In the year
1525, when the latter was iwenly.lwo years old, Provence
was devastated by a pestilence. The young physician went
boldly from house to house, through ihe villages, and -aved
the lives of many of the sick, himself escaping all infection.
42, nert Tuas a Liim rid, a vraeer dariug.
The jargon of (he mediival alchemists, from Raymond
LuUy to Paracelsus, is used in this description. TTie system
taught that all substances, especially metals, had either mas-
culine or feminine qualities, as well as inherent aflÜnities and
antipathies. Campanella's doctrine, that all the elements of
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
245
^tter were endoired with scdk and feeling, was yt:ij gen-
erally adopted by his successors in the art Goeihe drew
nis description of the preparalion of the panacea partly from
Faracelsus, and partly from Welling's Ofus Mago-Cabbalis-
The " Lion red " is cinnabar, called a " wooer daring " on
account of the action of quicksilver in rushmg to an intimate
union (an amalgam) with all other metals. The Lily is a
preparation of antimony, which bore the name of Z'/ihsi y^ra-
rtlii. Red, moreover, is the masculine, and white the femi-
nine color. The alembic containing these substances was
first placed in a " tepid bath" — a vessel of warm water —
and gradually heated ; then " tormented by flame unsparing "
("open flame," in the original), the two were driven from
one "bridal chamber" to another, — that is, their wedded
fumes were forced, by the heat, from the alembic into a glass
retort. If then, the " young Queen," the sublimated com-
pound of the two substances, appeared with a brilliant color
— ruby or roya] purple being most highly esteemed — in the
retort, "this was the medicine." The product reminds us
of calomel, which is usually formed by the sublimated union
«f mercury and chlorine.
43. IftktTt ht airy spiriti near.
In his conversations. Goethe more than once spealis of
his youthful belief in spirits, even relating circumstances
when he fancied their presence was manifested to him ; and
Riemer considers that this passage is simply an expression
of such belief Diinwer, on the other hand, insisted that
Faust refers to the sylphs, or spirits of the air, as they were
recognized in the theories of the alchemists. 1 think it much
more probable that the following passage, from the Faust-
legend in its oldest form (Frankfurt, 15S7), lingered in
Goethe's memory. Faust says to Mephistopheles : " My
servant, declare what spirit thou art 1 " The spirit answered
and said : " 1 am a spirit, nnd aßying spirit, foliatly ruling
undtr the itavins ! " In the four lines of the text, followed
by Ibe wish for > magic mantle (such as Mephistopheles
ih,Googlc
246 FAUST.
afterwards furnishes), Faust unconsciously invokes the spirit
which is already lying in wait for him, and which, thus
invited, appears immediately in the forrn of a black dog.
Wagner, however, who comprehends nothing but the dry
lore with which he is crammed, sees in Faust's words only a
reference lo the weather -spirits, and thereupon pompously
airs his own knowledge ofth« latter.
The expression, in the preceding couplet, that one part of
Faust's dual spirit sweeps upwards "into the high ancestral
spaces," suggests, equally, a passage in the Augsburg pup-
pel-play. He is there made to exclaim ; " Invisible Spirits,
receive me I I soar to your dominion. Yes, I will lift my-
self out of this wretched atmosphere, which is only for com-
44. Svififrom tAe North tAe spirit-fangt 10 ihorp.
The belief in evil spirits inhabiting the nether regions of the
atmosphere is very ancient. Paul calls Satan " the pnnce
of the power of the ah " (Epkesiam ii. 2), and thus gives
Christian currency to a much older superstition. In the
poem Zodiacus Vila, of Marcellus Palingenius (written about
the year 1527), the diiferent atmospheric demons are minute-
ly described. Their names are Typhurgus (Mist-bringer),
Apleatus (the Insatiable), Pbilokreus (Lover of Flesh), and
Hiastor (the Befouler). Wagner's classification indicates
the effects of the four winds upon the weather and the hu-
man ftarne. In Germany, the east wind is dry and keen,
and the west wind brings rain.
Hayward, in his Notes, quotes the following additional
Authorities ' —
"The spirits of the aire will mix themselves with thun-
der and lightning, and so infest the clyme where they
taise any tempest, that soudainely great mortality shall
ensue to the inhabitants," — Pierce PenniUsiehii Suf plica-
tien, 159*-
" The air is not so liill of flies in summer, as it is at aU
'imes of invi^ble devils : tiiis Paracelsus stiffly n
— Burton,' A»at^ Part L
ih,Googlc
The appearan;» of Mephistopheles in ihe form of a dog is
apart of the old legend. Manlius, in the report of his con-
versation with Mclancthon, quotes the tatter as having said ;
"He (Fauat) had a dog with him, which was the Devil."
The theologian, Johann Gast, in hia Strmotus ComiiviaJet,
descrilies a dinner given by Faust at Basle, at which he was
present, and remarks : " He had also a dog and a horse
with him, both of which I believe were devils, for they were
able to do everything. Some persons (old me that the dog
trequenlly took the shape ofa servant and brought him food."
In some of the early forms of the legend the name of the
dog is given as PrasHgiar: he is described in Widmann as
large, stiaggy, and black, but in other versions he is of a
dark red color. The Wagner-legends all agree in giving the
latter, as attendant, an evil spirit in Ihe form of a monkey,
whom he called AturhaAn (moor-cock).
Burns, in Tarn (yskanUr, says : —
" A «inDDck-buak» in Ihe «ui,
There ut luld Nkk, in shape o' beut,
46. 'Til -atrilten : " In Ihe Beginning ti/ai the Ward."
" I need hardly point out to the reader how artfully the
poet has managed by making Faust, in bis perplexed state
of mind, hit upon the most difficult passage in the whole
Bible. The dissatisfaction which would theoce arise would
'jring his mind into a fit state for listening to the suggestions
of the tempter; and (bus would this precipitate spirit of
discontent wrest the words of truth to his own destruction.
As to the interpretations be has given us of the AOrO!£,
they are as consistent and intelligible as the speculations of
human reason, upon one of the most obscure subjects to
which it can be directed, can be supposed to be.'' — Btackie,
^{otes to bis Translation of Faust (London, 1834).
This passage is not, as Blackie supposes, a fortunate in-
ih,Googlc
248 FAUST.
■piralion of Goethe. It is directly suggested by the legend
In Widmann's "Veritable History of Dr. Faust" (Ham-
burg, 1599) 1 und, in the fifteenth chapter, that Mephtstoph-
eles thus answers Faust's proposition to discuss with him
certain questions of theology 1 " In so far u it concerns the
Bible, wliich thou again art of 3 mind to read, there shall be
uo more permitted to thee than, namely : the Srst, second,
and fifth books of Moses ; all the others, except Job. shalt
thou let be ; and likewise in the New Testament thou mayst
read the three Disdples that write of the deeds of Christ,
that is to say, the tax^atherer, the painter and the doctor
(meaning Matlheum, Marcum and Lucam) ; but John thait
(hou avoid, and I forbid also the chatterer Paul, and such
others as wrot« Epistles."
This prohibition of the Fourth Gospel led Goethe, at
once, to the opening verse, the attempt to translate which
becomes not only a source of new perplexity to Fau!>l, but
also serves to hasten the poodle's transformation. The frag-
ments of Faust's soliloquy, showing that his soul is turned
towards " the love of God," disturb the evil spirit incorpo-
rated with the beast ; but the words of John, to which the
spirit has a special antipathy, compel him to betray his
presence.
The growth and terrible appearance of the poodle suggest
a passage in Neumann's "Curious Observations concerning
the so-called Dr. Faust" (1702). He says, on the authority
of Wiet, the pupil of Cornelius Agrippa ! " A schoolmaster
of Gosslar had learned from Faust, the magician, the formula
by which certain verses may be used to imprinon the Devi!
in a glass. In order that he might not risk being inter-
rupted, he went one day into a forest ; and while he was in
the midst of his invocations, the Devil came unto him in a
horrible form, with fiery eyes, a nose curved like a cows
horn, with wild and fearful boar's-tusks, a rough cat's back,
and every way frightful."
One of the illustrations in Widmann's book represents
Mephistopheles appearing to Faust in front of tin slmv in
the lattet's study, and conversing with him over the top of a
ih,Googlc
tire-acTcen. The lext says that Faust Grat became awue of
(he spirit as a shadow moving around ihc siov«.
47. The Key nfSolamoH iigoed.
Solomon's lame as a magician is menlioned by Josephus,
and also by Origen, who was acquainted with a work on the
manner of citing spirits to appear, ascribed 10 the Hebrew
king. There seems to be no doubt that Solomon was a
chief authority with the Jewish exorcists, from whom his
name and some of his supposed formulic of invocation were
transmitted, until we find them in the Cabbala of the Middle
Ages. The Clavkula Salomenis is mentioned by Welling,
Paracelsus, and other writers, and some copies have been
preserved. It is claimed that the genuine original contained
only instructions by which good spirits might be invoked to
assist in good works, but the variations give also the method
of summoning evil spirits. Tn Fauil'i Dreifachtr HiUlen-
emang (copied in Scheible's JCietler), the Clavinäa Salo-
mirtus is given as it was communicated to Pope Sylvester by
Conslantine, and translated in the Vatican, under Pope Julius
IL It is called ■' The Necromantic Key of Solomon, or the
Key to the Magic Wiädom of Solomon, and to compel the
Spirits to every Manner of Service," and commences : " At
first, pray (or sing) the following canlicum hebnäcuiH — Aba,
tarka, maccaf, lefar, holech. (scgolta), paargadol" etc. Then
follow a number of similar invocations, together wiih llie
"Seal of the highest wisdom of Solomon," — a very mm-
pliC3ted figure of hexagonal form, — which must lie li<^iil in
the hand. Faust, as the reader will remark, employs an
entirely dificrcnt method of exorcism.
48. Tht Wordi oftht Four bt addrtsstd.
The universal belief in elementary spirits, during the
Middle Ages, was a natural inheritance from the ancient
faith. So much of their former half-divinity clung to them
that they were assigned an intermediale place between men
and genuine spirits. They were siip|)osed to have positive
and unchangeable ffims, of a finer, im-re ethr ical (lc>li and
ih,Googlc
250 FAUST.
blood, and to be soulless, although the children born of their
intercourse with human Vielngs received humiui souls. They
were classified, according to the element in which they lived,
as Salamanders (in Fire), Undines (in Water,) Sylphs (in
Air), and Gootnes (in Eanb). Of these, the two Utier
classes were supposed (o be most Euniliar and Criendly.
Pope \^Rapt of th^ Ltek), in his Dedicatory Letter to Mrs.
Arabella Fermor, says, referring to the Rosicrudaos : "The
best account I know of them is in a French book called Lt
Cmtu dt Gabaiii, which, both in its title and size, is so like
a novel, (hat many of the fair sex have read it for one by
mistake. According to these gentlemen, the four elements
are inhabiied I^ spirits, which they call sylphs, gnomes,
nymphs, and salamandeit. The gnomes, or demons of the
earth, delight in mischief ;but the sylphs, whose habita-
tion is in the air, are the best-conditioned creatures imagi-
Id the first canto of the Rape of the Lock, (he passage oc-
ill Iheir pride «i^re,
The •prita of fieir li
Houni Dp, »d lalic
Soft. yieldiDK miods
In the Cemtt dt Gabalii, to which Pope refers, the four
classes of the elementary spirits are very minutely described
It is there stated that they became invisible to the human
race through tbe sin of Adam, that they are more perfect
than men, " proud in appearance, but docile in reality, great
lovers of science, officious towards sages, intolerant towards
fools."
Faust, it will be noticed, uses "the Words of the Four,"
but without effect He then repeals the adjuraliuii. in an'
other and sttonger form. Here, however, the word Keiald
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 351
(GDome) is omitted, and Incatmi, the dwarfish, tricksy,
household spirit, is substituted. In German feiiy-tore, there
is a relationship between the two, but Ibey are not identical.
There seems to be no reason for (he change ; and, as Goethe
attached no great importance to the passage, (be rhyme,
alone, may have suggested it
«■
The original is : " Thou shalt bear me more strongly ex-
orcise ! " Suspecting that an inTemal spirit dwells in ihe
beast, Faust makes " the sign " of the cross, and the effect
is immediately manifest Düntzer says, " He presents to
him the name of Jesus," — which is certainly a misconcep-
tion. Blackie quotes a passage from Cornelius Agrippa,
declaring that evil spirits are affrighted by the sign of the
Goethe, also, may have remembered the verse in the Epis-
tle of James (ii- 19): "Thou believest tijat there is one God;
thou doest well : the devils also believe, and tremble."
50. The One, tmerigitiale.
Here Christ is described, but not named. The fonr lines
are. literally :
The Uiwriijaiitd,
UnuOerHl.
DiffuHd through a]] Ihc HciT«*,
CsUtiLf innipierad.
The strong spell is now working npon the spirit ; and the
further threat of " the threefold, dazzling glow " — the em-
blem of the Divine Trinity — or its ancient mystic symbol,
the rayed triangle, suiGces to complete the exordsm.
Paust, in the old f/öllenzwaiig, says : " Again I command
thee. Spirit, by the words of might ; Jesus Christ is brctmi
fitsh — therewith 1 compel thee, and "lind thee, and exorcise
thee here, through Lucifer anil Beelzebub and all the leaders
of the hellish host, whalevei may be your names."
ih,Googlc
jt. Mefhistophbles.
The original fonn of this name was MephonophUit, Tliere
has been much discussion in regard lo iis meaning ; but
Diinlzer's conjecture is probably correct, — that it was im-
perfectly formed by some one who knew little Greek, and
was intended to signify net tinting the light. The expressions
which Mephistopheles uses, in explaining his nature to Faust,
would seem to indicate that this was also Goethe's under-
standing of the name.
Although, in most of the popular Faust -stories, Mephis-
topheles is often leferred to as " the Devil," il was well Un-
derstood that he was only a devil. In " Faust's Miraculous
Art and Book of Marvels, or the Black Raven" (1469), the
powers and potentates of ihe Infernal Kingdom are thus
given: King, Lucifer; Viceroy, Belial; Gubernalorii, ZiXva,
Beelzebub, Aslaroth, Pluto ; Chief Princii, Aiiel, Mephis-
tophills, Marbuel, Ariel, Aniguel, Anisel. and Barfael.
Goethe took only (he name and a few circumstances con-
nected with the first appearance of Mcphistopheles from the
legend : the character, from ürat to last, is his own creation.
Although he sometimes slyly used it (though less frequently
than FaustI as a mask through which to speak with his own
voice, he evidently drew the germ of some cllaracteti^tics
[torn his eaiiy associate, Merck. His own strong instinct
led him to avoid the danger of personifying abstract ideas,
by seeking in life for all material which could give a dramatic
reality to his characters ; and he did nut scrnptc to take that
which was nearest and most intimate.
" Merck and !," said Goethe to Eckermann, in 1831, "al-
ways went together, like FauMt and Mephisto])hclcs
All his pranks and tricks sprang from the basis of a higher
culture; but, as he was not a producrivc nature, — on the
contrary, he possessed a itrong/y viarktd negaliTf Icudeney,
— he was far more ready to blame than praise, and involun-
tarily sought out everything which might enable him 10 in-
dulge his habit."
In W,ihrheit und Dichlung (Book XII.) Goelhe gives a
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
353
tirafiil and doubtless a correct picture of Merck's character
and temperament. "This singular man," he savs, "who
exercised the greatest influence upon my lire, was a native
of Darmstadt* When I first kne« him, he was Military
Paymaster there. Born with spirit and intelligence, he had
Acquired much admirable knowledge, especially of modem
literature, and had busied himself in all directions and with
all the phenomena of Man and History. He had the faculty
of sharp and pointed judgment, and was esteemed both as an
honest, energetic man of business, and a rapid arithmetician.
Thoroughly self-possessed, he appeared everywhere as a most
agreeable companion for those to whom he had not made
himself dreaded by his keen, satirical speetli. He «as long
and lean of form ; his prominent, pointed nost uas a con-
spicuous feature ; keen blue, perhaps gray eyes, observantly
moving to and fro, gave something of trie tiger to his
look. ....
" In his character there was a remarkable contradiction.
Naturally an upright, noble, worthy man, he was imbitiered
against the world, and allowed such full sway to this moody
peculiarity that he felt an invincible inclination to show him-
self wilfully as a w^gish knave, — nay, even a rc^e. Calm,
reasonable, good, one moment, the next he would lake a
whim, tike a snail thrusting out its horns, to dn something
which offended, aggrieved, or even positively injured another
Vet, as one is attracted to associate with something danger-
ous, when one Imagines himself to be secure against ii^ at-
tack, my own inclination was all the greater to live in his
company and enjoy his good qualitic>i, since I fell the most
confident presentiment that he would not turn his evit side
* He wu bom in 1741, iml «i theiefoteeight T«nolder ihn Goeih«.
He InxllEd, u 1 yaung man. «jih 1 Bunn von Bibia, marritd 1 Fiench
iroBun in GcnEva, >Dd llicn Hilled in hi> nilive uwii. His liienry
m the English (among lliem. Addison's
Lpen in (he periodicalB of Ihe day ; but
n, «pecially Heidcr. Crpcihr, >nd La-
D,r,lP<.-JM,GOOglC
154 FAUST.
towards me. As, on (he one hand, he disturbed society by
this morally restless spirit, this continual necessity to dea>
with men spitefully and maliciously, so, on the other hand,
a diflcrent unrest, which be also carefully nourished within
liimselt undermined his own contentment."
In Widmann's Faust-book, Mephiatopheles appears in the
character of a monk. Id the Geisselbrecht puppel-play
Faust commands him to put off his firsl terrible form, and
says : " Thou mayst come as jurist, as doctor, or as hunter,
but it were belter (hat thou appcarest as a student." In the
Ulm version, when Mephistopbeies asks : '' In what form
shall I appear?" Fauat answers: "Like as a man." In
the Strasburg play, Faust asks, afler having chosen Mephts-
topheles : " But why appearest thou lo me under this mask?
I wished for a devil, and not one of my own race." Mephia-
topheles answers : " Faust, perhaps we are then wholly dev-
ils, when we resemble you ; at least, no other mask suits us
better " He IhcreaAer next makes bis appearance as a pot-
tiliun.
Goethe's choice of (he character of a (ravelling scholar —
or, I should perhaps say, a vagabond scholar — was prob-
ably dictated by (he succeeding scene (IV.], which was tirsC
written. Ano(her projected scene, given in the Faralipo-
mtaa (and added in a later note), furnishes additional rea-
sons. The (ravelling scholars of the Middle Ages were a
pretentious, adventurous class — the pedaiKic Bohemians of
those days — who wandered over Europe, maintaining theses,
entering into private or public discussions with equal flip-
pancy, and sponging upon the universities and monasteries.
The appearance of Mephistopheles in such a form is an iron-
ical retlecdon upon Faust's devo(ion to learning ; yet (he
latter is unconscious of this, and his first surprise gives way
to a contemptuous laugh.
52. /» namei like Beelzebub, Destroyer, Father of Lies.
In the original, the first of these names is given as Fliesen-
gttt. Fly-god. For the sake of metre, I have sulistituied
our familiar Hebrew equivalent, Beelzebub — or, more cor
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
"5S
rectly, Baaltebuh. "Desiroyer" and liar, or "Father of
Li«s," are also familiar to us as Abaddon and Saian. Faus|
musi be supposed to accept the orders of the infernal hie^
rarchy, as given in the cabalistic writings, whence his en-
deavor to identify Ihe particular fiend whom he has invoked.
53. lata tie SpirU that Dotitt,
In declaring himself, first, to be part of that power " which
always wills the Bad, and always works the Good," Meph-
iBtopheles is unexpectedly frank. His expression coincides
eiiactly with the declaration of The Lord (see page 15), as to
Ihe service he is obliged to perfortn.
In the passage which follows, he is equally honest, and the
above line clearly describes the part which he plays, from
beginning to end. He is the Spirit of Negation, and hii
being exists thiough opposition to the positive Truth, and
Order, and Beauty, which proceed from the never-ending
creative energy of the Deity. The masks which we find him
assuming In the Second Part of Fauii are all explained by
this necessity of Negation. His irreverence and irony are
not only a part of his nature, but they are further increased
by the impotence of his efibrls — which he freely admits in
the following pass^es — to disturb the Divine system.
Mephistopheles draws his theory of the primeval darkness
from the Theogony of Hesiod. His reference to " bodies "
■hows that he understands the physical and spiritual identity
of light and life. Since we have seen that, in Widmann's
Faust-book, he prohibits to Faust the reading of the Gospel
of John, we may surmise a connection between his hostility
to light and these verses from the first chapter of that GoS'
pel:-
" In him was life ; and the life was the light of men.
" And the light shineth in darkness ; and the darkness
comprehended it not."
54- FrVM Ifater, Earth, and Air unfoldii^,
A thouiattd germs break forth and grovi.
" Let men continue to worship Him who gives the ox his
ih,Googlc
356 FAUST.
pasture, and to man food and drink, according to his need.
But I worship Him, who has filled the world with such a
productive energy, ihat, if only the millionth pari became
embodied in living existences, the globe would so swarm
with them that War, Pestilenc«, Flood and Fire would be
powerless to diminish them. That is my God!" — Getiht
ta Etiirmami, tSji.
55. nU msar^s-faet thai on your thrcihald maiit ii.
In the original, Drudtnjias. Drud, from one root with
Druid, was the old German word for " wizard," The wii-
ard's-fooi, or pentagram, was supposed to possess an espe-
ciai potency against evil spirits. It is simply a Gve-rayed
Mar, thus : —
Its efficacy undoubtedly sprang from the circumstance thai
It resolves itself into three triangles, and is thus a triple sym-
bol of the Trinity. Paracelsus ascribes a similar, though a
lesser, degree of virtue to the hexagram. Another pecul-
iarity of the pentagram is, thai it may be drawn complete
from one point, without lifting the pencil, and therefore be-
longs to those ittvolunlary hieroglyphics which we some-
times make, in moments of abstraction. Thus Tennyson, id
Thi Braoi : —
ilched her
u IrtMn idiDC
On gl
56. Song of ti
Thiü remarkable chant is kr
himself being, I believe, the firsi
Eintchlä/erungilUd, or Lullaby,
SptRITS.
rn in Gennany {Goethe
1 so designate it) as the
1 is one of the few things
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
m
in the work which have proved lo be a little too much for
the commenlators, and they have generally let it alone. By
dropping all philosophical theories, however, and applying
to il only ihc conditions of Poetic Art, wc shall find it easily
comprehensible. Faust is hardly aware (although Mephis-
lopheles is] chat a part of his almost despairing impatience
springs from the lack of all enjoyment of physical life ; and
the first business of these attendant spirits is to unfold be-
fore his enchanted eyes a series of dim, dissolving views —
sweet, formless, fantastic, and thus all the more dangeriiusly
alluring — oCscnsuo'is delight. The pictures are blurred, as
in a semi-dream : ihey present nothing positive, upon which
Faust's mind could fix, or by which it might be startled : but
they leave an impression behind, which gradually works it-
■elf into form. The echo of the wild, weird, interlinked mel-
ody remains in his soul, and he is not supposed to be con-
scious of its operation, even when, in Che following scene, he
IS to MephisCopheles: —
The rhythmical translation of this song — which, without
the original rhythm and rhyme, would lose nearly all its
value — is a head and heart breaking task. I can only gay
that, after returning to il again and again, during a period
of dz yean, I can offer nothing better.
57. Iiemi, a squirt of high dtgree.
The word Junktr, which Mephistopheles uses, corre-
sponds exactly with "squire," as a term of chivalry. In the
text of the puppet-play, when he makes his appearance the
second time, he is described as viahl^kleidit — ies]iectably
diessed His costume on the puppec-stage was a red tunic,
undei a long mantle of black silk, and a cock's -feather in his
hat. Goethe purposely retains this costume, because it is
Biiflüciently appropriate to his conception of the character,
which he expressly declares is too negative to I«? daimonic.
One of the very few hints of his inieniion which he allowed
ih,Googlc
258 FAUST.
to escape him occurs in his conversation with an English
gentleman in i8as, as reported by Eckermann. " Really,"
said he, " I should not have advised you to read Fatat. It 's
änlastic stuff, and transcends all ordinary sentiment. But.
since you have begun of your oim accord, without asking
.ae. you may get through it the best way you can. Faust is
so singular an individual chat only a few persons can repro-
duce his spiritual conditions in their own minds. Then the
character of Mephistopheles, through his irony, and as Ikt
titling riiuU of a vait obtervatüm of tie visrld, is also some-
thing very difficult to comprehend."
Compare, also, the remarks of Mephistopheles to the
witch, in Scene VI. : —
58. 7»»» life ef earth, whateuer my attire,
fVbuldpain ml in ill wontfd foihton.
The first fragment of the Faralipemina possibly belong»
here, although there is also a place for it towards ihc close
of the scene. In the following lines, omitted alike in the
editions of 1790 and 1808, Mephistopheles continues to ad-
vise a change of costume ; —
Wboi with exlcnials Ihou in well endowat
AU vitl ironnd th« flock, and lUiter :
A chip who '1 not a lililc viin or proud,
Had bener hang, and end ihe nutter.
I have not been able to and any evidence concerning the
date of these rejected passages of Faml. Most of the Ger-
man critics agree that the first part of the scene, withheld in
the first edition, was afterwards materially altered by Goethe ;
some of them even venture to point out Ihe portions remain-
ing from 1775, and those added in 1798, or later. Since,
however, the slight difference of style perceptible in the text
must disappear in the translation, it is not neccAsaiy to re-
peat their views.
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 155
59- Thtn, alle, eamii no nil to wu.
" When I tajr, My bed shall comfort me, my couch shall
ease my complunl ;
**Thcn thOD scarest me with dreams, and tcnifiest me
through visions :
" So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather
than my life," — JW »ii 13, 14, 15-
6a Chorus of Spirits.
Faost's cune, which includes even the sentiment of child-
ish ^th that overcame him on the Euter motning, places
him, nnconsdously, in the power of Mephitlopheles. The
Chorus of Spirits indicates, in a few powerfiil lines, bis rup-
ture with the order of life. The first words of Mephistoph-
eles which follow, would lead the reader to suppose that
the spirits were infernal, and thus a singular discrepancy be-
tween their character and their expressions is implied. DUnt-
ler says : " Their cry of woe and their lament over the beauty
of the world, which Faust has shattered, together with his
designaüon as demigod, can only be accepted as 3. scoffing
irony of the spirits, which, equally with Mephistopheles, well
know that they can give him no real compensation for the
Ibrtiine which he has criminally rejected." Deycks's com-
ment is less l<^ca] : " He (Faust) can only recover through
bis own act ; in his resolute breast, by clear JnteUigence, he
cut create a soil vrberelrom new songs will shoot. The
spirits allure to a life of deeds and poetry, to the broad,
great world. Atid Mtphiil^htUs efftrt khnMlf ai a guide."
In Leutbecher's work, however, I find a hint of what I
believe to be the true intention of this Chorus. He says :
"The pure spirits who direct the harmonies of existence la-
ment over his (Faust's) step, and encourage him to com-
mence another and fairer career. But Mephistopheles calls
these voices precociously shrewd, and proposes the condi-
tions of his compact, promising delights which, in advance,
ippear worthless to Faust." The laiaent is certainly not
konical ; on the contrary, the course of the drama, as it i*
ih,Googlc
26o FAUST.
afterwards developed, is here shadowed forth hj the spiritii
and Mephistophcles no more compiehends them than Fauit.
He is deceived, as in the Fifth Act of the Second Part.
In the Augsburg pnppet-piay, Faust is attended by a good
Genius, who, when be has signed the compact with Mephis-
tophelet, exclaims : " Woe to thy miserable soul 1 " and dU-
6l. A Mi^ and Law otir souls auiait
" Oh why must we, in order to speak of such things, use
images which only represent eitemal conditions I Where is
there anything high or low, obscuie or enlightened, in His
sight ? We, only, have an Above and Below, a Day and a
Night. And just therein did He (Christ) resemble us, be-
cause we should otherwise have no share in Him." — (Kf-
fc/m JIfnsUr [Cen/esiieiu of a Fair Spirit).
Goethe also places one of these phrases —
" And/M he dowen wilh Day lod Night I" —
in the mouth of Mephistophcles, aRer the compact
6l. Shaw mt tht fruits thai, ire they 'tr gathtred, rot.
This passage has given rise to a great deal of discussion.
The offer of Mephistophcles, —
which provokes Faust's exclamation, is suggested by the
puppBt'play. In the Strassburg version, Mephislophelcs says t
" I will fill for thee the goblet of delight, full and foaming,
as it never yet has been filled to any moital."
Faust's reply seems to have puzzled many of the commen-
tators, some of whom — as Deycks. Härtung. Rosencranz
and Leulbecher — pass it over with slight notice, while
others endeavor to analyze the meaning. The following
quotations embrace the prircipal varieties of imerpreta-
t, " I know thy rotten gifts, says Faust. Which of thj
fine goods of the earth wilt thou offer me t How could the
like of thee ever be capable of measuring the unquiet of
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 261
man's breast ? Hast thou food to serve ui> nhich never sat-
isfies ? Or canst thou only show trees which daily bloom
anew and bud again ? I loathe this foliage of yesterday, this
tale which, ever the same, is told in the momiog, and in the
evening dies away again — ' show me the fruit that rots be-
Ibre it is gathered, and trees that daily renew their green 1 ' ''
—Falk.
X. " The promise of Mephistopheles appears to Faus.
but mockery. What can a devil give a man Co satisfy him,
when he is not capable of giving it to himself ? The gifts of
a devit, he says, arc but delusions, and melt away in the
same manner as bis quicksilver-like gold ; thus he can only
bestow fruits which would not rot before the plucking, but
no ever-budding tree sprouts forth beneath his skill and fos-
tering." — StAuiarih.
3. "The meaning plainly is: — T know well Ihou. poor
devil, hast riches and other fleeting pleasures, that excite
our longing only that they may elude our gtasp, that dazzle
only to deceive, and whose substantial worth is always in the
inversr ratio of their outward promise. Wouldst thou al-
lure me, thou roust hold out fruits that rot, not a/ler, but
iefire they are broken, and thus cannot, like the fruits of
mere sensuality, deceive us by an external glow when lem[il-
ing us on the tree, but rotting whenever the hand of enjoy-
ment is stretched forth to pluck them. .Show me no frail
blossom of a fleeting spring, but ' trees which day by day
their green repair, '_" — Blaeiie.
4. " The most probable supposition is, thai Faust's mean-
ing is pretty near ihe same as in the subsequent speech, in
which he expresses a wish to enjoy all thai is parceled out
among mankind, pain and pleasure, success and disappoint-
ment, indifferently. Taking this wish into con<:>deration, we
may well suppose him saying : ' You can give nothing of any
real value in the eyes of a man like me ; but if you have the
common perishable enjoyments of humanity to bestow, let
me have them."" — Haymard.
5. " Faust admits that the devil has all the different kinds
of Sodom-apples which he has enumeraled, gold ihat melis
ih,Googlc
»MWj in the hand, glory that vanishes like a meteor, and
pleasure that perishes in the possession. But a]l these tor-
ments arc too insipid for Faust's morbid and mad hankering
»fler the luxury of spiritual pain. Show me, he say», the
fruit that rots ie/ert one can pluck it, and (a still stronger
expression of his diseased craving for agony) trees that fade
so quickly as to be every day just putting forth new green,
only to tantalize one with perpetual promise and perpetual
disappointment." — Broekt.
A careful study of the structure of the passage does not
permit me to accept any of these Interpretations. Omitting
the first three lines, the remainder is a single sentence, vio-
lently interrupted by a dasA ( — ) at the end of the eighth line.
The two lines which follow are contemptuous and scornful
metaphors, summing up the catalogue of the deceitful gifis
which Faust admits Mephietopheles can offer. They simply
repeat, in another form, what he has declared in the pre-
ceding lines. He commences the enumeration of the pleas-
ures whose worthlessness he knows, — gold, love, honor, —
then, breaking off impatiently, exclaims, referring to thos«
pleasures :-
These images express the cheating, disappointing, inade-
quate character of all the usual desires of men, to "a human
■out, in its supreme endeavor." The lone of the passage is
keenly scornful and incredulous. Faast seriously desires
nothing from Mephistopheles, not even the morbid luxiu^ at
self-torment ; and in the bet which he offers, immediately af-
terwards, his reference (o "an idler's bed" seems to have
been su^ested by the words of Mephislophles, rather than
by the craving of his own nature for repose.
63. Whtn Ikw I hail thi Moment flying:
"Ah, slill delay — thtnt art se fair !"
Here Faust becomes earnest and definite. The one mo-
xient of supreme contentment is for him a symbol of endlen
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 203
opacity for happiness. The wager wiih Mephistophele«
rests upon this couplet, which the leadet tnnst bear in hit
memoiy until he meets with it again, at the close of the
Second Part.
There is no condition of this nature in the Faust -legends.
The compact there is, that Faust shall have whatever he de-
sires for the term of tnenty-four years, when he passes, body
and soul, into the power of Mephistophdes. The only slight
resemblance to this passage, in any of the various versions,
may be found in the Straasburg play, where Mephistopheles
says : ■* Faust, have I not said to thee, thou canst thyself
break the hour-glass of thy time P Thou hast done it in this
64- ThtH at tkt DKlorf -banquet I, to-day.
Mephistopheks refers to the inauguration feast, given tm
taking a degree-
OS- And aU vf lift for ail mankind ereaied.
■ We are justly told," Goethe continued, " that the cultl-
Taiion in common of human capacities is desirable, and also
the most important of aims. But man was not bom for that ;
properly each one must develop himself as a particular indi-
vidual, hut also endeavor to attain an apprehension of what
all are, collectively." — Etkermann, iS^S'
This scene commences with the above line, in the edition
ot' 1790, and continues to the end in its present form, with-
ont the change of a word.
66i And I ikali have tkttfast and mrt I —
Goethe frequently makes use of a dasA 10 denote both a
cb?.nge in the address and a movement of the speaker. The
passage discussed in Note 62 is already an instance of this
peculiarity. Here, Mephistopheles looks after Faust's re-
treating figure, and addresses him as if he were still present
At the end of the above line, he turns away and ci
his soliloquy, speaking of Faust in the third peisoD.
ih,Googlc
204 FAUST.
67. Encheircsin naturz, Ihii Chtinistry namis.
With the introduciion of the Student (whom we shall me«
again, in (lie Second Part, 39 Baaalauraii), Mephistopheles
not only assumes Ihc manlle of Faust, but Goelhe also as-
sumes the tnask of Mcphistopheles. The episode, which is
with Merck, and while his experience of academic teaching
was still fresh and far from edifying. He gives the following
account (in Wahrheit und Dichtung) of his study oi logic, at
the University of I-eipiig : " I was at first diligent and faithful
in attending the lectures, but I remained as much in the dark
about philosophy as before. In logic, I found it altogether
unaccountable why those operations of the mind, which I
had from my earliest years performed with the greatest ease.
should first be anatomized, individuaiiied, and torn from iheir
natural union, before one could know how to use them Of
the subject-matter of God, the world and the soul, 1 thought
I knew jusi as much as my master, and he seemed to me, on -
not 3 few points to be sadly nonplussed."
The " Spanish boots," of which Mephistopheles speaks,
were Instruments of torture used in ihe Middle Ages. They
were cases of wood, into which wedges were driven until the
calves of the victim's legs were compressed into the smallest
possible space.
From logic, Mephistopheles passes to the method of seien-
tific investigation, wherein Goelhe seems lo have remembered
the couplet of Pope ; —
" Like Ibltowing life in CKiIurei we diuect.
with Falk (translated by Mrs. Aiislir
expresses corresponding views : " Our scientific men
rather too fond of details. They count out to us the w
consistency of earth in separate lots, and are so happ
to have a separate name for every lot. Thai is »rgillac
earth; that is quartz; that is this, and this is that,
what am I the better if I am ever so perfect in all c
ih,Googlc
lumes } When I hear them, 1 »Iway« think at the old litie»
in Faust, —
"What am I the better for these lots? what fot iheir
names ! I want to know what it is that impels every several
portion of the universe to seek out some other portion, —
either to rule or to obey it, — and qualifies some for the one
part and some for the other, according to a law innate in
them all, and operating like a voluntary choice, liut (his is ■
precisely the point upon which the most perfect and universal
silence prevails."
In a letter lo Wacltenroder, Professor of Chemistry at
Jena, written in January, 1832. Goethe says ; Notwithstand-
ing we willingly allow to Nature her secret Enihtinsii,
whereby she creates and sustains life, and, although no
mystics, we must finally admit the existence of an inscruta-
ble something, — ^et man cannot, if his aim be earnest, re-
strain himself Irom the attempt 10 drive the Inscrutable into
such close quarters that he is at least satisfied and willing
to confess himself defeated."
The phrase tiuheirisin natura signifies, property, " a treat-
ment of Nature." Here, however, Goeihe seems rather lo
indicate the mysterious, elusive tbrce by which Nature oper-
ates.
68. As did the Holy Ghost dielati lo thie.
The practice of taking notes of the discourses which they
hear, is universal among the German students. Many oi
the Professors encourage it by adopting a very slow, mc.ii-
ured style of delivery. The advice of Mcjihistopheles is
the keenest irony upon these formal methods of imparling
knowledge.
ttstubly r^ecl
VOUL
ih,Googlc
69- On vionls Ittyeur attentiaK imtrt.
In the Witches' Kitchen (Scene VI.] MephUtophelCB
■■M>nu«itllybeli«e
That alio wilh Itaem
EUewherCi however, Goethe says i " Unfortunately, words
ire usually mere expedients Tor man ; he mostly thinks
and knom a thing belter ihan he eipreases iL" In the
> above passage, Mef^istopheles probably refers to "the
letter that killeth," and exalts it, in consonance with his
character.
70. Tiu halt norlJ, and then lie great, w 'U ta.
The programme of both parts of Fatut is given in this line.
No reference lo the cabalistic Microcosm and Macrocosm is
intended : " the liitic world " is here Faust's individual ex-
perience of human desires and passions ; he issues from his
seclusion to share in the ordinary histary of men. This
plan is developed, so far as necessary, in the First Part,
"Ihe great world " is life on a broader stage of action : in-
tellectual forces arc substituted for sentiments and passions :
the narrow interests of the individual are merged in those of
the race ; and Government, War, activity on » grand scale
and for Dniversal, permanent ends, succeed, in order that
Faust's knowledge of the life of man shall be rounded into
completeness. The Second Fait of the work is devoted to
this latter experience.
71. /fiel se imall ii/are otAeri, and Oenet
Sim/d alurayijbid emiarTjuimenti.
The following passage is the second of the Para/ifimnena,
and »as undoubtedly designed as an answer to the above
lines. It seems to have been written at a later period, and
we may conjecture that Goethe omitted the lines because
they are not in accord with the manner of Mephistophele*
tbtougboot the scene ; —
ih,Googlc
Lm» ihu from DM u> iBcct Soctetjp t
I CDioc. both cheerful and caDeclad,
And every heart is wcn-affecied ;
i laugh, and each one ^aagha with BK-
Rtlj. Hke me, Dpon your own pretenaa ;
There 'i Kiaielhiiig to be dared, you mint Rfiecl ;
For even women eaaily foipve oAencca,
If ooe reapectfully far^ea respecL
Not in divinrng-roda nor mandrake IraipC
1 do not lee how Lroiible could beUIn
Then lo Ihe work, and show no hesilalion t
1 only dread Iha prepaniioo-
7* IgrattUaU thte on thy iva carttr.
The " Dispuution," which Goeihe projected, for the far-
ther and clearer preaentalion of the characters of Faust,
Wagner, and Mephistopheles, was probably intended to
follow this scene. From the rough draught of his plan,
retained in the Paralipomtna, Ihe reader may guese, not
only the manner in which Ihe rejected scene would have
been developed, but also the considerations which compelled
its rejection. I shall, therefore, give Goethe's brief and not
always (to any but himself) intelligible piose outline, in-
serting the half-dozen rhythmical fragments in what appear
tu be (heir appropriate places.
Fiw Semichonia, Setond Stmichoiui, Tiaii ai the Siudenla. tx-
STUDHNTSfW«,»),
'ho tpeaka. (brgelt bolh meal and drink in »
III be who hears, growt bint al laat.
ih,Googlc
The Rector lo ibc budle. The bodl» command otder.
TJie T11AV.LUBG SCHoi-»« (Mephiilophela) «men. Abim l>n
ar'iemblr. Chonu d( ■mdenu, hiU; enlin. Abiuea Ibe reapondenl.
Tht Ivter dtcUn«.
Go oDl [ anne in f Each keep hb plice in qui« I
Upon (bii ihreahoJd wbil > riot 1
Hake nan, uHlhoul I let thote within retiie.
Then fill (heir uua u yoo duiie I
Faukt accepla lb« challeage. Cotideiniii hia iwaggeriog, Dcmanda
MrrHiaTOrHKLRs complLea, bnl imnediaulybegiaa a prain of vagi-
'•of the mndering race, Ihewighl;
•wagseiB. jm he 'i in the righl.
Lbia picture of the tagabond'
Fonng of kDowledee, lackini la th* «iadom of ibe
Who apeaki of doubt*! Let 1
Who daubu, miut never leacb
Who leachei, muii be pmiiivi
UiPHiSToruaLia. Glacier
Min.
Faust. CodcIujIod. Diimiraal.
Ckoius u Maioiilr and Minority of the heiren.
Wacnei's fear, thai the ipiriu may utter what Man
arti of either Semichoma Gnelhe'* reference 10 lu
n Iron] the Unitenilir of Leipiig. where, durii^ hi
imber of the poorer »rudenia were grmtiiilonaJy Ivmiahe
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 169
Ii is also possible that tbia Disputation may have been
designed as a substitute for the conveisation between Meph
Istopheies and the Student, in which case it must hav>,
been projected at Rome, in the spring of 17SS. On the 1st
of March, thai year, Goethe writes ; " It has been an abun-
dant week, and in memoiy it seems like a month. First, I
ananged the plan of Fauil," etc. Göschen's edition of his
works, in 1790, was meant to be complete, up lo that year,
and the publication of Fault, as a " Fragment," in the sev-
enth volume, may have been due to that drcumsiance alone.
73. Aubrbach's Cbllar in Liipzio.
The locality of this scene possesses a double interest,
through its connection with the early Faust-i^end and with
the academic years of the young Goethe. If the stranger
who visits Leipzig will seek the large, ancient house. No. 1,
CnnijnitüMfilfriui/, near the Market-Place, the sign "Alter-
Bachs KeU-EB," nearly on a level with the sidewalk, will
guide him down into the two vaulted chambers which have
echoed to the wit and song and revelry of four centuries of
jolly companions. He may still take Faust's and Goethe's
place, at the head of the table in the farther room, order his
wine from the seventieth 01 eightieth successor of the origi-
nal landlord, and, while awaiting the preparation of some
old-fashioned dish, study the two curious paintings, which
have filled semicircular spaces under the arches perhaps
since the year 1525.
Legends of Faust are as plentiful in Germany as those
of kolMlds or subterranean emperors; but these pictures, t
believe, are the only local records left to our day. Wid-
mann's " Veritable Histoiy" (1599) mentions the year 1515
as the time when Faust began publicly to practise his magic
arts, and the same date upon the pictures may signify either
the year when they were painted, or when the event occurred
which they illustrate. On this point there is a difference of
opinion among the antiquarians, since Faust's fate is men-
tioned in the inscriptions. Auerbach's house was rebuilt in
ih,Googlc
a JO
FAUST.
1530, but the masBive, vaulted cellars were eridently left
from the earlier building. The pictures, which were painted
by no mean artist, have not only grown very dingy, but they
were partly repainted in the years 1636, 1707, and 1759.
Under the present inscriptions, which have also been re-
newed, there are marks of an older one, probably identical,
although this cannot now be established as a fact.
The first picture (about ten feet in length by four in
height) represents Fault, with a full beard, a ruff around his
neck, mantle and An- cap, seated at the head of a table, with
a chased goblet in his hand. Next to him is a student who,
with lifted »im, is pouring wine from a glass, apparently as
a libation. Seven others are seated at the table, two of theni
about to drink, while five are playing upon musical instru.
ments, — a portable clavichord, a lyre, flute, violin, and bass,
viol. At the left end of the picture there is a barrel of wine,
with a Ganymede in trunk-hose waiting beside it A small
black dog, in the foreground, appears to be watching Faust.
Under this picture is the inscription : —
VIVE. BIBE. OBGR/EGARE, MEMOR FAVSTI
HVIVS. ET HVIVS
POENjE! ADERAT CLAVDO HÄC ASTERAT
AMPLA GRADV. is*S.
Some of the German scholars read the distich thus : —
Psnz ; adcm cliudo lixc, ut cnt ampU gTadu.
The Other picture shows Faust, astride of the wine-cask,
which is flying through the door. His face is turned towards
the company, and he lifts one hand as a parting salutation.
The landlord, servants, and students gaze at him and at each
other with gestures expressive of fear and astonishmenL
The six lines of German doggerel at the bottom of the pic-
ture also indicate a later date, since they refer to Faust's
punishmenL Blackie's translation of this inscription is ver;
ih,Googlc
rine-cuk ipeediliBi
^Ihcdi
Goethe thus followed the main legend in bringing Faus
to Leipzig, after the compact with Mephistopheles. There
are some satirical touches in the scene, however, which show
that something of his own recollections was interwoven wilh
the tradition. The other incidents taken ftom Ihe legends
receive a different coloring from Ihe circumstance that Meph-
btophctes is made ihe principal actor, Faust being a pas-
mve, and even an unwilling, spectator.
74. A nasty imtg! Fie I a folitical sang.
When this line was written, it probably expressed no more
than a covert contempt for the pretence of a " holy Roman
(German) Empire," which was slill kept up in the coronation
at Frankfurt, and in various legal and official forms. Never-
theless, Ihe line has been frequently quoted by Goethe's
literary enemies as an evidence that he would exclude all
political aspiration from literature. His silence during Ihe
great national movement of 1S13 and 1814 has been charged
to an absolute indifference to the fortunes of his country
and race, and very arbitrary inferences have been drawn
in r^ard to his own political sentiments. In a conversation
with Soret. in 1830, Goethe, after confessing his hearty ad-
miration of ihe political songs of Btiranger, thus expresses
"A political poem is to be considered, however, even in
the most fortunate case, as the voice of a single nalion, and
in most cases as the voice of a certain parly ; but. when it
■Dcceeds, it inspires the highest enthusiasm of the nation or
the party. Moreover, a political poem is also Ihe product
of a certain temporary phase of things, which, in passing
away, deducts from tiie poem whaievet value it may have
derived directly from the subject"
ih,Googlc
»72 FAUST.
He furcher said, in answer to Sorei's reference to the
attacks of which he had been the object, in 1S14 and after-
wards: "How could I have taken up arms without hale?
and how could I have haled without youth f If those events
had found me as ■ young man of (wenly, I should certainly
not have been the last, but I was already well over sixty
years old, when (hey came National hatred is quite
a peculiar thing. You will always hnd that it is strongest
and fiercest, in the lowest stages of culture. But there is
also a stage where it entirely disappears, where one stands
to some e«lent above the nations, and sympathizes with the
weal or woe of a neighbor people as with that of one's own.
This latter stage of culture suited my nature, and I had con-
firmed myself in it long before reaching my sixtieth year."
So little significance is given to the expression which
Brandet uses, that shortly afterwards, in the same scene,
Mephistopheles sings a song which is nothing but the keen-
est political sadre.
75- Soar up, soar up. Dame NightinsaU.
The couplet whicb Frosch sings belongs to several of the
early songs of Che people. The " Message of Love." vnitten
Another song, of the same period, has these lines : —
" Dam NiRhlingale. Dune Nithlingile,
Uany ihwmnd tim« m^ iwcclbEUl hiil I "
The term "Dame Nightingale" was first used by the
Minnesingers as early as the eleventh century, and baa been
perpetuated in the popular songs and ballads. The second
fragment which Frosch sings, to annoy Siebel (who has been
jilted and resents these strains of love), appears to be
Goethe's.
76. Thtre tooj a rat in tit cdiar-tuit
This song, which is entirely Goethe's own, was probaUy
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
'73
written in SeptembcT, 1775, during the height of his pasaion
for "Uli." In a letter to (he Countess Augusta von Stol'
berg, written from Offenbach, he «ays; "The day has gone
b; passably, yet rather heavily : when I got up in the morn-
ing, I lelt well, and wrote a scene of my Faint." Then>
after describing the incidents of the day, he adds : " I felt,
all the time, lilie a rat that has eaten poison : it Bcanpetn
into all holes, drinks all moisture, swallows everything t»f
able that conies in its way, and its entrails bum with UH-
qoenchaUe fire." In tbe song, it ti not only Brandei
satirizing Siebel, but also Goeih« satirizing himself, i»
order to escape the unrest of the strongest attachment of
his life.
The introduction of Luther's burly figure as a Comparison
teems also intended to ridicule Siebet, who is afterwards
described by Altmayer as "the bald-pate pot-belly," aitd is
thus drawn by Comeliut, in his illustration of the scene.
The line, nevertheless, gave great oflence in certain quar-
ten; and when Fatist {under Tieck's direction) was pre»
pared for representation on the stage, in Dresden, the opeit-
bf quatrain of the song was changed in this wise:-~
Tboa wu 1 ni !n Ihe ccIIit-ik«
Who lind OD botur ua cbecK* :
H< h4d ■ pumch benealh hi« vta^
Liks Dm wiiM of tbe ChiooH I
77. Paris in miniaturi, hem Ü rifina itt pitpU.
Leipzig, under the supreme rule of Gottsched, was a Cunt
and not seldom a ridiculous reflection of Parisian taste, in
art, htetature, and sodeljr. Although Leasing, twenty year«
before Goethe, had dealt the first blow at the pedantry and
affectation of the school, Gottsched was still living, and only
partially ihom of his authority, when Goethe entered the
University. In Wakrhat und Dichtung he gives a lively
picture of the assumed refinements in dres«. speech, and
manners in Leipzig, and the annoyance which he endured
from being compelled to imitate them. The rough, racy
ditectDCis of the Rhine-German was prohitMted to him, a*
ih,Googlc
being vulgar ; be was told to use tbe same expresEions in
ipecch as in writing, and even his gestures and aiovcnents
weie subjected to a continual ceoscvship.
78 ffrdeuH'twaiiattahmyoKframRippackstaTtedt
Rippach is the last poet-itatioD before reaching Leipzig,
on tbe ro«td from Wcisseofels. The remark of Frosch is a
part of the "chaff" «rith which the older Bttntkin were
accastomed to entertain tbe Foset, 01 Freshmen. "Hans
vo» Rippach " i» a slang name, dcDOting a coarse, awkward,
boorish fellow, — in fKt, an equivalent for the Scotch Sina-
ney, as it ü used in some localitiee. By hinting that Faust
and Mephistopheles have been supping with Hans von Rip-
pach, Frosch takes a delicate way of sayir^ that they are
ignorant conntry clowns, in cooiparison with the refioed
Parisians of Leipzig.
In Wieland's correspondence, there is a letter to Merc^
wherein be contplaiiw of the manner in which the wuild i*
gowemed by "children, dandies, night-caps, bloddieadaa
Don Quixotes and Hans von Rippadia."
79. There mu a Hag atte rtigmt^.
Tbe comntentaton are ^reed that this soi^ b tbe kecrtot
and coarsest satire upon those court-favorite» who make
their n^ to place and power, provide lor all the members
of Ihdr family, and attack and annoy society with perfect
impunity, so long as they poeses« the bvor of the ruling
prince. Il is conjectwed by some that Guetbe had in view
a particular favorite at the Court ofWeimar. Falk says
that the couplet at the close, repeated as chorus, expresses
the freedom of (he pec^le from the restraints of (he court-
circles, Tbe former are at Hberty to suppress plagues and
paraules whenever they become annoying.
Sa. A German taa'l etidurt the French lo tte er lUar tf.
Brander's assertion, in this line, must not be understood
in a political sense. The national German sentiiDeDI, in lit-
ih,Googlc
MOTES.
»75
eratDre. preceded by many yew* the political houUity, which
fini became general and permanent under the oppression*
of Napoleon. But at (he time this scene was written, there
was a strong reaction, both against Gottsched and his
school, and against the subserviency to French literature and
taste manifesied by many of the reigning princes of Ger-
many, Fredericlt the Great at their head. Lessing, and
Klapslock in a still greater measure, had already laid the
basis of a literary Deutsckthum (GermaniEin), which Goethe
and his contemporaries confirmed Tor all time. The change
of sentiment was first accepted by the younger generation,
■ihI especially by the students, of whom Brander is the
*hrewdest and most respectable representative present in
Auerbach'» Cellar.
8l. Nomdrine the stoppers, and drirti yestr fiU!
Goethe took this specimen of jugglery from the legend,
where, however, it i<( not perfonaed by Mephistophetes but
by Faust. It is related as having taken place in Erliirt :
"Spake be (Faust), whether they would not like to tiy ■
foreign wine or two : answered they, Yes, whereupon he
fiirtber asked, whether it should lie Rephal, Malvasie.
Spanish or French wine, and one of them laughing made
answer, all (hose kinds were good Then Fanst demanded
a gimlet, began to bore four holes, one after another, on the
border of the leaf of the table, stuck in stoppers, even as
people stick spigots in the heads of casks, called for several
fresh glasses, and, when all this had been done, he drew out
one stopper after another, and behold ! out of each of the
aforesaid holes flowed unto each orte the wine he had re-
quired, even as out of four casks, trom the dry leaf of (he
table."
By making Mephistopbeles (he acdve agent in these delu-
siotis, the scene in Auerbach'^ Cellar assumes a different
dtaracter from that which it bears in the legend Faust
speaks but twice, once simply in t;reeting, and again to ex-
press his wish to leave. From this point, lie has nothing in
common with the (radiciiinal Faust.
ih,Googlc
276 FAUST.
83. Fallt viord and form of air,
Chattgt platt, and senst tninare i
This last prank of Mephialopheles is also borrowed from
the Faust-legenil, although it appears to be derived from
some older tradition. It is thus related in the work of
Camerarius (1602) : "Once, when he (Faust) was in com-
pany with some of his acquaintances, who had heard much
of his magic arts, they begged him to give them a specimen
of his powers. After refusing Ibr a long while, be finally
yielded to the tumultuous request of the not wholly sober
company, and promised to give (hem whatever they desired.
When they then unanimously asked for a vine full of ripe
grapes, in the belief that he would not be able to furnish such
a thing in that season (it being winter, namely). Faust prom-
ised that he would cause a vbe to grow instantly forth from
the table, under the condition, that, until he should allow
them to cut off the grapes, they would observe the deepest
silence and not stir in their seats, otherwise tbey would be
in peril of death. When they bad accepted this condition,
be so deluded the eyes and senses of the carousing company
that they fuided to see a very beautiful vine, with as many
wonderfully great bunches of grapes on it as there were
persons present Enticed t^ the marvel of the thing, and
thirsty from drinking, they took hold of their knives, await-
ing the moment when they should be allowed to cut off the
bunches. Faust left them for a considerable time in their
delusion, until Snalty the vine and grapes disappeared as a
vapor, and they perceived that they had taken the noses of
each other to be the bunches, and had set their knives
The refrain, " As '\ were five hundred hogs," etc., which
the students sing, after drinking the various wines, bas the
character of certain coarse Bacchanalian measures, still
common to their class. Perhaps the resemblance in sound
between joif/^ (swill !) and sa» (sow) originally suggested the
use of the latter as a vulgar slang word Even Goethe onoe
speaks of himsel( in a tetter to Merck, as being tauaokL
ih,Googlc
Witckti Kitchen.
Neither this scene nor the Walpurgis-Night {Scene XXI.)
bu any connection with the Faust-legend. The chief motive
of the Witches' Kitchen is, of course, the passional rejuve-
nation of Faust, as introductory to the episode of Margaret;
but Goethe, with a wilful spirit, not unfrequently manifested
in his life and writings, seems to have also designed bur-
lesqueing the machinery of witchcraft and its use in litera-
ture. He wrote the scene towards the close of March, 1 7SS,
in the gardens of the Villa Borghese, outside the wall of
Rome, at a time when his mind was thoroughly possessed
with the grace and beauty and inecoverable symmetry of
Uicient arL Perhaps, therefore, the very contrast between
bis strong aesthetic passion and the character of his theme
led him to give the latter the ugliest, coarsest, and absurdest
expression. The scene has been a puale to many com-
mentators, because in the dialogues of Mephistopheles, the
Witch, and the Animals, some occult meaning is often pro-
voldngly implied. Goethe was too admirable an artist not
to bave intended this very efleci, and not to have accom-
plished it by the simplest method, — that of giving the jargon
of witchcraft to his own definite ideas ; but, that there was
no necessary coherence between those ideas, no consistent
allegory intended, is evident from his own words, reponed
by Falk: "They have now been tormenting themselves
for nearly thirty years with the broomsticks of the Blocks-
berg and the cat dialogues of the Witches' Kitchen, but ihey
have never yet rightly succeeded in interpreting and alle-
gorizing that dramatit-humDristk tumsenst. Really, one ought
to play the joke oßener in his youth, and give Ihem such
morsels as the Brocken." [There is an untranslatable pun
in the original ^-seUhe Broektn vrie dtn Bracken^
There has been a great deal of not very important discus-
sion as to the meaning of the word Mierkatti. It has been
translated " Monkey," " Baboon," "Cat-Ape," " Cat," and
"Uttle Ring-tailed Monkey." I follow Mephistopheles,
himself, in using the word "Ape," (Wie gliUUüh würdt tieJk
ih,Googlc
ty» FAUST.
der Äfft ickälttH I ) which will answer as well u any othet
for those who insist on symbolism. Goethe probably took
his Metrkaiten from the legend of Reineke Fuchi, wherein
they are introduced.
84. Fail tkirly years from my acistetiu.
There is here an apparent contradiction between the age
of Faust and that which is implied in the first scene. The
deduction of thirty yean, we must suppose, should leave hioi
as a youth of twenty, to begin his new experience of life ;
yet we can hardly imagine the man who has been teaching
for only ten yean, and has barely attained his Doctor's de*
gree. to be more than thirty-five. Diintzer thinks this is an
oversight of Goethe, arising from the long interval between
the composition of the two scenes.
85. We 'ri looking watery simp frr btggart.
Here we have a clew to some of the masked satire iii (he
scene. In J-ily, 1797> Goethe writes to Schiller concerning
a volume which he sends at the same time : " Herewith
go« the again murdered, or rather putrefied, Gustavus ly.;
it is really just such a beggars' soup as the German public
likes." Falk died before the correspondence was published,
or he would not have given the following explanation of the
line : " An irtmical reference to the coarse superstitions
which extend with a thick palpable shade among all nations
throughout the history of the world." There seems 10 be no
doubt that In this expression and in the disjomlod rhymes
uttered by the he-ape, Goethe meant to designate certain
classes of literary works, popular in Germany at the time.
86. Wert theu the thitf.
The art of divination by means of a sieve {tmbnamimtyj
was known to the ancients : it is mentioned in the third idyl
i>f Theocritus. In the life of Campanella — the Dominican
monk, with whose work, Oe Semu Rerunt, Goethe appears
■o have been acquainted — the following story occurs:
"Some boys had lost a mantle, and in order to fiitd onl
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
"79
«rhilher It bad taken its flight, they hung up a Meve by the
middle on a peg, and then uttered the words ' In the nama
of St Peter and in the name of St. Paul, has not ao and so
stolen Che mantle } ' They went over a number of names in
the same manner, but the sieve remained immovable, tilt
they pronounced the name of Flavius, and then it began to
nheel round abuuL Campanella, who saw it, was much
aitonished, and prayed with the boys that God would not
suffer them to be blinded by the devil ; and, on making the
trial again, as soon as the name of Flavius was pronounced,
it began to wheel round about in a cirde." — Adttung,
Blackie'a translation.
87. What do I sec ? IVial heavenly farm revealid.
Some of the commentators insist that the form which Faust
sees in the magic mirror is that of Margaret, whom he meet*
In the following scene ; others suppose it to be Helena,
allbough when she appears in tiie Second Part (end of
Act 1.) he expressly declares that the vision in the mirror
was but " a frothy phantom of such beauty," A reference
to Goethe's letters from Rome is all that is needed to satisfy
us that it is not an individual, but the perfect beauty of the
female form, whicb fascinates the eyes and brain of FausL
Indeed, his exclamation, " Is it possible, then, that woman
is so beautiful t " indicates this, without any further evidence.
For nearly a year Goethe occupied himself with the study
of the human form, drawing from the antique and from life,
Dodelling in clay, and striving to develop a little technical
ability in Art At the commencement of this period of
■tudy be writes : " Now at last I am possessed by the alpha
and emiga of all known things, the human form, and I cry :
' Lord I will cling to thee until thou blessest me ! ' though
I grow lame in the struggle." Eight or nine months later,
just before bis departure from Rome, he says : " In such a
presence [that of the antique sculptures] one becomes more
than one's ordinary self; one feels, that the noblest subject
with which we can b: occupied, is the human form." In
Dtber letters he »peaks of the disinclination with which he
letums to "JormUss Germany."
ih,Googlc
a8o FAUST.
The image in the niiiTOr is not a sensual but a purel)
ZBthetic symbol, the significance of which is not funhef
developed in the First Part of the work. The coarser ele-
ment through which Mephistopheles achieves a lemporarr
power over Faust is represented by the potion which the
witch adininisters to the Utter.
88- Wi hear and mt rhyme.
These lines, with the preceding and following ones, have
(perhaps purposely] a mixed significance. The crown which
the animals bring may be that of France, which, though
glued or belimed with the sweat and blood of the people,
was virtually broken at the time the passage was written ;
yet the line quoted above certainly refers again to the dreary
jingle of an inferior class of poets, who now and then, by
sheer good luck, get possession of a thought. The remark
of Mephistopheles, just before the appearance of the witch,
must be understood in the same sense. The reader must
not expect mote Ihan a half-interpretation of these passage»,
and that only by giving up the idea of a coherent design.
89. /( '1 long ban writtm in the Book o/Fa^.
The conversation between Mephistopheles and the wilcb
is full of ironical suggestions. It ridicules the popular idea
of the Devil, with his horns, hoofe, and the attendant ravens
(borrowed from Odin); it slyly refers to the denial of a
personal Spirit of Evil, promulgated by Kant in his philoso-
phy and Schleiermacher in hts theology ; it asserts that,
although men may be rid of the Evil One, there is not there-
(ure any the less evil in the world ; and, by implication, satir-
iics the aristocracy through the claim of Mephistopheles to
the title of Baron.
9a This is the Joileh's once-one' s-one !
The common schoolboy term for the multiplication -table
in Germany is Einmaleim, (i-om its commencement. Einmal
tins ist fins — once one is one t The jargon which the witch
ih,Googlc
MOTES. 381
dEclaimi from Ihe booW is nolhing but a nonsensica] parod;
of [he cabalistic formula of the Middle Ages, wherein mysti-
cal properties are attributed to numbers.
In the ParaiipomtHa, there is a verse which Is generally
attributed to the omitred Disputation, yet which seems more
appropriate in this place. Mephistopheles says (apparently
to Fatist) : —
Now, once for all, mufc thü, 1 pnj—
A iDaxtin weiglKy far Iliinc KIknii [
91. Ä cotttradiction thus «anfltle.
The irreverent irony of Mephistopheles in this passage
hardly needs explanation. Some of the commentators have
shown great skill in avoiding the true interpretation. Hin-
richs, for example, asserts that it refers to Hegel's system of
philosophy I Eiiintzer says ; " One should properly attribute
this irony to Mephistopheles alone, and entirely absolve Ihe
poet from iL" Goethe, nevertheless, used the mask of
Mephistopheles whenever it suited his convenience. In
1824, when speaking to Eckermann of his early life, he said :
"1 believed in God, in Nature, and in the final triumph of
Good over Evil ; but that was not enough for the pious
■odIs. I was also required to believe that Three were One,
and One was Three, against which the instinct of truth in
my sou! revolted ; moreover, I could not perceive how I
should be helped thereby, in the slightest degree."
Although the wiich bewilders Faust when she speaks
again, she nevertheless expresses an article of Goethe's
poetic creed — that the truest and deepest insight into things
bnol the result of conscious labor, but fells upon the mind as
a free, pure, unsuspected gift His distaste for metaphysics
arose from the fact chat it forced him to think about his
thinking; whereas his object always was to preserve (he
freedom, freshness, and spontaneous activity of his mind.
The lines declaimed by the witch suggest another of hi»
4>horistic fragments: —
ih,Googlc
Yb«» that B tbfl pnper inj^
When 0» cu-l Hj
Wlut one think*,
ir one think):
But evaTthing cooiaau if lively (iten I
go, Tki nebU indeUtut I'll Uaeh Uut thtn to trtaiurt.
Mepbistopbeics undersunds very well that an indolent,
unregatated habit of liTe contributes to the growth of all
form» of physical appetite. He ihons, throughuui, such
£uniliarity with theological matters, that we may not un-
leasonaUy suspect him of having taken a hint from Dr.
Watts: —
" Fof Satan findi Hme miichieruijl
For idJe taacidi to do."
Perhaps Mephistopheles also retted thes; lioes, fron
Milton's ParaJia Regained : —
" F« Solomon, he lind at <au, and btl
or honor, wiallh. high TaR. aim'd not bejpood
Hifher dwgn thin to enjoy hiauaie:
Thnxa to th« iHit nf »omtn lay «poKd."
93. Margaret.
We now take leave of the original Faust-legend, whicli
will not again be encountered until the appearance of Helena,
in the Second Part. The episode of Margaret is Goethe's
own creation, from beginning 10 end, and here, even more
than ill the tirst monologue of Faust, be " delved in hiü own
breast " for the passion whicb he represents. Margaret is
ilrawn partly from her namesake, whom Goethe, as a boy of
sixteen, imagined he loved ; and partly from his betrothed,
Lili (Anna Elizabeth Scbönemann, the daughlci of a banker
in Frankfun), Ibr whom he fell probably the strongest love
of his life, at the lime these scenes of his Fatal were written.
Gretchen (Maggiel, or Margaret, is one of the fairest and
sweetest figures ii> the fifth bo.)k of Wahrk^il und Dichtung.
Goethe describes how his facility in writing poems fur occa-
sions brought him accidentally into society very much beiow
that into which he was boriL Some of these chance com-
ih,Googlc
JVOTES. 283
panlons were even disreputable, and Us associatioD with
tbem was anally broken off by the legal investigadona con-
cerning a forgery which one of them committed. At a house
where they met, Margaret first appeared to wait upon them
in the place of a maid-servant. She was three or four years
older than Goethe, who was then in his sixteenth year, and
her quiet grace, beauty, and natural dignity made an instant
and deep impression upon him. "She was for the must
part," he says, " calm and quiet Her bat»l was to sit with
het aims cioMCd, leaning upon (lie table, a position which
showed her to great advantage ; and she would thus sit (at
a long time together, with now and then a slight motion of
her head, which, however, was rt^er made without meaning.
At times she threw in a word to help on the conversation,
but when ^he had done this, she immediately resumed her
calm and quiet attitude of attention."
The accoant be gives of her manner suggests Faust's first
interview with Margaret ; " She gave no one bei hand, not
even me ; she allowed no one to touch her : only, she often
sat down beside me, especially when I wrote or read aloud,
and then she placed her arm tamiliarly on my shoulder,
looked into the book, or on my verses, but »ben I attempted
to take the same freedom with her she immediately drew
nack. and did not return so soon again. Vet she often re-
peated this position, and, indeed, there was a great uniform-
ity in all her gestures and motions, though they were always
graceful and beautiful."
The last time Goethe saw her, just before ibe arrest of the
forger, she kissed him on the forehead at parting ; but both
his love and sclMove were bitterly wounded when, in the in-
vestigation which took place — and from which she came
forth with a spotless character — she testified that she had
looked upon him as a boy in whom she felt the interest of an
elder sister, and had encouraged his innocent liking for her
for the purpose of watching over and protecting him. She
left Frankfurt soon afterwards, and Goethe never heard of
The engagement between Goethe and Lili, to whom he.
ih,Googlc
y
wrote some or his lineit brief lyrics, was broken off bj the
Opposition of their respective fainilies. The uncertainty and
uiii««t of his love is reflected in that of Faust. All the
scenes in which Margaret appears, up to that in the Cathe-
dral (Scene XX.|, with the exception of Faust's encounter
with Valentine (Scene XIX.), «ere written during the spring
of 1775, and Goethe's relation to Lili was not finally fanden
off until August of that year.
Margaret is one of the must pure and pathetic creations in
literature. Ignorant, uneducated (she uses none but the
aimplest words and sometimes speaks ungrammatically), art-
lessly vain, yielding to deceit, and finally led to in&my,
crime, and madness, she is both real in her words and «ays
and ideal in her embodiment of the pure woman-nature, and
of that alone. The German critics have made her typical
of many things, but she will always remain what Goethe
intended her to be — simply a woman. In her language,
throughout, there are no references except 10 Goethe's own
early experiences of love : the reader may study her charac-
ter (or bbnself, although an indescribable bloom and fresh-
ness is lost in transferring her story to another language.
94. fffui shnrl and sharp of spitch was iki.
Perhaps the word "snappish" would best express the
meaning of the German phrase iurt aitgtbumitn. Lord Leve-
■on Goner, deceived by the form of the idiom, fell into a
very amusing blunder. He translates the couple) : —
" As with ker gown held up, the Sed.
Thu •Kli-Iumect inklg well might Isra one'i hod r "
We are less surprised that a French translator should
have made the same mistake, and given the first line thus ;
" Comme tile avail des courlis jupts ! " Even Blaze, whose
translation in many ofher respects is so careful and intelli-
gent, says ; "Que! corsagi bienprii !"
95. Mast Wartky Peda/^ogue. take heed I
The original. Mein Herr Maqisler Loieiart. is given in ■
different form by almost every translator. Goethe perhapa
ih,Googlc
NOTES. a8g
borrowed the expression from the title of a satirical poem by
Neumeister, published in 1624 — "The Crowned M., in
German, Master Lobe^ian." Diintzec says it is a nick-
name applied to a Magister who makes a pompous display
of his dignity. Inasmuch as Faust ironically assumes (hat
Hephistopheles attempts to teach him morals, I have chosen
the word "Pedagogue" as an equivalent. The following
are some of the varieties of translation, and they may help
the reader to a dearer comprehension of the phrase : —
BucKia. — Sir Knight of Pcdintry.
Haywabd. — My good Mr. Sermoniw.
Buooiis. — My worthy Master Grai-ity.
Mahtth. — Muur Gnieiin.
LsvKSOK GowsH. — Mr, Check.DT'Spfled
Ahstbs, — Mocl Reverend.
96. Ai in Italian laUs '1 11 taiigit.
The word vulscht (or vxilicki) may signify either French
or Italian : in the Middle Ages it was oflen used in the
sense of " foreign." Härtung supposes thai by ■mehcht
GtscAUhf Goethe simply meant romances, of whatever coun-
try ; but it seems more probable that he had in mind the
amorous stories of Boccaccio, or the Hepiameton.
97. O mekomt, tmiligkt soft and iwttt I
The reader will not fail to notice the entire change in
Faust, since the preceding scene, although only a few hours
are supposed to have elapsed. The " atmosphere " upon
which Mephistopheles has calculated in advance, exerdses
an influence of which he seems to be ignorant, while Faust,
after his firat surrender to the new impression, hardly rec-
ognises himself. At the meeting with Margaret, it is thf
witch's potion which speaks through him ; here, the better
though obscure aspiration {vide the " Prologue in Heaven")
repossesses him, under the new, blissful, yet disquieting
fcrra oflove. Mephistopheles is, naturally, incapable of un-
derstanding the transformation in Faust'.i feelings, because
the strongest negation of his denying nature is that of love.
ih,Googlc
aS6 FAUST.
Goethe was not only keenly seiuitive to the operation of
atmospheric influences upon the mindi but he alao believed
in the existence of a spiritual aura, through which impres-
sions, independent of the external senses, might be conunu-
nicated. It is the atmosphere cä peace, and order, and
contentment, and chastity, which uoconsdously touches
Faust, in Margaret's chamber^ and it is the sultry breath
of evil, of impending temptation and ruin, which opprcssea
Margaret ott her return.
98. / kiuntt nut, ikmdd I do it T
Faust is so far redeemed by hid awakening love that he
hesitates to use the gift which he had comnunded Mephis-
topheles In furnish. The latter purposely misunderstands his
hesitation, and accuses him of wishing to keep the casket of
jewels for himself. Nevertheless, it is he, and not Faust,
who places the casket in the press.
99. There ■mas a King iti Thult.
According to Goethe's statement this ballad was written
in July, 1774. when he repeated it to his friend Jacobi. It
does not appear to hive been originally intended for Faust,
as were the songs in Auerbachs Cellar; yet it is most Ütling
that Margaret, in this crisis of her fate, should sing a ballad
of love and death, wherein the word Bnhte (mistress or
leinan) has a prophetic character. The ''King of Thile"
was first published in 178z in a collection of "Songs of the
People," set to music by Baron von SeckendorIT, with the
announcement added : " From Goethe's Dr FausL" This
was eight years before the publication of this scene, in the
" Fragment."
It would seem impossible for any one to read the ballad
and nut be satisßed with the story it so simply tells ; yet une
of Goethe's commentators, Härtung, insists on the following
interpretation : " It is based, like the ballad of ' The Fisher.'
on a deeper meaning. Fur, while the dying King grants all
else to his heirs, the elements, he gives only to the great
Mean that which is most precious to him — his Sel^ hi*
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 287
■odI, which fie desires shall be united to ihe worM-soal, no
nutter whether it shall melt as a drop into the element of
»oul-eihet, or, hardened into a pearl, continue its individual
As I have stated in the Preface, the feminine rhymei of
the ürst and third lines of each verse have been omitted, in
order to make the translatiin strictly literal. I have taken
this liberty (the only one I have allowed myself, in the lyrl-
c»l passages of the work) (he more readily, because the
redundant syllable partly atones to the ear for the absence
of rhyme. In this instance I have considered it especially
necessary to preserve the simplicity of the original, and (if
that be possible) the weird, mystic sweetness of Its move-
ment. To show how entirely these qualities may be lost, in
a language (iirther removed from German than ours, I quote
Kaze'* translation of the last two verses; —
" Puu. K Itvanl, Is vitui compdra
Puii jamiit no but uot gHitla "
100. Wilk heaocnly manna ihi 'U repay it
Haigaret's mother seems to have quoted from Revelation
fi. 17: "To him that overcometh wilt I give to eat of the
hidden manna," and the parson, in the line " Who over-
cometh, winneth too," remembers verses 7, 11, and Z6 In the
lot- The Neighbor's House.
This scene surely requires nu further explanation than
that contained in the two succeeding notes. The characters
•f Martha, Ma^aret, and Mephistopheles are placed before
US, in the clearest manner, by a few simple, realistic touches.
t need not repeat the conjectures of critics concerning Dam«
ih,Googlc
l88 FAUST.
Mirtba'fl age and pereonal appearance. Here, and in Seen«
XII., she is represented with such distinctneu that the reade.'
cannot mistake the part which Goethe intetided her to filL
If anything further were necessary, Mephistopheleg charac-
terizes her sufüciently, in the following scene.
I03. In Padua buritd, hi is lying,
Btsidt the good Saint Antimy.
If this is anything more than a random stalement of Mepb-
iitopheles, the irony is neither keen nor especially impor-
tant. The Saint is not the Antony of the Desert and the
temptations and the Irish ballad, but Antonio of Padua, a
reladve of God&ey of Bouillon. He was bom in Usbon in
1195, preached with such fervor that even the fishes rose to
the surface of the sea to listen to bim, and died in Padua in
1231. The splendid basilica in which his ashes rest was not
completed until two centuries later. His chapel, with its
alti rilitvi by Lombardi, Sansovino, and others, still attract*
the student of art.
Interments within the walls of cathedrals and churches in
Italy were not prohibited until the year 1809.
103. fmattt kit deaik in thi weihty faftr ttaied.
There is, in Germanji, an official registration of all mar-
riages, births, and deaths, which arc published at stated
intervals. The laws relating to marriage require both par-
ties to furnish testimony that there are no legai impediments
to their union ; hence the officially puUished death of Herr
Schwerdtlein is necessary, before Dame Martha can prop-
erly be considered a widow and at liberty to accept a second
lc>4. For thim art ri^tt, aptcially ttrai 1 mutt,
Faust, in this line, admits his dependence on the aid of
Mephislopheles, and the necessity of giving false tesdmor.
in order to procure an interview with Margaret No change
in the .character of his passion is implied.
There is a passage in the Faralifcmttia which seems iutn>
ih,Googlc
ivorss. 289
railT 10 belong here, altbongh some of the Gennan commeo-
taton have given it a difTerenl place. Mephistopheles say«,
apparently after Faust's departure, when he has impatientlT
spoken (he above line : —
Kai DDIhhii cIh cd
Od« givH for alher fbUy fnih eccuion.
loj. All Hmti I 'II kavi ta Ikink on you, all places I
ThcK two Imea are literally: "Think but a little mo-
ment'« space on me i I shall have time enough to think of
yon.'' I have been obliged, by the eiigeocy of rhyme, to
exprpxs the latter phrase in different words; yet this is one
Of thnse instances where tvi English words, though they may
perfrctly convey the meaning, can possibly carry with them
the fulness and tenderness of sentiment which we feel in the
original. " 1th werde Zeil genug an eucA tu denken haben "
•nggests, iu some mysterious way, a contrast between Faust's
place in life and Margaret's, between the love of man and
that of woman, which the words do not seem 10 retain, »hen
iTMitlated.
■□£. She pbuht a ttar-ßcwer.
The original, ilemilume, may mean either a china-aster, a
■tar- of- Bethlehem, a variety of primrose or of jonquil. Vi
rious modes of amorous divination by means of flowers were
known to the ancient» (one of them is mentioned by Theoc-
ritus), and the Minnesinger, Wallher von der Vogelweide,
describes a very similar method of ascertaining whether a
lover's affection is retained. The single daisy {Cänieilüm-
VOL. I. 13 S
ih,Googlc
ahn in Gerrnan) ia gometimw used for (he Mine porpos^
but it is a garden-flower, or course, which Margaret plucks.
107. It' I at if nobody had nothing to fetch and carry.
The effect of a double negidve in Cernian is precieely (be
tame as in English, and il belongs eijually to the vulgar dia-
lect Goethe introduces it intentionally here as well as ih
Scene XVI., where Margaret says, spealdng of Mephisloph
eles : "One sees that in nothing no interest he hatli." 1
have not fell at liberty to correct these purposed inelegances,
as moüt translators have done. They are (rifling touclieai
it is true, but they belong to the author's desigiL
108. FoBKST AND Cavern.
Most of the German critics anile in the opinion that (hit
scene must have been written duriug Goethe's residence in
R<inie, or immediately after his return to Weimar. There is
a certain slight variation in tone which disiinguishcü it from
the earlier scenes. Mr. Lewes, in his " Life of Goclhc."
■ays : " I do not understand the relation of this scene to
the whole." But. in his sketch of the growth of i-jusi, Mr.
Lewes does not seem to be aware of the publication of itie
"Fragment" in 1790. The "Forest and Cavern'' is there
given, not in its present position, but immediately after (he
scene "At the Fountain" (Scene XVIL), and consequently
after Margaret's fall Goethe's first design was, evidently.
to drive Faust from Margaret's presence through the re-
morse following the deed, and his transfer of the scene to its
present place <>ubstitutes a moral resistance in advance of
the deed for the earlier motive. The character of Faust's
love is not only elevated by this change, but the element rä
good in his nature is again actively, and not merely reat
tivtiy, developed.
Some commentators have found a contradiction between
Faust's almiHt inspired enjoyment of Nature in this scene,
and the character of his first monologue. Yet, if we read
the latter carefully, we shall And it pervaded with a longing
ibr "the broad, free land," for release from the impriao»'
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 291
ment of unsatisfying studies. His impaiieDce is not with
Nature, but witK the inadequacy of the physical sciences,
which endeavor to wrench from her "with levers, screws,
and hammers," the secrets "which she doth not willingly
display." Faust looks on Nature, now, with the eyes of a
lover, and she is transfnnned to his senses. It is no longer
a cold, amazed acquaintance ; her bosom is open to htm . s
that of a friend, and all living creatures become his btothcra.
The scoff of Mephistophelcs does not move him, but he at
last succumbs to the picture which the latter draws of Mar-
garet's loneliness and sorrow.
In WaJirhtä und Dichtung we find the original suggestion
of the scene. After Goethe's separation from the Margaret
of his boyhood, and the illness which followed, the paternal
government was more rigidly enlbrced. He was furnished
with a private tutor, a man of intelligence and of a kindly,
sympathetic nature, who soon became a friend. Goethe,
nevertheless, remained depressed and boyishly misanthropic
for a time. *' I drew my friend with me into the woods," he
■a^ "Leaving the monotonous fir-trees behind me, I
sought those beautiful, lealy groves, which are, indeed, of no
very great extent in that region, but are nevertheless of a
size BufHdent to furnish concealment for a poor wounded
heart. I selected, in the deepest part of the wood, a sombre
spot where the ancient oaks and beeches grandly overshad-
owed a broad space of soil. The ground sloped upwards,
which added 10 the effect of the massive old trunks. This
clear space was surrounded with dense thickets, out of which
rose the venerable tbrms of moss-grown rocks, and an abun-
dant brook poured over them in a rapid cascade
" What I then felt, is still present to my mind ; what I
said, it would be impossible for me to recall."
Härtung, in his comment on this scene, says : " He
(Faust) also Ihanh God that He has given to him the com-
rade whom be can no longer do without," etc. The reader
ran judge for himself whether Faust does not simply toler-
ate the presence of Mephistophelcs, through bis conviction
that " nothing can be perfect unto man," and the new ec-
ih,Googlc
(tasy he feels must iheTefore be balanced by the degrading
fellowship.
109. Oiu daret net thai be/ere ckasti tars declart.
" Qui repreheDdunt et irrident quod ea qux re turpia not
•int. nominjbus ac verbis flagitiosa ducamus, ilia autem qiue
tarpia sint Dominibus appellemus suis : latrocinare, fraudaie,
adulterare re turpe est, scd didlur non obsccene ; liberis
dare operam, te bonestum est, nomine obscccnam." — Cicero,
Off. I.. 35-
I la Eniaigk of that I Tliy Imt lili ionefy yonder.
Mephistophelcs is shrewd enough (o perceive that Faust
b thus iv insensible to hia mockery. He here suddenly
changes his tactics, and draws such a picture of the forsaken
Margaret that Faust, even in the exclamation " Serpenf.
■eipenti" betrays bow much he is moved. Id this excla-
mation, and the aädt of Mephistopheles, I have omitted the
rhyme of the original, which could not possibly be repro-
duced without losing the subtile suggestiveness<rf the words.
Ur. Brooks nearly overcomes the difficulty by translating as
III. " Wire I a litlli bird '. " K rum her 3<mg.
This is an old song of the people in Germany. Herder
published it in bis Volkslitäir, in 1779 ; but it was no doubt
already ^miliar to Goethe in his cfaildhood. The original
melody, to which it is still sung, is as simple and sweet as
the words. I cannot do better tban to borrow Mr. Btoolu'i
translaiioD, which is very literal : —
- Wen 1 1 tiule bird.
Had I two wing* of min^
'l-daylomrdar;
BulthMcunewb«
Soliujbn.
ih,Googlc
KOTES. 393
" Though I un bi htim äxa,
SlcepiDf 1 ^m neir to Ibee,
Tilk with my dear;
When I ignlu iglill,
" Scarce then ^ id hour m th« Diglu
When >l«p do« not uke iu Sifht,
Audi think of tb«.
Ho« mur thounnd lima
Thoo giT'il thj heart to ma."
The expression " wept beyond her tears " is au^vitint
(otitwcpt} in the original. Goethe probably remembered
the line of Dam« (/«/oT.a, Canto XKXIII.) : —
" Weeping iiKlf then do« not let ihemwcep.
Its. On year twin-pair, that ferd among Ihe raset.
The Song of Solomon is one of those books of the Old
Testament which Faust, in his cuntraa with Mephisloph-
eles, according to one form of the old legend, was permitted
to read We should not be surprised, therefore, to find the
latter quoting from it, although not quite correaly,
" Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins,
which feed among the lilies." — iv. 5.
Mr. Hayward quotes from a private letter to himself the
following singular advice iriiich Schlegel gives in regard Kb
this couplet : —
" Je ne vous conseille pas de traduire cela litt^ralemenl.
Ob jeterait les hauts cris."
1 13. Mafgaret {at tht spinning-iiikeel, aleni).
This and ihe foregoing scene may be cotiaidered as nearly
identical in time. The lovers are separated : Faust strug-
gles with all (he force of his nobler irutinct to resist his
passion, while Margaret is wholly possessed by an intense,
onreMOoing jrearning for his presence. In representing het
ih,Googlc
,94 FAUST.
M Mated at the spinning-whed, Goethe again rememben
the Margaret of his boyhood. Visiting the house on one
occasion, to meet, by appointment, the drcle into which he
had been drawn, he says : " Only one of the young people
was at home. Margaret sat at the window and span ; the
mother went back and forth She (Margaret) arose,
left her spinning-wheel, and approaching the table where I
sat gave me a severe lecture, yet with much good sense and
kindness."
Although some have bnded that in the opening Hne,
Miint Ruh' iti hin, the lulling sound of the spinning-wheel
is indicated, the verses are meant to be a reveiy, not a song.
They are, indeed, articulate sighs ; the lines are almost as
short and simple as the first speech of a child, and the least
deviation from either the meaning or the melody of the
original (even the change of meim into my, in the first line)
takes away something of its indescribable sadness and
strength of desir& In the first verse, which is twice re-
pealed as a refrain, I have been obliged to choose between
the repetition o( the word ptace in the third line and the use
of a pronoun which cannot, as in the German, fix its antece-
dent by its gender. The reader who prefers the grammatical
form to the more natural expression will at least understand
that it is here impossible to give both. There are prece-
dent* for either tütemative, in former translations.
1 14. Near tut notfalitly, rwteltst taunünaiui !
When FauBl says, "And as for Church and Faith, I leave
to each his own," it is Goethe who speaks. His maxim
through life was not only tolerance but a respectful recogni-
tion of all forms of religious belief. Margaret here repre-
sentH a class not peculiar to Germany. She insists on a
categorical explanation of Faust's views, and when, in an-
swer to her question : " Believest thou in God ? " he hints al
the impossibility of comprehending the Divine Essence, she
misses the familiar phrases of her creed, and immediately
bfers 1 " Then thou believest not I "
The passage which fallows has been the sut^ect of a great
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
295
■lea) or comment, from Madame de Stael (in her Dt fAlti-
magnt) to the latest writer on Fiaat. There is, bowcrer,
liuffidenl evidence that Goethe meant to state his own —
imperlect, as he admitted it to be — conception of the Deity.
He read Spino« at an early age, and frequently eipressed
Sis concurrence in the views of that philosopher, concern-
'Jig the " iinmanetice " of God in all things. The sun, (he
stars, the earth, the human heart and all its emotions, are
simply " invisible, visible " manifestations of His existence.
Goethe's intention is to acknowledge Him in His Infinite
aspects, not to define or describe Him.
In iSsg, he said to Eckermann : " The period of doubt is
past : every one. noiv, would as soon think of doubting his
own existence as that of God. Moreover, the nature of God,
immortality, the being of the soul and its connection with
the body are eternal problems, wherein the philosophers are
unable to give us any further knowledge."
Two years later, Eckermann gives the following report of
Goethe's views. The latter was then eighty-two years old.
" l-le is very far from supposing that he truly apprehends the
Highest Being. All his oral and written utterances have
inculcated the belief (hat God is an inscrutable Existence,
whereof man has but approximate glimpses and presenti-
ments. All Nature anc^we human beings are. nevertheless,
so penetrated with the Divine element, that it sustains us,
that in il we live, work and be ; that we sorrow and rejoice
through (he operation of eternal laws, which we fulfil and
which are fulfilled in us, whether we perceive them or not.
Ho is firmly convinced that the Divine Power is everywhere
manifested, and that the Divine Love is everywhere active."
In (823 Goethe said to Soret r " With (he people, and
especially with the elctgymen, who have Him daily upon
their tongues. God becomes a phrase, a mere name, which
they utter without any accompanying idea. But if they were
penetrated with His greatness, they would rather be dumb,
and for very reverence would not dare (o name Him."
This passage in Faust has sometimes been designated
■"Goethe's creed," — an expression which he would ha»e
ih,Googlc
296 FAUST.
repelled, since he con*idered all creeds its attempts to exprcM
something beyond the reach of human intelligence. In 1813
he wrote to his friend Jacobi ; " For my part, with tlie mani-
fold diteclions in which my nature moves, I cannot be satis-
fied with a single mode of Ihuught. As Poel and Artist I
am a polylhcist ; on the other hand, as a student of Nature
I am a pantheist, — and both with equal pnsiliveness. When
I need a God for my personal tiature, as a moral and spirit-
ual man. He also exists for me. The heavenly and the
earthly things are such an immense realm, that it can only
be grasped by the collcclivc intelligence of all beings."
Whether Faust's explanation is pantheism, in either a
spiritual or a tnaterialistic form ; whether it is an luidoctrinal
view permitted to a Christian, or, as Margaret fears, there is
"no Christianity" in it, — are questions which the reader
will decide for himself. The terms Pantheism, Materialism,
and even Christianity, aie so liable to random and partisan
use, that I prefer to leave without comment a passage, of
which Mr, Lewes says : " Grander, deeper, holier thought)
ate not to be found in poetry."
115. At the Fountain.
This is another of the scenes written in 1775. Its direct
and occasionally coarse realism has been condemned by some
critics, and one ot two of the expressions have geneially
been softened in translation. The vulgarity of I.isbcth,
nevertheless, has a purpose. Margaret is made to feel her
own situation, and the disgrace awaiting her, through the
expressions applied to the unfortunate Barbara, and the
reader's sympathy is secured, with his first knowledge of her
fall. I have therefore translated the scene without change,
on the same principle which the GermaDs have adopted in
translating Shakespeare.
116. Andvit'U scatttr chaff htfori her door.
The word Aöciirr/iRf signifies Mlhei chalfor chopped straw
The old German custom, which is still observed in some
parts of the coantry, allowed the bridal wreath only to chaste
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
297
maidens. If one of sullied repuiation ventured to assume it,
the wteath was torn from her head, and sometimes replaced
with one of straw, wliile on the eve of the marriage chaff
or chopped straw was scattered before her door. A widow
who manies again is allowed to wear a wreath, but not the
myrtle of the maiden bride.
Church-penance for unchaslity was also formerly common
in England. In Germany the guilty person was obliged to
kneel before the altar, clad in a "sinner's shift," while the
clergyman severely rated her conduct, and read her pelilion
for pardon.
117. Donjon.
The word Zviiagtr, which Goethe uses, corresponds to
our " stronghold " or " donjon keep," but is also sometimes
applied to the open angular space between the wall of a
town and one of the fortified gates. Goelhe seems to use
the word in the latter sense. The shrine of a saint was
fiequenlly placed in the re-entering angle, between which
and the city-wall there would be a partly enclosed space.
Mephistopfaeles represents Margaret as watching the clouds
"over the old tnty-wall," from her window, whence her
home must have been in the street nearest to it, and the
»hrine of the Mattr DolBrosa, being close at hand, would be-
come her accustomed place of prayer. I have followed all
other translators in using the word donjon, simply because
we have no English word to describe the locality,
TTieopeningof Margaret's prayer suggests the well-known
Latin hymn of Jacoponus, written towards the close of the
ihirteenth century: —
If the reveiy at the spinning-wheel be a sigh of longing,
this is a cry for help, equally wonderful in words and metre ;
ih,Googlc
yet with a cbaracler equally eliuive when we attempt to
reproduce it in another language.
ii8. Valentine, (tw/(/wr, Afargitret't bmi^.
Thi* scene appears lo have been written some time during
the year iSoo. and probably afcer the completion of the ^al
purgiS'Nighl (Scene XXI.). Goethe had been occupied, at
intervals, for some lime previous, with the Helena (Part bec-
ond. Act lit.), which he finally laid aside, with the detertiti-
nation to fill tbe gaps yet remaining in the First Part, before
proceeding further. In (be Royal library at Berlin, there la
an auti^^ph manuscript of the scene, dated " iSoa"
Düntier insists that the unity of the plot is disturbed by
the introduction of Valentine, whose death, he asserts, has
no intimate connection with Margaret's fait. Goethe's de-
sign, nevertheless, may be easily conjectured, and the poets,
we imagine, will take sides with him against the critic. The
guilt of blood, which the action of Mephistophcles brings
opon Faust, obliges the latter to fly from the town, and he is
thus prevented from learning the shame and misery which
swiftly come upon Margaret. Without such a motive, his
flight would be a heartless desertion, at variance with the
expressions of his love in the preceding and following scenes.
Moreover, while the consequences of Margaret's &utt suc-
ceed each other with terrible, cumulative retribution, het
right to pity and sympathy increases with them. We could
ill spare this picture of Valentine, the brave soldier, the hon-
est man, whose death is another necessaty link in tbe btal
chain of Margaret's destiny.
1 19. Sua iplnulid liim-dallaTs in 'i.
The remark of Faust refers, apparently, to some buried
treasure which Mephistopheles has promised to raise for
him. "IJon-doliara " are of Dutch coinage, and so called
both from the city of Louvain (in German, Linotn — lion), in
Brabant, where they were first struck, and from the figure
of a lion on the obverse. They are also sometimes named
' Brabanteri." A few specimens are still occastoftally Men
ih,Googlc
bi Gennanj: their valne is about ei^ty-five cents. Hay
ward is mistaken in uying that the lioa^dollai is a Bohe-
" It «a« a generally disseminated belief that the interior
of (be eanh contains treasures, which must be raised by
iriioeveT would possess them. It was supposeil that the
treasuTe moved of itself slowly seeking to approach tlie sur-
bce; At stated limes, frequently once in seven years, but
sometimes only once in a hundred, the treasure is above,
and waits to be lifted. If this is not accomplished, because
the necessary conditions aie not fulfilled, it sinks back agaiiL
It is generally contained in a kettle, and its approach to the
lar&ce is indicated by a flatne hovering over the spot." —
Dnntttr.
IW. What doathim here t
The song of Mepbistopheles is directly suggested, as
Ooethe admitted (Tode Note S), by the song of Opiielia, in
Haiütt (Act IV., Scene V.): —
" Good mornm, 'I ig Saint ValdHine'i dar.
All in du morning belinie.
And I a maid at jFoar windoiv;
To be TOUT Valeottne.
"Then npiiennc. and doo'd hiidolha.
And dapped Ihv chiinber door ;
£cl in Ibe maid, Ihii ool a maid
Nfli«r departed moR."
In Schleget's translation, St Charily (in the third verse)
is rendered SI Kaihrin, whence Goethe probably took the
name "Kathrina dear," It also seems probable that the
name given to Margaret's brother, Valentine, was suggested
6y "your Valentine" in Ophelia's song; and all the more
to, since its Latin original, mleai, is specially appropriate to
lai. Rat-calckittg piptT, thaul
Browning's poem of "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" is so
well known that I need not give the old German legend to
which Valentine'« exclamation refers. Goetlie's song, Dtr
ih,Googlc
300 FAUST-
RaUettfangtr, expresacB atill more dearly the meming whidi
be altaches to the phrate. The man who chanm innocent
maidens by his seductive arts, even as the piper hj the notes
of his magical pipe charmed the rats of Hamelin, ii a rat-
catcher. In "Romeo and Juliet" (Act III. Scene I.) Mer-
"Tjtnlt, yoa nt-catcber, will jm «ulk?"
133. Oul vritk year if it, vilhatl dilay !
Pltdtrmisch, the slang German word for "swoid.'' which
Hepbistopheles decs, means a goose's wing, such as is usad
by economical housewives lor dusting (brailure. Hayward
translates "toasting-iron," borrowing the expression from
Shakespeaie ; Mr. Brooks says ** whisk," and Mr. Martin
"duster," — both of which are literal ; yet, in this instance, I
prefer to use a cant word which is equivalent to the original.
133. Cathedkal.
Tbia is tbe doüng scene of " Faust ; a Fr^menl," and
the last but one in which Margaret appears. She returns to
the Cathedral, before which Faust first met her in the street,
a* she was coming from «miession, where, as even Meplu*>
topheles admit* : —
- So iBDocmi k iha. inikad,
Tlut 10 a»f» Alt had no need."
Without this contrast, the terrible power of the scene
must be felt by every reader. The short, unrhymed line«
express both the bonne whispered threats of the Evil Spirit,
and Ibe panting agony of the sinner. The tine: "UpoF
thy threshold whose the Mood ? " &ils in the edition of 1 790-
and was added on accomit of the foregoing scene, which was
afterwards written. The confuuon of Margaret's ibooghta,
presaging her later insanity, is indicated in the ürst words
jhe utters.
134- Dili ira, dils ilia.
Goethe has elsewhere acknowledged the powerful impres-
sion which this old Latin chant made upon himaelf. Sonw
ih,Googlc
jvorss.
301
h(Te attributed its irthorahip to Gregory the Great, and
others to Bernhard of Clairvaux ; but the scholars seem now
to be generally agreed that it is not of later origin than the
thirteenth century, and that Thomas of Celano was proba-
bly ila author. It was accepted b; the Roman Church, as
one of Che legumtia of the requiem, before the year 13S5.
The original text is engraved upon a marble tablet in the
church of St Francesco in Mantua. The present form of
the chant is supposed to have been given by Felix Hammerlin
(in th« early part of the fifteenth century), who omitted the
former opening stanias, and added some others at the close.
In this form it has appeared in the Catholic missals, since
the Council of Trent. The chant ha* been translated up-
wards of seventy times into German, and fifteen times into
English. One of the closeal versions, of the few in which
the feminine rhymes lae retained, is that of Gen. John A.
Dix, who thus tenders the first stania : —
125, jfudtx ergo itim tedtHt.
We must suppose that the singing of the chant c<
ird that there is a pause after the close of the first verse, be-
fore the Evil Spirit again speaks. His second address cer-
tainly points to the third verse, of wluch it isaparaplirase: —
Tiba mirvm ifarfrnt «muni
Goethe passe* over this and the two following verses until
the sixth, which is now quoted. Margaret is overpowered by
the declaration contained in it that all things hidden shall be
brought to light, and no guilt shall remain unpunished.
ia6. Quid aim miser tunc dicturus f
This, the seventh verse, is most appropriately chosen for
(he climax of the effect produced on Margaret by the grand
and terrible chant If the just shall be saved with difKculty,
ih,Googlc
301 FAUST.
what plea shall be Dtlered by this roiierable linncr? In t)ie
original, also, the threat of wrath and retribution culminatea
here, the remajning ten verses having the character of peni-
tence and supplication. DUnucr censures Goethe for re-
pealing the line; " Quid sum miter tunc ditturusf" loi the
reason that it is not repeated in the Catholic service, and in-
sists that he ought to have given the first line of the follow-
ing feTse — "Rex trimmda majntatit" instead of it. But
the poet,^ who prefers dramatic truth to tbe correctness of a
minute detail which it of no importance, justifies himselC
137, Acigitvrl ))VHT terdial !
The original word, Fl&tch^lun, means simply a phial ; bat
It ii evidently the neighbor's pocket-flagon of smelling-salts
for which Margaret uks. In most of the English version«
we find "smelling-bottle," but Mr. W. Taylor, of Norwich,
in his "Historic Survey of German Poetry" (London, 1830),
say* ■' Vour dram-bottle 1 "
138. Walfurgis- Night.
This scene was written in 1800, probably twenty-five years
after its first conception. It is announced in the Witches'
Kitcben(SceneVI.), in thewordsofMephislophetes: "Thy
wish be on Wal purgis- Night expressed," Goethe was ac-
customed to carry his poetical designs about with htm for a
long lime, froia a sense of possession and private enjoyment
which he lost after they had been wrilien. Perhaps, also,
his feeling for the repose and Hymmetry of classic art, which
was awakened during his Italian journey, and which mani-
fesu itself in Iphignsia in Taurit, Taiie, and even in Mir-
aiara and DoroOita, rendered it more difBcult for him to
resume a theme so purely Gothic. He once said to Ecker-
mann: "I employed myself but once with the devil and
wiich maierial; I was then glad to have consumed my
Northern inhetilance, and turned again 10 the banquets of
the Greeks." The original manuscript of the Walpurgis-
Night is in the Royal Library of Berlin : it it dated Novem-
ber 5, 1800.
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
303
The title and character or the Witches' Sabbath on the
Biniinit of the Brocken, on Ihe nighl between April 30 and
May I, spring equally from the old and the new religion.
Walpurgis (or Walpurga, which is the most usual form of
the name) was the sister of Saints Willibald and Wunnlbald,
and emigrated with tbem from England 10 Germany, as fol-
lowers of Si. Boniface, in the eighth century. She died at
abbess of a convent ai Heidenheim, in Franconia, and after
the extirpation of the old Teutonic faith became one of the
most popular saints, not only in Germany, but also in Hol-
land and England. The first of May, which was given to
her in the calendar, was the ancient festival-day of the Dru-
ids, when they made sacrifices upon their sacred mountains,
and kindled their May-fires. Inasmuch as their gods be-
came devils Co their Christian descendants, the superstition
of a conclave of wizards, witches, and fiends on the Brocken
— or Blocksberg — naturally arose, and the name of the
pious Walpuigis thus became irrevocably attached to the
diabolical anniversary. The superstition probably grew
from the circumstance that the Druidic rites were celebrated
by night, and secretly, as their followers became few. Goethe
describes such a scene in his Cantata of "The First Wal-
purgis-Night " (written in 1799), wherein his Druid sentinel,
on the lookout for suppressive Christians, sings : -~
" Mil dno Tsulitl, den u* ftbcln,
WoUm wii lis Hlb« •nchrecktD.'*
[With Uw DerO. whom thay bbia.
]
Mr. Lewes is mistaken when he says : " The scene on the
Blocksberg is part of the old Legend, and is to be found in
many versions of the puppet play." There is no trace of it
m any of the forms of the legend or play which 1 have exam-
ined. The carnival of the witches on the Blocksberg is a
much older tradition than that of Faust, and the two were
never united in the popular stories. Johann Friedrich
Löwen, a native of Clausthal, in the Hartt, published in
1756 a conical epic, entitled " The Walpurgis-Nigbt,"
ih,Googlc
wherein, tpp«ren(Iy for the fitu dine in lluraton, F:
appears on the Blockabei^. I quote the following line
Tlw tfKKtTt* l:neil ' humb I ' FluH un« ■ diinliiiii-uiic "
Goethe was no doubt acquainted with thii poem ; but the
Brocken itself, which can be seen in clear weather (rom the
Ettenberg near Weimar, or the KUckelhahn at Ilmenau, al-
wiy« possessed a special attraction for him. In December,
1777, he first ascended the mountain, and thereafter wrote
his celebnied poem, " Hani-Journey in Winter." Before
kaving for Italy, he again twice made Che ascent, both
through the region of Schicrke and Elend, and on the north-
ern side, up Che valley of the Ilse.
The Hartz Mountains are an isolated group, lying be-
tween the Elbe and Weser rivers, and their central and
highest peak, the Brocken, has an elevation of three thou-
sand eight hundred feet above the sea. It is a dark, wild
region, with forest* of fir and birch on the lower heights,
traversed by foaming streams, one of which, the Bode, is
(hut in by perpendicular walls ot trap rock, several hundred
feet in height. On Che loftier ridges huge masses of granite
mterrupt, and sometimes overtop, the forests. Climbing the
Brocken in 1845, I passed the Walpurgis- Night in the high-
est inhabited house below Che summit, which I reached the
next morning after wandering upwards for three hours
through a terrible storm. The descent in the afternoon,
through Schierke and Elend, under drifting masses of black
cloud and a driving scud of hail, snow, and rain, suggested,
at every step, the description of the scenery in Faust.
Schierke, the highest village in the Hartz, is a collection o(
Tude, weather-beaten wooden houses, surrounded by rocks
of the most äntasCic shapes. Elend is two or three mile*
distant, and much lower. The most spirited and picturesque
de*aiptioD of the Faust-icenery of the Haru ha* beoi
ih,Googlc
JfOTES.
305
given bf Hehw, ia his ReiubiUrr — " nctarn of TraTd,"
which have been Danslaletl by Mr. Charles G. Leland.
A fragment of two lines in the Paralipamena wis probably
Intended &a the opening of tlua scene ; —
TW plmtisr wdi aad win^a grow.
119. 7%r mom' I Urn diak, mtk ita UlattJ^em.
" The field of love, hate, hope, despair, and whatever other
name» may be given to the conditioDS and passioni of fhe
■oul, IB the poet'i natural inheritance, and he may lue it
■uccesafolly. But he hat no inherited insiina of how ■
court of justice — for instance — is held, or how a parliament
or an imperial coronation is conducted ; and in order not to
violate truth the poM must make auch subjects his own
through observation or acceptance from others. Thus, in
Fault, I was easily ible to possess, by insdnc
the gloomy mood of weariness of life in the hero, as we
Margaret's scntitneiit of love ; but, to say, far ezan^ile ; '
Tk* Bwon't lana dak, witb itt beUud (kni,' —
come previous observation of nature was ueccssaiy." —
Gaeihe te Eckirmann, 1S24.
The time being near midnight, the moon, then rising,
would be approaching her last quarter.
I cannot give a better illuitraCion of the efforts made bv a
certain class of German critics to attach a S3m:ibolicat mean-
bg to every part of Faust, than the assertion of Leulbecher,
that the two lines ; —
H 1t^p«d1 tircMtt,
■idicate the linking which Fickle gave to Nicolai, in hia
paper entitled : " Friedrich Nicolai, his Singular Opinions,"
ftc- I Unfortunately for Leutbecber, this paper was pub-
liihed a year after Goethe wrote the Wa]pufg>«-Night.
ih,Googlc
306 FAUST.
130. Hiar them sitoniig, htor than btsaa^l
Some of the httge, rockj "anonu," nur tbe villus of
Schierlce, have long been t^lcd Die ScAnareArr, The Snor-
ers. Near one of these roclcs the magnet shows a great
vaiiatioii, whence the people of the neighborhood daim ihat
it is ti>e cenlral-poiDl of tlie world. Mephistopheles sajrs, in
tbe CUsäcal Walpmgis- Night (Secoud Part of .fiuuf) : —
TIr Sntfti« Haul at Elend, Bootting [»en 1
And III b finuked tir ■ Ibouead yeus.
SheDer translates tbe couplet with great spirit : —
"Tbepenl-ineiited cncm, bal bo I
Haw ibef men ud bow IliCT bk* t "
Hisvoston «r tbe Walpurgis- Night, although not Teij
bith&l, and coMainii^ frequent line* of his own interpola-
■ion, Dcvertbeless admirably reproduces tbe harrying move-
ment and the weird atntosphere of tbe original. This ia
the more remarkable sixx he disregards, for tbe most pan,
the Genoan metres.
131. ffmg raoii tlU tewtfeit thrm^h tkt air I
The word which I bave translated "lempesl," b Whtdi'
traml (wind's-bride) ti) the original. It is the word employed
by Luther, in bis transUtion of the Bible, for the italicized
words in the following verse from Acts (zzvii, 14) : " But
not long after there arose against it a tetaptstumu viinä,
called Eurodydon." A »udden and violent siorro is still
called WindibratU by the common people, in some parts of
Geimanj.
13z. 7^ wäcka ride to the Breeietfi laf.
The same general explanation wbicb bas been appGed to
tbe Witches' Kitchen {vide Note 83) is also valid here. In
the separate voices and choruses which ibUow, a a^aning is
constantly Snggesled, because each is arbilrarily attached to
a basis of satire or irony, without any necessary consisteocy
between them. Most of the German commentators suppose
thai the croiwding and pushing of the " boistcroua gDestm*
ih,Googlc
KOTES. 307
towards the siimiiiir of the Blocksberg is symboliml of the
Siorm aad Strtii period of German Literature ; but the
argument could not be made dear to the English reader,
without giving a comprehensive sketch of that period. I
shall, therefore, only meotjon those references concerning
which the critics are generally agreed-
Sir Urian is a name which was formerly used to designate
an imkncHni peison, or one whose name, even if known, it
•as not thought proper to mention. In this aensc it was
somedmcs applied to the Devil. In the Partnai aC Wolf-
ram vuD Eschenbach, the unprincipled Prince of Puntnrtoit
is called Urian,
Hayward says of the omitted words in this verse : " la
Arislopbanic language — the wiidi wtpSirai, the be-goat
133. Alane, tld Baibt '1 coming new.
Baubo, in the Grecian myths, was the old nurse of Deme-
ter, or Ceres ; who, when the latter was plunged in grief for
the loss of I^isephone, endeavored to divert her by inde-
cent sloiies and actions, and thns, finally, provoked her to
laughter. Goedie, Ifaerefore, makes her symbolize the grou.
shameless sensuality, which, according to all popular tradi-
tions, characterized the congregations of the witches, wia-
ards, and devils.
134. WamoM V a IhmaanJ Hept aiaid.
Riemer relates that Goethe, in the year 1807, said to hiDi :
" When a woman once deviates from the right path, she
then walks blindly and regardless of consequences towards
evil ; and a man who walks the evil way cannot begin to
keep pace with her, for be always retains a sort of too-
KJeaoe, while she allows nature to work unchecked-"
135. Vttwt're ttenuUfy tteriU itiU.
" That is, they know all Ibe rules by which to avoid bult^
tut beyond this negative talent their powers do not reach,
tad the very care with which they wash and deanse, hindei»
ih,Googlc
3o8 FAUST.
their praductl*eneM. ' To be free from fimlts, it both tba
lowest and tbe highest degree ; for it springs from either
Itnpotenc« or greatness.' " — Härtung.
" It applies (o the merely critical efforts of the day, vhich
can nerer attain to a creative character." — Diycki.
" These always washing, even bright and clean wiiards, are
wltbout doubt the xalhetic art-critics, to whom nothing is
ever right, but who themselves are unable to produce tb«
■lightest thing." — Düntitr.
"The Blocksberg is the congregation of the evil ones,
the collection of the rabble who perversely follow mistaken
views of knowledge, will and power." — Rostnkratn.
136. Drittle, whittling Ihrot^ tkt dork.
Shelley gives tbe following translation of this verse : —
" Th( wind i> «ill. the mun in Hod,
Tba malucholy moon ia dad ;
Th« mlcic EMjtB«. Likv %pKrt on qsifc,
Drismle, whiaiUnc ihrougli th« durli.'*
The last couplet here so perfectly retains the character at
/■• Sattstn sprukl that I do not see how it could be other-
wise rendered without loss ; and I therefore prefer to borrow
from Shelley rather than offer a less sattsfitctory translation.
137. / '*> dimhing nam three htmJred yeuri.
"This can only mean Sdence (more than three hundred
year« hstd elapsed since the revival of the sciences), which
cannot properly advance, because it is hindered by pedantry,
by the restriction of the schools (the rocky cleft)." —
Diintter.
" It means the dtjes and provinces of Germany, whereof
there w«« many at that time, which remained bebicd the
general development of the age." — Deyeks.
The " Half- Witch," who follows below, after the doublr
chorus, is generally accepted as indicating those half'talents
which, with all (heir amlntion, never rise above mediocrity.
and are therefore bitterly jealous of the more gifted mind»
whidi easily distance them ia the race.
ih,Googlc
JVOTSS.
3<>9
138. Make room I Sqaire Veltatd aimts I
"In the poets of the twelfth and thirteenth c
frequently tneet with the word VliaiU as a designation ai
the Devil. In Benhold's Diary we find the Evil One once
named as Sft^in VMaaä — in the play of Frau Jutta ai the
Evil Velland. The word means either 'seducer' or 'the
Wicked One.'" — Zhintter.
139- Mefhistopheles [wks all ai cnct apfnari very eld).
Whether the four characters who have just been intio-
duced are so many individual satires (Deycks, Tor instance,
as!>erts that the Author represents the Komantic school,
headed by Tieck and the Schlegels), is a point concerning
which the critics are not agreed But that the episode is a
general satire on the conventional, and therefore reactionary,
element in politics and literature is very evident. The vrotds
of Mephistopheles and hts assumption of age must be ac-
cepted as a burlesque imitation of the tone of the four speak-
ers ; he simply lakes up the strain and exaggerates it 10 the
point of absurdity. One of the German commentators, nev-
ertheless, considers that Mephistopheles gravely expresses
his own views. His explanation is ; " And because (he con-
tradictions of life and thought have reached their highest
pitch, but at the same time have found their end and solu-
tion, does Mephistopheles convince himself that he has
ascended the Blocksberg for the last time."
The remaining fragments (FaTalifoinena'\ which belong to
Sie Walpurgis- Night may properly be given here ; —
TlionRh but » tagpipe, lii« ui biom
We hiYC. lika miny nobi« feUowi,
Hoch ippaiic and liiila utte.
OfHlmc
Thidnr
ih,Googlc
Anl ifainwilhiil [<■ cAar^u].
The Rat-catcher, here, U certainly Basedow, one of Goethe^
early friends. He was a native of Hamburg, bom in 1733,
and was noied as a teacher, even before his adopdon and
advocacy of Rousseau's system of education gave him a
wider and more important reputation. In 1774 he estab-
lished a model school, under [he name of TTu PhilanthraftH,
at Dessau. After four years, he lefi the plate, and until his
death In 1790 was engaged in trying to establish similar in-
stitutions In other cities.
The word in brackets is Hartnng's suggestion for Ibe
completion of the line. DUntzer thinks it should be Gro-
bian — " boor."
140. ATe dagger 'i here, that sit not Neod to flawing.
Some commentators suppose that the " Huckster- Witch"
(literally, a seller of all kinds of old rubbish) was intended
for the famous Nuremburg antiquarian, Von Murr; others
that the eccentric Hofrath Beireis, who had a remarkable
collection of curiosities at Helmatädt, «as the original.
This is not a matter of much importance : the English
reader will be more interested in the resemblance between
the catalogue of the witch's wares, and thai given by Bums
in "Tarn O'Shanter." Goethe was probably acquainted
with the poems of Bums at the time the Walpurgis- Night
was written, ten years after the publication of " Tam O'Shan-
ter." In a conversation with Soret, in 1817, he spoke with
great admiration of the Scottish poet, and gave evidence of
an intimate knowledge of his songs. For the sake of coio
parison, I quote the passage from " Tarn O'Shanter"; —
'*Coffini «Dod round like open preueSi
That ihiw'd the dead in Iheii luldnMii
And by eome devilith cviinp atighl.
ih,Googlc
WifK iDOdhawkA wi
The gray haira ret tucV to the heft."
Hayward is incorrect in staling that Goethe's poem of
" The Dance of Death " dearly preceded " Tarn O'Shanler."
The correspondence with Ktiebel shows that the former
poem was written in October, 1813. Its character, more-
over, is quite distinct and original : nol a line in it suggest!
either Bums or the Walpurgia- Night.
141. Adant'i firti wifi it ike.
Burton, in his "Anatomy of Melancholy," says: "The
Talmudists say that Adam had a wife called Lilis before he
married Eve, and of her he begat nothing but deviU.
The name, from the Hebrew root LU, darkness, signifies
rti Nointrniü. The word occurs in Isaiah (xiaiv. (4) ; in
the Vulgate il is translated Lamia, in Luther's Bible Kobold,
and in our English version, sa-eKh-oa>l. According to the
Rabbinical writings, Lilith was created at the same time with
Adam, in such a manner that he and she were joined to-
gether by the back, as it is written, " male and female cre-
ated He them, and called their name Adam." In this condi-
tion they did not agree at all, but quarrelled and tore each
other continually. Then the I^ord repented that He had
made them so, and separated them into two independent
bodies ; but even thus they would not live in peace, and
when Lilith devoted herself to witchcraft and courted the
•ociety of Devils, Adam left her altogether. A new wife,
Eve, was afterwards created, to compensate him for his do-
«euic niisTortUTie.
ih,Googlc
jta FAUST.
Lilith is described as having be&utiful luür, in the meshes
of which lurk a multitude of evil spirit». Sbe bas such
power over infania — for eighi days after birth for boys, and
twenty days for girls — that she is able lo cause their death.
tl was therefore the custom lo hang an amulet, inscribed
with the names of the angels Senoi, Sansenoi, and Sanraan-
geloph, around the child's neck at birth ; and from the
Latin exorcism Litla aH! sung by the mother, some have
derived our word Lullaby, although it has also a more ob-
vious derivation. Lilith was equally a seductress of young
men, using her golden hair as a luie to captivate them ; but
the youth who loved her always died, and after his death a
single hair from her head was found twisted around tii«
heart. Mr, Dame Gabriel Rossetti has embodied this tra<
dilion in a fine sonnet.
142. A Icrvely drean (met camt /a me,
Byron, who read Shelley's translation of the Walpurgis*
Night in manuscript, seems to have remembered the dance
of Faust and the young witch, Jn writing the sixth canto of
" Don Juan."
In the two verses given to Mephistophele* and the old
witch, the omitted words are thus omitted in the original.
The manuscript in the Royal Library at Berlin contains the
completed lines as written by Goethe. They are neither
better nor worse than many passages in Shakespeare, having
the coarseness, without the wit, of Rabelais ; hence the
reader gains rather than loses by the omission.
143. PROKTOPHANTABMIST.
In Goethe's original manuscript and in the first edition of
Fiiuil this name is given as " Broktuphantasmist," as in
Shelley's English and Stapfer's French version. The mis-
talie was therefore Goethe's and not theirs, as later l/ans-
latnrs have charged. The word (from wpurrlit. the buttocks)
points so directly to Friedrich Nicolai, the Berlin author
and publiahei, that there is no difficulty in interpreting
ih,Googlc
JVOTES. 313
NIcoU, the son of a bookseller, vas bom In Berlin in
1733, and Buccceded (o his äiher's biutnesa at the age of
twenty-five, after having already commenced bU career m
an aathor. He was the literary associate of Lessing and
Moses MendelMohn, In the " Letters concerning Recent
German Literature " and the " Universal German Libraiy,"
published between 1759 and 1792. He shared the hostility
oT the fonner to the romantic sdiool, especially in its " Storm
and Stress " period, and soon after the appearance of
Goethe's " Sorrows of WerCher " published a malicious and
rather stupid parody entitled " The Joys of Werther." After
the death of his two greit friends be seems to have con-
sidered himself their literary successor, and his pretensions
to be recognized as a critical authority were so arrogantly
and impudently displayed, that he soon brought upon htm-
aeir the enmity, not of Goethe alone, but also of Herder,
Schiller, Kant, Fichte, and many other distinguished men.
His "Account of a Journey through Germany and Switzer-
land," (17S1) in twelve volumes, gives, perhaps, the com-
pletest expression of his cold, restricted, yet dictatorial
nature. He has been called the En-PkäisUi — the arch-
representative of the commonplace, conventional element in
German literature. .
Carlyle says ; " To the very last Nicolai could never per-
suade himself that there was anything in heaven 01 earth
that «as not dreamt of in Au philosophy. He was animated
with a fierce leat against Jesuits ; in this, most people
thought him partly right ; but when he «rote against Kant's
philosophy without comprehending it, and judged of poetry
as he judged of Brunswick mumme,' by its utility, many
people thought him wrong."
Goethe, perhaps, might have forgiven the parody of " Wer-
ttter." but Nicolai's declaration that he would " soon finish
Goethe," at a time when he still retained considerable influ-
ence with the public, 'while (loschen's edition of Goethe's
works was neglected or assailed, was a more serious offencci
ih,Googlc
3 »4
FAUST.
Goethe wa* provoked into t>sii% tbe onljr weapon which he
considered fining — ridicule, and he was assisted by Nicolai'»
Mm indiscieCion. The tatter, whose literary materialism wat
his prominent quality, — who fought the spiritual element
M Lutber fought the Devil, — was visited, in 1 791, with an
avenging malady. He was troubled by apparitions of per-
■ons living and dead, who filled his room, and for several
weeks continued to haunt and torment him although he
knew them to be phantasms. He was finally relieved by the
application of leeches about (he end of the spine, whence
Goethe's term PreätofAantaimisl, which may be delicately
translated as " Rump-visionary." Nicolai published a very
minute account of his affliction and the manner of cure, and
thus fiimished his antagonists with an eflective source of rid-
icule. He died in iSi t, after having seen himself pilloried
in the Wal purgis- Night. His services, nevertheless, must
not be wholly measured by the place which he here occupies.
He »as eiidently honest, although vain und narrow-minded
For several years, his authority in Berlin «as fully equal to
that of Gottsched in Leipzig, a generation before; and his
friendship with Lessing and Mendelssohn is an evidence
both of his culture and character. But when, not recogniz-
. ing the later giants, he attempted to stand in theb way, he
was crushed.
144. JVf are so vase, and yet is Tegel haunted.
Nicolai's arrogant manner is parodied in this passage.
Since he does not believe in the spirits, it is incredible that
they will not vanish. His annoyance at their appearance in
Tegel — a small castle, a few miles northwest of Berlin, origi-
nally built as a hunting-lodge by the Elector of Brandenbui^,
aivd more recently known as the home and burial-place of
Wilhelm and Alexander von Humboldt — is explained by
the circumstance that in t797 apparitions were declared to
have visited the castle, ^io much excitement was created by
the report, that an ofBclal visit to Tegel was made by the
anthorilics, and attempts were instituted, but without sue.
cess, to discover the cause of the ghostly sights and sounds.
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
315
Id Varnfaogen von Eosc'b Tt^Atuh, published since hif
ieath, I find Ibe following curious statement : —
" Tegel is haunted, as is known ; this winter the HinisleT
(Wilhelm) von Humboldt is said to have seen his douUe
there. The serwil entered, terrified to find him sitting
at his writing-desli, aitd cotifeued, in his confusion, that be
bad just left him l^ing in bed. The Minister followed the
■errant into hi* bedchamber, also saw himself Ijring in bed,
obeenred the thing for 1 while, did not approach nearer,
however, but went quicllj awaj again. After half an hour
the apparitkm bad disappeared."
145. Ytt stmtthingfrota a Imr I ahoayt tatie.
This is an allusion to Nicolai's interminable narrative of
bis jonmey through Germany and Switzerland. The parody
of his manner is continued in his repetition of the same idea,
■a In one of the Xtnim which Goethe and Schiller wrote In
partnership in 1 796 : —
" Whit be think) of hü ^e ht njt : bi pt» hii ojiiniso,
Sa^ it agab aloud, aajrg h« has laid it> and got*."
The allusio« of Mephistopheles to the leeches needs no
further explanation.
146. j4 nd mmaiftpm her mvuti,
Goethe here refers (o an old superstition concerning one
of the many forms of diabolical possession. Perhaps be also
remembered the following story, quoted by Hayward frtun
the Deuitclu Sagen : —
" The following incident occurred at a nobleman's seat, in
Thüringia, about the beginning of the seventeenth centuiy.
The servants were paring Iruit in the room, when a girl, be
c<Mning sleepy, left the others and laid herself down on a
bench, at a little distance from the others. After she had
Jain still a short time a Utile red mouse crept out of her
mouth, which was open. Most of the people saw it and
showed it to one another. The mouse ran hastily to the
open window, crept through, and remained a short tpace
ih,Googlc
3i6 PAUST.
without. A fbrmid wahing-oufd, whoM curiiMit)r was ea>
died by whxt she mw, in spite of the remonstiances of the
test went up to the iiunimsle maiden, shook her, looved her
to mother place * little fatihtt oB, and then left her.
Shortly afterwards the mouse returned, ran to the former
familiar spot where it had crept out of the maiden's mouth,
ran up and down as if it could not find its way, and was at a
loss what to do, and then disappeared. The maiden, bow-
ever, was dead and remained dead. The forward waiting-
maid repented of what she had done, but in vain. In the
same estaUishment a lad had before then been often tor-
mented by the sorceress, and could have oo peace; ibis
ceased on the maiden'* death."
Goethe probably intended the mouse as a symbol of the
bestial element in the Witches' Sabbath, by which Faust is
disgusted and repelled. The apparition of Margaret, which
has also a prophetic character, is the externa] eidolon of his
own love and longing.
147. TXi Pratrr ihima ne livelür itir.
The Prater (from the I^tin fratum, a meadow) is the fa-
mous public parL of Vienna, which the Emperor Joseph IL
dedicated "To the Human Race." It is an island enclosed
by arms of the Danube, covered with a line forest which is
intersected in all directions by magnificent drives and walks.
On holidays, Sunday afternoons, and pleasant summer even-
ings half the population of Vienna may be fnund in the Pra-
ter, which is one of the liveliest and cheerfullest places of
recreation in Europe.
148. SiKVIBtUS.
This term corresponds to (he "supernumerary" of oar
theatres. In 1799, Goethe wrote an article upon " Dilettan-
tism " in literature, of which the words spoken by the Ser-
vibilis are an echo. Düntier says, referring to this pauste :
"The Dilettanti, to wliom we ate now introduced, love an
immensity of material, for which reason they continually pro-
duce new pieces, and by scores together."
ih,Googlc
149- Obbkon and Titania's Golden Wedding.
This Intermtaa hid no place in the original plan of Famt,
«nd Schiller is chiefly reaponsiUe for its insertion. In the
summer or 1796, Goethe, who bad been reading the Xtnia of
Martial, wrote > few imitations in German directed againat
his literary antagonists. Schiller caught the idea at once ;
they met and worked together, sometimes independently,
while sometimes one fumished the conception and another
the words. The distiches grew so fast that they proposed
writing a thousand ; tnit the number published in the Mmen-
tlngiatk of the following winter was four hundred and thir-
teen. {They «re all given in the Nachträge n Gmtke's Wtr-
htn, by Eduard Boas: Berlin, 1859.) The effect was like
disturbing a hornet's nest : the air of Gennany was filled
with sounds of pain, rage, and malicious laughter. Mi,
Lewes »ays r " The sensation produced by Pope's ' Dundad '
and Byron's 'English Bards and Scotch Reviewers,' was
mild compared with the sensation produced by the Xtnün,
although the wit and sarcasm of the latter is like milk and
water compared with the vitriol of the 'Dundad' and the
English Bards.' " Mr. Lewes, however, hardly appreciates
the peculiar sting of the Xenitn, which do not satirize the
authors as individuals, so much as ibelr intellectual peculi-
During the following summer, Goethe wrote " Oberen and
Titania's Golden Wedding " — not in its present fonn — and
tent it to Schiller for the Muieaalmanach of 1798, as a con-
tinuation of the a^ressive movement. Schiller, writing to
hitn on the 2d of October, says : " Vou will not find ' übe-
Ton's Golden Wedding' in the collection ; I have omitted it,
for two reasons. First, I thought it might be well to abso-
lutely leave out of this number of the Almanach all stings,
and assume a baimless air ; and then I was not willing that
the Golden Wedding, for the amplification of which there is
so much material, should be limited to so few verse». It re-
mains to us for next year, as a treasure which may be greatly
mcreased."
ih,Googlc
3i8 FAUST.
There is no >eply to this in Goethe's letters until the aoth
of December, when he writes to Schiller from Weimar, after
bis return from Switzerland ; " You have most considerately
omitted Oberon's Golden Wedding. In the mean lime it
has increased to double the number of verses ; and I am in-
clined to think that the best place lor it would be in Faust."
There were probably many changes, made by addition or
omission, before it appeared as an InUrmata in the edition
of 1808. The "Walpargis-Night's Dream" is a suggestion
from Shakespeare. Most of the allusions may still be de-
tected 1 yet something has undoubtedly been lost, through
the transitory cbaractci of the reputations thus satirized.
Considered in its relation to Faust, the piece can only be
regarded as an excrescence. At the time it was added, how-
ever, Goethe designed following it with another scene of ih«
Walpurgis -Night, the outline of which is given in Note 170.
Eckermann relates that, in like manner, Goethe inserted k
number of aphoristic passages and one or two poems, for
which there was no special place elsewhere, in the conclud-
ing part of WilAtlm Miisler, where their appearance wa» a
puMle to both critics and readers.
150. Sons of MiiJing, rest to-day.
Mieding was a theatre -decorator at Weimar, and a great
favorite of Goethe and the Ducal Court. After his death, in
I7S2, Goethe celebrated him in the poem, "Mieding's
Death."
151. Puck.
Some commentators suppose that the Herald's announce-
ment of the Gulden Wedding refers to the final reconcilia-
tion of the conflicting elements in German literature. In
that case. Oberon and Tilania roust be accepted as repre-
senting the Classic and Romantic Schools, or perhaps Rea-
son and Imagination; their quarrel, in the "Midsummer-
Night's Dream." may have suggested to Goethe their use a>
"properlies" for the representation of his satirical fancies.
Puck appears to stand for the whimsical, perverse elemenl
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
3'9
which freqoentl)' appears to cootrol the ta«tes of the molti-
tode, ralbec than Tor an individual. The oame (from the
■ame root as the Swedish foika, a boy) and the tricksy
nature of the imp in Shakespeare, hannonize with thit in-
tetpretadon.
IS2- Ariri.
Aiitl is called from the " Tempest " to jcrin his fellow-
elves. Here he evidently represents Poetry, — the pure ele-
ment, above and untouched by the fashions of the day.
153. Orchestra.
Perhaps Goethe had In his memory the Fregt of Aristoph-
anes. The Orchestra must either be the crowd of literary
•spirants, who, like insects, keep up a continual piping and
hninmii^, which annoys the ear ; or it represents the chorus
of followers surrounding the various literary celebrities of
the time, and repeating their several views with a shrill,
pcrsbteot iteration-
Some pompous bagpipe-droner is here indicated, but no-
body seeois to know whom. Goeihe invented the word
Stknickt-sehmiiki-tcknack to describe the long-drawI^ nasal
tnarl of the instrument
155. Spirit, jost growing into Form.
The name might be translated Emhryo-Späit. "Goetbe
undoubtedly herewith designates those botchii^ poetasters,
who, without the slightest idea that every living poem must
Sow spontaneously from within as an organic «hole, miser-
ably tack and stitch rhymes together, and thus produce mal-
formations which they attempt 10 pass oS as creations of
beauty." — Düntatr.
The following distich from the Xtnun has a certain resem-
Uaoce to the above .■ —
ih,Googlc
$*o
FAUST.
156. A Little Coüm,«.
Härtung thinka the CouiUs Stolberg are the couple ; but
this is improbable, since they are afterwards introduced as
the Weathercock. Dtlntzer asserts that the vetse represent*
the anion of bad music and comnioiiplace poetry.
157. IHQUISTTIVB Traveller.
This is Nicolai, in another mask. The meaning of his
reference to Oberon is not very clear, unless the latter rep-
resents the classic school. When he speaks the second time
In this Inttrmtao the Inquisitive Traveller describes hjm-
self much more distinctly.
15& Okthodox.
Here (peaks the class of bigots who persecuted Leasing
aasailed Klopstock and Goethe, and declared Schiller's
splendid poem, "The Gods of Greece," to be "a combina-
tion of ihe most outrageous idolatry and the dreariest athe-
ism." This phrase is from Count Friedrich Stolberg. who
became one of the mouth-pieces of the sect His attack ii
dius answered in the Xenint: —
au thn Apolo
15g. Northern Artist.
Some suppose this to be the Danish artist Carstens, who
died in Rome, in 1798; others select Pemow, a writer on
art, who spent some years in Rome with Carstens ; others
again insist that it is Goethe himself. Inasmuch as the point
made in (he verse h;is become very obscure, and was prob-
ably not originally brilliant, the reader may lake his choin
of these conjectures.
160. Weatkircock.
Undoubtedly the Counts Stolberg. Goethe made a tonr
through Switierland with ihem, in 1775, when they were
ardent neophytes of " Storm and Stress," delying conven-
ih,Googlc
NOTES. ja I
tfonalities, and adoring "Nature" to sncb an extent that
they Ml«aipted to bathe in public in the villages. Twenty
yean later tbey were narrowly orthodox, reactionary, and
absurdly prudish. — a transfotmation by no means uncom-
mon with semi- talents, and which may be studied in the
United Slates aa well as in Germany. Turned on one aide,
the Weathercoclt is enchanted with the nude witches, and
looks upon them as lovely tardea ; on the other side, it ex-
pects the earth to open and swallow them all.
The " Purist " of the fourth preceding verse is said to he
the philologist Campe, who is called in the Xftiien a "fear-
Ail washerwoman," cleansing the German language with lye
and sand.
i6t. Xbnies.
The word signifies gilts, presented to a visitor. After
their publication in the MusimUiaanack, the storm which
arose against them became so furious that they were de-
nonnced in some quarters as having been directly inspired
by the DeviL Hence the allusion to " Papa Satan."
163. HENNIHOa.
The Danish Chamberlvn Friedrich von Hennings, in his
literary journal, the "Genius of the Age," attacked Goethe
and Schiller in these words : " They are bithless to their
high calling ; they have disgraced the Muse by their viru-
lence, their coarseness, their dulness, their personal rancor,
their poverty of ideas and their malignant delight in injury."
Probably on account of this abuse he is introduced by name,
first; then in the following verse as "Leader of the Muses"
(from the Muiagit, another journal which he conducted);
and a third time as the " CidevaHl Genius of the Age," —
his joumal having died a natural death in 1803.
The first verse parodies his abuse of Goethe and Schiller ;
the second hints that he would be more at home among
Blocksberg witc]ies than as a leader of the Muses ; and the
ftird satirises his practice of giving a place on the German
Punassus to such authors as flattered him by an obsequious
fespect for bis critical views.
ih,Googlc
$M
FAUST.
163. Ckahi.
" Lavater wu a thoroughly good man, tint be wa* aub-
jectcd 10 powerful illusions, and the severe and total truth
iHs not his concern : he deceived himself and olhera. ....
His gait was* like that of a crane, for which rea«on be appcan
as the Crane on the Blocksberg." — GoelMe to Ectermaim^
■S19.
164. WOftLDLINC
tVdttiiid, literally " world-child," a term which Goethe
applies to himself in his cpigramcDatic poem, "Dinner at
Cobtent," where he sat between Lavater and Basedow : —
He here speaks in his own person, satirizing Lavater and
his followers.
The Dancers, who follow, are the phUosopbert, the sound
of whose approaching drums turns out to be only the bitlerm
booming their single monolonau« note among the reeds,
■65. Good Fellow.
Hayward and moM other English ttaniUtor« convert thi*
name into " Fiddler," either supposii^ that where there it
dandng there must be fiddling, or mistaking FidtUr (at
Fitiitr. This verse and the forgoing (the " Dandng Mas*
ter") were first inserted in the last complete edition of
Goethe's works, which appeared just before his death. The
Good Fellow is apparently innoduced solely for the purpoae
of commenting on the hate and mutual pugnadty of the phil-
osophic sects.
The Dogmatist, who, if he is a particular individual, can-
not easily be identified, suggests a passage in one of Goetbe's
letlen to Schiller : " The Copenhagen clique and all tbe
refined dwellers along tbe Baltic shore will derive from tbe
Xenien a ttew argument for the actual and incontrovertible
existence of tbe Devil ; and we have ll
done them an important service."
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
333
■66. Idkalist.
It it generally adn^tted tb*t ibi« b Fichte, wbo, to bomn*
Ae words of i German commentator, "comprehended the
Not-Me itself as a prodacl of the aelf- determined Mc. and
not as something existing extcmallj to the Me." When
Goethe heard that a company of riotous stadenn had col-
lected before Ficbte's bouse uid smashed his wmdom in
with stones, he remarked that Flehte might now convince
himself, in the most disagreeable way, that it was pouible
" for a Not-He to exist, externally to the Me."
167. SCEFnc.
Ttus verse, Hke the preceding, reprcMnls a das«. The
Sceptic compares the Supemaluralists to treasure-seekers,
who iollow the appeaiance of flame and believe that they
will aooii grasp the reality of got± Since Doubt (Ztotifil)
is the only rhyme — and, moreover, an imperfect one — for
Devil \Taifil), in German, the Sceptic finds himself at home
on the Blocksberg.
16S. Tri Adkoit.
Here the venea take a political turn, and the reader must
bear to mind the general break-up of the old order of things
in Europe, at the beginning tA this century. The Adroit are
these who shift themselves according to political changes,
and walk on their heads or on their feet, as circumstances
may exact.
Tlie following verse represents the opposite class, who
nanaged to sponge their way very well under the former
R^inu, but cannot adapt themselves to the new order.
Tbcy are the parasites of a system, and with any change
ÜKir occupation is gone.
[69. WlLL-O'-THB-WlSPSL
Hiii and the next verse again indicate two exactly oppo-
site classes. The former are (he political parvtnut who are
thrown to the sur&ce by a revolution, and, in spite til tbeir
ih,Googlc
3»4
FAUST.
obscure origin, rank at obcc with the highest ; while tb*
Shooting Star represents tlie title* and celebrities cast down
from their high places by the same political movement, an&
Joolüng for any form of help which may again set them upon
their feet
In the second following verse, — the " Heavy Ones," —
wme commentators see the ignoiani, brutal, revolutionarj
ma Butt 1 others the writers of the Romantic school and their
coaggetated manner, lo Goethe's dithyrambic, " German
Parnassus," he thus describes the crush and onset of tb«
mattes of rade literary aspirants :-~
*' Ah, Itu buibet domi u« 1Rxli!«a I
Ah, ih. bknonii outhwl u>il hUm
'Kaaih th« fooLBlepa of Ihe bnxKl :
Who ihill bn>E [bcLr u«ty voodl "
The latter Interpretation is the more probable, «Ence Artel,
who is Poetry, addresses them In words appropriate to Itter-
ary, not political masses.
When Puck speaks of himself at "the stoat one," Goethe
seems to have lemembered the words of the Fairy in the
" Midsummer-Night's Dream," in taking leave of Puck : —
" Fucvell, th«a bb «r([i4i<ti t 1 11 bepm.'*
lyo. Ana all it tlittifatid.
Tbe tran^tion from this Inttrmttn to tbe Buccce^ng
scene of Fautt is too vitdeni, and we cannot help wishing
that the course of tbe drama had not been thus interrupted.
Goeihe, however, not only projected bat partly wrote an ad-
ditional scene, devoted exclusively to the pare diabolism of
the mediaeval traditions. Whilewe mnst admit that acorrect
instinct led him to withhold it, we still must feel that an inter-
mediate scene is necessir)'. The gap which we recognise
was felt by the author, whose work was produced at long in-
tervals of lime, and in fragments tbe character of which was
determined l>y his moods of mind. But he always [»«lerTed
•n abrupt chasm to an unsatisliictory bridge.
The projected scene is generally styled " The Brocke^
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
33S
Scene " hj the Gemun commentatora, «Itbough Härtung
Ukes the liberty of calling it " The Court of Satan." I tran»-
late it (with the exception of one short passage) precisely m
it a given in the Pariüipomtna, with its rapid short-hand out-
lines, iti incomplete dialogues and omitted lines, and leave
•11 comment to the reader i —
THE HARTZ UOUNTAINS.
A MiCHSK RaciOH.
AAa Ih* lawnmno : Solitada. Dosn, blnu of tnimpcn. Li^t-
■üof. thindar from iboie. Column of fire, uidiDg unoke. Rock, vrr-
fccring iherefrom: 't n Sutao, Much people uotiod: deliiy: nm«
of prcHins ihrough : iDJuiT - ei'*- Cluol : Ihej Mand m ih* innM
arde : ih* hut itliiHi« inoppomblc. Who Rindi ucii in ihe ciicl«.
Siun'i addreu: praenUiiom : biTenilarcm. Sinliiuji of Ihe ippui-
tjoo. Vokauo. Duonlctly dkaolinioti, bnakldg uid ujxwa^ iVKj.
SuiiinT or TSE Baociuv.
Th* loui to ihe left hud,
The buclu lo the right I
The goiu, they have Ksnted
The budu with delight :
Aul though ia ibeir noitril*
ih,Googlc
346 FAUST.
MTAM Vinamg « t*f rfrW.
Two (famgi mre bdbn you.
Both tplemlLd uid gnnd :
Tha gliltsTlng gold
Tbv one ü purvü)roT,
TbeD blnt, «bo poawuM
Rsmoie rnin hu »adoii,
I auh noi M cleirlT
I aanal deuci them,
Th* bfwilifiil cicwt,
ThU NaniR mMm I
SATAN ifmrnäit << *** k/fl-
Two tbingg m belbn jaa
0(bri)Hu>CT <:leir ;
The glitleiiDg gold
Hun teun, ill ye «i
Adorinsly tünvd I
Oble«, wtaoitaOTOt
And beveth the word 1
ih,Googlc
Wbr «Kp'it thou, lovelT litüc dcv ?
*T it IUI tlie pUct to ihcd ■ tew.
Hul thou been is thecnmd uonidclTpviliedwtdpauwd?
Ah, DO I TIk Uutcr ipcaJu u lisgolar
AndiU
Pefh.1»
■n»deIigbUH],ii>p)x»>;
So th» ll» DcrQ't nmniig R>di ilH«
UTA».
y*T0iiDEOi>«.Wbn«
To««.dreii«bidd«.r
VuuL ihou leittd ut I
■ inillioQ wall ih^ freehold ruchu :
IB pniK likt Ihee the Devil'i —
ih,Googlc
3aS
ANOTHER PART OF THE BROCKEN.
Lowm RaoiaH.
lerhoDd, both
rtrlcirinrkil
uorblood.w
The Htndi (h* pninu, n luo* Ik« ncn :
The leper dHnlÄ '1 b blood, noi wins.
The look, ÜK drink, end wkai '* begun i
The dagger *% bu^ ihe deed ii dooe.
Flon se'er atone a fourt of blood,
Fnun pUse ID plaa Ihejr giwh and glide,
ADd gilbtr mora lo mil the tide.
Some of the Gennan commentators suppose that the
"black and grav brotherhood" of this concluding chant are
the Franciscan and Dominican monastic orders, and there-
fore that the Iragmeni refer« directly to the Inquisition.
Diintzer asserts that the heading "Another Part of the
Brocken" indicates that this is a separate outline for the
whole scene, intended as a substitute for the foregoing frag-
ment!, not as a continuation of them.
171. Dreary Day.
Riemer state5> that Goethe dictated the whole of this scene
to him, as it stands, without a pause Thi.<t must have oc-
curred between tSoj, «ben be first anttred Goethe^ servte
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
3^9
uid 180S, iriien the FtiM Put me published. It does not
therefore follow that the acene ms then cornposcd, as most
of the critics seem to take for granted. The st]'1e of the
original at once suggests the Wertktr period, and I cannot
resist the impression that it was then Erst »ritten, neatljr in
its present fonn. There are evidences in Gocihc'a corre-
spondence that more than one scene of .^icj/ existed in prose,
many years before the time of which Riemer speaks ; and it
is quite possible that other plans for bridgine over the gap
between the Walpurgis-Night and the Priüon Scene have
been lost. It would be consistent wilh Goethe's habits as
an author, to return to his first conception after the failure of
later oaee, and, inasmuch as the metrical form of his poetry
depended on temporary moods, or varieties of inspiration,
— that is, it was never mechanically planned in advance,
— it is not stretching conjecture too far to assume that, be-
coming weary of so many fruitless attempts, he finally dic-
tated the scene from memory, as originally written.
Another proof that this ot a very similar scene was in
existence before 1790, is the surprise expressed by WIeland
to Boltiger that the Faust " Fragment " of that year did not
contain the passage wherein Faust becomes so furious that
even Mepbistopheles is almost terrified at his violence. At
this time, tea years had elapsed since Goethe read the man-
uscript scenes before the Court circle of Weimar,
U. Stapfer insists that this scene was given in prose "in
order that it might not be said thai any po&sible form of
expression was wanting to Fault." The whole question of
employing metre or prose for dramatic subjects had been
thoroughly discussed by Schiller and Goethe, and the em-
phatic expression of the latter, " Everything poetical in char-
acter must be rhythmically treated," is sufiident evidence
that he was here guided by necessity rather than choice.
The remaining passages of the Paraiipomena belonging to
the First Part may now be appropriately given.
It would appear from the following verse that Goethe at
one time intended taking Faust to Rome, as in the le-
ih,Googlc
Yel Iben, inuead, iht Fua compel
With prima lud Katpiaiu (d dmU.
The next quatrain was evidently intended for fht mootk
of Fauit, on his southward journey : —
WirnKT bRoo, Kilher bknr.
On our fbnheuli pliriDg '
In ow jovthiU (Urine-
Then fbllmn the commencement of a aoene, which may
have been designed as a substitute for that which sue-
HlGHWAV.
ilapliiMof WhrndibEiny?
Bui, ncTET mind, 1 find tbe thine « vorrr.
The last fragment contains nothing from which it* desti-
Dalioa may be guessed : —
I'm of ni' no uhuBcd, oTliu;
Their &DC)r, when tbty bit Tha DnO,
Tbtr 'n nlUml (iimEthinB giElL
172. Open Fieu>.
This brief, uncanny scene seems to have been inserted a*
a Iransilion between the diScrent keys of those which pre-
cede and foliow. The " Ravenstone " is the old German
word ibt a place of execution. Byron probably remembered
ih,Googlc
Che expre»«ion. from Shelley's oral traulalian, nben be
wrote, in a rejected chonu of the "Defonaed Tiaiu-
173. My nulAer, the harlat.
The last line of Faust's Boliloquy at the door: "Farti
Dan ZagtH tigert dtn Tod htran / " is one of those para-
doxiaU sentences, the meaning of which it is more «as; to
feel than to reproduce. Zöprtt, like its EngUtb equivalent,
it an intransitiv« verb; but Shalcespeare's example ma;
justify me in using the verb la iinpr, with an object, as
Goethe uses tSpm. The former expression it the literal
reproduction of the latter.
The song which Margaret sings is a variation of one tn
the Low GemuiD dialect, in a story called the MacJuuuUI-
Bam (The Juniper-Tree : the English translator, tnistalüng
Mtuhandd for Miaidtl, renders it " almond tree "), included
by the brothers Grimm in their well-known collection of
popular öiiy lore. I borrow Hayward's abbreviation of the
"The wife of a rich man, whilst standing under a juniper
tree, wishes for a tittle child as while as snow and as red as
bJuod ; and on another occasion expresses a wish to be
buried under the juniper when dead. Soon after, a little
boy, as white as snow and as red as blood, is bom ; the
mother dies of joy at beholding it, and is buried according
to her wish. The husband marries again, and lia:> a daugh-
ter. The second wile, becoming jealous of the boy, murders
him, and serve« him up at table for the uncoi>sdous father
to eat. The £ither finishes the whole dish, and throws the
bones ander the table The little girl, who is made the in-
nocent assistant in ber mother's villany, picks them up, tiet
them in a silk handkerchief, and buries them under the juni-
per tree. The tree begins to move its branches mysteri-
ously, and then a kind of cloud rises from it, a fire appears
in the cloud, and out of the fire comes a beautiAil Inid,
which Aies about singing the following song : —
ih,Googlc
- Hm Uoäa de mi (bdiei,
M[n Vjder da mi alt.
Min Sweuer de Ktiietokta
Sficht alle inme Bienikeii,
Un bindt lie in een lydea Daok,
KyitiUf KrunUl acb nitni tcbOa Vlgel bin leb I"*
174. My Totdding-day ilwai la ie!
One of the commentators asserts that this line must be
literally accepted, — that the day dawning was actually that
fixed upon by Faust for his marriage with Margaret!
The details of the execution, which Margaret describes,
belong to the past centuries. The tolling of the bell ; the
breaking of a white wand by the judge after the reading of
the sentence of death, js a symbol that the culprit's life is
thus broken; the binding lo the seat, and the Hash of the
executioner's sword, are all features which accompanied the
act
1 75. Ye aagels, koly cohorts, guard me !
Wilhelm Afeitler gives evidence (hat Goethe made a care-
ful study of " Hamlet," and the following lines, on the
appearance of the Ghost in the Queen's chamber {Act IlL
Scene 4), may have lingered in his memory: —
"Siv« [HCl and hover o'er Die vrith your winES»
y« bcaveiüj guards t"
176. She ii jui^edl
Goethe here employs, in a different sense, a phrase from
the puppet-play. When the end of Faust's twenty-four
years of enjoyment draws nigh, a voice calls from above:
Prapara le ad mortem I Soon after, intemipted by Faust's
prayers and words of remorse, the exclamation follows:
dccuiaitues! — then yudicatui ei .' and finally : In afernam
Jamaaiui es I — whereupon Faust disappears firom the eyes
of the spectators.
Some, forgetting that the terms of the compact have rot
jet been fulfilled, interpret the words of Mephistopheie«
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
3ii
"Httber to mel" u implying that he thenceforth takes full
possesiion of Paust The voice from above announce» that
Margaret is saved, and the scene instantly closes, as if the
mist and vapor out of which the forms arose had aguti rolled
over them. Goethe so concealed his plan for the Second
Part of Faust that we must first become timiliat with it
before we can return and trace in the First Pan the threads
which connect the two.
The "little world" of individual passion, emotion, and
Ufnration here comes suddenly to an end ; but beyond it
•till lies the "great world," where the interests and pas^ona
which shape Society, Government, and the development of
the human race are set in motion to solve the problem of
Faust's destiny
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX 1.
THE FAUST-LEGEND.
SO inanf Teferencea have been maide, in the foregoing
Notes, to (he various forms of the old Fiust-legend, that
a brief account of ita origin and the changes in its character
introduced by successive narrators is ail tliat need now be
added. The reader who is specialljt interested in the subject
will find no difficulty in prosecuting his researches further : •
no legend of the Middle Ages has been so assiduously un-
earthed, dissected and expounded.
The slow revival of science in Germany, France and Italy,
furnished the ignorant multitude with many new names which
passed with them for those of sorcerers, and gradually dis-
placed the traditions of Virgilius, Merlin, and others who had
figured in their lore for many centuries. Raymond Lully,
Roger Bacon, Paracelsus, Cornelius Agrippa, the Abbot
Tritheim (Trithemiua), and majiy other sincere though con-
fused workers, were believed by the people to be in league
with evil spirits, and their names became nuclei, around
which gathered all manner of floating traditions. The fif-
teenth and siiteenlh centuries, from the movements in hu.
man thought which they brought forth, were naturally rich
in such stories, for even the most advanced minds still re-
taiued a half-belief in occult spiritual forces. Melancthon,
himself^ is our chief evidence in relation to the person and
character of the Faust of the legend.
TTKranectioBofn,
u«(i^ Sinn br SctaeiUe a liii KloOwr. and Iha
unu ID DUnlKi'i
/OL. I IS
V
ih,Googlc
338 FAUST.
It is poGsiMe that (here ms »wMher person of IhU luun^
mil of some local repntatii»!, in the fifteenth centuiy.
Gtorge SabeDicus, a noted charlatan, of whom the Abbot
Trriheim writes in 1509, called himself Ftaiilui minor. The
name (signiffinfc (brtnnate, of good oaten) was not snosoal :
it was the baptrsmal name of the foamger Socinus, who taught
his Unitarian doctrines in Poland and Transvlvania. and
whom some bave very absurdly attempted to connect with
the legend; for he was not bran ontil 1539. The fohann
Faust of the popular stories was undoubtedly an individual
of that name, bom towards the dose of the fifteenth century,
in (be little town of Knittlit^en, near Haulbronn, in Wörtcm-
berg. His parents were pom, but be was enabled by the
bequest of » rich uncle to stndy medicine. He attended the
Univeisity of Cracow (where he probably received his Doc-
tor's degree), studied magic, whidi was there tai^hl as an
accepted branch of kiuiwlcdge, and appcais to have after-
wards travelled for many years Ibroi^b Europe. ManliiN
the diM:iple of Melanctho«, qnoies the latter as having said :
"This fellow Faust escaped from onr town of Wittenberg
after «n Duke John had given the order to have him im-
prisoned. He also escaped ftom Nmonbeij, under the like
drcnmstances. This sorcerer Faust, an abominable beast, >
common sewer \floaai\ of many devils, boasted that he, by
his magic arts, had embled the Imperial armies to win their
victories in Italy." It was probably the bmous balde of
Pavia OS'S) of which Faost spoke, as the time of hisiisk to
Wtltcnbet^ ^>pears to have been aboot the year 15301
Another evidence of Faust is found in the Index Samtatit
of the physidan, Philip Begarcfi, which was pnUtshcd at
Wortusin 153^ He (herein says: " Since several yean be
has gone through all r^ons, prowmces and kingdoms, nade
his name known to everybody, and is h^hly renowned fbr
his great skin, not alone in nie^dne. but also in chiro-
mancy, necromancy, phrysiognomy, visions in crystal, and the
IQce other arts. And also not only renowned, bat written
down and known as an experienced master. Himself ad-
jütted, ax denied that it »as aa, and that bis kum wa*
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
339
f auatus, and called yxaaatii fküosepkioK fhäatepkemm. Bul
how many have complained to me that they «ere deceioed t^
him — verily a great number!"
The third witness is the theologian, Johann Gast, who in
his Srrmonei CotrvkwUt describes a dinner given by Faust »t
Bule, at which he was present. After mentioning tlie two
devils who attended Fautt in the form of a dog and a horse,
he says : "The wretch came to an end in a terrible manner ;
for the Devil strangled him. His dead body lay constantly
on its face on the bier, although it had been five times turned
upwards." Gait probably make* thii last statement on (he
(trength or some pa|<uUr rumor. Faust «eems to have grad-
naily passed mil of notice, and we have no particulars of his
death which possess the least authenticity. Melancthon, in
his discourses as Professor at Wittenberg, Luther in his
" table-talk," and the other Protestant theologians of that
period, almost without exception, expteased their belief in a
personal, visible Devil, then specially active in their part of
the world. Luther even describes the annoyances to which
the Devil subjects him, with a candor which cannot now be
imitated; and the same belief natorally took grosser and more
positive forms among the common people. The wandering
life of Johann Faust, as physkHan and necromancer, must have
made his name well known throughout Germany; his visit
to Wittenberg and the reference to him in the three works
already quoted, would distinguish tiim above others of his
dasa, and every floating rumor of diabolical compact, power.
and final punishment would thenceforth gattier around his
name as iron filings around a magnet.
The various books of ma^pc entitled Fautti HSUerauHoig
(Tnfemal Influences) were all published with false early
dates, after Faust's name became generally known, and are
therefore of no value as evidence The attempt, also, to
connect him with Fust. Guttenberg's associate in printing,
has no foundation whatever.
The original form of the lepend i.i the book published by
Spiess. in Frankfurt, in 15S7. Its title runs thus ; " History
•f Dr. Job. Faust, the noiorious sarccrer and black-artist t
ih,Googlc
340
FAUST.
How he bound himself to Ihe Devil for a cerlaw time;
V/hat singular adventures befell him therein, what be did
and carried on until finally be received his well-deserved
pay. Mostly from his own poslbumous writings; for all
presumptuous, rash and godless men, as a terrible example,
abominable instance and well-meant warning, collected and
put io print James, [III., Submit yourselves therefore to
God: resist the Devil, and be will flee from you." The
book must have been instantly and widely popular, for a
second edition was published in 1588; a Low-Gennan ver-
sion in Lübeck and an English ballad on the subject, Ibe
same year ; an English translation in 1590, two Dutch trans-
lations in 159z, atul one French In 15;^ From the first of
these Marlowe obtained the material for his tragedy of " Dr.
Faustus," which appears to have been first acted in Lmidob
i» 15931 the year of bis death. It was published in 1604,
and no doubt formed part of the repertory of the companies
of English strolling-playeis who were accustomed to visii
Germany.
In Ibe Dutch translation dales are given, apparently foi
the purpose of making the stoty more crediUe, The year
1491 is mentioned as thai of Fausi's birth 1 his first coinpaC
with the Devil, Ibr seventeen years, was made on the 33d </
October, 1514; his second, for seven years, oa the 3d ot'
August, 1531 : and he was Anally carried off by the Devil at
midnight, on the ajd of October, 1538. The term oftwentv-
four years, which is not a mystical number, is thus obtained
by adding the two mystical leims, 17 and 7. In the Englisb
translation the village of Kindling, in Silesia, is given as
Fausl's birthplace ; another tradition, adopted in the origi*
nal Frankfurt work, says Roda, near Weimar.
This oldest book repeats Melancthon's statement of
Ftuist's studies at Cracow, and his fame as a physician and
BOTC«ier. It then describes the manner of his summoning
the Devil at night, in a forest near Wittenberg. Afterwards
the evil spirit visits him in his dwelling, and three several
"disputations" take place, at the third of which the spirit
g^vcK bis name as MtpkoUaphUa, The compaa for tlM
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
34t
ttm of twcDty-foiu year« is thereupon concluded. When
Faust pierces his hand with the point of a knile in order to
tign the compact, the blood flows into the brm of the words
0 Homo Fugt ! gigiiUying r " O roan, fly from him I " Meph-
ostophiles flrst serves him in the form of a monk, Buppljr-
bg him with food and win« from the cellars of the Bishop of
Salzbui^ and other prelates, and with rich garments from
Augsburg and Frankhirt, so that Faust and his Famultis,
Christopher Wagner, are enabled lo live in the utmost lax-
uiy. It was not long, however, before Faust desired to
marry, but this was in no wise permitted, Mephostophiles
saying that marriage was pleasing to God, and therefore a
violation of the compact. This feature of the legend grew
directly from the questions of the Reformation ; and ther«
was a special meaning in giving the evil spirit the form of a
monk. Wagner, moreover, is said to have been the son of a
Catholic priest, picked up by Faust as a boy of fifteen, and
by him educated-
Then follow many chapters wherein Faust questions
Mepboslophiles in regard to the creation of the world, the
seasons, the planets, Hell and the infernal hierarchy, and is
himself taken lo the latter place in a chariot drawn by drag-
ons. Afterwards, be wishes lo visit the different parts of
the earth; Mephostophiles changes himself into a horse,
"but with wings like a dromedary," and flies with him
through the air. They travel to all parts of Europe and
finally come to Rome, where Faust lives three days in the
Vatican, invisible. As often as the Pope makes Ihc sign of
the cross, he blows in his face ; he also eats off the Pope's
table and drinks the wine from his goblets, until His Holi-
ness commands all the bells of Rome to be rung, lo dispel
the evil magic. Faust then goes to Constantinople, where
he appears in the Sultan's palace in the form of Uahomel,
and lives in stale. He next traverses Egypt, then Morocco,
the Orkney Islands, Scythia, Arabia, and Persia, and finally,
" from the highest peak of the Jüland of Caucasus " has a
dtslant view of the Garden of Eden. Alter his return to
Germany be visits the Court of the Emperor Charles V. at
ih,Googlc
34a
FAUST.
Innsbruck, and at the desire of the latter calls up before him
(he shades of Alexander the Great and his wife. Man;
pranks are also related, wbich be plays upon the knights
attending the Emperor.
The remaining part of the book is principally taken ap
with an account of the tricks and magical illusions with
which Faust diverted himself in Leipzig, Eifun. Gotha, and
other parts of Northern Germany. He here resembles Till
Etilenapiegel much more than (he ambitious student of Cra-
cow, who " look 10 himself the wings of an eagle, and would
explore all the secrets of heaven and earth." He swallows
a span of horses and a toad of hay ; he cuts off beads and
replaces Ihem ; makes flowers bloom at Christmas, draws
wine from a table, calls Helen of Troy from the shades at
the request of a company of students ; and shows himself
everywhere as a gay, jovial companion, full of pranks, but
eaerdsing his supernatural power quite as often for good as
for evil purposes Finally, in the twenty. third year of hi*
compact, Mephostophiles brings the Grecian Helena to him ;
be becomes inlaiuaied with her beauty, lives with her, and
by ber has a son whom he names Justus Faustus. On the
night when his term of years expires, we find him in com-
pany with some students in a tavern of the village of Rtm-
lich, near Wittenberg. He is overcome with melanchaly,
and makes the students an address wherein he expresses his
great penitence, and his willingness that the Devil should
have his body, provided his soul may receive pardon. At
midnight a fearful storm arose : the next morning the walls
at)d Soor of the room were sprinkled with the bloody frag-
ments of Faust, who had been so torn to pieces that no
member wa« left whole. Helena and her child had dis-
appeared. Wagner, by Faust's will, became heir to his
property, part of which was a dwelling in the town of
Wittenbe^.
The great popularity of the legend in this form led to the
preparation of Widmann's larger and more ambitious work,
which was published at Hamburg, in 1599. Its title is:
* The VeritaUe History of the hideous and abominaUe sin*
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
343
*nd vices, atoo of many wonderful and unoge adventurei,
which D. Johannes Fauitns, a notorioub black-artist and
■Tch-sotcerer, by means of bis black an, committed even
imtil his terrible ending. Fitted out ana expounded with
necessary reminders and admirable instances, for manifold
instruction and warning." The story is substantially the
same as in Spiess's book, but many additional anecdoiei are
inserted, and all the details arc amplified. Instead of three
"disputations" between Faust and Mephostophiles, there
are Uh, and each is fallowed — as, in fact, every chapter in
the work — by a long-winded theological discourse, called a
Reminder (Eriiaierta^. These Reminders are pedantic and
fiercely Prottstant in character : no opportunity Is let slip to
illDStrate die vices of Faust by references to the Roman
Church and its Popes. Ttie name of the Famulus is changed
to Johann Wayger, and two or three stories, taken from
Luther's table-talk, are arbitrarily applied to Faust ; whence
the work is not considered by scholars to be so fair a repre-
sentation of the popular traditions as that ofSpiess.
A new edition of Widmann's book, revised but not im-
proved by Dr. Pfitier, was published in Nuremberg in 1674,
and revived the somewhat faded popularity of the legend.
The references to Faust in the Cntturia of Camerarius ( i6o3)
and in Neumann's Ditjuiiih» Hittariea, were known only to
the scholars, and Pfitzet's reprint of Widmann was therefore
welcomed by the people, several editions having been called
for in a few years. By this time it was also represented as
a puppet-play, and the knowledge of Faust and his bisloty
thus became universal In Uermany.
The only other work which requires notice is an abbrevia.
tioo of the legend, with some variations, written in a lively
narrative style, and published at Frankfurt and Leipzig in
the year 1718. The title is as follows: "The Compact
concluded by the Devil with Dr. Johann Fausi, notorious
through the whole world as a sorcerer and arch-professor of
the Black Art, t<^ther with his adventurous course of life
and its terrifying end, all most minntely described. Now
again newly revised, compressed into an agreeable brevity
ih,Googlc
344
FAUST.
and furnished in print as a hearty admonJHon and warning to
ail wilful sinners, by One with Christian Intentions." This
quaint and curious narrative was certainly linown to Goethe,
as well as Widmann's worlc. it is the last appearance of the
legend in a popular forin : (henceforth, through many chan-
nels, the latter found its way into literature.
The original book of Spiess was followed in 1594 by an
account of the life of Christopher Wagner, whom the Devi)
accompanied in the form of an ape, under the name of Auer-
kakn (moor-cock). It is an evident imitation of the story of
Faust ; there ht a similar compact, there are magical tricks,
adventures, and airy (ravels, with a like tragical conclusion.
This book was translated into Englbb the same year, and
immediately afterwards into Dutch ; but (here appears to
have been no farther German edition until 17«, when the
original, with some additions, was reprinted in Berlin. In
1742, a play entitled "The Vicious Life and Terrible End of
Job Christoph Wagner," was acted in the Frankfurt theatre.
The stamp of (he sixteenth century — of its belieb, its
superstitions, its struggles and its antagonisms — is unmis-
takably impressed on the legend. The singular individual,
half genius, half impostor, who bore the name of Faust, must
have typified then, as now, the activity of blind, formless,
unresting forces in the nature of the people ; and through all
the coarseness and absurdity of the stories which they have
gathered around him, there are constant suggestions of the
general craving for some withheld knowledge or righL In
ipite of Widmann's " Reminders " and the " One with Chris-
tian In';entions," it is very doubtful whether the moral of
Faust's ending overcame the sympathy of the people with
his courage or their admiration of his power. There are
elements in the legend, the value of which even a purblind
poet could not help seeing, yet whidi the loftiest genius may
idmit lo be almost beyond his grasp, [t a not the least »I
Goethe's deserts, that, although in his youth "a new Faua
was announced in every quarter of Germany." he took up
the theme already hackneyed bv small talents, and made it
bis own solely and forever.
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
APPENDIX II.
THE CHRONOLOGY OF FAUST.
FAUST is the only great work in the literature of any
language which requires a biography. The first child
of Goethe's brain and the last which knew the touch of his
hand, its growth runs parallel with his life and reflects all
forms of his manifold study and experience. While, there-
fore, its plan is sitnple, grand, and consistent fiom beginning
to end, the performance embraces so many varieties of style
ttnd such a multitude of not always homogeneous elements,
that a chronological arrangement of the parts becomes n«
■xssary as a guide to the reader.
During (he illness which lasted for neartif a year after
Goelhe's return from Leipiig in 1768, while he was dis-
cussing religious questions with Fräulein von Klettenberg,
reading cabalistic works and making experiments in alchemy,
the subject of Fausi, which was already familiar 10 him as a
child, through (he puppe t-play.s, took powerful and perma-
nent hold on his imaginalton * He carried it about with
•TbepiHH».
ti«.>onhe-Si«
in and Sin
«" period. -hkh
werebr
tbb IbK fcli Ihniui-hcHil Ccrminr
diiBcwd Ih
■ulhon
to-ard> P.utt, >
1 Hibjca lor dnu
»tic pocir
. LeuJDgwu the Km to
like bold of it, bui only (raiiriiiu
(«itueiteiorhu
imgodj
wai completed before hit }o
n«T (0
Italy in „jj. »
1 dopatched fron Drtid«
0 Leipiis ia . bo
»which
«u]<>u..nd»v
» light.
Cipcain too Blan
et>bii>g.
iDijS4.Bav. ihe
IbllDwiiie <»Iin.<.
DS the tragedy, (he inanu-
•ciptof-hLqhh
had nad : '- He
tvtiy quaritr t/
GtrmaHf FiuMi
Ilmowilutlwce
mpkwd it. I ha
he only
Ua:r«litipub1»
(he other
y.-«^>mighHir«
l.pca.,"
Of ihe« other
Fa>ali ODO »as p
UuolHiin ID 17
nler MiiUe
, Gocibe-* frifod.
i">>rt
ih,Googlc
34Ö
FAUST.
n Strasburg, concealing it "rom Herder during tbeli
he winter of 1770 -71, and poMponing it (o
wrile his first great wOTk, Gikt van BtrikAhigtn. He passed
the summer or 1772 at Wetzlar, but did not begin the com-
position of Wirther, which «as the direct result of his tesi-
dcnce there, until the followii^ year. " Paust," he says to
Eckermann, originated (in manuscript ?J at tbe same time
as iVerl/ier." Thus the conception which he had gra-sped at
■he age of twenty had been shaping itself in his biatn for
four years, before any part of it was put into words Goiter,
whose acquaintance he had made in Wetzlar, sends him in
the summer of 1773 a poetical letter, in which he says:
" Send me, in return, thy Doctor Faust, tu laen at hi Aas
tier mid But eft'iy head."
It is not probable that more than the evening monolt^ue
was ntilten in 1773- Perhaps one or two of tbe first scenes
with Margaret were added the fotlitwing year ; for when
Klopstock visited Frankfurt in September, 1774, Goethe
read to him " some scenes " of Fault, which the older ]>oet
then heartily jiraised, though he spoke slightingly of the
same scenes after they were ]>ulilished In January, 1775,
Ooeihe read all that he had completed up to that time tii his
friend Jacoln, who wrote to him in 1791, alluding to the pub-
lished " Fr^menl " : "I knew nearly the whole of Fiiiiil
already, and precisely for that leason I was duubly and li tWy
impressed by iL I have the same feeling now, as i had
•ilteen years ago." Except the " Cathedral " and '■ Dun-
geon " scenes, nearly all the parts in which Margaret is
introduced, as well as " Auerbach's Cellar," and the con-
vernation of Mephistopheles.with the Student, were written
In the spring of 1775. It is very evident that Merck was
1 fngiDenl br L«n id (777, and a fifth in Salibaij. in 1781. Dctwrni
ihe publicatiin of Goelhi'« " Fragment" in 1^JO and ihit of the vmn-
piFied Fini Pan id iBoS. nitu additional Faiali, by varioui aiilhon,
bF the Second Pan, in titi. /mrUm more t ThorefoR. includinit ihc
horb of Le«uii|it. Ihe malerial of Ihe Faut-leKend wa> employed bv
tumlfiaiu different aulhon, during the period which Goelhi daToud
K> Ibe elabontion oT hii own original design I
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
347
•ho aRowcd to sec th« maniucript, and that Goethe's de-
sign was fteely discussed among his friends. The pabiisber
MyliuH. in Berlin, writes to Merck towards the end or 1774,
that be wilt take (he manuscript of Goethe's Stdia for twenty
tbalers (!), although he Tears that the aothor maj expect
" äJty ihalers for his next work, and perhaps a hundred louis
d'ot for his Doctor Faiut ! "
Goeihe says : " I brought the work with me to Weitnar in
1775. i had written it on foolscap, mihout any erasures i
for I was very carelnl not to write down a line which wa*
not good and might not be allowed to stand." in this form
be read ji 10 the Conit circle, which at that time incliulcd
WielatHl, Knebel, and Musieus. As nearly as can be ascer-
tained, the manuscript compriued the first half of Scent I.,
the latter half of Scene IV., and the following series of scenes
10 XVIU.. with the exception of VI. and XIV. In addition
10 these, there were probaUy several scenes which were af-
terwards onulted before the publication olthe work, and one
(Scene XXIII., in prose) which «as restored, inany years
later. It is also evident that the plan of the whole work Mas
at least roughly outlined by this lime. Its development,
however, — except through that secret, unconsduiu growth
which kept it alive tmdei the production of so many other
works, — was now arrested for a long while. The concep-
tions of a young poet are always in advance or hjs power ;
hut there is a good attendant genius who thwarts and delays
the perfbnnance until tbe anspidoos season.
In 1780^ after the (»tnpletion of Ifihigmia in Tautii, and
while his mind was still bathed in the Grecian atmosphere,
Goethe wrote portions of the Hdtna, for the Second Part of
FoHit. There seems to be no doubt that the manuscript was
read to the Duke, Karl August, bis mother, the Duchess
Amalia, to Herder and Knebel ; but the scenes mu.cl have
been afterwards suppressed, for the existing Heltna is cer-
tainly of a later origin. This is, nevertheless, the only [Misilive
evidence that anything was added to the work between 1775
and 17SS.
Goethe's journey to Italy was not only the realization tf
ih,Googlc
348 FAUST.
an early dewrc, but it was also a necessary escape from the
irksome dutieä of his position al Weimar, He broke away
ibrcibly from aRiur^i oT state in order to recuperate himself
for poetry, and his eagerness and anxiety may be guessed
from the circumstance that he kept his plan secret from every
one e:icept the Duke, fearing that he would never succeed if
his [mention should become known. It was the old super-
■tition of keeping silence white lifting a buried treasure;
Tbe only manuscript he took with him was thai of Fauit,
which he had brought from Frankfurt, and which was now»o
yellow and worn and frayed; that he says it might aluioet
have passed for an andent codtx. Nevertheless, be did not
«icceed in returning to the work until tbe upring of 1788t
just before his Anal departure from Rome. He writes in
March : '* It is a different thing, of course, to complete the
work now, instead of fifteen years ago ; but I think nothing
is lost, since I feel sure of having regained the thread. Id
to far as regards the tone of the whole, also. I am comforted t
I have already finished a new scene, and if the paper were
only smoked, I think no one could pick it out from tbe old
ones." This new scene is the "Witches' Kitchen," It ia
doubtful whether the " Cathedral " and " Forest and Cavern "
were also added in Rome, or alter his return to Weimar.
Finally, in 1790, in Göschen'» Leipzig edition of Goetlte's
works, Fi^i^ appeared as " A Fragment." I have already
mentioned, in the Notes, the scenes which it contains, from
I. to XX., with the e^iception of a gap from the middle of
Scene I. to the middle of Scene IV„ and XIX. (Night: Val-
entine's Death). The impression which the publication pro-
duced was not encouraging : the fragment was not generally
understood, and the power exhibited in ttie separate scenes
was only partially appreciated.' Goethe, occupied with
* Heyne, in GullinEcn, wrote: "There are (inepauacei in ii, but with
was tuch 1 pilchwork or eirlMr and laler libnn. Schiller »as then un-
Schlesel veeoi 10 have had si>mi: iirr^nlinicnt of GoeLhe'i deaigb and lb*
fiandeur of hi> fragineDUTV Performance,
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
349
WUhtlm Meister and HenHtntii tmd DaretAta, banisbed it for
■ tirae from his thoughts ; and the first instigation which led
him to resume (he work came from Schiller, who thus wrote
to him on the 39th of November, 1 794 : " But I have no lesa
desire to read those fragments of your Fauit which are not
/el printed; for I confess that what I have already read
seems to me the torso of Hercules. In these scenes there is
a power and AiJness of genius which clearly reveals the high-
c«t master-hand, and I wish to follow as far as possible the
bold and lofly nature which breathes through Ihcm." Goethe
Faust) I do not dare lo untie (he package in which he is
imprisoned. 1 could not copy without continuing the work,
and I have no courage for that, now. If anything can restore
it to me in the future, it is surely your sympathy."
It seems, however, thai during the following winter Goethe
took the manuscript to Jena, and discussed the plan of the
work with Schiller, for in the summer of 1795 Willielm von
Humboldt writes to the latter, thanking him for his informa-
tion concerning Faust. " The plan," he says, " is gigantic :
what a pity, therefore; thai it will never be anything else than
a plan ! " If Frau von Kalb's memory is to be trusted,
Goethe wrote about this time the interview between Mcphis-
Eopheles and the Baccalaureus ( Pari Second, Aa 1I.}> which
has generally been referred to a much later dale.
There is no evidence that (he First Part of Fatal was re-
Hmed before 1797, when tlie " Dedication " and ihe " Pro-
logue in Heaven " were probably written, together with tlw
IstUrmeoB (Oberon and Tilania's Golden Wedding), which
was afterwards inserted by accident rather ihan design. In
1798 the " Prelude on the Stage " and perhaps the conclu-
sion of Scene I., together with Scene H, and 111,, appear to
have been written. It is probable that the concluding scene
of ihe First Part (ihe " Dungeon ") was eillier produced or
rewritten at this lime. Goeihe writes to Schiller thai he is
favored by " the lyrical mood of Spring," and in several let.
lers announces the progress he is making in the work. Dur-
ing tlie year 179g lillle, if anything, was accomplished 1 but
ih,Googlc
3SO
FAUST.
In 1800 Goethe commenced the composition of the fftlma,
which is frequently mentioned in his correspondence with
SchiHer during that year. He writes on one occasion :
" During these eight days, I have foitunately been able to
hold fast the conception of the situations, of which you al-
ready know, and my Helena has actually entered on the
■t^e. Bui now Ihe beauty in the rtU of my heroine attrada
me so much, thai I shall be disconsolate if I must at last
(since the whole can only be represented as a spectral ap-
pearance) transform her into a grinning mask." Schiller
answers, apparently referring to former conversations : " It
is a very impotlani advantage, that you consciously advance
from the (artistically) pure to ihe impure, jiistead of seeking
a method of soaring from the impure to the pure, as is the
case with the rest of us barbarians. In Faust, therefore, yoa
must everywhere assert your right of fbtce " (FaititrKkt, an
untranslatable pun).
In the aulumn of iSoo, Goethe laid the Helena aside, and
devoted himself seriously to the completion of the First
Part. He wrote the Walpargis- Night and the scene of
Valentine's death, and then endeavored to fill Ihe gap
remaining between the Inttrmente and the " Dungeon "
scene. In this he was unsuccessful, and all his remaining
labor from thai lime until the publication of the First Part,
complete, in 1808, was probably merely that of adjitslment
and revision. The depression which weighed upon him
after Schiller's death in 1805 affected his interest in Faust
more than in any other of his literary plans.
When the First Part finally appeared, the following por-
tions of the Second Part appear to have been already in
existence: Scene I., and possibly a part of Scene II., of
Act I : Scene I. of Act II, ; nearly the first half of Act
III. [Htlena) ; and some fragments of Act V. There ii no
doubt that Goethe knew, as he wrote to Zelter nearly twenty
years afterwards, "toAal was still necessary to be written,
but was not yet decided in regard to the Aiwu." It is not
necessary to recapitulate here all the interruplionK. the vary,
mg literary and scientific interests, which came between the
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
JS«
plan and its üilfilment. Goetbe wu fifty-nine yeart old
when the First Part waa published, and the years passed bjp
in other labors until he was seventy-live, before the impulse
to complete the Second Part returned to him.
In 1814 he gave to Eckermann a programme which he
had prepared lor the completion of Wahrhtit una Dichtung.
It contained a prose outline of the continuation of FaMst, and
Eckermann wrote In reply: "Whether this plan of Fatal
should be communicated or held in reserve, is a doubt which
■:an only be solved aAer the fragments already in existence
have been carefully examined, and it is clear whether the
hope of completing the wc^k must be given up or not,"
This hint Beems to have aroused Goethe : the plan was
withheld, and the work was commenced, certainly in the fol-
lowing year. The Hiltna, to which he felt most strongly
attracted, received a new interest for him through the idea of
representing Byron in the child Euphorion, and the Act was
finished in 1826. It was published in 1S27, in the fourth
volume of "Goethe's Works, with the Author's Final Re-
visions," under the title of "Helena; a Classico- Roman tic
Phantasmagoria," and at once excited the greatest interest
and curiosity. From Edinburgh to Moscow the European
critics seem to have been both delighted and puzzled by it
Carlyle wrote an admirable paper upon i), in which he shows
great shrewdness in unriddling its symbolism. The encour-
agemenl which such a reception of the single act gave to
Goetbe, stimulated him anew to complete the work, and for
four years longer it became the leading motive of his life.
In the beginning of iSsS the first tbree scenes of the First
Act — Faust's Awakening, the Emperor's Court, and the
Carnival Masquerade — were published in the twelfth vol-
nme of his works, and were received with an enthusiasm
equal to that which the Htlena called forth, Goethe, now
nearly eighty years old, worked slowly and with a laggard
power of invendon ; but he held to his conceptions with the
same tenacity as in his earliest literary youth, and suflered
no fovorable mood of body or mind to pass without adding
•ome line«. The portions already completed were äslened
ih,Googlc
35'
FAUST.
together, with blank sheets of a difierent color between, In-
dicating the gaps yet to be filled ; and be rejoiced front
month to month as the unmitteti gave place to the written
color. During 1819 and 1830 the First A« was completed,
and the whole of the Second Act, including the Classical
WalpurgiS' Night, was written ; so that, at the beginning of
1331, there only remained the Fourth Act and the opening
scenes of the Fifth. This was the most laborious part of
the task, and has Icfi upon it palpable traces of labor ; but
by the end of July the work was done, and on his e^k^
ucond birthday, August 28, 1831, Goethe sealed up the
complete manuscript of the Second Part, to be opened and
published after his death. " From this time on," he said to
Eckermann, "I look upon my life as a perfect gift, and it ia
really indifferent what I may further do, or whether I shall
do anything." Seven months afterwards, he was dead.
Faurl is, in the most comprehensive sense, a drama of th«
Life of Man. The course of its moral and intellectual plot,
as firat designed by the author, is now and then delayed by
the material added to it during the different phases of his
own development, but was never changed. This plot i*
chiefly unfolded to the reader through the medium of two
elements, which, from first to last, are combined in tl, yel nuy
easily be separated. The difficulties in the way of its com-
prehension have been caused by the introduction of a third,
accidental, and unnecessary element, which is so intenvoven
with the others (espedally in the Second Part), that the reader
is often led away from the true path before he is aware of it
The first of the elements, and the one which gives indi-
vidual coloring and reality to the characters, Goethe drew
from his own experience. All the earlier scenes, he de-
clares, were lu^clniely written : Mephistopheles and Faust
were the opposite poles of his own nature. His own ambi-
tion, disappointment, love, unrest, are all reflected through-
out the First Part ; and the poise of his riper nature, his
aathetic passion and his religious feeling, in the opening of
the First Act, the ffel/na, and the Fifth Act of the Second
Part The second element, drawn from his objective study
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX. 353
of men and his observaiioo of the world, is blended with
the former, but especially manifests itself in the aphoris-
tic character of much of the Second Part, and in the sym-
bolism which he so constantly employs for ihe sake of more
compressed expression. I have endeavored to indicate, in
the Notes, all thai can be traced to his own personal expe-
rience, and thereby to furnish a guide which may direct the
reader lo that more intimate and satis£u:toty knowledge
which will follow his own studies.
What I have called the accidental element is illustrated
by the Inlermaao, which was wilfully inserted ; by the lit-
erary satire in the Witches' Kitchen and the Walpurgis-
Night ; and in the Second Part by the paper-money scene in
the First Act, the controversy of the Neptunists and Pluto-
nists in the Second and the Fourth, and the introduction of
Byron in the Third. All these features must be eliminated
from the moral and intellectual course of (he action, with
which they have not the slightest connection. Indeed, Ihe
whole of the Classical Walpurgis- Night, admirable and won-
derM as it is, in parts, forms a very roondabout mode of
transition from the Emperor's Court to the allegory of He-
lena. Only by holding fast to the leading idea can we safely
follow its labyrinthine windings.
What Goethe himself said of Faust in his eightieth year, in
■peaking of Stapfer's French translation, may be quoted in
conclusion, as an e<i(imate equally modest and just : "The
commendation which Ihe work has received; far and near,
may perhaps be owing to this quality — that it permanently
preserves the period of development of a human soul, which
is tormented by all that afflicts mankind, shaken also by all
that disturbs it, repelled by all that it ünds repellent, and
made happy by all that which it desires. The author is a:
present far removed from such conditions; the world, like-
wise, has to some extent other struggles lo undergo : never-
theless, the stale of men, in joy and sorrow, remains very
much the same ; and the latest-bom will still find cause to
acquaint himself with what has been enjoyed and siifTercd be-
fore him, in order to adapt himself to that which awaits him."
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX III.
AfASLOfVE'S "DR. FAUSTUS."
M";
f R, DYCE'S recent edition of Marlowe render» it on-
. necesKary Ihxt I should idd an account of Ihe mannet
in wUch the latter has treated the legend. His material, ai
I have already stated, waa the English translation of Spiessn
boiik, published in London in 1S90. I quote the first scene,
because It offers both a resemblance and a contrast to the
first scene of Goethe 1—
Nol muching in Ihe Gcldi »rThird:
When Uui did mat Ihe warlike C
Nor •)>nninf ia Ihe dalliince of love
Hot in the pomp of provd, «udiciou
ADd ipeilc for Fiunui Id hii infancy :
Now ii he bom arpirenti biw or mock,
Ib GemiinT, irithln a lawn called Rhoda :
AI riper ytui to Wlttenbur^ he met ;
Thai ihortljr be wu gntcd mlh Doctor
Enelllng all, and medr can ditpule
In lb' heavenlr inatun of theologr '■
ih,Googlc
APPENDIX.
Which hg pnien beAin hii diietet blfia.
WhflRsi lua hinHiiMP chiefly brought hiDk up
Act Tm Pikst, — Scan L
Fadtt. Setlla Iky Uid», FaiHln*, and I
To Kind Ib* depth of Ihu thou will prcdut
Hnhif coiuMiKad, b« i dlriiH in mbov,
Yet lani » the ead of ereir iR,
I«, to depute veil, lofic'i chieJ«t od ^
Aflixdi lliii an HO fieiler ninde \
Theo nad no more ; thini hui atuincd tbu oihL
A gnatcr inbi«! f Itclh Fuuni«' wii :
Kd ecsHniT bnwtll : aod Gain osme.
B* e phrudu, FuMu ; heap up gol^
And be etenund ftir »me wopdrom lan j
The end of phyuc ii our bodiu' hedlk.
Why, Fiuitiu, hut ihou not ituinsd Ihn «odT
An tMt tliy biÜi htms np u monnnientit
Vbefebf ffhole citiet haTc vecapcd the p]i(iHt
And thODund deapente njüadiei been aued?
CooldM Iboa mähe raeo to Ute clenuüLr.
Or, beini; dead, laiie them to life agaJB.
Theo >hii pnftaaion wm to be eneemed.
Phyde, ftrewiU J When i> Jutioian r
Slima HuUmtmi rwi liratmr Aatm,
AtttrTtm,alltr saiortm rti, »v.
A petty CH« or poItTT lecaoea-
BxlUTt£larißlmmiuHp*l*ilfatTiiiti,t^*.
Sach ii the (utoKt o( the inttilute,
luA ODiTennl body of the law.
Thii ftudy Ata a niertenary dnid^
Who lima at Dothiog but external traah,
'I'oo aarvUa and iUibenl for bh.
When an ii done, dinnity ii beat
lealh: that 'a hard.
ih,Googlc
336 FAUST.
Siptaim mtgaimia./altim*r, n
u doctrme call you Ihii t Cht «m, v
» iriU bc, ihill be ; diTinily. idkii I
-K mcUphyiia of magiciaoft.
roTld or pnjfit and dclighl.
StntcHei u ftr u dv
1D that uc««da lo thu.
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
copraiovr, 1871, b¥ bj
ih,Googlc
INTRODUCTION.
I KNOW how much prepossession I e
in claiming for the Second Part of Faust a
higher intellectual character, if a lower dramatic
and poetical value, than the First Part. In Mr.
Ha)n»rard's Appendix, and Mr. Lewes' Life of
Goethe, the Second Part is virtually declared to
be a secondary, unimportant work, chaotic in de-
tail and without any consistent design as a whole*,
in short, the mistake of Goethe's old age, instead
of being, as it really is, the conception of his
prime, partly written, and entirely planned, before
the publication of the First Part
The five translations which have already ap-
peared have, unfortunately, not succeeded in pre-
senting the wc \ clearly and attractively to the
English reader Those of Bemays, Macdonald,
and Gumey are characterized by knowledge of the
text, but give no satisfactory clew to the author's
ih,Googlc
iv FAUST.
design ; while that of Dr. Anster, the most read-
able of all, and showing a further insight into the
meaning, is a very loose paraphrase, rather than a
translation. The original metres, which are here
even more important than in the First Part, have
been retained by no translator. 1 do not wish to
be understood as passing an unfriendly judgment
upon the labors of my predecessors \ for I have
learned what difficulties stood in their way, and
also how easy it is, in the perplexing labyrinth of
German comment, to miss the simplest and surest
key to Goethe's many-sided all^ories.
I'he first mistake which many of the cridcs have
made is in attempting any comparison of the two
' parts. While the moral and intellectual problem,
which is first stated in the Prologue in Heaven,
advances through richer and broader phases of
development to its final solution, the story which
comes to an end in Margaret's dungeon is not
resumed. The Second Fart opens abruptly in a
broad, bright, crowded world ; we not only breathe
a new atmosphere, but we corae back to Faust and
Mephistophetes as if after a separation of many
years, and find that our former acquaintances have
changed in the interval, even as ourselves. " It
must be remembered," says Goethe, "that the
First Part is the development of a somewhat ob-
jure individual condition. It is almost wholly
subjective ; it is the expression of a confused,
restricted, and passionate nature." On the other
hand, we learn from the study of Goethe's life
ih,Googlc
INTRODUCTION. v
that the wealth of the material which he bad
accumulated for the Second Part occasioned an
embarrassment in r^;ard to the fonn, which partly
accounts for the long postponement of the work.
He expressly declares" that the Second Part of
the drama must be performed upon a different, a
broader, and more elevated stage of action ; that
one who has not lived in the world and acquired
some experience will not know how to compre-
hend it ; and that, like an unsolved riddle, it will
repeatedly allure the reader to the renewed study
of its secret meanings.
The last of these declarations is not egotistical,
because it is so exactly tme. No commentary can
exhaust the suggestiveness of the work, Schiller
doubted that a poetic measure could be formed,
capable of holding Goethe's plan ; and we find,
indeed, that the substance overflows its bounds on
all sides. With all which the critics have accom-
plished, they have still left enough untouched to
allow fresh discoveries to every sympathetic read-
er. There are circles within circles, forms which
beckon and then disappear ; and when we seem
to have reached the bottom of the author's mean-
ing, we suspect that there is still something be-
yond. The framework lay buried so long in the
sea of Goethe's mind, that it became completely
incrusted, here and there with a barnacle, it is
* Announcement of the Helena (quoted in note 103).
Correspondence with Schiller, and Eckennann's Conversa-
ih,Googlc
true, but also with a multitude of pearl-oysters.
Many of the crowded references are directly de-
ducible from the allegory ; still more are made
clear to us through a knowledge of Goethe's devel-
opment, as man and poet ; while some few have
lost the clew to their existence, and must probably
always stand, orphaned and strange, on one side
or other of the plain line of development running
through the poem.
The early disparagement which the Second Part
of J^aust received is only in our day beginning to
give way to an intelligent recc^itlon of its grand
design, its wealth of illustration, and the almost
inexhaustible variety and beauty of its rhythmi-
cal forms. Although its two chief offences (to the
German mind) are not yet, and perhaps never can
be wholly, condoned, the period of misconception
is over, and the voices of rage or contempt, once
so frequently heard, are becoming faint and few.
The last twenty-five years have greatly added to
our means of elucidation ; and much that seemed
to be whim or purposed obscurity is now revealed
in clear and intelligible outlines. When Vischer
compares the work to a picture of the old Titian,
wherein the master-hand is still recf^nized, but
trembling with age and stippling in the color with
slow, painful touches, he forgets that the design
was already drawn, and some of the figures nearly
completed, in the Master's best days. I should
rather liken it to a great mosaic, which, looked at
near at hand, shows us the mixture of precious
ih,Googlc
INTRODUCTION. vii
marbles and common pebbles, of glass, jasper,
and Upis-lazuli ; but, seen in the proper perspec-
dve, exhibits only the Titanic struggle of Man,
surrounded with shapes of Beauty and Darkness,
towards a victorious immortality.
It would have been better, undoubtedly, if the
completion of the work had not been so long
delayed, and Goethe had thereby been able to
give us, with more limited stores of knowledge, a
greater poedc unity. It is hardly the feebleness
of the octt^narian which we perceive. The ac-
quisitions of the foregoing thirty years seemed to
have gradually formed a crust over the lambent
poetical element in his nature; but the native
force of the latter is nowhere so wonderfully re-
vealed as here, since it is still able to crack and
shiver the erudite surface of his mind, and to
flame out clearly and joyously. Wherever it thus
displays itself, it is still the same pure, illuminat-
ing, solving and Mending power, as in his earlier
years.
The reader to whom this book is a new land
roust of necessity be furnished with a compass
and an outline chart before he enters it. He
may, otherwise, lose his way in its tropical jun-
gles, before reaching that " peak in Danen," from
which Keats, like Balboa, beheld a new side of
the world. While the Notes contain as much in-
terpretation of the details of the plan as seems
to be possible at present, I consider that a brief
previous statement of the argument is absolutely
required.
ih,Googlc
We must foi^t the tragical story of the First
Part, and return to the compact between Faust
and Mephistopheles, where the latter declares:
" The little world, and then the great, we '11 see."
The former world is at an end, and, after an open-
ing scene which symbolizes the healing influences
of Time and Nature, Faust and his companion
appear at the Court of the German Emperor.
The ruined condition of the realm gives Mephis-
topheles a chance of acquiring place and power
for Faust, through the introduction of a new finan-
cial system. While this is in progress, the days
of Carnival furnish the occasion for a Masquer-
ade, crowded with allegorical figures, representing
Society and Government Goethe found that no
detached phases of life were adequate to his pur-
pose. Faust, in the First Part, is an individual,
in narrow association with other individuals : here
he is thrown into the movement of the world, the
phenomena of human development, and becomes,
to a certain extent, typical of Man. Hence the
allegorical character of the Masquerade, which is
confusing, from the great range and mixture of its
symbolism.
The Emperor's wish to have Paris and Helena
called from the Shades (as in the original Legend)
is expressed when Faust is already growing weary
of the artificial life of the Court. Mephistopheles
sends him to the mysterious Mothers, that he
may acquire the means of evoking the models of
beauty ; and at this point the artistic, or esthetic
ih,Googlc
INTRODUCTION. U
element — the sense of the Beautiful in the human
mind — is introduced as a most important agent
of human culture, gradually refining and purifying
Faust's nature, and lifting it forever above all the
meanness and littleness of the world. Mephi»-
topheles is bound by his compact to serve, even in
fulfilling this aspiration which he cannot compre-
hend ; but he obeys unwillingly, and with con-
tinual attempts to regain his diminishing power.
After the apparition of Helena, and Faust's rash
attempt to possess at once the Ideal of the Beauti-
ful, the scene changes to the latter's old Gothic
chamber, where we meet the Student of the First
Part as a Baccalaureus, and find Wagner, in his
laboratory, engaged in creating a Homunculus.
This whimsical sprite guides Faust and Mephis-
topheles to the Classical Walpurgis- Night, where
the former continues his pilgrimage towards He-
lena (the Beautiful), while the latter, true to his
negative character, finally reaches his ideal of
Ugliness in the Phorkyads. The allegory of the
Classical Walpurgis- Night is also difficult to be
unravelled, but it is not simply didactic, like that
of the Carnival Masquerade. A purer strain of
poetry breathes through it, and the magical moon-
light which shines upon its closing Festals of the
Sea prepares ua for the sunbright atmosphere of
the HeUna.
This interlude, occupying the I'hird Act, is an-
other allegory, complete in itself, and only lightly
attached to the course of the drama. While it
ih,Googlc
exhibits, in the Utter connection, the «esthetic
purification of Faust's nature, its leading motive
is the reconciliation of the Classic and Romantic
elements in Art and Literature. Euphorion, the
child of Faust and Helena, who vanishes in flame,
leaving only his garments and lyre behind him, is
then presented to us as Byron, and the Act closes
with a transmigration of "the fair humanities of
old religion " into the spirit and sentiment of
Modem Poetry.
The Fourth Act exhibits Faust to us, enlight-
ened and elevated above his former self, and anx-
ious for a grand and worthy sphere of activity.
His aim is, to bend Nature to the service of Man,
— to bar the ocean from a great stretch of half-
submerged land, and thus conquer the aimless
force of the unruly elements. Mephistopheles
takes advantage of the political dissensions of the
Empire, and the appearance of a new claimant for
the crown, at the head of an army, to proffer hb
own and Fausfs services to the Emperor. A bat-
tle takes place ; the rebels are defeated, through
the magic arts of Mephistopheles, and Faust re-
ceives the sea-shore in feoff forever.
The Fifth Act opens on the accomplished work.
Faust, a hundred years old, inhabits a palace, in
the midst of a green, thickly-peopled land, diked
from the sea. But he has not yet found the one
moment of supreme happiness. A pestilential
marsh still remans to be drained ; and he has not
succeeded in gaining the coveted possession of a
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INTRODUCTION. rf
sand-hill near his palace, the residence of an old
couple who have charge of a little chapel on the
downs. Mephistopheles endeavors to implicate
him in the guilty seizure of this Naboth's vine-
yard, but is again baffled. Faust, become blind,
finds a clearer light dawning upon his spirit : while
the workmen are employed upon the canal which
completes his great work, he perceives that he has
created free and happy homes for the coming gen-
erations of men, and the fore-feeling of satisfied
achievement impels him to say to the passing
Moment: "Ah, still delay, — thou art so fair!"
When the words are uttered, he sinks upon the
earth, dead.
The struggle of Mephistopheles with the angels
for the possession of Fausfs soul, and a scene in
Heaven, where Margaret appears, like Beatrice in
Dante's Paradiso, as the spiritual guide of her
redeemed lover, dose the drama. Although the
condition of the compact has been fulfilled, Meph-
istopheles loses his wager, fn willing the Bad,
he has worked the Good : the "obscure aspiration"
in Faust's nature has lifted itself, through Love,
Experience, the refining power of the Beautiful,
and beneficent activity, to more than an instinct,
to a knowledge of "the one true way." The
Epilogue in Heaven carries us back to the Prol-
ogue, and indicates to us, through a wondrous,
mystic symbolism, the victorious vitality of Good
and the omnipotence of the Divine Love.
Briefly, then, Act I. represents Society and Gov-
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eminent; Acts II. and III. the development of
the Idea of the Beautiful as the highest human
attribute, with almost a saving power ; Act IV.,
War ; and Act V., Beneficent Activity, crowned by
Grace and Redemption. The financial scheme,
the discussion of geological theories, the union of
the Classic and Romantic, and the introduction
of those three tricksy spirits, the Boy Charioteer,
Homunculus, and Euphorion (whom I have inter-
preted as different personifications of Goethe's
own Poetic Genius), must be considered as digres-
sions from the direct course of the plot In order
to understand how they originated, and the prob-
able raisons d'ltre by which the author justified
thera to his own mind, I refer the reader to the
Notes, which will be found indispensable. I
might, indeed, have greatly added to the latter,
had I not felt obliged to consider that those to
whom the material is not familiar may as easily
lose their clew through too much detail of inter-
pretation as from the unexplained text
Goethe's chief offence is the license which he
allows himself in regard to his language. We
find, especially in those portions which were last
written, frequent instances of crabbed, arbitrary
construction, words and compounds invented in
defiance of all rule, and various other deviations
from his own full, clear, and rounded style.* This
• "Th»t which first repels the reader in this second
Faust-drama is the philological element, which is found
Utioqgboiit the greater part of it. A dragging nuuch of the
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INTRODUCTlOlf. xüi
has been contemptuously called the " Privy-Coun-
cillor's dialect " {Gehämrathsspracke) by some of
the critics, who assail Goethe with cries of wrath ;
but it is a feature of the original which cannot be
reproduced in the translation, and ought not to
be, if it could be. If the reader now and then
falls upon an unusual compound, or a seemingly
forced inversion of language, I must beg him to
remember that my sins against the poetical laws
of the English language are but a small percentage
of Goethe's sins against the German. The other
difficulty seems to tie partly in the intellectual
constitution of the critics themselves, many of
whom are nothing if not metaphysical. The ful-
ness of the matter is such that various apparently
consistent theories may be drawn from it, and
much of the confusion which has thence ensued
has been charged to the author's account Here,
as in the First Part, the study of Goethe's life and
other works has been my guide through the laby-
rinth of comment ; 1 have endeavored to give, in
every case, tlie simplest and most obvious inter-
pretation, even if, to some readers, it may not
seem the most satisfactory.
diction, awkwardly long and painlUlly complicated «entenee»,
a mast of unsuccessful verbal fonns and adaptations, unne-
ceMarily obscure images, forced transitions, affected superla-
tive participles and compounds, — all these thing;s operate
lepellently enough upon manj persons, and spoil, in advance,
their enjoyment of the work." — KeaÜin, GottAt'i Faiat,
Stau KriiHUr und Aialegtr.
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I have adhered, as those familiar with the orig;i-
nal text will perceive, to the same plan of traa»-
latiotL The original metres are more closely
reproduced than even in the First Part, for the
predominance of symbol and aphorism, in the
place of sentiment and passion, has, in this re-
spect, made my task more easy; and there are,
from beginning to end, less than a score of lines
where I have been compelled to take any liberty
with either rhythm or rhyme. Indeed, the form,
e^iecially in the Helena, is so intimately blended
with the symbolical meaning, that I cannot con-
ceive of the two being separated ; for they are
soul and body, and separation, to US, is death of
the one and disappearance of the other. The
dassic metres, which Goethe uses, surely lend
themselves as readily to the English language as
to the German ; and, while I have rendered this
pMtion of the drama almost as literally as would
be pos^ble in prose, I can only hope that the
unaccustomed ear will not be startled and repelled
by its new metrical character. I am not aware
that either the iambic trimeter or the trochaic
tetrameter has ever been introduced into English
verse. The classic reader, who may miss the
csesm^ here and there, will, I trust, rec<^ize both
the necessity and the justification.
In concluding this labor of years, I venture to
express die hope that, however I may have fallen
short of reproducing the original in another, though
a kindred language, I may, at least, have assisted
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INTRODUCTIOHr. xv
m naturalizing die masterpiece of Gennan liteia-
ture amoDg us, and to that extent have explaioed
the supreme place which has been accorded to
Goethe among the poets of the world. Where I
have differed from the Gennan critics and com-
mentators, I would present the plea, that the laws
of construction are similar, whether oike builds a
cottage or a palace \ and the least of audiors, b>
whom metrical expression is a necessity, may have
some natural instinct of the conceptions (rf the
highest
a T.
Mvcb. 1871.
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CONTENTS.
SECOND PART OF THE TRAGEDY.
I. A Pleasant Landscapb ....
11. The Emperor's Castle ....
III. Spacious Hall [CamiveU Masgutrade) .
IV. Pleasure-Garden {, Paptr- Money Sehcmt) .
V. A GijjoMV Gallery {The Mothers)
VI. Brilliantly Lighted Halls
VII, Hall op the Knights (Paris and Neiena)
ACT II.
I. A Gothic Chamber, formerly Faust's
II. Laboratory {Homunculus) ....
in. Classical Walpuro is -Nicht.
I. The Pharsalian Fields .
II. Peneus
III. On the Upper Peneus. as before
IV. Rocky Coves of the i^gean Sea
V. Tblcktnbs op Rhodes ...
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CONTENTS.
ACT III.
Tue Hklxna
ACT IV.
I. High Mountains 21S
11. On thb Headland {T%t BattU^ , . 241
III. The Rival Euferor's Tent . , . 359
ACT V.
I. Open Country a?!
II. In the Little Garden .... 374
III. Palace 176
IV. Dead of Night 381
V. Midnight (Fauift Blinäiutt) .... 386
VL Great Outer Covet or the Palace [Fiuaft
Death) 393
VII. Mountain -Gorges, Forest, Rock, Desbkt 305
NOTES 31S
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SECOND PART OF THE TRAGEDY.
IN FIVE ACTS.
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A PLEASANT LANDSCAPE.
Faust, htddid en ßoway turf, fatigutd, rttttas, mdtauerii^
to sleep. Circle of haveTing ifiriie m rneävit: gratefiU,
tÜBtittutivi figures.
wi
(Ciant, acannfianied iy yEoiimt harfis.)
7HEN the Spring returns serener
Raining blossoms over all ;
When the fields with blessing greener
On the earth-bom children call;
Then the craft of elves propitious
Hastes to help where help it can i
Be he holy, be he vicious,
Pity they the luckless man.
Who round this head in airy circles hover.
Yourselves in guise of noble Elves discover 1
The fierce convulsions of his heart compose ;
Remove the burning barbs of his n
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And cleanse his being from the suffered woes !
Four paases makes the Night upon her courses,'
And now, delay not, let them kindly close t
First on the coolest pillow let him slnmber.
Then sprinkle hira with Lethe's drowsy spray !
His limbs no moic shall cramps and chills encumber
When sleep has made him strcmg to meet the day.
Perform, ye Elves, your fairest rite :
Restore Um to the holy light !
CHORUS 1
ifii^fy, ly ttpv or mitrt, a/trmaiefy and colltctiBdy),
When around the green-girt meadow
Babn the tepid winds exhale,
Then in fragrance and in shadow
Twilight spreads her misty veil :
Whispers peace in accents cheery,
Rocks the heart in childhood's play,
And upon these eyelids weary
Shuts the golden gates of Day.
Now the Night already darkles,
Holy star succeeds to star ;
Dazzling lights and fainter sparkles
Glimmer near and gleam afar r
Glimmer here, the lake reflecting,
Gleam in cloudless dark aboon ;
While, the bliss of rest protecting,
Reigns in pomp the perfect moon.
Now the Hours are cancelled for thee.
Pain and bliss have fled away :
Thou art whole : let faith restore thee 1
Trust the new, the risii^ Day !
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Vales grow green, and hiUa arc liftiDg
Through the shadow-rest of mom;
And in waves of silver, drifting
On to harvest, rolls the com,
Wonldst thou win desires unbounded,
Yonder see the glory bum 1
Lightly is thy life surrounded —
Sleep 's a shell, to break and spurn I
When the crowd sways, unbelieving^
Show the daring will that warms I
He is crowned with aU achieving,
Who perceives and then performs.
iA trtmtndmu tumult announcit tki apprBtuh eflht Stat.)
ARIEL.
Hearken! Hark!— the Hours careering 1
Sounding loud to spirit-hearing,
See the new-bom Day appearing I
Rocky portals jarring shatter,
Phcebus' wheels in rolling clatter.
With a crash the light draws near I '
Pealing rays and trumpet-blazes, —
Eye is blinded, ear amazes :
The Unheard can no one hear 1
sup within each blossom-bell.
Deeper, deeper, there to dwell, —
In the rocks, beueath the leaf!
If it strikes you, you are deaf.
FAUST.
Life's pulses now with fresher force awaken
To greet the mild ethereal twilight o'er mc ;
Thb night, thou. Earth I hast also stood unshaken,
And now thou breathest new^refreshed before me.
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And DOW beginnest, all thy gladness granting
A vigorous resolution to restore me,
To seek that highest life for which I 'm panting. —
The world unfolded lies in twilight glimmer,
A thousand voices in the grove are chanting;
Vale in, vale out, the misty streaks grow dimmer ;
The deeps with heavenly light are penetrated ;
The boughs, refreshed, lift up their leafy shimmer
From gulfs of air where sleepily they waited ;
Color on color from the background cleareth,
Whereflowerand leaf with tremblingpearls are freighted-
And all around a Paradise appeareth.
Look up ! — The mountain summits, grand, supernal,)
Herald, e'en now, the solemn hour that neareth ;
They earliest enjoy the light eternal
That later sinks, till here below we find it
Now to the Alpine meadows, sloping vernal,
A newer beam descends ere we divined it.
And step by step unto the base hath bounded :
The sun comes forth I Alas, already blinded,
I turn away, with eyesight pierced and n
'T is thus, when, unto yearning hope's endeavor,
Its highest wish on sweet attainment grounded.
The portals of fulfilment widely sever :
But if there burst from those eternal spaces
A flood of flame, we stand confounded ever ;
For Ufe's pure torch we sought the shining traces,
And seas of lire — and what a lire ! — surprise us.
Is 't Love? Is't Hate ? that bumingly embraces.
And that with pain and joy alternate tries us ?
So that, our glances once more earthward throwing
We seek in youthful drapery to disguise us.
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ACT I. f
Behiod me, therefore, let the sun be glowing 1
The cataract, between the crags deep-riven,
I thus behold with rapture ever-growing.
From plunge to plunge in thousand streams 't is given,
And yet a thousand, to the valleys shaded.
While foam and spray in air are whirled and driven.
Yet how superb, across the tumult br^ded,
The painted rainbow's changeful life is bending.
Now clearly drawn, dissolving now and faded,
And evermore the showers of dew descending 1
Of human striving there 's no symbol fuller :
Consider, and 't is easy comprehending —
Ufe is not light, but the refracted color.«
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II.
THE EMPEROR'S CASTLE.
HALL OF THE THRONK
Couvcn. OF State awaittng the Euperor.
Trumpets.
Enter Court Retatnbrs ef all landt, tplendidly dreued.
TXe Emperor advances ta the thrme: the An-ROLOGSi
«n his right hand.
EMPEROR.'
I GREET you, WeU-belovcd and Tnisty,
Assembled here from far and wide !
I see the Wise Man at ray side ;
But where 's the Fool, his rival lusty?
SQUIRE.
Behind thy mantle's flowing swell
Suddenly on the stairs he feU :
They bOTe away the weight of fat ;
If dead, or drunk ? none knoweth that
SECOND SQUIRE,
As quick as thought, through all the pother
Him to replace there came another,
Adorned and prinked with wondrous art,
Yet so grotesque that all men start.
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The guards their halberds cross-wise hold
To bar him — them he thrusts apart:
Lo I here be comes, the Fool so bold !
UEPHISTOPHELES {hutling ii/iirt Iht thront).
What '5 curaed and welcomely expected ?*
What Is desired, yet always chased ?
What evermore with care protected P
What is accused, condemned, disgraced ?
To whom dar'st thou not give a hearing ?
Whose name hears each man willingly ?
What is 't, before thy throne appearing?
What keeps itself away from thee ?
Spare ns thy words 1 the time is pressing ;
This is no place for riddle^essing :
These gendemen such things explain.
Solve it thyself 1 — to hear I 'm fain.
My old Fool went, I fear, an endless distance ;
Take thou his place, come here and lend assistance t
JHbFHISTOPHELZS jw/ up and italims kimidf on tht Eu-
pkrob's Uß hand.)
MURMURS OP THE CROWD.»
Another fool — for worries new ! —
Whence came he ? — how did he get through ?
The old one feU— he 's walked his path.—
//if was a barrel — this, a latht
EMPEROR.
So now, my Well-betoved and Loyal,
Be welcome all, from near and far !
You meet beneath a fortunate star ;
Wel&re and luck are now the aspects royaL
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FAUST.
Bat teil me why, In days so fair,"
When we 've withdrawn ourselves from care^
And beards of beauty masquerading wear, —
When gay delights for us are waiting.
Why should we plague ourselves, deliberating?
Yet, since the task you think we cannot shun,
T is settled then, so be it done I
CHANCELLOR,
The highest virtue, like a halo-zone
Circles the Emperor's head ; and he alone
Is worthy validly to exercise iL
T is Justice ! — all men love and prize it,
None can forego, but all require and want it:
The people took to him, that be shouM grant it
But, ah ! what help can human wit impart.
Or readiness of hand, or kindly heart.
When lies the State, as if in fever fretting,
And brooded Evil evil is begetting?
Who looks abroad from ofE this height supreme
I'hroughout the realm, 't is like a weary dream.
Where one deformity another mouldeth,
Where lawlessness itself by law upholdeth,
And 't is an age of Error that unfoldeth I
One plunders flocks, a woman one,
Cup, cross, and candlestick from altar.
And then to boast it does not palter,
Of limb or life nowise undone.
To Court behold the plaintiffs urging.
Where puffs the judge on cushions warm.
And swells, meanwhile, with fury surging.
Rebellion's fast-increasing storm !
His easy way through crime is broken.
Who his accomplices selects ;
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And " Guilty 1 " hears one only spoken
Where Innocence itself protects.
They all pull down what they should care for,—
Destroy their weal, in self-despite :
How can the sense develop, therefore.
Which, only, leads us to the Right ?
At last, the man of good intent
To flatterer and briber bendeth ;
The judge, debarred from punishment,
Mates with the felon, ere he endeth.
I 've painted black, but denser screen
I 'd rather draw before the scene.
IFaute.)
Here measures cannot be evaded ;
When all offend, and none are aided.
His Majesty a victim stands,
GENERAL-IN- CHIEF.
Id these wild days, how discords thicken I
Each strikes and in return is stricken.
And they are deaf to all commands.
The burgher in his fortifications.
The knight upon his rocky nest.
Have sworn to worry out our patience
And keep their strength with stubborn crest.
The mercenaries, no whit better.
Impatiently demand their pay.
And, if we were not still their debtor.
They 'd start forthwith and march away.
Let one forbid what all would practise
And in a hornet's nest he stauds :
The realm which they should guard, the fan is,
"T is devastated by their hands.
They give the rein to wild disorder,
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And half the world is wasted now ;
There RtiU are kings beyond our bx^der,
But none thinks it concems him anyhow.
TREASURER.
Trust allies, and we soon shall me us 1
The subsidies they promised to us —
Like water in leaky {upes — don't come.
Then, Sire, in all thy states extended
To whom hath now the rule descended f
Where'er one goes, a new lord is at home,
And hopes to live in independence ;
Me takes his course and we look on ;
Such rights we 've given to our attendanta
That all our right to anything is gone.
On parties, too, whate'er the name be,
Our trust, to-day, is far from great ;
Though loud their praise or fierce thdr Uame b
Indifferent is their love and hate.
The Ghibellines and Guelfs from labor
Are resting — both laid on the shell
Who, therefore, now will help his neighbor?
Each has enough, to help himself.
The gate of gold no more unlatches,
And each one gathers, digs, and scratches,
Whil« our strong-box is void indeed.
LORD HIGH STEWARD.
What evil 1, as well, am having !
We 're always trying to be saving,
And ever greater is our need :
Thus daily grows this task of mine.
The cooks have all they want at present, —
Wild-boar and deer, and hare and pheasant,
Duck, peacock, turkey, goose, and chicken:
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ACT I. ,3
Tliese, paid in Idnd, are certain picking
And do not seriously decline ;
Yet, after ail, we 're.short of wine.
Where casks on casks were once our cellars filEng
Rare vintages of flavors finely thrilling,
The noble lords' eternal swilling
Has drained them oS, till Dot a drop appears.
The City Council, too, must tap their liquor ;
They drink from mug, and jug, and beaker,
Till no one longer sees or bears.
*T is 1 must pay for all the dances ;
The Jew will have me, past all chances ;
His notes of hand and his advances
Will soon eat up the coming years.
Before they 're fat the swine are taken ;
Pawned is the pillow, ere one waken.
The bread b eaten ere the board it sees.
THE EMPEROR
{aßer leme reßtcütm, le Mefhistophelxs).
Say, Fool, canst thou not add a want to these?
HEPHISTOFHELES.
I ? Not at all ! 1 see the circling splendor —
Thyselt and thine ! Should one his trust surrender,
Where Majesty thus unopposed commands,
Where ready power the hostile force disbands.
Where loyal wills, through understanding strong,
And mixed activities, around thee throng ?
What powers for evil could one see combining, —
For darkness, where such brilliant stars are shining?
MURMURS.
He is a scamp — who comprehends. —
He lies his way — until it ends.—
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1 know it now — what 's in his mind. —
What then? — A iwoject lurks behind 1
HEPHISTOFHELES.
Where, in this world, dotb not some lack appear?
Here this, there that, — but money 's lacking here.
True, from the floor you can't at once collect it,
But, deepliest hidden, wisdom may detect it.
In veins of mountains, under buildiug-bases,
Coined and uncoined, there 's gold in many places^
And ask you who shall bring it to the light i
A man endowed with Mind's and Nature's might
CHANCELLOR.
Nature and Mind — to Christians we don't speak aa
Thence to burn Atheists we seek so.
For such discourses very dangerous be.
Nature is Sin, and Mind is Devil :
Doubt they lieget in shameless revel,
Their hybrid in delormity.
Not so with us ! — Two only races
Have in the Empire kept their places,
And prop the throne with worthy weight.
The Saints and Knights are they : " together
They breast each spell of thunder- weather,
And take for pay the Church and State.
The vulgar minds that breed confusion
Are met with an opposing hand :
They 're wizards ! — heretics ! Delusion
Through them will ruin town and land.
And these will you, with brazen juggle,
Within this high assembly smuggle ?
For hearts corrupt you scheme and struggle ;
The Fool's near kin are all the band.
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ACT I. 15
UBPHISTOPHELES.
By that, I know the learned lord you are I
What you doa't touch, is lying leagues afar ;
What you don't grasp, is wholly lost to you ;
What you don't reckon, think you, can't be true;
What you don't weigh, it has no weight, alas !
What you doa't coin, you 're sure it will not pass.
EHPEKOR.
Therewith to help our needs you naught determine.
What wilt thou, here, with such a Lenten sermon 7
1 'm tired of the eternal If and How :
Money we want : good, then, procure it now I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
1 11 furnish what you wish, and more : 't is, true,
A light task, but light things are hard to do.
The gold 's on hand, — yet, skilfully to win it.
That is the art : who knows how to begin it ?
Consider only, in those days of blood
When o'er the Empire poured a human flood.
How many men, such deadly terror steeled them.
Took their best goods, and here and there concealed
"T was so beneath the mighty Roman away.
And ever so repeated, till our day.
All that was buried in the earth, to save it :
The Emperor owns the earth, and he should bava iL
TREASURER.
Now, for a Fool, hb words are rather bright;
That is indeed the old Imperial right
CHANCELLOR.
Satan has laid his golden snares, to try us ;
Such things as these are neither right «or pious-
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LORD HIGH STEWARD.
Let him but bring his gifts to Court, and share tben^
And if things were a little wrong, I 'd bear them!
The Fool is shrewd, to promise each hia needs j
Whence it may come the soldier never heeds,
IlEPHISTOPRELES.
And should yon think, perchance, I overreach yon.
Here 's the Astrologer — ask him to teach you t
The spheres of Hour and House are in his ken : ■■
What are the heavenly aspects? — tell us, then!
MURUURS.
Two rogues are they, — in league they 've grown.
Dreamer and Fool — so near the throne !
The song is old — and flatly sung. —
The Fool he pron^ts — the Wise Man's tongne I
ASTROLOGER
(ifimtt: MRPHISTOPHELKS/nMI/Wl').
The Sun himself is gold of purest ray ;
The herald. Mercury, serves for love and pay ;
Dame Venus has bewitched you all, for she,
Early and late, looks on you lovingly ;
Chaste Luna has her whims, no two aUke ;
Mars threatens you, althou^ he may not strike^
And Jupiter is still the splendid star.
Saturn b great, though seeming small and far:
As metal, him we don't much venerate.
Of value slight, though heavy in his weight
Now, when of Sol and Luna union 's had, —
Silver with gold, — then is the world made glad]
All else, with them, is easy to attain, —
Palaces, gardens, cheeks of rosy stain ;
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And these procures this highly learned man,
Who that can do which none of us e'er can.
EUPBROR.
Two meanings in his words I find,
And yet they don't convince my mind.
MURMURS.
Why tell us that ? — stuff stale and flat I
'T 1» quackery I — *t is chemistry !
I "ve heard the strain — and hoped in vain,—
And though it come — 'tis all a hunL
They stand around, amazed, unknowing;
They do not trust the treasure-spell ;
One dreams of mandrake, nightly growing
The other of the dog of Hell.
Why, then, should one suspect b>ewitching.
And why the other jest and prate,
When in their feet, they, too, shall feel the itching
When they shall walk with tottering gait ?
All feel the secret operation
Of Nature's ever-ruling might,
And from the t>ases of Creation
A living track winds up to light
In every limb when something twitches
In any place uncanny, old, —
Dedde at once, and dig for riches !
There lies the fiddler, there the gold 1 o
MURMURS.
It hangs like lead my feet about —
I 've cramp i' the arm — but that is gout —
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1 've tickling in the greater toe. —
Down all my back it pains me so. —
From signs like these 't is very clear
The richest treasure-ground is here,
EMPEROR.
Haste, then ! Thou 'It not again make off I
Test now thy frothy, lying graces.
And show at once the golden places I
My sword and sceptre I will doff.
Mine own imperial hands I '11 lend thee.
If thou liest not, therein befriend thee.
But, if thou liest, to Hell will send thee t
HEPHISTOPHELES.
I 'd find, in any case, the pathway there 1 —
Yet 1 cannot enough declare
What, ownerless, waits everywhere.
The fanner, following his share,
Turns out a gold-crock with the mould :
He seeks saltpetre where the clay-walls stand,-
And (indelh rolls of goldenest gold.
With joyful fright, in his impoverished hand.
What vaults there are to be exploded.
Along what shafts and mines corroded,
The gold-diviner's steps are goaded.
Until the Under-world is nigh !
In cellars vast he sees the precious
Cups, beakers, vases, plates, and dishes,
Row after row, resplendent lie;
Rich goblets, cut from rubies, stand there,
And, would he use them, lo ! at hand there
Is ancient juice of strength divine.
Yet, trust to him who 's knowledge gotten.
The wood o' the staves has long been rotten.
ih,Googlc
ACT /. 19
A cask of tartar holds the wiae.'^
Not only gold aod gems are hiding,
But of proud wines the heart abiding,
In terror and in night profound;
Herein assiduously explore the wise ;
It is a farce, by day to recognize,
But mysteries are with darkness circled round.
BMFEROR.
See thou to them '. What profits the Obsctire ?
Whate'er has value comes to daylight, sure.
At dead of night who can the rogae betray?
Then all the cows are black, the cats are gray.
]f pots are down there, full of heavy gold.
Drive on thy plough and tum them from the mould I
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Take hoe and spade thyself, I pray thee, —
Thou shall be great through peasant-toil I
A herd of golden calves, to pay thee.
Will loose their bodies from the soil.
And then at once canst thou, with rapture,
Gems for thyself and for thy mistress capture:
Their tints and sparkles heighten the degree
Of Beauty a£ of Majesty-
Then quickl atoncel how long will it required
ASTROLOGER
(prampud by Mephistophei.es).
Sire, moderate such urgence of desire !
Let first the gay, the motley pastime end I
Not to the goal doth such distraction tend.
ih,Googlc
PAUST.
First self-command must quiet and assure us ;
The upper things the lower will procure us.
Who seeks for Good, must first be good;
Who seeks for joy, must moderate his blood ;
Who wine desires, let him the ripe grapes tread;
Who miracles, by stronger faith be led !
EMPEROR.
Let us the time in merriment efface !
And, to our wish, Ash- Wednesday comes vpaaei.
Meanwhile, we 'II surely celebrate withal
More jovially the maddening Carnival.
\Tnimpett. Examt
UEPHIST0PHEI.E5.
How closely linked are Luck and Merit,
Doth never to these fools occur :
Had they the Philosopher's Stone, I swear it,
The Stone would tack the PhUotK^ber I
ih,Googlc
SPACIOUS HALL.
WITH ADJOINING APARTMENTS
Arranged and Dtcerairdfer the Carnival Mcugturade.'^
HERALD.
T HI NK not, as in our German bounds, your chance is
Of Death's or Fools' or Devils' dances :
Here cheerful revels you await
Our Ruler, on his Roman expedition.
Hath for his profit, your fruition.
Crossed o'er the Alpine high partition,
And won himself a gayer State.
He to the holy slipper bowed him
And first the right of power besought ;
Then, as he went to get the Crown allowed him.
For us the Fool's-cap he has also brought.
Now are we all new-bom, to wear it :
Each tactful and experienced man.
Drawn cosily o'er head and ears, doth bear it; •
A fool he seems, yet he must share it,
And be, thereby, as sober as he can.
They crowding come, I see already,
Close coupling, or withdrawn unsteady, —
The choruses, like youth from school
Come in or out, bring on your ranks !
Before or after — 't is the rule —
With all its hundred thousand pranks,
The World is one enormous Fool I
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
OARDEN-GIRLS."
{Song, aecampaiütd with maruMiati.)
That we win your praises lender
We are decked in festal gear ;
At the German Court of splendor,
Girls of Floreoce, we appear.
On our locks of chestnut glosses
Wear we many a flowery bell ;
Silken threads and silken flosses
Here must play their parts, as well.
Our desert, not over-rated.
Seems to us assured and clear,
For by art we 've fabricated
Flowers that blossom all the year.
Every sort of colored snipping
Won its own symmetric right:
Though your wit on each be tripfnn^
In the whole you take delight
We are fair to see and blooming,
Garden-girls, and gay of heart ;
For the natural way of woman
Is so near akin to art
HERALD.
I^t us see the wealth of blossoms
Basket-crowning heads that bear them.
Garlanding your arms and bosoms !
Each select, and lightly wear them.
Haste ! and bosky arbors dressing,
Let a garden here enring us !
Worthy Ihey of closer pressing.
Hucksters and the wares they bring vta.
n-./GoOglc
ACT I.
GARDEN-GIRLS.
Now in cheerful places chaffer,
But no marketing be ours 1
Briefly, clearly, let each laugher
Know the meaning of his flowera.
OUVE BRANCH, WITH FRUIT."
Flowery sprays I do not covet ;
Strife I shun, or branch above it,
Foe of conflict I remain.
Yet am I the marrow of nations,
Pledge of happy consummations.
Sign of peace on every plain.
Be, to-day, my lucky fate
Worthy head to decorate I
WREATH OF EARS {pilden).
You to crown, the gifts of Ceres
Here their kindly grace have sent ;
Unto Use what chiefly dear is
Be your fairest ornament !
FANCY WREATH.
Gayest blossoms, like to mallows, —
From the moss a marvel grew I
Fashion calls to light, and hallows.
That which Nature never knew,
FANCY NOSEGAY.
What our name is, Theophrastus „
Would not dare to say : contrast ust
Yet we hope to please you purely,
If not all, yet many, surely, —
Such as fain we 'd have possess us,
Braiding us in shining tresses,
ih,G0Gglc
Or, a fairer fate deciding,
On the heart find rest abiding.
CUAU^NGE.
Motley fancies blossom may
For the fashion of the day,
Whimsical and strangely moulded,
Such as Nature ne'er unfolded :
Belb of gold and stems of green
In the plenteous locks be seen I —
Yet we
ROSEBUDS
lie concealed behind ;
Luclcy, who shall freshly find !
When the summer-time returneth.
And the rosebud, bursting, bumeth.
Who such blisses would surrender?
Promise sweet, and yielding tender,
They, in Flora's realm, control
Swiftly eyes and sense and soul.
Undtr griiH, Uafy arauUt, Ike Garuen^cirls aJei
gnutfiäfy ex Aim fhtir warts )
{Song, atcemfanied juilA Ihiarbas.)
Blossoms there, that sprout in quiet,
Round your heads their charms are weaving'
But the fruits are not deceiving,
One may try the mellow diet
Sunburnt faces tempt with glowing
Cherries, peaches, plums, your vision :
Buy ! for vain the eye's decision
To the tongue's and palate's showing.
ih,Googlc
ACT 1. ,,
Ripest fniit from sunniest closes
Eat, with taste and pleasure smitten 1
Poems one may write on roses,
But the apple must be bitten.
Then pennit that we be mated
With your youth, so flowery-fair:
Thus is also decorated.
Neighbor-like, our riper ware.
Under wreaths of fiowery tether,
As the leafy arbors suit,
All may then be found together,
Buds and leaves, and flower and fruit!
|WiM idtematiitg tongr, aaompamid tailk tnamJolina and
tA^eröft, ieti CAoruici cantinui to ul forth Ihiir ■warn tifaa
tttpt Tiring alefl, andte offtr thim to the ifi(tatert.\
Mother and Daughter."
MOTHER.
Maiden, when thou cam'st to Ught,
Tiny caps I wrought thee ;
Body tender, soft, and white,
Lovely face 1 brought thee.
As a bride 1 thought thee, led
To the richest, wooed and wed,
As a wife I thought thee.
Ah ! already many a year,
Profitless, is over :
None of all the wooers here
Now around thee hover;
Tlioiigh with one wast wont to dance,
VOL. n. 3
ih,Googlc
Gav'st another audge and glance, —
Hast not found thy lover 1
I to feast and revel thee
Vainly took, to match one:
Pawns, and hindmost man of three.
Would not help thee snatch one.
Every fool now wears his cap :
Sweetheart open thou thy lap I
Still, perchance, mayst catch one !
\Otkcr maideH-flaymaUi,y»ing and htaiiifid.jMntht g^dtf-
girU : Iht totatd e/famäiar giatip it hiard. Fithtrs and
iird-caicheri, -wiih tuili, fiskin^redi, tinted tiaigi, and alhrr
impltmcntj, affitar, and diiptru thcmsilvei ameng tki
maidttu. Ktcifrocai attrmpti lo luin, to calih. Is rieaft, and
te Md_fiut, giiie opfortiatäy for Iht most agrutdde di^ogn€t\
WOOD-CUTTERS."
{Enttr, ieisttrOHily and boeriihly.)
Room ! make a clearing !
Room in your revel !
The trees we level
That tumble cracking :
Where we 're appearing
Look out for whacking.
Our praise adjudging,
Make clear this fable I
Save Coarse were drudging
Within your borders.
Would Fine be able
To build their orders,
Howe'er they fretted ?
Be taught in season.
For you 'd be freezing
Had we not sweated 1
ih,Googlc
PULCIMELLI
[utueutA, a/maii idiolit)
You, Fools, are trooping,
Since birth so stooping ;
The wise ones we are,
From burdens freer.
Our Caps, though sleazy,
And jackets breezy
To wear are easy :
It gives us pleasure
To go with leisure,
With slippered shuffles
Through market-scuffles,
To gape at the pother.
Croak at each other !
Through crowded places
You always trace us.
Eel-like gliding,
Skipping and hiding.
Storming tc^ether ;
Moreover, whether
You praise — reprove us,
It does n't move us.
PARASITES i/atBHingfy-lust/iil).
Ye woodland bandsmen.
And they, your clansmen,
The charcoal-burners.
To you we turn us :
For all such plodding,
Affinnative nodding.
Tortuous phrases,
fitowing both ways ~ is
Wanning or chilling.
ih,Googlc
Just 33 you 're feeling:
What profit from it?
There might fall fire.
Enormous, dire,
From heaven's summit.
Were there not billets
Aod coaJ in wagons,
To boil your skillets
And warm your flagons.
It roasts and frizzles;
It boils and sizzles I
The taster and picker,
The platter-licker,
He sniffs the roasting.
Suspects the fishes,
And clears, witfa boastir^,
His patron's dishes.
SRUNKEK HAN '3 {uneonjciouify).
Naught, to-day, bring melancholy !
Since I feel so frank and free :
Fresh delight and songs so jolly,
And I brought them both with me!
Thus I 'm drinking, drinking, drinkiogl
Clink your glasses, clinking, clinking !
You behind there, join the rout !
Oink them stout, and then it 's out)
Though my wife assailed me loudly,
Rumpled me through thin and thick;
And, howe'er I swaggered proudly,
Called me " masquerading stick " :
Yet I 'm drinking, drinking, drinking!
Clink your glasses ! clinking, clinking!
ih,Googlc
Masldng sticks, smother bout 1
When yon 've cUoked them, drink them out 1
Say not mine a silly boast is t
I am here in clover laid :
Trusts the host not, trusts the hostess, —
She refusing, trusts the maid.
Still I 'm drinking, drinking, drinking!
Come, ye others, clinking, clinkingl
Each to each ! keep up the rout !
We, I 'm thinking, drink them out
How and where my fun 1 'm sp}in^
Let me have it as I planned I
Let me lie where 1 am lying.
For I cannot longer stand.
Every chum be drinking, drinkitig!
Toast afiresh, with clinking, clinking!
Bravely keep your seats, and shout !
Under the table he 's drunk out
\T%i Herald anmmncts various Potls^ — Potis ef Nature,
Courtly and Knightly Minilrcls, StntimtnlalisU as well as
Entkusiaits. In the cnnvd ef cemptlilors of all kinds, ne
ene allirws anolhir to camtnemc his deilamntion. One dipt
fast viUk a few words ;]
SATIRIST.
Know ye what myself, the Poet,
Would the most rejoice and cheer?
If I dared to sing, and utter.
That which no one wants to hear.
ih,Googlc
30 FAUST.
[The Night and Churchyard Patti txcuit thmudvet, htcauie
they kaetput btcemt tngaged in a mait interisting converiO'
Hon with a nruily-aristn vampire, and therefrom a nea
lekool ef poetry may possibly be drveloptd. The Hrrald it
obliged to accept their acutes, and mcanuihile colli forth the
Grecian Mythology, which, even in modern maiti, lotet
neither itt character nor its power to charm,}
The Graces.*'
AGLAIA.
Ufe we bless with graces living ;
So be graceful in your giving 1
Graceful be in your receival ;
Wish attained is sweet retrieval
EUPHROSYNE,
And in days serene and spacious,
In your thanks be chiefly gracioosl
The Parc«.*
ATROPOS.
I, the eldest, to the spinning
Have received the invitation |
When the thread of Life 's beginning
There is need of meditation.
Finest flax I winnow featly
That your thread be softly given ;
Draw it through my fingers neatly.
Make it thin, and smooth, and even.
If too wanton your endeavor,
Grasping here of joy each token.
ih,Googlc
Think, the thread won't stretch forever t
Have a care 1 it might be broken.
CLOTHO.
Knov that, given to me for wearing.
Lately were the shears supplied ;
Since men were not by the bearing
Of our eldest edified.
Useless webs she long untangled,
Draggii^ them to air and tight;
Dreams of fortune, hope-bespangled,
Clipped and buried out of sight
Also I, in ignorance idle,
Made mistakes in younger years,
But to-day, myself to bridle,
In their sheath I stick the shears.
Thus restrained in proper measure,
Favor 1 this cheerful place :
You these hours of liberal pleasure
Use at will, and run your race !
LACHESIS.
In my hands, the only skilful.
Was the ordered twisting placed;
Active are my ways, not wilful,
Erring not through over-haste.
Threads are coming, threads are reeling ;
In its course 1 each restrain :
None, from off the circle wheeling,
Fidls to fit within the skein.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
If I once regardless gadded,
For the world my hopes were Toin :
Hours are counted, years are added,
And the weaver takes the chain.
HERAU).
You would not recognize who now sf^ar,
Though ne'er so learned you were in ancient writing ;
To look at them, in evil so delighting.
You 'd call them worthy guests, and welcome here.
They are The Furies," no one will believe us, —
Fair, well-proportioned, friendly, 3^ung in years :
But make acquaintance, and straightway appears
How snake-like are such doves to wound, deceive us.
Though they are spiteful, yet on this occasion,
When every fool exults in all his blame,
They also do not crave angelic £ime.
But own themselves the torments of the nation.
ALECTO.
What good of that, for you will trust us still ! —
Each of us young and fair, a wheedling kitten.
Hath one of you a girl with whom he 's smitten,
We 'II rub and softly stroke his ears, until
'T is safe to tell him, spite of all his loathing.
That she has also this and the other ftame, —
A blockhead he, or humpbacked, squint and lame,
And if betrothed to him, she 's good-for-nothing I
We 're skilled, as well, the bride to vex and sever:
Why scarce a week ago, her very lover
ih,Googlc
Contemptuous things U her was saying of her !
Though they make up, there 's something rankles even
That 's a mere jest ! For, let them once be married,
I go to work, and can, in every case,
The fairest bliss by wilful whims displace.
Man has his various moods, the hours are varied,
And, holding the Desired that once did charm him,
Each for the More-desired, a yearning fool,
Leaves the best fortune, use has rendered cool :
He fliea the sun, and seeks the frost to warm him.
Of ills for all I understand the brewing
And here Asmodi as my follower lead,'
To scatter mischief at the proper need,
And send the human race, in p^rs, to ruin.
TISIPHONE.
Steel and poison I, not malice,
Mix and sharpen for the traitor:
Lov'st thou others, soon or later,
Ruin pours for thee the chalice.
Through the moment's sweet libation
See the gall and vrarmwood stealing!
Here no bargaining, no dealing !
Like the act and retaliation.
No one babble of forgiving !
To the rocks I cry ; Revenge/ is
Echo's answer : he who changes
Shall be missed among the living.
ih,Googlc
34 FAUST.
HERALD.
Do me the faror, now, to stand aside,
For that vhich comes is not to you allied
You see a moimtain pressing through the throng,**
The flanks with brilliant housings grandly hung,
A head with tusks, a snaky trunk below, —
A mystery, yet I the key will show.
A delicate woman sits upon his neck.
And with a wand persuades him to her beck ;
The other, throned aloft, superb to see.
Stands in a glory, dazzling, blinding me.
Beside him walk two dames in chains ; one fearful
And sore depressed, the other glad and cheerful
One longs for freedom and one feels she 's free :
Let each declare us who she be I
FEAR.
Smoky torches, lamps are gleaming
Through the festal's wildering train ;
Ah I amid these faces scheming
I am fastened by my chain.
Off, ridiculously merry I
1 mistrust your grinning spite :
Each relentless adversary
Presses nearer in the night
Friend would here as foe waylay me.
But 1 know the masking shapes ;
Yonder 's one that wished to slay me, —
Now, discovered, he escapes.
From the world I fain would wander
Through whatever gate I find ;
But perdition threatens yonder.
And the horror holds my mind
ih,Googlc
Good my sisters, I salute you 1
Though to-day already suit you.
Masquerading thus demurely,
Yet I know your purpose surely
To reveal yourselves to-morrow.
And if we, by torches lighted,
Fail to feel a special pleasure,
Yet in days of cheerful leisure,
At our will, delight we '11 borrow,
Or alone or disunited
Free through fairest pastures ranging^
Rest and action ioterchauging,
And in life no cares that fetter
■ Naught forego, but strive for better.
Welcome guests are all around us,
Let us mingle with the rest !
Surely, what is best hath found us.
Or we 'U somewhere find the best
PRUDENCE.
Two of human foes, the greatest,
Fear and Hope, I bind the faster.
Thus to save you at the latest :
Clear the way for me, their master.
I conduct the live colossus.
Turret-crowned with weighty masses;
And unweariedly he crosses.
Step by step, the steepest passes.
But aJoft the goddess planted.
With her broad aud ready pinions,
Turns to spy where gain is granted
Everywhere in Man's dominions.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Round her all is bright aati glorions ;
Splendor streams on all h^r courses :
Victory is she — the victorious
Goddess of all active forces.
zoTlo-t h er sites.'"
Ho ! ho ! 1 've hit the time of day.
You 're all together bad, I say !
But what appeared my goal to me
Is she up there, Dame Victory.
She, with her snowy wings spread out,
Thinks she 's an eagle, past a doubt ;
And, wheresoever she may stir.
That land and folk belong to her ;
But when a famous thing is done
I straightway put my harness on,
To lift the low, the high upset,
The bent to straighten, bend the straight '•
That, only, gives my heart a glow,
And on this earth I '11 have it so.
HERALD.
Then take, thou beggar-cur, the blow.
This magic baton's stroke of skill I —
So, twist and wriggle at Ihy will t
See how the double dwarfish ape
Kolb to a hideous ball in shape '■ —
A marvel ! 'T is an egg we view ;
It puffs itself and cracks in two:
A pdf of twins come forth to day.
The Adder and the Bat are they.
Forth in the dust one winds and creeps;
One darkly round the ceiling sweeps.
They haste to join in company :
The third therein 1 would not bei
ih,Googlc
ACT I.
MURUURS.
Come ! the dance is yonder gay. —
No 1 1 would I were away. —
Feel'st thou how the phantom race
Flits about us in this place ? —
Something whizzes past my hair. —
Round my feet I saw it fare. —
None of us are injured, though. —
But we all are frightened so. —
Wholly spoiled is now the fun. — ■
Which the vermin wanted done.
Since, as Herald, I am aiding
At your merry masquerading,
At the gate I 'm watching, fearftil
Lest within your revels cheerful
Something slips of evil savor ;
And I neither shrink nor waver.
Yet, I fear, the airy spectres
Enter, baffling all detectors,
And from goblins that deceive you
1 'm unable to relieve you.
First, the dwarf became suspicious ;
Now a mightier pageant issues
Yonder, and it is my duty
To explain those forms of beauty :
But the thing I comprehend not.
How can I its meaning mention?
Help me to its comprehension 1
Through the crowd you see it wend not?
Lo ! a four-horse chariot wondrous.
Hither drawn, the tumult sunders ;
Yet the crowd seems not to share in 't —
Nowhere is a crush appaient.
ih,Googlc
t FAUST.
Colored lights, m distance dimmer.
Motley stars around it shimmer;
Magic lantern-like they glimmer.
On it storms, as to a^saulL
Clear the way 1 1 shudder I
BOY CHAHIOTEER.
Haiti
Steeds, restrain the eager pinion.
Own the bridle's old dominion,
Check yourselves, as I desire yon.
Sweep away, when I inspire you I —
Honor we these festal spaces !
See, the fast increasing faces.
Circles, full of admiration I
Herald, come I and in thy ^hion.
Ere we take from here our glories,
Name tis, and describe and show usi
For we 're naught but allegories,
Therefore 't is thy place to know us.
MBRALD.
No, thy name from me is hidden, —
Could describe thee, were I bidden.
BOV CHARIOTEER.
Try it!
HERALIX
Granted, at the start,
Young and beautiful thou art, —
A half-grown boy ; and yet the woman-nature
Would rather see thee in completed stature.
To me thou seem'st a future fickle wooer,
Changing the old beUayed love for a newer.
ih,Googlc
BOY CHARIOTEER.
Go on I So far, 't b very fine :
Mjüce the enigma's gay solution thine 1
HERALD.
Black lightnmg of the eyes, the dark locks gto«ing,>
Yet bright with jewelled anadem.
And light thy robe as flower on stem,
From shoulder unto buskin flowing
With tinael-braid and purple hem !
One for a maiden might surmise thee.
Yet, good or ill, as it might be,
The maids, e'en now, would take and prize thee :
rhey 'd teach ihee soon thy A B C.
BOY CHARIOTEER.
And he, who like a splendid vision,
Sits proudly on the chariot's throne ?
He seems a king, of mien Elysian ;
ßlest those, who may his favor own !
No more has he to earn or capture ;
His glance detects where aught 's amiss.
And to bestow his perfect rapture
Is more than ownership and bliss.
BOY CHARIOTEER.
Thou darest not at this point desist:
Describe him fully, 1 insist !
HERALD.
But undescribed is Dignity.
The healthy, full-moon face I see.
The ample mouth, the cheeks that fresher
Shine out beneath his turban's pressure,
ih,Googlc
Rich comfort io the robe he 's vearing, —
What shall I say of such a bearing ?
He seems, as ruler, known to me.
BOV CHARIOTEER.
Plutus, the God of Wealth, is he.
He hither comes in proud attire;
Much doth the Emperor him desire.
HERALD.
Of thee the WAal and //mo declare to me 1
BOY CHARIOTEER.
I am Profusion, 1 am Poesy."
The Poet I, whose perfect crown is sent
When he his own best goods hath freely spent
Yet, rich in mine unmeasured pelf,
Like Plutus I esteem myself:
1 pr^Lnk and cheer his festal show
And whatsoe'er he lacks bestow.
HERALD.
Fresh charm to thee thy brag imparts.
But let us now behold thine arts!
BOY CHARIOTEER.
Just see me fillip with my fingers !
What brilliance round the chariot lingers,
And there a string of pearls appears !
^:etttinuing lojillif and snap hisftngirs in all direcfiem :)
Take golden spangles for neck and ears,
Combs, and diadems free of flaw,
And jewelled rings as ne'er ye sawl
I also scatter flamelets bright.
Awaiting where they may ignite.
ih,Googlc
HERALD.
How Strives the crowd with eager longing,
Almost upOD the giver thronging !
As in a dream he snaps the toys ;
All catch and snatch with crush and noise.
But now new tricks have 1 detected :
What each has zealously collected
His trouble doth but poorly pay ;
The gifts take wings and fly away.
The pearls are loosened from their band
And beetles crawl within his hand;
He shakes them oS, and then instead.
Poor dolt, they hum around his head I
The others find their solid things
Arc butterflies with gaudy wings.
How much the scamp to promise seems,
And only gives what golden gleams!^
Masks to announce, I grant, thou 'rt worthy ;
But 'nealh the shell of Being to bestir thee
Is not a herald's courtly task:
A sharper sight for that we asL
Yet every quarrel I evade ;
To thee, my Giief, be speech and question made !
( Tkming U> PLtfTtrs.)
Didst thou not unto me confide
The tempest of the steeds I guide ?
Canst thou not on my guidance reckon P
Am 1 not there, where thou dost beckon ?
And have I not, on pinions boldest.
Conquered for thee the palm thou holdest ?
When in thy battles I have aided,
I ever have been fortunate ;
ih,Googlc
Thy brow whcQ laurels decorate,
Have I not them with hand and {ancy bndded?i*
PLUTÜS.
If there be need that I bear witness now,
I 'm glad to say : soul of my soul art thou !
Thine acts are always to my mind,
And thou the richer art, I find.
Thy service to reward, I hold
The green bough higher than my crowns of gold.
To all a true word spoken be :
Dear Son, I much delight in thee.
BOY CHARIOTEER {ta tht Crowd).
The greatest gifts my hand flings out,
Seet I have scattered round alMut
On divers heads there glows the tongue
Of flame which I upon them flung, —
Leaps back and forth among the shapes,
On this remains, from that escapes,
But very seldom upward streams
In transient flush of mellow beams ;
And unto many, ere they mark,
It is extinct and leaves them dark.
CHATTER OF WOMEN.
Upon Ihe chariot that man
Is certainly a charlatan:
There, perched behind, the clown is seen,
From thirst and hunger grown so lean
As one ne'er saw him ; if you 'd pinch,
He has n't flesh to feel and Hinch.
THE STARVELING.
Disgusting women, off ! 1 know
That when I come, you 'd have me go.
ih,Googlc
When woman fed her own hearth-flame,
Then Avaritia was my name ; ^
Then throve the household fresh and green.
For nau^t went out and much came in.
To chest and press 1 gave good heed,
And that you 'd call a vice, indeed !
But since in later years, the fact is,
Economy the wife won't practise,
And, like the host of spendthrift scholars.
Has more desires than she has dollars.
The husband much discomfort brooks.
For there are debts where'er be looks.
She spends what spoil she may recover
Upon her body, or her lover;
In luxury eats, and to excess
Drinks with the flirts that round her press ;
For me that raises money's price :
Male is my gender, Avarice 1
LEADER OF THE WOMEN.
With dragons, mean may be the dragon ;
It 's all, at best, but lying stuff!
He comes, the men to spur and egg on,
And now they 're troublesome enough.
CROWD OP WOMEN.
The scarecrow 1 Knock him from the wagon I
What means the fag, to threaten here i
As if his ugly face we 'd fear !
Of wood and pasteboard is each dragon :
Come on — his words shall cost him dear!
HERALD.
Now, by my wand ! Be still — let none stir I
Yet for my help there 's scarcely need ;
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
See how each grim and grisly monster,
Clearing the space arouad with sDeed,
Unfolds his fourfold wings of dread 1
The dragons shake themselves in anger,
With flaming throats, and acaly clangor ;
The place is clear, the crowd has fled.
(PLUTUS discmdsfremt tht chariot.)
How kingly comes he from above!
He beckons, and the dragons move;
Then from the chariot bring the chest
With gold, and Avarice thereon.
Sec, at his feet the load they rest !
A marvel 't is, how it was done.
PLUTUS (M the Chabioteer).
Now thou hast left the onerous burden here,
Thou 'rt wholly free : away to thi ne own sphere I
Here it is not ! Confused and wild, to-day,
Distorted pictures press around our way.
Where clear thy gaze in sweet serenity.
Owning thyself, confiding but in thee,
Thither, where Good and Beauty are unfurled,
To Solitude ! — and there create thy world !
BOV CHARIOTEER.
Thus, as an envoy, am I worthy of thee ;
Thus, as my next of kindred, do I love thee.
Where thou art, is abundance; where I go
Each sees a splendid profit round him grow,
fn inconsistent life each often wavers.
Whether to seek from thee, or me, the favors.
Thy followers may be indolent, 't is true ;
Who follows me, has always work to do.
ih,Googlc
JCT I. 45
' My deeds are never secret and concealed ;
I only breathe) and 1 'm at once revealed. \
Farewell, then ! Thou the bliss hast granted me ;
But whisper low, and I return to thee I
\Exit, as hi awu.
PLUTUS.
'T in time, now, to unchain the precious metals I
The padlocks with the herald's wand I smite :
The chest is opened: look! from iron kettles
It pour!< like golden blood before your sight
It I'oils, and threatens to devour, as fuel.
Melting them, crown and ring and chain and jewel)
ALTERNATE CRIES OP THE CROWD.
See here, and there ! they boil and swim ;
The chest is filling to the brim ! —
Vessels of gold are burning there.
And minted rolls are turning there,
And ducats jingle as they jump! —
O, how my heart begins to thump! —
All my desire I see, and more.
They 're rolling now along the floor. —
'T is offered you : don't be a dunce.
Stoop only, and be rich at once ! —
Then, quick as lightning we, the rest,
Will take possession of the chest
HERALD.
What aib ye, fools ? What mean ye all ?
'T is but a joke of Carnival.
To-night be your desires controlled;
Think you we 'd give you goods and gold?
Why, in this game there come to view
Too many counters even, for you.
ih,Googlc
1 FAUST,
A pleasant cheat, ye dolts ! forsooth
You take at once for naked truih.
What 's troth to you ? Illusion bare
Surrounds and rules you everywhere.
Thou Plutus-raask, Chief unrevealed,
Drive thou thb people from the field ! *
PLUTUS.
Thy wand thereto is fit and free ;
Lend it a little while to me '.
I dip it in the fiery brew, —
Look out, ye maskers ! all of you.
It shines, and snaps, and sparkles throws;
The burning wand already glows.
Who crowdeth on, loo near to me.
Is burned and scorched relentlessly, —
And now my circuit 1 '11 commence.
CRIES AND CROWDING.
Woe's me! We're lost — there's no defence I-
Let each one fly. If fly he can 1 —
Back ! clear the way, you hindmost man ! —
It sparkles fiercely in mine eyes. —
The burning wand upon me lies. —
We all are lost, we all are lost ! —
Back, back ! ye maskers, jammed and tossed ! —
Back, senseless crowd, away from there I —
O, had I wings, 1 'd take the air.
PLUTUS.
Now is the circle crowded back,
And none, I think, scorched very blacL
The throng retires.
Scared by the fires.
As guaranty for ordered law,
A ring invisible I draw.
ih,Googlc
HERALD.
A noble work b thioe, to-night :
I thank thy wisdom and thy might
PLUTUS.
Preserve thy patience, noble friend,
For many tumults yet impend.
AVARICE.
Thus, it one pleases, pleasantly
May one survey this circle stately;
For, ever foremost, crowd the women greatly,
If aught to stare at, or to taste, there be.
Not yet entirely nisty are my senses !
A woman fair is always fair to me :
And since, to-day, it makes me no expenses.
We 11 go a courHng confidently.
But in a place so populate
All words to every ear don't penetrate;
So, wisely I attempt, and hope success,
Myself by pantomime distinctly to express.
Hand, foot, and gesture will not quite suffice,
So I employ a jocular device.
Like clay will I the gold manipulate ;
One may transform it into any state.
HERALD.
What will the lean fool do ?" Has he,
So dry a starveling, humor ? See,
He kneads the gold as it were dough I
Beneath his hands 't is soft ; yet, though
He roll and squeeze it, for his pains
Disfigured still the stu9 remains.
He turns to the women there, and they
All scream, and try to get away.
ih,Googlc
With gestures of disgust and loathing;
The ready rascal stops at nothing.
I fear he takes delight to see
He has offended decency.
I dare not silently endure it:
Give me my wand, that 1 may cure it 1
PLUTUS.
The danger from without he does not see ;
Let him alone ; his FooiVhour fast is waning.
There 'U be no space for his mad pranks rennainingi
Mighty is Law, mightier Necessity.
TUMULT AND SONG,
The savage hosts, with shout and hail.
From mountain-height and forest-vale
Come, irresistibly as Fate.
Their mighty Pan they celebrate.
They know, forsooth, what none can guess.
And in the empty circle press.
I know you well, and your illustrious Pan !
Boldly together you 've performed your plan.
Full urell 1 know what every orte does not,
And clear for you, as duty bids, the spot.
Be Fortune still her favor lending!
The strangest things may here be bred :
They know not whitherward they 're wending.
Because they h.ive not looked ahead."
SAVAGE SONG.
Furbished people, tinsel-stuff!
They 're coming rude, they 're coming rough ;
In mighty ieap, in wildest race,
Coarse and strong they take their place.
ih,Googlc
Fauns, pair on pair,
Come dancing down.
With oaken crown
On crispy hair;
The fine and pointed ear is seen,
Leaf-like, the clustering curls between:
A stubby noae, face broad and flat,
The women don't object to that;
For when his paw hoMs forth the Faun,
The fairest to the dance is drawn.
SATYR.
See now, behind, the Satyr skip.
With foot of goat, lean leg and hip, —
Lean and sinewy must they be :
For, chamoiS'Iike, on mountains he
Loveth to stand or scamper free.
Then, strong in freedom of the skies.
Child, wife, and man doth he despise.
Who, deep in the valley's smoke and steam
That they live also, snugly dream;
While, pure and undisturbed, alone
The upper world is all his own.
GNOUES."
The little crowd comes tripping there;
They don't associate pair by pwr.
In mossy garb, with lantern bright.
They move commingling, brisk and light,
Each working on his separate ground,
Like firefly-emmets swarming round;
And press and gather here and there,
Always industrious everywhere.
With the " Good People " kin we own ;
VOL. n. 3 D
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
As sargeona of the rocks we 're koown.
Cupfnng the mountains, bleeding them
From fullest veins, depleting them
Of store of metals, which we pile.
And merrily greet : " Good cheer ! " the whila
Well-meant the words, believe us, then I
We are the friends of all good men.
Yet we the stores of gold unseal
That men may pander, pimp, and steal;
Nor iron shall fail his haughty hand
Who universal murder planned :
And who these three Commandments brealca
But little heed o' the others takes.
For that we 're not responsible :
We 're patient — be you, toc^ as well I
GIANTS.
The wild men of the woods they 're named.
And in the Hartz are known and famed ;
In naked nature's ancient might
They come, each one a giant wight.
With ür-tree trunk in brawny hand,
Around the loins a puffy band.
The merest apron of leaf and bough : —
The Pope hath no such guards, I trow.
NVMPRS IN CHORUS.
( T%ty lumund Iht great PAN.)
He comes! We scan
The world's great All,
Whose part doth fall
To mighty Pan.
Ye gayest ones, advance to him,
Your maddest measures dance to biml
Since serious and kind is be.
ih,Googlc
ACT 1.
He wills that we should joyous be.
Under the blue, o'er-vaulting twA,
Ever he seemeth slumber-proof;
Yet murmurs of the brooks he knows,
And soft airs lull him to repose.
At midday sleeping, o'er his brow*
The leaf is moveless on the bough ;
Of healthy buds the balsam there
Pervades the still, suspended air :
The nymph no longer dares to leap.
And where she stands, she falls aaleepi
But when, all unexpected, he
Maketh his voice heard terribly.
Like rattling thunder, roar of wave,
TheD each odc seeks himself to save;
The serried ranks disperse in fright,
The hero trembles in the fight.
Then honor to whom the honor is duc^
And bail to him who led us to you !
DEPUTATION OF GNOUES
{to Ihegreal Pan).
When the rich possession, shining
Through the rocks in thread and vein,
To the skilful wand's divining
Shows its labyrinthine chain,
We in vaults and caverns spacious,
Troglodytes, contented bide ;
While in purest daylight, gracious,
Thou the treasures dost divide.
Now we see, wilt thou believe us,
Here a wondrous fount^n run.
Promising with ease to give us
What was hardly to be won.
ih,Googlc
3 FAUST.
Lo! It waits for thy attaining:
Then be moved to break the spell t
All the wealth which thou art gaining
Profits all the world as well
PLUTUS {te Hu HeRALti).
We, in the highest sense, must be collected.
And let what iitay come, come, tliough uneitpected
Thy courage has not yet been counted short :
The fearful thing we now shall see will try it;
The world and History will both deny it,
So write it faithfully in thy report !
HERALD.
(CraipiHg the wand vikich VwrvsMJi in AiiJimuf.)
The dwarfs conduct the great Pan nigher.
Yet gently, to the fount of fire.
It bubbles from the throat profound,
Then sinks, retreating, to the ground,
And dark the open crater shows ;
And then again it boils and glows.
Great Pan in cheerful mood stands by.
Rejoiced the wondrous things to spy.
And right and left the foam-peark fly.
How can he in the cheat confide ?
He bends and stoops, to look inside.—
But now, behold ! his beard falls in :
Whose is that smoothly-shaven chin ?
His hand conceals it from our sight
What follows is a luckless plight ;
The beard, on fire, flies back to smite
His wreath and head and breast with flame:
To pain is turned the merry game.
They haste to quench the fire, but none
The ewiitly -kindling flames can shun.
ih,Googlc
ACT /.
Tfaat flash aod dart on other heads
Till wide the conflagratioa spreads :
Wrapped in the element, in tum
The masking groups take fire and bum.
But hark ! what news is bruited here
From mouth to mouth, from ear to ear?
O evermore ill-fated night,
That brings lo us such woe and blight I
To-morrow will proclaim to all
What no one wishes to befall,
For everywhere the cry I hear:
** The Emperor suffers pain severe I "
O were the proclamation wrong I
The Emperor bums and all his throng.*'
Accurst be they who him misled,
With resinous twigs on breast and head,
To rave and bellow hither so,
To general, fatal overthrow.
O Youth ! O Youth ! wilt never thou
Umit thy draught of joy, in season? —
O Majesty, wilt never thou.
Omnipotent, direct with reason ?
The mimic woods enkindled are ;
The pointed tongues lick upward far
To where the rafters interlace :
A fiery doom hangs o'er Ihe place.
Our cup of misery overflows,
For who shall save us no one knows.
The ash-heap of a night shall hide,
To-morrow, this imperial pride.
PLUTUS,
Terror is enough created \
Now be help inaugurated !
Smite, thou hallowed wand, and make
ih,Googlc
Earth beneath thee peal and quake I
Tfaou, the spacious breadth of air,
Cooling vapors breathe and bear 1
Hither speed, aroimd us growing,
Miaty films and belts o'erflowing.
And the fiery tumult tame !
Trickle, whisper, clouds, be crisper,
Roll in masses, softly drenching,
Mantling everywhere, and quenching!
Ye, the moist, the broadly brighl'ning,
Change to harmless summer lightning
All this empty sport of flame ! —
When by spirits we 're molested,
Then be Magic manifested.
ih,Googlc
PLEASURE-GARDEN.
THE MORNING SUN.
7%e Empbkos, Ut Court, Gentlemen and Laditt: Favst,
MsFUtsTOPHCLis, iecamingly, accerding to t/u mode, tuH
thotaily draitd : ietA kneel.
FA OST.
C IRE, pardon'st thou the jugglery of flame?
.EllPBROR {ieeimai^Aimlorüei.
I wish more exhibitions of the same.
A-sudden stood I in a glowing sphere ;
It almost seemed as if I Pluto were.
There lay, like night, with little fires besprent,
A rocky bottom. Out of many a vent.
Whirling, 3 thousand savage flames ascended,
Till in a single vault their streamers blended.
The tongues even to the highest dome were shot,
That ever was, and ever then was not
Through the far space of spiral shafts of flame
The long processions of the people came ;
Crowding, till all the circle was o'errun,
They did me homage, as they 've ever done.
Some from my Court I knew : to speak with cwdor,
A Prince I seemed o'er many a salamander.
MEPHISTOPHEXES.
That art thou. Sire ! Because each element
Fully accepts thy Majesty's intent
ih,Googlc
56 FAUST.
Obedient Fire is tested now by thee :
Where wildest heaving, leap into the Sea,
And scarce the pearly Hoor thy foot shall tread,
A grand rotunda rises o'er thy head:
Thou seest the green, translucent billows swelling
With purple edge, for thy delightful dwelling.
Round thee, the central point Walk thou at will,
The liquid palaces go with thee still I .
The very walls rejoice in life, disporting
In arrowy flight, in chasing and consorting :
Sea-marvels crowd around the glory new and fair.
Shoot from all sides, yet none can enter there.
There gorgeous dragons, golden' armored, float ;
There gapes the shark, thou laughest in his throat
However much this Court thy pride may please.
Yet hast thou never seen such throngs as these.
Nor from the loveliest shall thou long be parted ;
The curious Nereids come, the wild, shy-hearted,
To thy bright dwelling in the endless waters, —
Timid and sly as fish the youngest daughters,
The elder cunning : Thetis hears the news
And will, at once, her second Peleus choose.
The seat, then, on Olympus high and free —
EHPEROR.
The spaces of the air 1 leave to thee :
One ^ too early must ascend that throne.
HEPH ISTOPHELES.
And Earth, high Prince 1 already is thine own.
What fortune brought thee here, for our delights.
Directly from the One and Thousand Nights ?
If thou like Scheherazade art rich in stories,
ih,Googlc
My favor shall insure thee higher glories.
Be ready always, when your world of day,
As often baps, disgusts me every way 1
LORD HIGH STEWARD {tntert kaitüy).
Highness Serene, I never dared expect
To trumpet forth a fortune so select
As this, supremely blessing me.
Which I announce with joy to thee :
Reckoning on reckoning 's balanced squarely ;
The usurer^s claws are blunted rarely ;
I 'm from my hellish worry free :
Things can't in Heaven more cheerful be.
GENERAI^lN-CHIEF {fellimt Jiaitily).
Arrears of pay are settled duly,
The army is enlisted newly;
The trooper's blood is all alive,
The landlords and the wenches thrive.
EMPEROR.
How breathe your breasts in broader spaces t
How cheerful are your furrowed faces !
How ye advance with nimble speed !
TREASURER la/t/tearing).
Ask these, 't is they have done the deed !
FAUST.
It is the Chancellor's place the matter to present
CHANCELLOR {Toia cama/imvarif tiimify).
In my old days I 'm blest, and most content
So hear and see the fortune-freighted leaf''
Which has transformed to happiness our grieL
ih,Googlc
58 FAUST.
(He rtadt.)
" To all to whom this cometh, be it known ;
A thousand crowns in worth this note doth own.
It to secure, as certain plec^^e, shall stand
All buried treasure in the Emperor's land :
And 't is decreed, perfecting thus the scheme.
The treasure, soon as raised, shall this redeem."
EMPEROR.
A most enormous cheat — a crime, I fear !
Who forged the Emperor's sign-manuiil here ?
Has there not been a punishment condign ?
TREASURER.
Remember! Thou the note didst undersign;
Last night, indeed. Thou stood'st as miglity Pan,
And thus the Chancellor's speech, before thee, ran :
"Grant to thyself the festal pleasure, then
The People's good — a few strokes of the pen ! "
These didst thou give : they were, ere night retreated,
By skilful conjurers thousandfold repeated ;
And, that a like advantage all might claim,
We stamped at once the series vrith thy name :
Tens, Thirties, Fifties, Hundreds, are prepared.
Thou canst not think how well the folk have fared.
Behold thy town, half-dead once, and decaying.
How all, alive, enjoying life, are straying!
Although thy name long since the world made glad,
Such currency as now it never had.
No longer needs the alphabet thy nation.
For in this sign each findeth his salvation.
EMPEROR,
And with my people does it pass for gold ?
For pay in court and camp, the notes they hold ?
Then I must yield, although the thing 's
ih,Googlc
LORD HIGH STEWARD.
T was scattered everywhere, like wild-fire bladng,
As currency, and none its course may stop.
A crowd surrounds each money-changer's shop.
And every note is there accepted duly
For gold and silver's worth — with discount, truly.
Thence is it spread to landlords, butchers, bakers:
One half the people feast as pleasure- takers ;
In raiment new the others proudly go, —
The tradesmen cut their cloth, the tailors sew.
The crowd " The Emperor's health ! " in cellars wishesi
Midst cooking, roasting, rattling of the dishes.
HEPHISTOP HELES.
If one along the lonely terrace stray,
He sees the lady, in superb array,
With brilliant peacock-&n before one eye;
A note she looks for, as she simpers by,
And readier than by wit or eloquence
Before Love's favor falls the last defence.
One is not plagued his purse or sack to cany;
Such notes one lightly in his bosom bears,
Or them with fond epistles neatly pairs:
The priest devoutly in his breviary
Bears his : the soldier would more freely trip,
And lightens thus the girdle round his hip.
Your Majesty will pardon, if my carriage
Seems as it might the lofty work disparage.
FAUST.
The overplus of wealth, in torpor bound,
Which in thy laiids lies buried in the ground,
Is all unused ; nor boldest thought can measure
Th* o»nrowest boundaries of such a treasure.
ih,Googlc
6o FAUST.
Imagination, in its highest flight.
Exerts itself, but cannot grasp it quite ;
Yet minds, that dare explore the secrets soundless.
In boundless things possess a faith that 's boundless
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Such paper, stead of gold and jewelry,
So handy is — one knows one's property :
One has no need of bargains or exchanges,
But drinks of love or wine, as fancy ranges.
If one needs coin, the brokers ready stand,
And if it fail, one digs awhile the land.
Goblet and chain one then at auction sells,
And paper, liquidated thus, compels
The shame of doubters and their scornful wit
The people wish naught else; they 're used to it:
From this time forth, your borders, far and wide,
With jewels, gold, and paper are supplied.
You 've given our empire this prosperity ;
The pay, then, equal to the service be !
TTie soil intrusted to your keeping, shall you
The best custodians be, to guard its value.
You know the hoards, well-kept, of all the land.
And when men dig, 't is j-ou must give command.
Unite then now, ye masters of our treasure.
This, your new dignity, to wear witli pleasure.
And bring the Upper World, erewhile asunder,
In happiest conjunction with the Under !
TREASURER.
No further strife shall shake our joint position;
I like to have as partner the magician.
{Exit, viiih Fads*
ih,Googlc
EMPEROR.
Man after man, the Court will I endow :
Let each confess for what he 'II spend, and howl
PAGE [rttm/ii^).
1 11 lead a jolly life, enjoy good cheer.
A SECOND {Ihesame).
I II buy at once some trinkets for my dear.
CHAMBERLAIN {aiceftiiig).
Wines twice as good shall down my throat go trickling.
A SECOND [the samt).
I feet the dice within my pockets tickling.
KNIGHT BANNERET (reflicthfly).
My lands and castle shall be &ee of debt
ANOTHER [tAesame).
1 11 add to other wealth the wealth I get
EMPEROR.
\ koped the gifts to bolder deeds would beckon ;
But he who knows you, knows whereon to reckon.
I see that, spite of all this treasure-burst.
You stay exactly as you were at first.
FOOL l,approarhing\.
VttU scatter favors : grant me also some !
EMPEROR.
Ihju'rtcome to life? 'T would go at once for rum-
ih,Googlc
FOOL.
The magic leaves 1 I don't quite comprehend.
EMPEROR.
That I believe ; for them thou It badly spend.
There others drop: I don't know what to do.
EMPEROR.
Just pick them up ! they fall to thy share, too.
POOL.
Five thousand crowns are mine ? How unexpected 1
UBPHISTOPHELES.
Two-l^g^ wine-skin, art thou resurrected ?
FOOL.
Much luck I 've had, but like this never yet
MEPHISTOPHBLES.
Thou 'rt so rejoiced, it puts thee in a sweat
FOOI-.
fiut look at this, is 't money's-worth, indeed ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
T will bring thee what thy throat and belly need.
FOOL,
And cattle can I buy, and house and land ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Of course ! just make an offer once, off-hand I
ih,Googlc
FOOU
Cutle and wood, and chase, and fishing ?
UBI-HISTOPHBLES.
AUI
I 'd like upon Your Worship then to call.
FOOL.
To-night as landed owner I shall sit
[Exü.
UEPHISTOPHELES (salin).
Who now will doubt that this our Fool has wit?
ih,Googlc
wi
A GLOOMY GALLERY.
Faust. Mephistopheles.
uephistopheles.
/HAT wilt thou with me in this gloomy gallery ?
Is there not still enough of sport
There, in the crowded, motley Court, —
Not chance for tricks, and fun, and raillery?
PAUST.
Don't tell me that ! — In our old days the fun of it
Didst thou wear out, and 1 11 have none of it.
Thy wandering here and there is planned
Just to evade what 1 demand.
But 1 'm tormented something to obtain ;
The Marshal drives me, and the Chamberlain.
The Emperor orders, he will instantly
Helen and Paris here before him see, —
The model forma of Man and Woman, wearing,
Distinctly shown, their ancient shape and bearing.
Now to the work i 1 dare not break my word.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
So thoughtlessly to promise was absurd.
Thou hast not, comrade, well reflected
What comes of hanng used thy powers ;
ih,Googlc
We 've made him rich ; 't is now expected
That we amuse his idle hoora.
UBFRISTOPHELES.
Thou deem'st the thing is quicldy fixed:
Here before steeper ways we 're standing ;
With strangest spheres wonldst thou be mixed,
And, sinful, addest new debts to the old, —
Think'st Helen will respond to thy commanding
As freely as the paper-ghosts of gold t
With witches'-riches and with spectre-pictures,
And changeling-dwarfs, 1 'II give no cause for strictures ;
But Devil's-darlings, though you may not scold 'em,
You cannot quite as heroines behold 'em.
PAUST.
The old hand-organ still 1 hear thee play t
From thee one always gets uncertain sense,
The father, thou, of all impediments :
For every means thou askest added pay.
A litüe muttering, and the thing takes place;
Ere one can turn, beside us here her shade is.
HEPHISTOFHELES.
I 've no concern with the old heathen race ;
They house within their special Hades.*)
Yet there 'a a way.
FAUST.
Speak, nor delay thy history I
Unwilling, 1 reveal a loftier mystery. —
In solitude are throned the Goddesses,
No Space around them, Place and Time still less;
ih,Googlc
Oitly to sptealc of them embarrasses.
They are The Mothers ! ♦*
FAUST (terrified).
MothetsI
The Mothers ! Mothers ! — a strange word is said.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
It is so. Goddesses, unknown to ye.
The Mortals, — named by us unwillingly.
Delve in the deepest depths must thou, to reach them :
'T is thine own ^ult that we for help beseech them.
UEPHISTOPHELBS.
No way I — To the Unreachable,
Ne'er to be trodden I A way to the Unbeseechable,
Never to be besought ! Art thou prepared ?
There are no locks, no latches to be lifted ;
Through endless solitudes shall thou be drifted.
Hast thou through solitudes and deserts fared ?
FAUST.
I think 't were best to spare such speeches;
They smell too strongly of the witches,
Of cheats that long ago insnared.
Have I not known all earthly vanities?
Learned the inane, and taught inanities?
When as I felt I spake, wilh sense as guid<^
The contradiction doubly shrill replied ;
ih,Googlc
ACT I. 6
Enforced by odious tricks, have I not fled
To solitudes and wildernesses dread,
And that I might not live alone, unheeded,
Myself at last unto the Devil deeded 1
MEPHISTOPHELES.
And hadst thou swum to farthest verge of ocean,
And there the boundless space beheld.
Still hadst thou seen wave after wave in motion.
Even though impending doom thy fear compelled.
Thou hadst seen something, — in the beryl dim
Of peace-lulled seas the sportive dolphins swim j
Hadst seen the flying clouds, sun, moon, and star:
Naught shait thou see in endless Void afar, —
Not hear thy footstep fall, nor meet
A stable spot to rest thy feet
FAUST.
Thou speak'st, as of all mystagc^es the chie^
Who e'er brought faithful neophytes to grief ;
Only reversed : — I to the Void am sent.
That Art and Power therein I may augment :
To use me like the cat is thy desire,
To scratch for thee the chestnuts from the fire.
Come on, then! we 'II explore, whate'erbe^;
In this, thy Nothing, may I find my All I
KEPKISTOPHELES,
1 '11 praise thee, ere we separate: I see
Thou knowest the Devil thoroughly.
Here, take this key 1 «
FAUST.
That Uttle thing?
HEFHISTOPH ELES.
Take hokl of it, not undervaluing !
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
It glows, it ahines, — increases in my hand I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
How much 't is wortli, tliou soon shall understand.
The Key will scent the true place from all others :
Follow it down! — 't will lead thee to the Mothers.
FAUST (shuddering).
The Mothers I Like a blow it strikes me still I
What is the word, to hear which makes me chill?
HEPHISTOPHELES.
An thou so weak, disturbed by each new word ?
Wilt only hear what thou 'st already heard ?
To wondrous things art thou so used already,
Let naught, howe'er it sound, make thee unsteady t
FAUST.
Nathless in torpor lies no good for me ;
The chill of dread is Man's best quality.
Though from the feeling oft the world may fend us,
Deeply we feel, once smitten, the Tremendous.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Descend, then ! I could also say : Ascend !
'T were all the same. Escape from the Created
To shapeless forms in liberated spaces !
Enioy what long ere this was dissipated !
There whirls the press, like clouds on clouds unfolding;
Then with stretched arm swing high the key thou 'rt
holding I
FAUST (inipirfd).
Good ! grasping firmly, fresher strength I win :
My breast expands, let the great work begin 1
ih,Googlc
HEPHISTOPHELES.
At last a blaziog tripod teUs thee this,
That there the utterly deepest trattom is.
Its light to thee will then the Mothers show,
Some in their seats, the others stand or go,
At their own will : Formation, Transformatioo,
The Eternal Mind's eternal recrealion,
Forms of all creatures, — there are floating free.
They 'U see thee not ; for only wraiths they see.
So pluck up heart, — the danger then is great, —
Go to the tripod ere thou hesitate,
And touch it with the key !
IFaUST, wilk thi key, aisuma a dreidtdly tomviattditig atti-
ttuU. MeFMISTOPHELES, obstming iim.)
So, that is right!
It will adhere, and follow thee to light
Composedly mounting, by thy luck upborne.
Before they notice it, shalt thou return.
When thou the tripod hither hast conveyed,
Then call the hero, heroine, from the shade, —
The first that ever such a deed perfected:
'T is done, and thou thereto hast been selected.
For instantly, by magic process warmed,
To gods the incense-mist shall be transformed.
FAUST.
What further now ?
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Downward thy being strain I
Stamp and descend, stamping thou 'It rise again.
{Faust ilatnpi, and sinks gut of sight.)
If only, by the key, he something learn 1
I 'm curious to see if he return.
ih,Googlc
BRILLIANTLY LIGHTED HALLS.
EifPEROR AMD Princes. The Court in Movb-
HENT.
CHAMBERLAIN {ta MefhIETOFHELES).
THE spirit-scene you 've promised, still you owe us ;
Our Lord 's impatient ; come, the pbantasin shov
ust
LORD HIGH STEWARD.
Just now His Gncious Sell did question me :
Delay not, nor offend His Majesty]
UEPHISTOPHELES.
My comrade 's gone to set the worli in motion }
How to begin, he has the propter notion.
In secret he the charms must cull.
Must labor with a fervor tragic :
Who would that treasure lift, the Beautiful,
Requires the highest Art, the sage's Magic
LORD HIGH STEWARD.
What arts you need, is all the same to me ;
The Emperor wills that you should ready be.
A BLONDE (/o MbPHISTOPHBLES).
One word, Sir ! Here you see a visage lair, —
In sorry summer I another wear !
There sprout a hundred brown and reddish freckles,
ih,Googlc
ACT I. 7,
And vex my lily skin with ugly speckles.
A cure!
UEPHISTOFHELBS.
T is pity 1 Shining fair, yet smitten, —
Spotted, when May comes, like a panther-kitten I
Take frc^-spawn, tongues of toads, which cohobate,
Under the full moon deftly distillate,
And, whea it wanes, apply the mixture :
Next spring, the spots will be no more a fixture.
A BRUNETTE.
To sponge upon you, what a crowd 's advancing 1
I beg a remedy : a frozen foot
Annoys me much, in walking as in dancing;
And awkwardly I manage to salute.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
A gentle kick pennit, then, from my foot!"
THE BRUNETTE.
Well, — that might happen, when the two are lovers.
MEPRISTOPHELES.
My kick a more important meaning covers:
Similia similibus, when one is sick.
The foot cures foot, each limb its hurt can paUiate;
Come near ! Take heed ! and, pray you, don't retaliate I
THE BRUNETTE {scriaming^.
Oh ! oh ! it stings ! That was a fearful kick,
Ijke hoof of horse.
MEPHISTOPKELES.
But it has cured you, quick.
To dance whene'er you please, you now are able;
To press your lover's fool, beneath the table.
ih,Googlc
J 3 FAUST.
LADY (pnstlng forwards).
Make room for me ! Too great is my affliction.
My tortures worse than those described in fiction :
Hb bibs, till yesterday, was in my glances.
But now he turns his back, and spins with her romances.
M EPHISTOPHELES.
The matter '% gnvc, but listen unto me !
Draw near to him with gentle, soft advances ;
Then take this coal and mark him stealthily
On mantle, shoulder, sleeve, — though ne'er so slight^
Yet penitent at once his heart will be.
The coal thereafter you must straightway swallow.
And let no sip of wine or water follow :
He '11 sigh before your door this very night
THE LADV.
It b not poison, sure?
KEPHISTOFHELES [pffendtd).
Respect, where it is due I
To get such coals, you 'd travel many a mile ;
They 're from the embers of a funeral pile.
The fires whereof we once more hotly blew.
PAGE.
I kive, yet still am counted adolescent
M EPHISTOPHELES {,atidt\.
I know not whom to listen to, at present
(Tetke Pagt.)
Let not the younger girls thy fancies fetter;
Those well in years know how to prize thee better. —
(Othtrs crmxd around him^
Already others ? 'T b a trial, sooth 1
ih,Googlc
ACT I.
I '11 help mysell, at last, with naked tnith —
The worst device 1 — so great my misery.
0 Mothers ! Mothers ! let but Faust go free 1
( Gating around Ai'w.)
The lights are burning dimly in the hall,
The Court is moving onnard, one and all :
1 sec them march, according to degrees.
Through long arcades and distant galleries.
Now they assemble in the ample space
Of the Knights' Hall; yet hardly all find place.
The breadth of vralls is hung with arras rich,
And armor gleams from every nook and niche.
Here, 1 should chink, there needs no magic word:
The ghosts will come, and of their own accord.
ih,Googlc
HALL OF THE KNIGHTS, DIMLY LIGHTEDi
( The Emperor ana Ccurt hoot aUtrtd.)
w
HERALD.«
r INE ancient office, to proclaim the action.
Is by the spirits' secret influence thwarted;
One tries in vain ; such wildering distraction
Can't be explained, or reasonably reported.
The chairs are ranged, the seats are ready au;
The Emperor sits, fronting the lofty wall,
Where on the tapestry the battles he
Of the great era may with comfort see.
Here now are all — Prince, Court, and their belongii^
Benches on benches in the background thronging;
And lovers, too, in these dim hours enchanted,
Beside their loved ones lovingly are planted.
And now, since all have found convenient places,
We 're ready ; let the spirits show ibe.r faces
Trumptts.
ASTROLOGER.
Begin the Drama ! 'T is the Sire's command :
Ye walls, be severed straightway, and expand !
Naught hinders ; magic answers our desire :
The arras flies, as shrivelled up by fire;
The walls are split, unfolded ; in the gloom
A theatre appears to be created :
ih,Googlc
By mystic light are we Illuminated,
And I ascend to the proscenium.
UB?HlSTOPHELES
{riiingle vino in Üu prmnpttr'i box\.
I hope to win, as prompter, geoerai glory ;
For prompting is the Devil's oratory.
(To tht Aslrologtr.)
Thou know'st the tune and time the stars that lead-,
Thou wilt my whispers like a master heed.
ASTROLOGER.
By power miraculous, we here behold
A massive temple of the days of old.
Like Atlas, who erewhile the heavens upbore,
The serried columns stand, an ample store :
Well may they for the weight of stone suffice,
Since two might bear a mighty edifice.
ARCHITECT.*
That the antique? As fine it can't be rated;
I 'd sooner style it awkward, over- weigh ted.
Coarse is called noble, and unwieldy, grand :
Give me the slender shafts that soar, expand I
To lift the mind, a pointed arch may boast ;
Such architecture edifies us most.
ASTROLOGER.
Receive with reverence the star-granted hours ;
Let magic words bind Reason's restless powers,
But in return unbind, to circle free.
The wings of splendid, daring Phantasy !
What you have boldly wished, see now achieved I
Impossible 't is — therefore to be believed.
ih,Googlc
76 FAUST.
[Faust riiet fy vie» OK tlu ather tidt ef tlu proieeimim^
In priestly surplice, crowned, a marvellous man,
He now fulfils what he in faith began.
With him, a tripod from the gulf comes up:
I scent the incense-odors from the cup.
He anns himself, the work to consecrate,
And henceforth it can be but fortunate.
FAUST (suMimefy).
Ye Mothers, in your name, who set your throne
In boundless Space, eternally alone.
And yet companioned! AU the forms of Being,
In movement, lifeless, ye are round you seeing.
Whate'er once was, there bums and brightens free
In Splendor — for 't would fain eternal be-, *■
And ye allot it, with all-potent might,
To Day's pavilions and the vaults of Night,
life seizes some, along his gracious course ;
Others arrests the bold Magician's force ;
And he, bestowing as his faith inspires.
Displays the Marvellous, that each desires.
ASTROLOGER.
The glowing key has scarcely touched the cup,
And lo ! through all the space, a mist rolls up :
It creeps about, and like a cloudy train,
Spreads, rounding, narrowing, parting, closed again.
And now, behold a spirit-masterpiece !
Music is bom from every wandering fleece.
The tones of air, I know not how they flow ;
Where'er they move all things melodious grow.
The pillared shaft, the triglyph even rings ;
I think, indeed, the whole bright temple sings.
The vapors settle; as the light film cleats,
A beauteous youth, with rhythmic step, appears.
ih,Googlc
Here ends my task ; his Dame I need Dot tell :
Who doth not know the gentle Paris well ? "
O, what a youthful bloom and strength I see 1
A SECOND.
Fresh as a peach, and full of juice, is he I
A THIRD.
The finely drawn, the sweetly swelling lip !
A FOURTH.
From such a cup, no doubt, you 'd like to sip?
A FIFTH.
He 's handsome, if a little unrefined.
A SIXTH,
He might be somewhat gracefuUer, to my mind.
KNIGHT,
The shepherd I detect ; I find him wearing
No traces of the Prince, or courtly bearing.
O, yes .' half-naked is the youth not bad j
But let us see him first in armor clad !
LADY.
He seats tumsel^ with such a. gentle grace I
R NIGHT.
You 'd find his lap, perchance, a pleasant place ?
ih,Googlc
He lifts his ami so lightly o'er his head.
CHAMBERLAIN.
'T is not allowed: bow thoroughly Ul-tiredl
LADY.
You lords find fault with all things evermore^
To stretch and yawn before the Emperor !
LADY.
He only acts : he thinks he 's quite alone.
Even the play should be politely shown.
Now sleep falls on the graceful youth so sweetly.
CHAMBERLAIN.
Now will he snore : 't is natural, completely I
VOUNG LADV.
Mixed with the incenae-steam, what odor precious
Steab to my bosom, and my heart refreshes i
OLDER LADY.
Forsooth, it penetrates and warms the feeling!
It comes from him,
OLDEST LADY.
His flower of youth, unsealing,
It b: Youth's fine ambrosia, ripe, unfading.
The atmosphere around bis form pervading,
( Hklbka tarnet /arwarJ. )
n-./GoOglc
WEFHISTOPHELES.
So, that is she ? My sleep she would not waste:
She 's pretty, truly, but she 's not my taste.
There 's nothing more for me to do, 1 trow ;
As man of honor, I confess it now.
The Beauty comes, and had I tongues of fire, —
So many songs did Beauty e'er inspire, —
Who sees her, of his wits is dispossessed,
And who possessed her was too highly blessed.
Have I still eyes F Deep in my being springs
The fount of Beauty, in a torrent pouring !
A heavenly gain my path of terror brings.
The world was void, and shut to my exploring, —
And, since my priesthood, how hath it been graced t
Enduring 't is, desirable, firm-based.
And let my breath of being blow to waste,
If I for thee unlearn my sacred duty !
The form, that long erewhile my fancy captured,**
That from the magic mirror so enraptured,
Was but a frothy phantom of such beauty !
T is Thou, to whom the stir of all my forces,
The essence of my passion's courses, —
Love, fancy, worship, madness, — here I render !
MEPHISTOFHELES {/fBin tht tox).
Be calm ! — you lose your r&le, to be so tender !
OLDER LADY.
Tall and well-formed 1 Too small the head, alone.
YOUKGER LADY.
Just see her foot ! A heavier ne'er was shown.
ih,Googlc
DIPLOMATIST.
Princesses of her style I 've often seen :
From head to foot she 's beautiful, I ween.
COURTIER.
She near the sleeper steals, so soft and slj.
LADV.
How ugly, near that youthful purity I
POET.
Her beauty's light is on him like a dawn.
Endymion and Luna — as they 're drawn I
POET.
Quite right ! The yielding goddess seems to sink.
And o'er him bend, his balmy breath to drink-
Enviable fate — a kiss t — the cup is full 1
DUENNA.
Before all people l — that is more than cooL
FAUST,
A featful favor to the boy !
UEPHISTCPHELES.
Be still !
Suffer the shade to do whate'er it will J
COURTIER.
She slips away, light-footed : he awakes.
LADY.
Just as I thought ! Another look she takes.
ih,Googlc
COURTIER.
He stares : what haps, to him a marvel ia.
But none to her, what she before her sees t
COURTIER.
She turns around to him with dignity.
LADY.
I see, she means to put him through his paces :
All men, in such a case, act stupidly.
Then, too, he thinks that first he 's won her graces.
KNIGHT.
Kajestically fine 1 — She pleases me.
LADY.
The courtesan ! How very vulgar she I
PAGE.
Just where he is, is where 1 'd like to be I
COURTIER.
Who would not fain be caught in such sweet meshes?
Through many a hand hath passed that jewel precious ;
The gilding, too, is for the most part gone.
ANOTHER.
She ha« been worthless from her tenth year on.
K.VIGHT.
Each takes the best that chance for him obtains;
I 'd be contented with these fair n
ih,Googlc
I freely own, though I distinctly see,
'T is doubtful if the genuine one she be.
The Present leads us to exaggeration.
And 1 hold fast the wrilten, old relation.
1 read that, truly, ere her bloom was blighted,
The Trojan gray-beards greatly she delighted.
And here, methinks, it tallies perfectly:
1 am not young, yet she delighteth me.
ASTROLOGER.
No more a boy ! A bold, heroic form.
He clasps her, who can scarce resist the storm.
With arm grown strong he lifts her high and free ;
Bleans be to bear her off i
FAUST,
Rash fool, let be !
Thou dar'stf Thou hear'st not? Hold! — I 'B be
obeyed.
HEP HISTOPHELES.
The spectral drama thou thyself hast made!
ASTROLOGER.
A word more 1 After all we 've seen to-day,
1 call the piece; TAe Rape of Helena.'^
PAUST.
What I R.ipe ? Am I for nothing here ? To stead m^
Is not this key still shining in my hand ?
Through realms of terror, wastes, and waves it led roe,
Through solitudes, to where I firmly stand.
Here foothold is ! Realities here centre !
The strife with spirits here the mind may venture^
And on its grand, its double lordship enter !
ih,Googlc
ACT T. 83
Ho« iai sbe na^, and aearer, how divine 1
I "11 rescue her, and make her doubly mine.
Ye Mothers ! Mothers I crown this wild endeavor I
Who knows her once must hold her, and forever!
ASTROLOGER.
What art thou doing, Faust ? O, look at him 1
He seizes her: the form is growing dim.
He turns the key against the youth, and, lot
It touches him — Woe's me I Away now 1 Woe on
woe!
{Bxploäen. V WSt litt upon tki lartk. Tht S^riti ^aehit
HEPK ISTOPHELES
(taking Faust upon hit tieutders).
You have it now I One's self with fools to hamper.
At last even on the Devil puts a damper.
Darknta. TimuU.
ih,Googlc
ACT II
A HIGH-ARCHED, NARROW, GOTHIC CHAM-
BER, FORMERLY FAUST'S, UNCHANGED.
HEFHISTOPKELES
'eoming forth frem bthind a eiirtain.i> fViiU ht kold$ it tif
and loots htkind him, FaUST is atn lying sIriUhtd aul upem
an antiqtatid bed).
LIE there, ill-atarred ! seduced, unwise,
To bonds that surely hold the lover !
Whom Helena shall paralyze
Not soon his reason will recover.
{Ltwking around him, )
I look about, and through the glimmer
Unchanged, uninjured, all appears :
The colored window-panes, methinks, are dimmer,
The cobwebs have increased with years.
The ink is dry, the paper old and brown,
But each thing in its place I find :
Even the quill is here laid down,
Wherewith his compact with the Devil he signed.
Yea, deeper in, the barrel 's red
With trace of blood I coaxed him then to shed.
A thing so totally unique
The great collectors would go far to seek.
ih,Googlc
ACT II.
85
HaU from its hook the old fur-robe is falling,
That ancient joke of mine recalling.
How once 1 taught the boy such truth
As still, it may be, nourishes the youth.
The wish returns, with zest acuter,
Aided by thee, thou rough disguise,
Once more to take on airs as college tutor.
As one infallible in one's own eyes.
The sm/ans this assurance know :
The Devil tost it, long ago !
\I/t tiaiei tht/ur vikkh he has taten doum : molhs, crickcli,
and beilUs fly aul.)
CHORUS OF INSECTS.
Welcome, and hail to thee !
Patron, to-day :
We 're flying and humming
We hear and obey.
Singly and silently
Us thou hast sown ;
Hither, by thousands,
Father, we 've flown.
The imp in the bosom
Is snugly concealed ;
But lice in the fur-coat
Arc sooner revealed.
MEPHISTO PHELES.
What glad surprise I feel, from this young life bestowed '
One reaps in time, if one has only sowed.
Once more 1 'II shake the ancient fleeces out :
Still here and there a chance one flies about, —
Off, and around ' in hundred thousand nooks
Hasten lo hide yourselves — among the books,
There, in the pasteboard's wormy holes.
ih,Googlc
86 FAUST.
Here, ia the smoky parchment scrolls.
In dusty jars, that broken lie.
And yonder skull with empty eye.
In all this trash and mould unmatched,
Crotchets forever must be hatched.*"
(Htputionthf/urmanllc.)
Come, once again upon my shoulders fall!
Once more am I the Principal.
Hut 't is no good to ape the college;
Kor where are those who will my claim acknowledge ?
I //• pullt Ihe belt, lehieh givts out a shritl, ptnetraling sound,
calling tht kails te trtmiti atid thi doors to fly ofeti.)
[lollrring hither dmtrn the Ifg, dart gallery).
What a sound 1 What dreadful quaking !
Stairs are rocking, walls are shaking;
Through the colored windows brightening
I behold the sudden lightning;
Floors above me crack and rumble,
Lime and lumber round me tumble,
And the door, securely boiled,
Is by magic force unfolded. —
There 1 How terrible ! a Giant
Stands in Faust's old fur, defiant!
As he looks, and beckons thither,
1 could fall, my senses wither.
Shall I fly, or shall I wait?
What, O what shall be my fate I
HEPHISTOFHELES {bechoning).
Come hither. Friend ! Your name is Nicodemus.
FAUULUS.
Most honored Sir, such is my name — Oremus/
ih,Googlc
I ACT II.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Dispense with that !
O joy ! you know me yet
llEPHtSTOP HELBS.
Old, and a student still, — 1 don't forget.
Most mossy Siri Also a learned man
Continues study, since naught else he can.
'Tis thus one builds a moderate house of cards;
The greatest minds ne'er end them, afterwards.
Your master is a skilful fellow, though :
The noble Doctor Wagner all must know.
The first in all the learned world is he,
Who now together holds it potendy,
Wisdom increasing, daily making clearer.
How thirst for knowledge listener and bearert
A mighty crowd around him flocks.
None for the rostrum e'er were meeter:
The keys he holds as doth Saint Peter,
The Under and the Upper he unlocks.
Hb Ught above all others sparkles surer,
No name or fame beside him lives :
Even that of Faust has grown obscurer;
T is he alone invents and gives.
Pardon, most honored Sir ! if 1 am daring
To contradict you, in declaring
All that upon the subject has no bearing ;
For modesty is his allotted part
The incomprehensible disappearing
Of that great man to him is most uncheering;
From his return he hopes new strength and joy of heart
ih,Googlc
88 FAUST. I
As in the days of E>octor f aust, the room,
Since he 's away, all things unchanged.
Waits for its master, long estranged.
To venture in, I scarce presume. —
What stars must govern now the skies !
It seemed as if the basements quivered ;
The door-posts trembled, bolt* were shivered :
You had not entered, otherwise.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Where may his present dwelling Iw ?
Lead me to him ! Bring him to me 1
FAUULUS.
Mis prohibition b so keen I
1 do not dare to intervene.
For months, his time unto the great work giving,
In most secluded silence he is living.
The daintiest of distinguished learners,
His face is like a charcoal-burner's,
From DOse to ears all black and deadened ;
His eyes from blowing flames are reddened ;
Thus he, each moment, pants and longa,
And music make the clattering tongs.
UBPHISTOPHELES.
An entrance why should he deny me ?
I -U expedite his luck, if he 11 but tiy me I
\T%t Vawlvs goet eff: Mephistophelks ^aWj himiel/viiA
gravity.)
Scarce have I taken my position here,
When there, behind, I see a guest appear.
1 know him ; he is of the schoal new-founded,
And his presumption will be quite unbounded.
ih,Googlc
ACT TT.
BACCALAVREUS » {itiMming alimg tht (orridof).
Doors and entrances are open !
WcU, — at last there 's ground for hoping
That no more, in mouldy lumber,
Death-tike, doth the Living slumber.
To himself privations giving,
Till he dies of very living !
All this masonry, I 'm thinking,
To its overthrow is sinkit^;
And, unless at once we huny,
Us will crash and ruin bury.
Daring though 1 be, 't were murther
Should I dare to venture further.
What is that I see before me ?
Here, (what years have since rolled o'er me !)
Shy and unsophisticated,
1 as honest freshman waited;
Here I let the gray-beards guide me,
Here their babble edified me I
Out of dry old volumes preaching,
What they knew, they lied in teaching;
What they knew, themselves believed not.
Stealing life, that years retrieved not
What ! — in yonder cell benighted
One still sits, obscurely lighted !
Nearer now, 1 see, astounded,
Still he sits, with furs surrounded, —
Truly, as I saw him last.
Roughest fleeces round him cast)
Then adroit he seemed to be,
Not yet understood by me :
ih,Googlc
But to-day t will naught avail him —
O, 1 11 »either fear nor fail him !
If, ancient Sir, that bald head, sidewards bending,
Hath not been dipped in Lethe's river cold,
See, hitherward, your grateful scholar wending,
Outgrown the academic rods of old.
You 're here, as then when I began ;
But / am now ansther man.
UEPKlSTOrHELES.
I "m glad my bell your visit brought roe.
Your talents, then, I rated high ;
The worm, the chrysalid soon taught me
The future brilliant butterfly.
Your curly locks and rufHe-laces
A childish pleasure gave ; you wooed the graces
A queue, I think, you 've never nnm?
But now your head is cropped and shorn.
Quite bold and resolute you appear.
But don't go, absolute, home from here I "
BACCALAUREUS.
Old master, in your old place leaning.
Think how the time has sped, the while !
Spare me your words of double meaningi
We take them now in quite another style.
You teased and vexed the honest youth;
You found it easy then, in truth.
To do what no one dares, to-day.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
If to the young the simple truth we say.
The green ones find it nowise pleasant play,
But afterwards, when years are over,
ih,Googlc
And they the troth through their own hide discover,
Then they conceive, themselves have found it out:
" The master was a few) I " one hears them shout
BACCALAUREUS.
A rc^e, perhaps ! What teacher will declare
The truth to us, exactly fair and square f
Each knows the way to lessen or exceed it,
Now stem, now lively, as the children need it
UEPHISTOPHELES.
Beyond a doubt, there is a time to learn ;
But you are skilled to teach, I now discern.
Since many a moon, some circles of the sun,
The riches of experience you have won.
BACCALAUREUS.
Experience ! mist and froth alone !
Nor with the mind at all coequal :
Confess, what one has always known
Is not worth knowing, in the sequel'.
HEFKtSTOPHELES {aftir a paiiu).
It 's long seemed so-to me. I was a fool:
My shallowness I now must ridicule.
BACCALAUREUS.
I 'm glad of that! 1 hear some reason yet— ■
The first old man of sense 1 ever met !
UEPHISTOPHELES.
I sought for hidden treasures, grand and golden,
And hideous coals and ashes were my share.
BACCALAUREUS.
Confess that now your skull, though bald and olden,
Is worth no more than is yon empty, there !
ih,Googlc
1)3 FAUST.
HEPHISTOPHELES iamiaUy).
Knovr'st thou, my friend, how rude thou art tome?
BACCALAUREUS.
One Ues, in German, would one courteous be.
HEPHISTOPHELES
{wh^lin/c iü chair still ntarer to Iht fmtttmim, to Ike if»
Up here am t deprived of light and air;
Shall I find shelter down among you there?
BACCALAUREUS.
It is presumptuous, that one will try
Still to be something, when the time 's gone by.
Man's life lives in his blood, and where, in sooth,
So stirs the blood as in the veins of youth ?
There living blood in freshest power pulsates,
And newer life from its own life creates.
Then something's done,then moves and works the man;
The weak fall out, the sturdy take the van.
While half the world beneath our yoke is brought.
What, then, have you accomplished 7 Nodded —
thought —
Dreamed, and considered — plan, and always plan 1
Age is an ague-fever, it is clear.
With chills of moody want and dread ;
When one has passed his thirtieth year.
One then is just the same as dead."
'T were best, betimes, to put you out o' the way.
MEPHISTOPKELES.
The Devil, here, has nothing more to say.
BACCALAUREUS.
Save through my will, no Devil can there be.
ih,Googlc
The Devil, though, will trip thee presently t
BACCALAUREUS.
This is Youth's noblest calling and most fit 1
The world was not, ere I created it ;
The sun 1 drew from out the orient sea ;
The moon began her changeful course with me;
The Day put on his shining robes, to greet me ;
The Earth grew green, and burst in flower to meet ax,
And when 1 beckoned, from the primal night
The stars unveiled their splendors to my sight
Who, save myself, to you deliverance brought
From commonplaces of restricted thought?
1, proud and free, even as dictates my mind.
Follow with joy the inward light I find.
And speed along, in mine own ecstasy.
Darkness behind, the Glory leading me !
[Sxit
M EPHISTOPH ELES.
Go hence, magnificent Original ! —
What grief on thee would insight cast!
Who can think wise or stupid things at all.
That were not thought akeady in the Pastps»
Yet even from him we 're not in special peril ;
He will, erelong, to other thoughts incline :
The must may foam absurdly in the barrel,
Nathless it turns at last to wine.
{To the younger farterre, which dots n^ i^flimd.]
My words, I see, have left you cold ;
For you, my children, it may fall so :
Consider now, the Devil 's old ;
To understand him, be old also I
ih,Googlc
LABORATORY.
After tfu mmtfur of lie Middtt Agtt; exiensivt, fondenum
apparaiui for farUastu purposes.
WAGNER {at the fumate).
THE loud bell chimes wilh fearful clangor,
The sooty walls feel the vibration ;
Soon must the long suspense be ended
Of ray most earnest expectation.
It shines, the darknesses are rended :
Within the phial's inmost chamber
It gleams, as doth a living ember, —
Yea, a carbuncle, burning, bright'ning,
It rays the darkness with its lightning.
Now white and dear the lustres blend I
O that I hold, nor lose it more I
Ah, God! what rattles at the doorP
MEPHISTOPHELES {ttiterins)-
Welcome 1 I mean it as a friend.
Be welcome to the planet of the hour !
{(Vhisperitig.)
Yet breath and speech suspend! A work of powei*
A splendid work, will soon be here displayed.
MEPHISTO PHELES [aiAisptriilg\'
What is it, then ?
ih,Googlc
WAGNER {whiiftring).
A man is being mad«.
BIEPHISTOPHELES.
A man? And what enamored pair
Have you within the chimney hidden?
WAGNER.
Nay, God forbid ! This procreation is most rare :
Of the old, senseless mode we 're now well ridden.
The tender point, whence Life commenced its course,
The outward stress of gracious inward force,
Which took and gave, itself delineating,
First near, then foreign traits assimilating,
We now of ail its dignity divest :
The beast therein may further find a zest.
But Man must leani, with his great gifts, to win
Henceforth a purer, loftier origin.
[T^iming Imiiardi thi fumau.)
It brightens, — see ! Sure, now, my hopes increase
That if, from many hundred substances,
Through mixture — since on mixture all depends —
The human substance gently be compounded.
And by a closed retort surrounded.
Distilled, and fed, and slowly founded,
Then in success the secret labor ends.
{Afoin turning leraards tkefiimate.)
T will be ! the mass is working clearer I
Conviction gathers, truer, nearer I
The mystery which for Man in Nature lies
We dare to test, by knowledge led;
And that which she was wont to organize
W« crystallize, instead.
ih,Googlc
^ FAUST.
KEPHISTOPRELES.
Who lives, learns many secrets to unravel ;
For him, upon this earth, there 's nothing nev can be:
I 've seen already, in my years of travel.
Much crystallized humanity.
WAGNER
(ly) U thit time coittinuously altentn/t Id IhepAial),
It mounts, it lightens, grows, — 't is won 1
A moment more, and it is done !
Insane, at first, appears a great Intent;
We yet shall laugh at chance in generation ;
A brain like this, for genuine thinking meant,
Wm henceforth be a thinker^s sure creation.
(RaftwOHily inifecling Ihepkial.)
The glass vibrates with sweet and powerful tone ;
It darkens, clears : it must arrive at being !
And now in delicate shape is shown
A pretty manikin, moving, living, seeing!
What more can we, what more the world demand?
The secret, solved, all men may reach :
Hark I as the ringing tones expand,
They form a voice, result in speech.
HOMUNCULUS"
(i» the phial, A> WACKEig.
How goes it, Daddy? It was then no jest I
Come, press me tenderly upon thy breast!
But not loo hard, for fear the glass might shatter I
This is the quality of matter;
For what is natural, scarce the world has place;
What 's artificial, needs restricted space.
(Tir Mefhistofhelesl)
Thou n^;ue, Sir Cousin! here I find thee, too?
ih,Googlc
And at the proper lime ! My thanks arc I'.ue :
A lucky fortune led thee here to rae ;
Since I exist, then 1 must active be.
I 'd fain begin my work without delay :
Thou art adroit in shortening roy way.
WAGNER.
But first, a word ! I 'm shamed that answers fail me ;
For old and young with problems so assail inc.
Now, for example, none e'er comprehended
How soul and body wedded are and blended, —
Hold fast, as if defying separation,
Yet never cease their mutual irritation.
Therefore —
HBPHISTOPKELES.
Desist ! 1 'd rather ask htm why
The man and wife ^ree so wretchedly.
To thee, my friend, the thing will ne'er be clear :
There 's work to do : for that the little fellow 's here.
IIEPHISTOPHELES [fviTtlingte a nde-door).
Thy talents here employ !
WAGNER [Hill gamng at the pMal).
Forsooth, thou art the very loveliest boy !
\T%t tidt-daer optHS : Tli-Ksss is aen itrttchtd out upon a cauck.)
KOUUNCULtIS {attoniihed).
Significant! —
\.Tke fkial ilift out 0/ VI KQKt-K's hands, haoers over FaUSI;
and ihinei npvn him.)
Fair scenery ! *■ — Waters, moving
VOL. It. 5 G
ih,Googlc
^8 FAUST.
In forest shadows: women there, undressing
The loveliest fonns! — the picture is improving.
One, marked by beauty, splendidly expressing
Descent from Gods or high heroic races.
Now dips her foot in the translucent shimmer:
The living flame of her sweet form displaces
The yielding crystal, cool around the swimmer.
But what a sound of wings I What rapid dashing
Across the glassy pool, what fluttering, splashingl
The maidens fly, alarmed ; but only she,
The queen, looks on, composed and terrorjiee,
And sees with proud and womanly delight
The swan-prince press her knee with plumage whiter
Importunately tame '. he grows acquainted. —
But all at once floats up a vapor pale.
And covers with its closely-woven veil
The loveliest picture ever dreamed or painted.
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
How much hast thou to tell, — what stories meny I
So small thou art, so great a visionary 1
Nothing see I ! —
HOUUNCUL.US.
Of course. Thou, from the Nortt^
And in the age of mist brought forth.
In knighthood's and in priestcraft's murky den,
How should thy sight be clearer, then ?
Id gloom alone art thou at home.
( Gtaing anmnd. )
Brown masonry, repellent, crumbling slowly,
Arch-pointed, finical, fantastic, lowly! —
If this man wakes, another danger 's nigh ;
At once upon the spot he 'II die.
Wood-fountains, swans, and naked beauties,
ih,Googlc
ACT II.
Such was his dream of presage fair:
How should these dark surroundiDgs suit his
Desires, when them / scarce can bear ?
Away with him !
UEPH [STOP HELES.
I hail the issue's chances.
Command the warrior to the Sght,
Conduct the maiden to the dances,
And all is finished, is is right
Just now — there breaks on me a light —
T is Classical Walpurgis-Night ;
Whate'er may come, it is the best event.
So bring him to his proper element !
UEPHISTOPHELES.
The like of that I never heard one mentioo.
KOMUNCULUS.
How should it have attracted your attention?
Only romantic ghosts are known to you ;
A genuine phantom must be classic too.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
But whitherward shall then we travel, tell met
Your antique cronies in advance repel me.
HOMUNCULU5.
Northwestwards, Satan, is thy park and pale.
But we, this time, southeast wards saiL
Penens, there, the great plain wanders through,
By thickets, groves, and silent coves, and meadow
ih,Googlc
MEPHISTOFHELES.
Alas ! have done ! Bring not that fell collisioD
Of tyrant and of slave before my vision !
I 'm tired of that ; for scarcely is it done
Than they the same thing have again begun ;
And no one marks that he 'a the puppet blind
Of sly Asmödi, lurking there behind.
They fight, we 're told, their freedom's right to save;
But, clearlier seen, 't is slave that fights with slave.*"
I.eave unto men their fractiousness and clatter:
Each must protect himself, as best he can,
From boyhood up, and thus becomes a man.
How this one shall recover, is our matter.
Hast thou a method, let it tested be 1
But bast thou none, so leave the case to met
MEFKISTOPHELES.
There 's many a Brocken-method I might try.
But pagan bolts, I find, the way deny.
The Grecian race was little worth, alway ;
It dazzles with the senses' freer play.
To cheerful sins the heart of man entices;
While ours are ever counted gloomy vi'ces.
Now, what shall be ?
HOMUNCÜLÜS.
Shyness was ne'er thy blan
When I to thee Thessalian witches name,
1 've not said nothing, that I know.
ih,Googlc
ACT I/. ,o
MEPHISTOPHELES (Imtfully).
Thessalian witches t Well ! The persons, those,
Whom I inquired for, long aga
Night after night beside them to repose,
I think would hardly suit: but sc^
■ A mere espial, trial, —
HOMUNCULUS.
Here ! cast o'er
The knight your magic mantle, and infold him !
The rag will still, as heretofore.
Upon his airy course — and thine — uphold him.
I 11 light the way.
WAGNER (anxietuty).
And I?
HOMUNCULUS.
Eh? You
Will stay at home, most weighty work to da
Unfold your ancient parchments, and collect
Life's elements as yovr recipes direct,
One to the other with due caution fitting.
The What consider, more the Hovi and Why I
Meanwhile, about the world at random flitting,
] may detect the dot upon the " 1.'""
The lofty aim will then accomplished be ;
Such an endeavor merits such requital:
Gold, honor, glory, healthy forces vital.
And science, too, and virtue, — possibly.
Farewell !
WAGNER {sornne/ully).
Farewell ! It doth depress my heart:
I fear, already, we forever part
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
HEPHISTOPHBLES.
Down to Pencils, with his aid!
Sir Cousin is a deft attendant
[Ad tfieclalarti.)
Upon the creatures we have made
We arc, ourselves, at las^ dependent*)
ih,Googlc
CLASSICAL WALPURGIS-NIGHT.«»
THE PHARSALIAN FIELDS.
JDarinfti.
ERICHTHO.
TO this nighfs awful festival, as oft before,
1 enter here, Erichtho, I, the gloomy one :
Not so atrocions as the evil poets draw,
In most supierfluous slander — for they never cease
Their blame or praises . . . Over-whitened I behold
The vale, with waves of tents that glimmer gray afar,
The after-vision of that fatal, fearful night
How oft is it repeated ! — will forever be
Forever re-enacted ! No one grants the realm
Unto another: unto him whose might achieved
And rules it, none ; for each, incompetent to rale
His own internal self, is all too fain to sway
His neighbor's will, even as his haughty mind inclines.
But here a lesson grand was battled to the end,
How force resists and grapples with the greater force,
The lovely, thousand-blossomed wreath of Freedom
rends,
And bends the stubborn laurel round the Ruler's brow.
Here, of his days of early greatness Pompey dreamed:
Before the trembling balance Cxsar yonder watched I
It will be weighed : the world knows imto whom it turned.
ih,Googlc
I04 FAUST.
The watch-fires flash and glow, spendthrift of niddjr
flame;
Reflections of the squandered blood the earth exhales,
And, lured by rare and nurvellous splendor of the nigh^
The legion of Hellenic legends gathers here.
Round all the fires uncertain hover, or at ease
Sit near them, ^bulous forms of ancient days. . . .
The moon, imperfect, tnily, but oi clearest beam,
Arises, scattering mellow radiance everywhere :
Vanish the phantom tents, the fires are burning blue.
But o'er my head what unexpicted meteor!
It shines, illuminates the sphtr« of earth below.
I scent the Living I therefore it becomes me not
Them to approach, I being harmful unto them :
An evil name it brings me, and it profits naught.
Already now it sinks : discreetly v withdraw.
[ExA
7%e Airy TmtUm -iooi.
HOHUNCULUS.
Once again the circle fol'i^w,
O'er the flames and horroni hover I
Ghostly 't is in vale and hc^oiv.
Spectral all that we discover
UBPHISTOPHELES.
I^ as through my window nigfa^y
In the grewsome North, I see
Spectres hideous and unsightly.
Here is home, as there, to me.
Seel a tall one there is striding
On l>efore us, in the shade.
ih,Googlc
MEPKISTOPHELES.
Throi^h the air she saw us ghdJn^
And it seems she is afraid.
HOHUNCULUS.
Let her stride ! The knight be taken
Now, and set upon the strand :
Here to life again he 11 waken,
Seeking it in ^ble-land.
FAUST (<u kt tamkti the earth).
Where is she?—
HOMUNCULUS.
It 's more than we can tell,
But to inquire would here be welL
Thou 'rt free to hasten, ere the day,
From flame to flame, and seek her so :
Who to the Mothers found his way,
Has nothing more to undergo.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
I also claim my share in the excursion ;
Yet know no better plan for our diversion,
Than that each one, amid these fires.
Should seek such fortunes as he most desires.
Then, as a sign to reunite us.
Let, little one, thy lantern sound and light us I
HOUUNCULUS.
Thtis shall it shine, and thus shall ringi
( 7^e gimi shittn and riagi fstoerfully.)
And now, away to many a marvellous thing 1
ih,Googlc
I06 FAUST.
FAUST («/«).
Where is she 7 — But no further question make t
If this were not the soil that bore her feet.
If not the wave that to her coming beat,
Yet 't is the air that knows the tongue she spake.
Here, by a marvel I Here, on Grecian land 1 '<
I felt at once the earth whereon I stand.
Through me, the sleeper, fresher spirit stealing
I rise refreshed, Antaeus in my feeling.
Together here I find the strangest store ;
Let me this labyrinth of flames explore.
S ipryiifg armimi).
And as among these fires I wander, aimless,
I find myself so strange, so disconcerted :"
Quite naked most, a few are only shirted ;
The Griffins insolent, the Sphinxes shameless.
And what not all, with pinions and with tresses.
Before, behind, upon one's eyesight presses ! —
Indecency, 't is true, is our ideal.
But the Antique is too alive and real ;
One must with modem thought the thing bemaster,
And in the fashion variously o'erplaster : —
Disgusting race ! Yet I, perforce, must meet them,
And as new guest with due decorum greet them. —
Hail, then. Fair Ladies t Graybeards wise, good cheeri
Not graybeards ! Graybeards ? No one likes to hear
One call him^iiy. For in each word there rings
The source, wherefrom its derivation springs.^
Cray, growling, grewsome, grinning, graves, and grimly
Etymologically accord, nor dimly.
And make us grim.
ih,Googlc
UBPHISTOPHELBS.
And yet, why need you atiflfen t
Yon like fhegrif in your proud tide, " Griffia."
GRIFFIN
(at atove, mid amitutmuly a>).
Of course ! for this relation is found fit ;
Though often censured, oftener praised was it.
Let one bul^^j^ at maidens, crowns, and gold :
Fortune is gracious to the Griper bold.
ANTS
[of I he eolostal kind).
You speak of gold, much had ourselves collected;
In rocks and caverns secretly we trapped it:
The Arimaspean race our store detected, —
They 're laughing now, so far away they 've snapped iL
' THE GRIFFINS.
We soon shall force them to confess.
THE ARIWASPEANS."
But not in this free night of jubilee.
Before the morrow, all will squandered be ;
This time our efforts will obtain success.
MEPHISTOPHELES
[viha hat seattd himstlf bihattn tkt SPHINXES^
How soon I feel familiar here, among you !
I understand you, one and aU.
Our spirit-tones, when we have sung you,
Become, for }'ou, material.
Now name thyself, till we shall know thee better.
ih,Googlc
I08 FAUST.
HEFHISTOPH ELES.
With many names would men my nature fetter.
Are Britons here ? So round the world they wheel,
To stare at battle-fields, historic traces,
Cascades, old walls, and classic dreary pbces;
And here were something worthy of their zeaL
Their Old Plays also testify of me ;
Men saw roe there as " Old Iniquity."
SPHINX.
How did they hit on that ?
Perhaps I Hast thou in star-lore any power ?
What say's! thou of the aspects of the hour?
ä {loekingup\.
Star shoots on star, the cloven moon doth ride
In brilliance ; in this place I 'm satisfied :
1 wann myself against thy lion's hide.
It were a loss to rise from out these shades : —
Propose enigmas, or at least charades !
Express thyself, and 't will a riddle be.«»
Try once thine own analysis ; 't were merry.
"To both Devout and Wicked necessary:
To those, a breast-plate for ascetic fighting;
To these, boon-comiade, in their pranks uniting;
And both amusing Zeus, the fun-delighting."
ih,Googlc
ACT II.
FIRST GRIFFIN (jKOr/ntf).
CRIFFIN [snarling man grvgfy'i.
What will the feUow here ?
BOTH.
The Nasty One is aot of us, 't is clear I
UEFHISTOPHELES {tnOaUy).
Think'st thou, perhaps, thy guest has nails to scratch,
That wilh thy sharper talons cannot match ?
Just try it once I
SPHINX (gmtly).
Stay, shouMst thou find it well;
But from our ranks thou wilt thyself expeL
In thine own land thou 'rt wont thyself to pamper.
Yet here, 1 think, thy spirits feel a damper.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Thine upper part entices ; naught is fairer ;
But, further down, the beast exciies my terror.
Bitter, False one, will be thy expiation;
Our cl.iws are sound and worthy proof.
But (hou, with withered horse's-hoof,
Art ill At ease in our association.
( TAf Sirens pretttU aitw.)
MEFHl STOP HELES.
On yonder popUis by the river,
What are the birds that swing above?
ih,Googlc
SPHINX.
Beware ! The very best that ever
Existed, they have lured to love.
SIRBNS.'"
Ah, why vitiate your senses,
Where those Uglinesses darken ?
We, in crowds, come hither: hearken
How the accordant strain commences,
Meet for Sirens' soft pretences I
SPHINXES
imocJajig them, in tht latne mtlfdy).
Let them to descend be bidden !
In the branches they have hidden
Hideous falcon-claws they 're wearing,
And you '11 feel their cruel tearing.
Once you lend them willing ear.
Banish hate and envy, rather!
We the purest pleasures gather.
Under Heaven's auspicious sphere I
On the earth and on the ocean.
We, with cheerful beckoning motion,
Bid the wanderer welcome here.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
These are of novelties the neatest.
Where from the throat and harp-string sweetest
The tones around each other twine.
They 're lost on me, these tinkling trickles;
The sound my ear-drum pats and tickles.
But cannot reach this heart of mine.
ih,Googlc
ACT U. I
SPHINXES.
Speak not of heart I Fool, so to call It I
An old and wrinkled leathern wallet
Would better suit that face of thine-
FAUST (approackiitg).
How strange ! 1, satisfied, behold these oeatureB, -
In the Repulsive, grand and solid features : "
A fate propitious 1 behold advance.
Whither transports me now this solemn glance ?
{PantiHg to lie Sphinxes.)
Once before these took CEdipus his stand:
{PainlinglB lit Sehens |
These made Ulysses writhe in hempen band ;
(Faintingto tht ANTS.)
By these the highest treasure was amassed :
(PaintiHg te tht GvÄtvna.)
By these 't was held inviolate and fast:
Fresh spirit fills me, face to face with these —
Grand are the Forms, and grand the Memories!
Once thou hadst cursed such crude antiques,
But now, it seems, they 've comfort given ;
For when a man his sweetheart seeks.
Welcome to him are monsters, even.
FAUST \IB the Sphinxes).
Ye woman-forms, give ear, and say
Hath one of you seen Helena?
Before her day our line expired in Greece ;
Our very last iras slain by Hercules :
ih,Googlc
Yet ask of Chiron, if thou please.
He gallops round throughout this ghostly night.
And if he halt for thee, tliy chance is bright
SIRENS.
Thou art not to failure fated!
How Ulysses, lingering, learned us.
Nor, regardless passing, spumed us,
Manifold hath he narrated :
All to thee shall be confided,
Seekest thou our meads, divided
By the dark-green anna of Ocean.
SPHINX.
Let not thyself thus cheated be !
Not like Ulysses bound, — but we
Will with good counsel thee environ :
If thou canst find the noble Chiron,
Thou It learn what 1 have promised thee.
[Faust £w/anH]
MEPHISIOPHELES (Ul-Umptredly).
What croaks and flaps of wings go past I
One cannot see, they fly so fast,
In single file, from first to last :
A hunter would grow tired of these.
SPHINX.
The storm-wind like, that winter harrows,
Reached hardly by Alcides' arrows,
They are the swift Stymphalides ;
And not ill-meant their greetings creak,
With goose's foot and vulture's beak.
They fain would join us in our places,
And show themselves as kindred races.
ih,Googlc
HEFHISTOPHELES {ai if inlimidaUd).
Some other bnite is hissing shrill.
SPHINX.
Be not afraid, though harsh the pieanl
They are the hydra-heads, the old Leratean,
Cut from the trunk, yet think they 're something itilL
But say, what means your air distressed ?
Why show your gestures such um-est ?
Where will you go? Then fake your leave!
That chorus, there, I now perceive,
Turns like a weathercock your neck. Advance ! —
Greet as you will each lovely countenance I
They are the Lamiie, wenches vile,
With brazen brows and lips that smile.
Such as the satyr-folk have found so fair:
A cloven foot may venture all things there.
UEPHISTOPHELES.
But stay you here, that I again may find you i
SPHINX.
Yes ! Join the airy rabble, there behind you !
From Egypt we, long since, with all our peers,
Accustomed were to reign a thousand years.
If for our place your reverence be won.
We rule for you (he days of Moon and Sun.
We sit before the Pyramids
For the judgment of the Races,
Inundation, War, and Peace, —
With eternal changeless faces.
ih,Googlc
{furroundid viUh NVHPHS and Tribuiary Strtams).
PEN EU S."
STIR yourselves, ye whispering rushes,
Rustle, slender willow-bushes.
Sister reeds, breathe softer, crisper,
Trembling poplar-branches, whisper
To the interrupted dream !
Fearful premonitions wake me,
Secret shudders thrill and shake me
In my rippling, sleeping stream.
FAUST {achiaHeitig to iHe river).
Here, behind the vines that dangle
O'er tlie thicket's bowery tangle,
If I heard aright, were noises
Similar to human voices.
Babbling seemed the wave to patter,
And the breeze in sport to chatter.
NYMPHS (to Faust).
For thee were it better
To lie here, reviving
In coolness thy body,
Ouiwearied with striving, —
The rest, that eludes thee,
To taste, and be free :
We '11 rustle and n
And whisper to thee.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
I am awake ! Let them delay me,
The incomparable Forms 1 —and sway me,
As yonder to my sight confessed !
How strangely am I moved, how nearly !
An they but dreams ? or memories, merely ?
Already once was I so blest.
Beneath the swaying bushes hiding.
The full, fresh waves are softly gliding;
They scarcely rustle on their path :
A hundred founts from all sides hasten,
To fill a pure and sparkling basin,
The hollowed level of a bath.
The &ir young limbs of women trouble
The watery glass tha.t makes them double,
And doubles, thus, the eye's delight :
In joyous bath each otlier aiding,
Ot boldly swimming, shyly wading.
Then cry, and splash, and foamy fight
It were enough, the picture viewing, —
My healthy eyesight here renewing,—
Yet I desire the still unseen.
My gaze would pierce through yonder cover,
Whose leafy wealth is folded over
The vision of the sutely Queen.
Strange! across the crystal skimming,
From the coves the swans are swimming,
Moving in majestic state :
Floating calmly and united.
But how proud and self-delighted,
Head and neck they lift elate ! . . .
One, his feathers proudly plum'ng,
Boldly jn his grace presuming.
Leads the others in the race;
ih,Googlc
Il6 FAUST.
With his whitest plumage showing
Wave-like on the wave he 's throwing
Speeds he to the sacred place. . . .
The others back and forth together
Swim on with smoothly shining feather,
And soon, in mimic battle met.
Shall chase aside the maids affrighted,
Till, for their own protection suited,
Their bounden service they forget
NYHFHS.
Sisters, bend and lay the ear
On the turf beside the river !
Sound of hoofs, if right I hear.
Swift approaching, seems to shiver.
Would I knew whose rapid flight
Brings a message to the Night 1
FAUST.
As I think, the earth is ringing
From a charger, hither springing.
See there! See thereJ
A fortune comes, most fair:
Shall I attain its blessing ?
O, marvel past expressing I
A rider trots towards us free :
Spirit and strength in hiro I see, —
Upon a snow-white steed careering. . . .
I know him now, 1 hail with awe
The famous son of Phllyra 1 —
Halt, Chiron, halt 1 I 've something for thy hearings
CHIRON."
What then? What is it?
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Thy course delay I
CHIRON.
I rest not
FAUST.
Take me vith thee, then, I pray I
CHIRON.
Mount ! and 1 thus can ask, at leisure.
Whither thy way. Thou standest on the shore ;
I 11 bear thee through the flood, witli pleasure.
FAUST (mountins)-
Whither thou wilt. I thank thee evermore. . . .
The mighty man, the pedagogue, wliose place
And fame it was, to teach a hero-race, —
The splendid circle of the Argonauts,
And all whose deeds made quick the Poet's thoughts.
CHIRON.
We will not further speak of these !
As Mentor even Pallas is not venerated ;
And, after all, they manage as they please,
As if they 'd not been educated.
FAUST.
The leech, who knoweth flower and fruit.
Whose lore can sound the deepest root, —
Who heals the sick, and soothes the wounded place.
Him, here, in mind and body I embrace '.
CHIRON.
When heroes, near me, felt the smart,
My helpful knowledge failed them seldom ;
ih,Googlc
But, at the last, 1 left mine art
To priest and simple-gathering beldam.
Thy speech the true great man betrays,
Who cannot hear a word of praise ;
His modesty would fain confound us
To think his equals still were round us.
CHIRON.
Thou seemest skilled to feign such matter^
People and Prince alike to flatter.
But surely thou wilt grant to me
That ihou the greatest of thy time didst see,
Upon their paths of proud achievement trod.
And lived thy days, a serious demigod.
Among those grand, heroic forms of old,
Whom didst thou for the best and worthiest hold?
CHIRON.
Of those beneath the Argonauts' bright banner.
Each worthy was in his peculiar manner.
And by the virtue of his strength selective
Sufficed therein, where others were defective.
Castor and Pollux were as victors hailed,
Where beauty and the grace of youth prevailed:
Decision, the swift deed for others' aid.
Gave the fair crown before the Boreads laid ;
Retleciive, prudent, strong, in council wise.
So Jason ruled, delight of women's eyes;
Then Orpheus, gentle, silent, brooding, lowering
But when he struck the lyre, all-overpowering.
Sharp-sighted Lynceus, who by day and dark
ih,Googlc
Through Bhoreward bretücers steered the sacred bariL
Danger is best endured where men are brothers ;
When one achieves, then praise hiro all the others.
FAUST.
But Hercules thy speech is wronging —
CHIRON.
Ah, me 1 awaken not my longing ! . . ,
I had not seen, in Fields Elysian,
How Phoebus, Ar^, Hermes, shine;
But there arose before my vision
A form that all men called divine.
A king by birth, as ne'er another,
A youth magnilicenl to view ;
Though subject to his elder brother,
And to the loveliest women, too.
No second such hath Giea granted,"
Or Hebe led to Heaven again ;
For him the songs are vainly chanted,
The marble hewn for him in vain.
FAUST.
Though ever to his form addicted,
His grace the sculptors could not wreak.
The fairest Man hast thou depicted,
Now of the fairest Woman speak I
CHIRON.
AVhat t — Little worth is woman's beauty,
So oft an image dumb we see :
I only praise, in loving duty,
A being bright and full of glee.
For Beauty in herself delighteth;
And irresistibly she smiteth
ih,Googlc
When sweetly she with Grace uniteth,
Like Helena, when her I bore.
FAUST.
Her ^dst thou bear ?
CmRON.
This back she pressed.
FAUST.
Was I not wild enough, before i
And now such seat, to make me blest !
Just 80 she grasped me by the hair
As thou dost
FAUSt
0, I scarcely dare
To trust my senses ! — tell me more 1
She is my only aspiration !
Whence didst thou bear her — to «liat shore ?
CHIRON.
Not difficult is the relation.
T was then, when came the Dioscuri bold
To free their sister from the robbers' hoW ;
But these, accustomed not to be subdoed,
Regained their courage and in rage pursued.
The swamps below Eleusis did impede
The brothers' and the sister's flying speed :
The brothers waded : splashing throu^ the reed,
I swam : then ofl she sprang, and pressing me
On the wet mane, caressing me,
She thanked with sweetly-wise and conscious tongnft
How charming was she I — dear to age, so young I
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
But seven years old I —
CHIRON.
Philologists, 1 see,
Even as they cheat themselvn, have cheated tbe&
T is curious with your mythologic dame : "
The Poet takes her when he needs her name ;
She giona not old, stays ever young and warm,
And of the most entidng form ;
Seduced in youth, in age enamoring sitll, —
Enoi^ I no time can bind the Poet's will
FAUST.
Then let no bonds of Time be thrown around her I
Even as on Pherx's isle Achilles found her,
Beyond the bounds of Time. Wha.t blessing rare,
In spite of Fate such love to win and wear i
And shall not I, by mightiest desire.
Unto my life that sole iair form acquire,
That shape eternal, peer of Gods above,
Tender as grand, sublime as sweet with loveP
Thou saw'st her once ; to-day I saw her beam,
The dream of Beauty, beautiful as Dream !
My soul, my toeing, now is bound and chained ;
I cannot live, unless she be attained.
CHIRON.
Thou, Stranger 1 feel'st, as man, such ecstasy;
Among us, Spirits, mad thou seem'sl to be.
yet, as it haps, thy fortune now i.'i omened ;
For every year, though only for a moment.
It is my wont to call at Manto's dwelling, —
She, Esculapius' child, whose prayers are swelling
Unto her father, that, his fame to brighten,
VOL. II. 8
ih,Googlc
132 FAUST.
The brains of doctors he at last enlighten.
And them from rashly dealing death may frighten.
I like her best of all the guild of Sibyls,—
Helpful and kind, with no fantastic fribbles ;
She hath the art if thou the time canst tiorrow,
With roots of power to give thee healing thoroti^
But I will not be healed! my aim Is mij^ty:
I will not be, like others, meanly flighty!
The noble fountain's cure neglect thou not :
But quick dismount ! We 've reached the spot
FAUST.
And whither, in this dreary night, hast thou
To land through pebbly rivers brought me now?
Here Rome and Greece in battle tried their powers ;
Here flows Peneus, there Olympus towers, —
The greatest realm that e'er was lost in sand.
The nwnarch flies, the conquering burghers stand
Look up and see, in moonlight shining clear,
The memorable, eternal Tempte near!
UANTO'* {dreaming- tm/Ain).
From horse-hoofs tremble
The sacred steps of the Temple I
The Demigods draw near.
Quite riglit !
Open your eyes, and s<
ih,Googlc
HAXTO {minimg).
Welcome ! Thou dost not fail, 1 see.
And still thy temple stands for thee 1
UANTO.
And speedest thou still unremitting 7
CHIRON.
And thou in peaceful calm art sitting,
While 1 rejoice in restless heels ?
UANTO.
I wait, and Time around me wheels.
And her
CHIRON.
The vortex of this night
Hath whirled him hither to thy sight.
Helen, with mad, distracted senses,
Helen he 'd win by all pretences.
And knows not how or where the task
But he deserves the Ksculapian cure.
UANTO.
To whom the Impossible is lure
I love.
(Chiron is atriady far away.)
Rash one, advance ! there 's joy for thee !
This dark way leads thee to Persephone.
Under Olympus' hollow foot.
Secret, she waits prohibited salute.
I smuggled Orpheus in to her, of old :
Use tky chance better ! On ! — be bold !
\Tlity tUittnd-
ih,Googlc
ON THE UPPER PENEUS, AS BEFORE.
SIRENS.
PLUNGE in cool Peneus' wave !
There 't is well to sport in swimming,
Songs with chorded voices hymning,
That the ill-slarred folk we save.
Health is none where water fails ! "
Let our hosts, with sounding pxan,
Hasten to the blue Mgxan,
Where each joy shall swell our sails.
( Eartiquaie.)
Back the frothy wave Is flowing,
Now DO longer downward going ;
Shakes the bed, the waters roar,
Cracks and smokes the stony shore.
Let us fly ! Come, every one !
By this marvel profit none.
Leave, ye guests, this wild commotioD
For the cheerful sports of Ocean,
Shining, where the quivering reaches,
Lightly heaving, bathe the beaches, —
There, where Luna's double splendor
Freshens us with night-dews tender.
There the freest life delights us ;
Here the threatening Earthquake frights tis:
Who is prudent, haste away 1
Fearful is it, here to stay.
SEiSMOS"
(grauiling andjollmg in the tieptii).
Once again the force applying.
Bravely with the shoulders prying.
ih,Googlc
We to get above are trying,
Where to as must all give way.
What a most repulsive shaking,
Terrible and hideous quaking I
What a quivering and shocking.
Hither rolling, thither rocking!
What vexation and dismay!
But we shall not change our station,
Were all Hell in agitation. . . .
Now behold a dome upswelling,
Wonderful '. 'T is ie, compelling, —
He, the hoary, antiquated,
He who Delos' isle created.
Bidding it from ocean break,
For the childed woman's sake.
He, with all his force expended,
Rigid arms and shoulders bended,
Like an Atlas in his gesture
Pushes up the earth's green vesture.
Loam and grit, and sand and shingle.
Where the shore and river mingle ;
Thus our valley's bosom quiet
Cross-wise tears he, in his riot
In unwearied force defiant.
He, a caryatid-giant,
Be^rs a fearful weight of boulders,
Buried still below his shoulders ;
But no further shall be granted,
For the Sphinxes here arc planted,'»
SEISMOS.
The work alone I 've undertaken ;
The credit will be given to me :
ih,Googlc
i6 PAUST.
Had I not jolted, shoved, and shaken,
How should this world so beauteous be ?
How stood aloft your mounta.ins ever,
In pure and splendid blue of air,
Had I not heaved with huge endeavor
Till they, like pictures, charm you there?
When, where ancestral memory brightens.
Old Night and Chaos saw me sore betrayed,
And in the company of Titans
With Pelion and Ossa as with balls we played.
None could in ardent sport of youth surpass us«
Until, outwearied, at the last.
Even as a double cap, upon Parnassus
His summits wickedly we cast
Apollo, now, upon that mount of wonder
Finds with the Muses his retreat;
For even Jove, and for his bolls of thunder,
I heaved and held the lofty seat
Thus have I forced the fierce resistance
And struggled upward from the deep;
And summon now to new existence
The joyous dwellers of the steep.
SPHIKXES.
'T is true, the hill would seem primeval,
And warranted of old to stand,
Had we not witnessed its upheaval,
Toiling and towering from the land.
A bushy forest, spreading, clothes its face,
And rocks on rocks are pressing to their plac&
A Sphinx, therefrom, is by no fear o'ertaken ;
We shall not let our sacred seats be shaken.
GRIFFINS,*"
Gold In spangle, lea:^ and spark
ih,Googlc
Glimmers through the fissurea dark.
Qaick, lest others should detect it,
Haste, ye Emmets, and collect it 1
As they, the giant ones,
Upward have thrown i^
Quick-footed, pliajit oaes,
Climb it and own it 1
Rapidly in and out I
In each such fissure
Is every crumb about
Wealth for the wisher I
Seek for them greedily,
Even the slightest :
Everywhere speedily
Gather the brightest I
Diligent be, and bold —
Swarm to the fountain :
Only briag in the Gold 1
Heed not the Mountain I
GRIFFINS.
Come in ! come in I — the treasure heap t
Our claws upon it we shall keep.
The most efficient bolts they are ;
The greatest wealth they safely bar.
FYGUIES.
Verily, here we sit securely j
How it happened, is not clear.
Ask not whence we came ; for surely
'T is enough that we are here.
Unto Life 's delighted dwelling
Suitable is every land ;
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Where a rifted rock is swelling.
Also is the Dwarf at hand.
Male and female, busy, steady,
We as models would suffice :
Who can tell if such already
Labored so in Paradise ?
Here our lot as best we measure,
And our star of (ate is blest :
Mother Earth brings forth with pleasure
In the East as in the West
If she, hi a single night,
The Pygmies brought to light,
Pygmiest of all she '11 create yet,
And each find his mate yet I
pyGHY-ELI>ERS.
Be ye, in haste.
Conveniently placed I
Litbor, and lead
Strength unto speed !
Peace is yet with ye,
Build now the smithy,- —
The host be arrayed
With annor and blade I
Emmets, laborious.
Working victorious,
Scorning to settle.
Furnish us metal 1
Dactyls, your host.
Smallest and most.
Hear the requiring.
Bring wood for firing I
Heap in the chambers
ih,Googlc
Fael, antiriag :
Furnish us emben I
With arrow and bow,
Encounter the foe !
Bj yonder t^nks
The heron-ranks.
The countless-nested,
The haughty-breasted.
At one quick blow
Shoot, and bring lov I
All together.
That we may feather
Our hehneta >o.
EUHETS AND DACTYLS.
Who now will save us I
We bring the iron,
And chains enslave us.
To break our fetters
Were now defiant ;
We bide our season, —
Meanwhile, be pliant 1
THE CRANES OF IBYCUS."
Murder-cries and moans of dying I
Startled wings that flap in flying I
What lament, what pain and fright
Pierces to our airy height !
All have fallen in the slaughter.
Reddening with their blood the water}
Pygmy-lust, misformed and cruel,
Robs the heron of his jewel.
On their helms the plumage waves, —
ih,Googlc
tjo FAUST.
Yonder fat-paunched, bow-legged knaves I
Comrades of oar Ales of modoii,
Serried waoderers of ocean,
You we summon to requital
In a cause to you so vital.
Strength and blood let no one spare I
Endless hate to them we swear !
{Täey dispersi, croaking in Iht aä:}
HEPHISTOPHELES («M tit ^ain).
With ease the Northern witches I controlled,
But o'er these foreign sprites no power 1 hold.
The Blocksberg is a most convenient place;
Howe'er one strays, one can bis path retrace.
Dame Use watches for us from her stone,^
And Henry sits upon his mountain-throne :
The Snorers snart at Elend — snorting peers, —
And all is finished for a thousand years.
But here, who knows if, even where he stand.
Beneath his feet may not puff up the land ?
1 cheerily wander through a level ^de.
And, all at once, behind me heaved, is made
A mountain — scarcely to be called so, true ;
Yet high enough the Sphinxes from my view
To intercept. . . . Still many a fire Hares out
Adown the vale, the mad concern about . . .
Still dance and hover, beckoning and retreating,
The gay groups round me, with their knavish greeting
But gently now ! For, spoiled by stealthy pleasure.
One always seeks to snatch some dainty treasure.
LAHLG '}
{dramng Mbphistophblks after iMem).
Quicker and quicker !
And further take himi
ih,Googlc
ACT II. 13
Then hesitating,
Chattering and prating I
'T is fun to make him —
Old, sinful Tricker ! —
Follow behind us :
To penance comes he
With halt-foot clumsy ;
He marches hobbling^
Aod forwards wobbling ;
His leg he trails
In haste to find us ;
We fly — he fails.
HEPHISTOPHELES (tlanding iHlfy.
Accurst £ate \ Deceived, as oft !
Since Adam's time seduced and scoffed t
Though old we grow, not wisely schocded :
Enough already I 've been fooled !
We know, how wholly worthless is the race,
With body corseted and painted face;
Of health responsive own they not a little,
Where'er one grasps them, every limb is brittle.
The thing is known, and patent to our glances,
And yet, whene'er the trollops pipe, one dances.
LAMI£ (pausing).
Halt ! he reflects ; his steps delay :
Turn back to meet him, lest he get away I
HEPHISTOPHELES (striäing forwards).
Forwards ! the doubt, my strength benumbing,
I won't encourage foolishly ;
For were the witches not forthcoming,
Why, who the devil would Devil t« !
ih,Googlc
FAUST.-
LAMtA (very graeiimtly).
Roind this hero lightly moving.
Let his heart, the choice approving^
One of us select for loving J
True, in this uncertain lustre,
Seem ye &ir maids, in a cluster;
Fain would I to you be juster.
EUPUSA (pretring/ermardi).
Not me, too ? 1 'm also fitted
la your train to be admitted !
UMIM.
She '3 one too many ; for, in short,
She always ruins all our sport
EUPUSA (ta Mbphistofheles).
Empusa, with the ass's foot,**
Thy cousin dear, gives thee salute I
Only a horse's hoof is thine.
And yet, Sir Cousin, greeting- fine 1
MEPH ISTOPHEtES.
Strangers I here anticipated,
And find, alas ! my near-related ;
The old tale — instances by dozens —
From Harti to Hellas always cousins I
I act with promptness and decision ;
In many fonns could meet thy vision*
Yet in thy honor now, instead.
Have I put on the ass's head.
ih,Googlc
ACT II.
'33
HEFHISTOPHELES.
Gmit things, I see, are here portended,
Thus with the race as kinsman blended :
Let come what may, since I have known her—
The ass's head — I 'd fain disown her.
LAMI£.
Leave her, the Ugly ! She doth scare
Whatever lovely seems acd fair;
Whate'er was lovely, fair to see.
When she comes, ceases so to be,
MEPHISTOPMELES.
These cousins also, — soft, delicious.
Are one and all to me suspicious :
f fear, beneath their cheeks of rose*
Some metamorphosis reposes.
LAMI£.
But try — take hold ! For we are many,
And if thou hast a lucky penny,
Secure thyself the highest prize !
What means thy wanton organ-grinding?
A wretched wooer 'I is, we 're finding,
Yet swagger'st thus, and seem'at so wise I . .«
Now one of us will he lay hand on,
So by degrees your masks abaadoo,
And show your natures to his eyes I
MEPHISTOPHELES.
The fairest here have I selected. . . .
\Clasping ktr.)
O, what a broomstick, unexpected I
(Grasping anether.)
And this one ? . . . Vilest countenance (
ih,Googlc
Think not thoii 'rt worth a better chance I
That little one, she warms my giizard. . , .
But throi^h my hand she slips, a lixard ;
Her smooth braids, snaky-lilie, intwine.
I try the tall one, yet she worse is, —
I only grasp a Bacchic thyrsus.
The head a scaly cone of pine.
What follows next ? Behold a fat one :
Perhaps I '11 find delight in tkal one,
So, once for all, the chance renew !
The Turks, for one so puffy, flabby.
Would pay a price by no means shabby . . .
But, ah 1 the puff-ball bürste in two t
Now scatter widely, hovering, feigning,
In lightning-like, dark flight enchaining
The interloping nitch's-son I
Uncertain circles, awful, poiseless 1
Horrid bat-wings, flying noiseless t
He 'scapes too cheaply, when it 's done.
MEPHISTOPHELES (ihaHng Mmtilf).
I 've not become, it seems, a great deal shrewder;
The North 's absurd, 't is here absurder, ruder,
The spectres here preposterous as there.
People and poets shallow ware.
This masquerade resembles quite —
As everywhere — a dance of appetite.
1 sought a lovely masked procession.
And caught such things, 1 stood a^iast . , .
ih,Googlc
I 'd give myseU a false Impression,
If this would only longer last
{Luiing hitnal/ammg lie rockt.)
Where am 1 then? and whither sped ?
There was a path ; 't is.now a dread.
By level ways 1 've wandered hither,
Where rubble now is piled together.
I clamber up and down in vain ;
Where shall I find my Sphinx again?
1 bad not dreamed so mad a sight, —
A mount^n in a single night !
A bold witch-journey, to my thought :
Their Blocksberg with them they have brought
OREAD ijrom th< naSural red).''
Come up to me 1 My mountain old
In its primeval form behold !
Revere the sleep and rocky stairs, ascending
Where Pindus' offshoots with the plain are blending!
Unshaken, thus I heaved my head
When o'er my shoulders Pompey fled.
Beside me this illusive rock
Will vanish at the crow of cock.
I see such fables oft upChrown,
And suddenly again go down.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Honor to thee, thou reverend Head,
With strength of oak engarlanded !
The dearest moonlight never cleaves
The darkness of your crowded leaves.
I see between the bushes go
A lig^t, with unpretending glow.
How all things fit and balance thus t
ih,Googlc
T is verily Homunculus.
Now whence thy way, thou little lover?
HOMUNCULUS.
From pUce to place I flit and hover.
And, in the best sense, I would* fain exist.
And most impatient am, my glass to shattH:
But what till now I 've witnessed, is 't
Then strange if I mistrust the matter P
Yet 1 11 be confidenlial, if thou list :
1 follow two Philosophers this way,
'T was " Nature ! " "Nature!" — all I heard them say;
I '11 cling to them, and see what they are seeing,
For they must understand this earthly being,
And I shall doubtless learn, in season.
Where to betake me with the soundest reason.
HEFHISTOFHELES.
Then do it ctf thy own accord I
For here, where spectres from their bell come,
Is the philosopher also welcome.
That so his art and iavor delectate yon,
At once a dozen new ones he '11 create you.
Unless thou errest, thou wilt ne'er have sense ;
Wouldst thou exist, thyself the work commence I
HOMUNCULUS.
Good counsel, also, is not to reject
MEP mSTOPK ELES.
Then go thy way ! We further will inspect.
3 (ft> Thales)."
Thy stubborn mind will not be rightened :
What else is needful, that thou be enlightened ?
ih,Googlc
To every wind the billows yielding are ;
Vet from the cliff abrupt they Iceep themsetvet aiai.
ANAXAGORAS.
By fiery vapors rose this rock you 're seeing.
THALES.
In moisture came organic life to being.
HOMUNCULUS {ithnten tAt tmo).
To walk with you may I aapire ?
To come to being is my keen desire.
AN AX ACORUS.
Hast thou, O Thales I ever in a night
Brought forth from mud such mountain to the light?
THALES.
Nature, the living current of her powers.
Was never bound to Day and Night and Hours ;
She makes each form by rules that never fait,
And t is not Force, even on a mighty scale.''
ANAXAGORAS.
But here it «mm / — Plutonic fire, the shaper 1
Explosive force of huge vtolian vapor
Broke through the level Earth's old crust primeval.
And raised the new hill with a swift upheaval !
THALES.
What further shall therefrom result ? The hill
Is there : 't is well ! — so let it stand there still I
In such a strife one loses leisure precious.
Yet only leads the patient folk In leashes.
ih,Googlc
13« FAUST.
ANAXAGORAS.
The Mountain's rocky defts at once
Are peopled thick with Myrmidons,
With Pygmies, Emniets, Fingerlings,
And other active little things.
(T^HoiltlNCÜLÜS.)
To greatness hast thou ne'er aspired,
But lived an eremite retired ;
Canst thou persuade thy mind to govern,
1 '11 have thee chosen as their sovereign.
HOHUNCULDS.
What says my Thales ?
THALES.
— Will not recommend :
For small means only unto small deeds tend.
But great means make the small man great
See there 1 The Cranes, vrith purpose hejnousl'*
The troubled populace they menace,
And they would menace thus the king.
With pointed beaks and talons ample
The Utile men they pierce and trample :
Doom comes already thundering.
It was a crime, the heron-slaughter,
Beset amid their peaceful water ;
But from that rain of arrows deadly
A fell revenge arises redly.
And calls the kindred o'er the flood
To spill the Pygmies' guilty blood.
What use for shield and helm and spear i
Or for the dwarfs the heron-feather f
Dactyl and Emmet hide together:
Their coborU scatter, seek the rear I
ih,Googlc
ACT II. 139
AXAXACORAS
(<0(r 4 f""*» teltmtily).
Though I the subterranean powers approve,
Yet help, in this case, musl be sought above. . . .
O thou aloft, in grace and vigor vernal,
Tri-named, tri-featured, and eternal.
By all my people's woe I cry to thee,
Diana, Luna, Hecatä !
Thou breast-expanding One, thou deeply-pondehng,
Thou calmly-shining One, majestic wandering.
The fearful craters of thy shade unseal.
And free from spells thine ancient might reveal I
Am I too swiftly heard ?
Has then my cry
To yonder sky.
The course of Nature from its orbit stirred?
And greater, ever greater, drawing near.
Behold the Goddess' orb^ throne appear,
Enormous, fearful in its grimness.
With fires that redden through the dimness I . . .
No nearer 1 Disk of dread, tremendous.
Lest thou, with land and sea, to ruin send usl
Then were it true, Thessalian Pythonesses "
With guilty spells, as Song confesses,
Once from thy path thy steps enchanted,
Till fatal gifts by thee were granted ? . . .
The shield of splendor slowly darkles,
Then suddenly splits, and shines, and sparkles 1
What rattbng and what hissing follow.
With roar of winds and thunders hollow 1 —
Before thy throne I speak my error. . . ,
O, pardon 1 / invoked the terror,
{CaOl Aimitl/ufen kiifael.)
ih,Googlc
I40
FAUST.
THALES.
How many things can this man see and hear?
What happed, is not to me entirely clear;
I 've not, like liim, experienced it
The Hours are crazy, we II admit ;
For Luna calmly shines, and free,
In her high place, as formerly.
HOUU.NCULUS.
Look yonder where the Pygmies fled 1
The round Hill has a pointed head.
I felt a huge rebound and shock ;
Down from the moon had fallen the rock.
And then, without the least ado,
Both foe and friend it smashed and slew.
1 praise such arts as these, that show
Creation in a night fulfilled;
That from above and from below
At once this mountain-pile could build.
Be still ! 'T was but imagined so.
Farewell, then, to the ugly brood t
That thou wast not their king, is good.
Off to the cheerful festals of the Sea I
There as a marvellous guest, they 11 honor thee.
MEPHISTOPHELES
[clintöingup tkc opfiaiii tidi\.
Here must I climb by steep and rocky stairways.
And roots of ancient oaks — the vilest rare ways !
Upon my Harti, the resinous atmosphere
Gives hint of pitch, to me almost as dear
As sulphur is, — but here, among these Greeks,
ih,Googlc
For such a smell one long and vainly seeks ;
And curious am 1 — for 'tis worth the knowing —
To find wherewith they keep their fires of Hell a-goin^
At home, be wise as it befits thee there ;
Abroad, ihou hast no cleverness to spare.
Thou shouldst not homeward turn thy mind, but here
The honor of the ancient oaks revere.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
One thinks on all relinquished there ;
Use made it Paradise, and keeps it fair.
But say, what is 't, in yonder cave
Obscure, a crouching triple-shape resembling?
The Phorkyads ! * Co there, if thou art brave ;
Address them, if thou canst, untrembling !
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Why not ! . . I something see, and am dumbfounded !
Proud as I am, I must confess the truth :
I 've never seen their like, in sooth, —
Worse than our hags, an Ugliness unbounded 1
How can the Deadly Sins then ever be
Found ugly in the least degree,
When one this triple dread shall see ?
We would not suffer them to dwelt
Even at the dreariest door of Hell ;
But here, in Beauty's land, the Greek,
They 're famed, because they 're called antique. . , .
They stir, they seem to scent my coming;
Uke vampire-bats, they 're squeaking, twittering, hunk-
ih,Googlc
THE PHORKYADS.
Give me the eye, my sisters, that it spy
Who to our temple ventures now so nigh.
Most honored Dame ! Approaching^ by your leave,
Grant that your triple blessing I receive.
I come, though still unknown, yet, be it statetl.
If I mistake not, distantly related.
Old, reverend Gods, already did 1 sec ;
To Ops and Rhea have I bowed the knee ;
The Parcae even — your sisters — yesterday.
Or day before, they came across my way i
And yet the like of you ne'er met my sight ;
Silent am 1, and ravished with delight
THE PHORKVADS.
This spirit seems to have intelligence.
«EPHISTOPHELES.
I am amazed no poet has the sense
To sing your praises, — say, how can it lie
That we no pictures of your beauty see ?
Should not, through you, the chisel strive to wean us
From shapes like those of Juno, Pallas, Venus 7
THE PHORKYADS.
Sunken in solitude and stillest night,
The mind of us ne'er took so far a flight
M EPHISTOPHELES.
How should it, then? since here, concealed from view,
None ever see you, none are seen by you !
But choose thiKe dwelling-places, and be known.
ih,Googlc
Where Art and Splendor share an equal throne ;
Where swift, with double tread, day after day,
A marble block as hero walks away ;
Where —
THE PHORKYAD5.
Cease, and rouse in us no longer vi»on I
What profit, if we knew them with precision ? —
We, bom in night, akin to gloom alone,
Unto ourselves almost, to others quite, onknown.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
In such a case there 's little more to say.
But one erne's self to others can convey.
One eye supplies you three, one tooth as well,
So were it mythologically possible
In two the being of the Three to cover,
And unto me the third fair form make over,
A short time, only.
ONE.
WiU it do, forsooth?
THE C
We 11 try it I — but without or eye or tooth.
Now just the best thing have you taken away.
How shall I then the image stem display ?
ONE.
T is easily done : just close one eye,
And let thy one side-tusk be seen thereby :
In profile, thus, with not a trait diminished,
Thy sisterly resemblance will be finished.
ih,Googlc
FA VST.
MEFHISTOPHELES.
THE PHORKVADS.
So b« it!
UEPHISTOPHELES
((M PuOkKYAD infr^).
Me behold,
The mucb-beloved son of Chaos old 1
THE PHORKVADS.
Daughters of Chaos are we, by good rig^t
MEP HtSTOPH ELES.
Disgrace ! They 11 call me now hermaphrodite.
THE PHORKVADS.
In our new sister-triad what a beauty !
Two eyes have we, two teeth, for further du^.
HEFH I5TOPHELE5.
Now from all eyes 1 11 hide this visage fell,
To fright the devib in the pool of Hell.
ih,Googlc
ROCKY COVES OF THE -EGEAN SEA.<"
Tie MtoH dtlaying in the Ztmlh .
SIRENS
{tüMeieii upon the clißfi around, ßuting and tir^iitffi.
THOUGH erewhile, by spells nocturnal,
Thee Thessali.in hags infernal
Downward drew, with guilt intended, —
Look, from where thine arch is bended,
On the multitudinous, splendid
Twinkles of the billowy Ocean!
Shine upon the throngs in motion
O'er the waters, wild and free !
To thy service vowed are we :
Fairest Luna, gracious be I
NEREIDS AND TRITONS
{of WoHdeTi efthi Sta).
Call with clearer, louder singing,
Through the Sea's broad bosom rii^g,
Call the tenants of the Deep !
When the storm swept unimpeded
We to stillest depths receded;
Forth at sound of song we leap.
See ! delighted and elated,
We ourselves have decorated.
With our golden crowns have crowned us.
With our spangled girdles bound ua.
Chains and jewels hung around us I
All are spoils which you purvey I
VOL. u. 7 J
ih,Googlc
Treasures, here in shipwreck swallowed,
You have lured, and we have-followed
You, the DsemODs of our bay.
In the crystal cmI, delicious.
Smoothly sport the happy fishes,
Pliant lives that notliing mar;
Yet, ye festive crowds that ga.ther,
We, ttxlay, would witness, rather,
That ye more than fishes are.
NEREIDS AND TRITONS-
We, before we hither wandered,
Thoroughly the question pondered :
Sisters, Brothers, speed afar !
Briefest travel, light endurance,
Yield the validest assurance
That we more than fishes are.
SIRENS.
OR I they have left the placed
Steering away to Samothrace,«*
Vanished with favoring wind.
What is their purpose there, in the dreary
Domain of the lofty Cabiri ?
Gods are they, but the strangest crew,
Ever begetting themselves anew,
And unto their own being blind.
In thy meridian stay,
Luna I — graciously delay.
That the Night still embrace us.
And the Day not chase us 1
ih,Googlc
THALES
{en tAi shore, to Homunculus).
I fain would lead Ihee unto Nereus old.
Not distant are we from his cavern cold.
But stubbornness is his delight,
The peevish and repulsive wight
Howe'er the human race has Iried,
The Grumbler 's never satisfied:
Yet he the Future hath unsealed,
And men thereto their reverence yield,
And give him honor in his station.
Many his benefits have tasted.
HOMUNCULUS.
Then let us try, without more hesitation !
My glass and flame will not at once be wasted.
NEREUS.
Are human voices those that reach mine ear?
At once my wruth is kindled, keen and clear.
Aspiring forms, that high as Gods would ramble,
Yet ever damned their own selves to resemble.
In ancient years could I di^nely rest,
Yet was impelled to benefit the Best ;
And when, at kst, I saw my deeds completed,
It fully seemed as were the work defeated.
THALES.
And yet we trust thee, Graybeard of the Sea 1
Thou art the Wise One ; drive us not from thee !
Behold this Flame, in man's similitude ;
It yields itself unto thy counsel good.
NEREUS.
WhatI Counsel? When did ever men esteem it?
ih,Googlc
148 FAUST-
Wise words in hard ears are but lifeless lore.
Oft as the Act may smite them when they scheme i^
The People are as self-willed as before.
How warned I Paris, in paternal trust.
Before a foreign woman woke his lust !
Upon the Grecian strand he stood so bold ;
I saw in spirit, and to him foretold
The smoky winds, the overwhelming woe,
Beams all a-blaie, murder and death below, —
Troy's judgment-day, held fast in lofty rhyme,
A terror through a thousand years of time I
My words seemed sport unto the reckless one :
His lust he fallowed : fallen was tlion, —
A giant carcass, stiff, and hacked with steel,
To Pindus' eagles 't was a welcome raeaL
Ulysses, too ! did I not him presage
The wiles of Circe and the Cyclops' rage?
His paltering mind, his crew's inconstant strain,
And what not all ? — and did it bring him gain ?
Till him, though late, the favoring billow bore,
A much-tossed wanderer, to the friendly shore.
THALES.
3uch conduct, truly, gives the wise man pain,
And yet the good man once will try again.
An ounce of gratitu:le, his help repaying.
Tons of ingratitude he sees outweighing.
And nothing trifling now we beg of thee ;
The boy here wishes to be bom, and be.
Let not my rarest mood be spoiled, I pray I
Far other business waits for me to-day.
I 've hither bidden, by the wave and breeze,
The Graces of the Sea, the Doridcs.'*
ih,Googlc
Olympus bears not, nor your lucent arch,
Such lovely fonns, in such a lightsome march :
They Aiag themselves, in wild and wanton dalliance,
Froni the sea-dragons upon Neptune's stallions.
Blent with the element so freely, brightly.
That even the foam appears to lift them lightly.
In Venus' chariot-shell, with hues of mom,
Comes Galatea, now the fairest, borne;
Who, since that Cypris turned from us her face,
In Paphos reigns as goddess in her place.
Thus she, our loveliest, long since came to own.
As heiress, templed town and chariot- throne.
Away ! the father's hour of rapture clips
Hate from the heart, and harshness from the lips.
Away to Proteus ! Ask that wondrous man
Of Being's and of Transformation's planl
{//i rrlira iMoardi tlu ua.
We, by this step, gain nothing: one may meet
Proteus, and straight he melts, dissolving fleet
Though he remain, he only says
That which confuses and astonishes.
However, of such counsel thou hast need;
So, at a venture, let us thither speed]
I Thty depart
SIRENS (on the rocks abirvt).
What is t, that, far advancing.
Glides o'er the billows dancing F
As, when the winds are shifted.
Shine snowy sails, uplifted.
So shine they o'er the waters.
Transfigured Ocean-daughters.
We 'II clamber down, and, near them.
Behold their forms, and hear them.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
NERCIDS AND TRITONS.
What in our hands we bear you
Much comfort shall prepare you.
Chelone's buckler giant
Shines with its forms defiant ; —
They 're Gods that we are bringing
High songs must you be singing!
SIRENS.
Small to the sight.
Great in their might, —
Saviours of the stranded.
Ancient Gods, and banded.
NEREIDS AND TRITONS.
We bring you the Cabiri
To festals calm and cheery ;
For where their sway eutendeth
Neptune the realm befriendeth.
SIRENS.
We yield to your claim ;
When a shipwreck came.
Irresistibly you
Protected the crew.
NEREIDS AND TRITONS.
Three have we brought hither,"
The fourth refused us altogether:
He was the right one, said he, —
Their only thinker ready.
SIRENS.
One God the other God
Smites with the scoffer's rod:
Honor all grace they bring,
Fear all evil they fling I
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NEREIDS AND TKITONS.
Seven are they, really.
SIRENS.
Where, then, stay the other three ?
NEREIDS AND TRITONS.
The truth we cannot gather :
Ask on Olympus, rather !
There pines the eighth, forgotten,
By no one ever thought on !
In grace to us entreated.
But not yet all completed.
These incomparable, unchainable,'*
Are always further yearning.
With desire and hunger burning
For the Unattainable I
SIRENS.
These are our ways :
The God that sways
Sun, Moon, or other blaze,
We worship : for it pays.
NEREIDS AND TRITONS.
Highest glory for us behold.
Leading these festals cheery 1
SIREMS.
The heroes of the ancient time
Fail of their glory's prime.
Where and howe'er it may unfold ;
Though they have won the Fleece of Gold.—
Ye, the Cabin !
ih,Googlc
Ija FAUST.
{Repeattd aifuü chorus. )
Though they have won the Fleece of Gold,—
We ! Ye 1 the Cabiri !
{Tht Nereids ani/ Tritons iHi>w /art.)
HOMUKCULUS.
These Malformations, every one,
Had earthen pots for models : m
Against them now the wise men run.
And break their stubborn noddles.
That is the thing one wishes, just!
The coin takes value from its rust.
PROTEUS {uttpmfhiid\.
This pleases me, the old fable-ranger I
The more respectable, the stranger.
THALES.
Where art thou, Proteus ?
PROTEUS
\sptakinglictUrilequaUy, now near, nmo at a ditlaiut).
Here ! and here 1
THALES.
I pardon thee thine ancient jeer.
Cheat not a friend with vain oration ;
Thou speak'st, I know, from a delusive station.
THALES {leftty la HOHUKCULUS).
He is quite near : shine brilliantly 1
For curious as a fish is he ;
ih,Googlc
And in whatever form he hide,
A flame will make him hither glide.
At once a flood of light 1 'II fling,
. Yet softly, lest the glass should spring.
{in lAe/orm e/agiani lorteitt).
What shines so fair, so gradously ?
TKALES (eaveriHg HOMUNCULUS).
Goodl IE thou wishest, canst thou nearer see.
Be not annoyed to take a little trouble.
And show thyself on man's foundation double.
What we disclose, to whomsoe'er would see it,
With oiu- will only, by our favor, be it !
PROTEUS {in a imtlt form).
Still world-wise pranks thou fallest to forget.
THALES.
To change thy form remains thy pleasure yeL
(Äf umwert Homunculus.)
PROTEUS (.atlonisAtd).
A shining dwarf ! The like 1 ne'er did see 1
THALES.
He asks thy counsel, he desires to be.
He is, as I myself have heard him say,
(The thing 's a marvel ! ) only bom half-way.
He has no lack of qualities ideal.
But far too much of palpable and real.«*
Till now the glass alone has given him weight,
And he would fain be soon incorporate.
ih,Googlc
PROTEUS.
Thou art a genuine virgin's-son :
Finished, ere thou shouldst be begun !
THALES {vrki^iering).
Viewed from another side, the thing seems critical:
He is, methinlcs, hennaphroditical !
PROTEUS.
Then all the sooner 't will succeed :
Let him but start, 't will be arranged with speed.
No need to ponder here his origin ;
On the broad ocean's breast must thou be^n !
One starts there first within a narrow pale,"
And finds, destroying lower forms, enjoyment :
Little by little, then, one climbs the scale.
And fits himself for loftier employment.
HOHUNCULUS.
Here breathes and blows a tender air ;
And 1 delight me in the fragrance rare.
PROTEUS.
Yea, verily, my loveliest stripling !
And farther on, far more enjoyable.
Around yon narrow spit the waves are rippling
The halo bright and undestroyable !
There to the host we II nearer be.
Now floating hither o'er the sea.
Come with me there !
THALES.
I 'It go along.
HOMUNCULUS.
A spirit-puipcee, triply strong !
ih,Googlc
TELCHINES OF RHODES."
On Sea-A^rer and Sta-Dn^etu, mdJiiig Nepluiu
'\KJ E "ve forged for old Neptune the trident that urges
" * To smoothness and peace the refractory surges
When Jove tears the clouds of the tempest asunder,
'T is Neptune encounters the ro!l of the thunder:
The lightnings above may incessantly glow,
äut wave upon wave dashes up from below.
And all that, between them, the terrors o'erpower,
Ixng tossed and tormented, the Deep shall devour;
. And Ihence he hath lent us his sceptre to^y.—
Now float we contented, in festal arr^y.
SIRENS.
' You, to Helios consecrated,
To ihe bright Day's blessing fated, —
You to this high Hour we hail:
Luna's worship shall prevail !
TELCHINES.
O loveliest Goddess by night over-vaulted!
Thou hearest with rapture thy brother exalted:
To listen to Rhodes thou wilt lean from the skies ;
To him, there, the psans eternally rise.
When the day he begins, when he ends its career.
His beam is the brightest that falls on us here.
The mountains, the cities, the sea and the shore,
Are lovely and bright to the God they adore :
ih,Googlc
156 FAUST.
No mist hovers o'er us, and shoiild one appear,
A beam and a breeze, and the Island is clear!
There Phoebus his form may by hundreds behold,—
Colossal, as youth, as the Gentle, the Bold ;
For we were the first whose devotion began
To shape the high Gods in the image of Man.
PROTEUS.
But leave them to their boasting, singing 1
Beside the holy sunbeams, bringing
All life, their dead works are a jest
They melt and cast, with zeal impassioncd-
And what they once in bronze have fashioned,
They think it 'a something of the best
These proud ones are al last made lowly ;
The forms of Gods, that stood and shone,
Were by an earthquake overthrown.
And long since have been melted wholly.
This earthly toil, whate'er it be,
Is never else thai» drudgery :
A better life the waves declare thee.
And now to endless seas shall bear thee
Proteus-Dolphin.
{Ife Iransformr kialtrl/.)
'Tis done! Behold!
Unto thy fairest fortune waken :
Upon my back shalt thou be taken,
And wedded to the Ocean old.
THALES.
Yield to the wish so wisely stated.
And at the source be thou created I
Be ready for Che rapid plan !
There, by eternal canons wending,
ih,Googlc
Through thousand, myriad forms ascending,
Thou shalt attain, in time, to Man.
(HoHL'NCULUS mounts the Prattui-Doi^n.)
In spirit seelt the watery distance!
Boundless shall there be thine existence,
And where to move, ihy will be free.
But strudle not to higher orders '.
Once Man, within the human borders.
Then all is at an end for thee.
THALRS.
That 's as it haps : 't is no ill fate
In one's own day to be true man and great
PROTEUS (/oThalbs).
Some one, perchance, of thine own kind !
Their lives continue long, 1 find :
For with thy pallid phantom-peers
1 've seen thee now for many hundred j-ears.
SIRENS ("" l>i' yocks).
See ! what rings of cloudlets, gliding
Round the moon, in circles play !
They are doves whom Love is guiding,
With their wings as white as day.
Paphos hither sends them fleetly.
All her ardent birds, to us,
And our festival completely
Crowns with ]>urest rapture, thus !
NEREUS {ruliiaiicing to TH^Lr.•i).
Though some nightly wanderer's vision
Deem yon ring an airy spectre,
ih,Googlc
t58 FAUST.
We, the spirits, with deciston
Entertain a view correcler :
They are doves, whose convoy gathers
Round my daughter's chariot-shell.
With a flight of wondrous spell,
I^eamed in old days of the fathers.
THALES.
That I also think is best,"
Which the true man comfort gives,
When in warm and peaceful nest
Something holy for him lives.
PSYLLl AND UARSI '"
(im sta-tiäli, tra-kä/trs and tea-rami).
In hollow caves on Cyprus' shore,
By the Sea-God still unbattered.
Not yet by Seismos shattered.
By eternal winds breathed o'er.
And still, as in days that are measured.
Contented and silently pleasured,
The chariot of Cypris we 've treasured.
By the murmurs, the nightly vibrations.
O'er the waves and their sweetest pulsations.
Unseen to the new generations,
The loveliest daughter we lead.
We fear not, as lightly we hie on,
Either Eagle or wing-lifted Lion,
Either Crescent or Cross,
Though the sky it emboss, —
Though it changefuUy triumphs and Hashes,
In defeat to forge tfulness dashes.
Lays the fields and the cities in ashes 1
Straightway, with speed.
The loveliest oE mistresses forth we lead.
ih,Googlc
SntENS.
Lightly moved, with paces graver,
Circle round the car again ;
line on line inwoven, waver
Snake-like in a linking chain, —
Stalwart Nereids, come, enring us,
Rudest women, wild and free ;
Tender Dorides, ye bring us
Her, the Mother of the Sea,—
Galatea, godlike woman,
Worthiest immortality.
Yet, like those of lineage. human,
Sweet with loving grace is she.
DORIDES
(f'x {hartu, mvunltd (m dolpkitis, paiting NERBUS).
I^nd us, Luna, light and shadow.
Show this youthful flower and fire I
For we bring beloved spouses,
Praying for them to our sire.
(roNEREUS.)
They are boys, whom we have rescued
From the breaker's teeth of dread ;
They, on reeds and mosses bedded,
Back to light and life we led:
Now must they, with glovring kisses,
Thank us for the granted blisses ;
On the youths thy favor shed I
Lo, now ! what double gains your deed requite 1
You show compassion, and you talce delight
ih,Googlc
9 FAUST.
DORIDES.
If thou praisest our endeavor,
Father, grajit the fond request,-^
Let us hold them fast forever
On each young, immortal breast
NE REUS.
Take joy in what you 've finely captured,
And shape to men the youthful crew ;
I cannot grant the boon enraptured
Which only Zeus can give to you.
The billows, as they heave and rock you,
Allow to love no firmer stand,
So, when these fancies fade and mock you.
Send quietly the youths to land.
Fair boys, we must part, forsooth ;
Yet we love you, we vow it !
We have asked for eternal truth,
But the Gods wiU not allow it
THE YOUTHS.
We sailor-boys, if still you would
Give love, as first you gave it.
We 've never had a life so good,
And would not better have it!
(Galatea approathts en her einfiel a/iAtll.) "
T is thou, O my darling !
GALATEA.
O, Sire 1 what delight
Dnger, ye dolphins ! 1 cling to the sight.
ih,Googlc
Already past, they swiftly wander
On, m circling courses wheeling!
What care they for the heart's profoundest feeling?
Ah, would they took me vnth them yooder !
Yet a single glance can cheer
AH the livelong barren year.
THALES.
Hail ! All bait I with newer voices :
How my spirit rejoices,
By the True and the Beautiful penetrated I
From Water was everything first created )
Water doth everything still sustain!
Ocean, grant us thine endless reign !
If the clouds thou wert sending not,
Tbe swelling streams wert spending not,
The winding rivers bending not,
And all in thee were ending not,
Could mountains, and plains, and the world itself be ?
The freshest existence is nourished by thee I
ECHO
(tAorus ef tht celUclhit drclts).
The freshest existence flows ever from thee I
NBREUS.
They turn and wheel again, aizx ;
No longer face to face (hey are.
In linking circles, wide extending, —
In their festive dances blending, —
The countless cohorts now appear.
But Galatea's chariot-shell
StiU I see, and see it well:
ih,Googlc
1 6a FAUST.
It shines like a star
Through the crowds intwiaing.
Love from the tumult still is shioiiig !
Though ne'er so far,
It shimmers bright and clear,
Ever true and near.
HOHUNCULUS.
This softly heaving brine on,
Whatever I may shine on
Is all with beauty crowned.
PROTEUS.
Within this moisture living,
Thy lamp now first b giving
A clear and splendid sound.
What mystery new, 'mid the crowds that are wheeling,
Is DOW to our vision its wonders revealing?
What flames round the shell at the feet of t^e Queen ? —
Now flarii^ in force, and now shining serene,
As if by the pulses of love it were fed.
Homunculus is it, by Proteus misled ! . . .
And these are the signs of imperious yearning
The presage of swelling, impatienüy spuming:
He '11 shiver his glass on the glittering throne —
He glows and he flashes, and now he hath flown 1
SIRENS.
What fiery marvel the billows enlightens,"*
As one on the other is brolcen and brightens ?
ih,Googlc
ACT II. lö
It flashes, and wavers, and hitherward plays !
On the path of the Night are the bodies ablaze,
And all things arouod are with flames overrun :
Then Eros be ruler, who all things begun !
Hail, ye Waves! Hail, Sea unbounded,
By the holy Fire surrounded I
Water, hail ! Hail, Fire, the splendidi
Hail, Adventure rarely ended !
ALL TOGETHER.
Hail, ye Airs that softly flow I
Hail, ye caves of Earth below !
Honored now and evermore
Be the Elemental Fourl
ih,Googlc
1.64
BEFORE THE PALACE OF MENELAUS IN
SPARTA.
I MUCH admired and much reviled,— I, Helena,
, Come from the strajid where we have disembarked
but now,
StiU giddy from the restless rocking of the wares
Of Ocean, which from Phrygian uplands hitherwards
On high, opposing backs — Poseidon's favor won
And Euros' strength — have bome us to our native bay.
Below there, with the bravest of his warriors, now
King Menelaus feels the joy of his return;
But thou, O bid me welcome back, thou lofty House
Which Tyndarus, my father, on the gentle slope,
Returning from the Hill of Pallas, builded up ;
And when I here with Clytcmnestra sister-like,
With Castor and with Pollux gayly sporting, grew,
Before all Sparta's houses nobly was adorned.
Ye valves of yon dark iron portals, 3^ I hail !
Once through your festive and inviting opening
It happened that to me, from many singled out,
The coming of the bridegroom Menelaus shone.
Unfold again for me, that I the King's command
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
165
Fulfil with strictness, as uato a spiouse is meet :
Give entrance now, and let all things be left behind
Which hitherto have stormed upon me, full of doomi
For, since this place all unsuspicious 1 forsook
For Cj'thersea's fane, as holy duty called.
But there the robber seized me, he the Phrygian, —
Happened have many things, which people far and wide
So fain relate, but which so fain hears not (he one
Of whom the legend rose, and to a fable grew.
CHORUS.
Disdain thou not, O beautiful Dame,
Possession proud of the highest estate t
For the greatest fortune is thine alone,
The fame of beauty that towers o'er all
The name of the hero heralds his path,
Thence proudly he strides ;
Yet bends at once the stubbomest man.
And yields to atl-conquering Beauty's might
HELENA.
Enough, with mine own spouse have 1 been hither
shipped,
And now by him beforehand to his city sent;
Yet what his purposes may Ije, I fail to guess.
Do I come here as wife? Or do I come as queen?
Or come, an offering for the Prince's bitter pain.
And tor the long-endured misfortune of the Greeks ?
For they, the Immortals, verily fixed my Fame and Fate
Ambiguously, attendants twain of doubtful worth
To Beauty, who upon this very threshold stand
With gloomy and with threatening presence at my side.
Then, even, in the hollow ship, but seldom looked
My spouse on me, nor ever word of comfort spake :
ih,Googlc
As if he brooded evil, frontiDg me he sat
But now, when speeding towards the strand of that deep
Eurotas makes, scarce had the foremost vessels' prows
The land saluted, than he spake, as urged the Gods :
" Here, in their ordered rank, my warriors disembark ■,
Them shall I muster, ranged along the ocean-strand.
But thou go ever onwards, up the hallowed banks
Of fair Eurotas, dowered with gifts of plenteous fruit,
Guiding the stallions o'er the bloom of watery meads.
Till there, on that most lovely plain thy journey ends,
Where Lacedemon, once a fruitful spreading field,
Surrounded by austerest moimtains, built its seat
Set thou thy foot within the high-towered princely Houses
And muster well the maids, whom there behind I left,
Together with the old and faithful Stewardess.
Let her display to thee the wealth of treasures stored,
Even as thy father them bequeathed, and I myself
In war and peace accumulating, have amassed.
All things shall thou in ancient order find ; because
It is the Ruler's privilege, that he all things
In faithful keeping find, returning to his house, —
Where'er be may have left it, each thing in its place;
For power to change in aught possesses not the slave.*
CHORUS.
Let now the splendid, accumulate wealth
Rejoice and cheer thee, in eye and heart !
For the gleam of chain and the glory of crown
Are lying idly in haughty repose :
But enter thou in and challenge them all.
And they will respond.
I rejoice to witness Beauty compete
With gold and pearl and the jewel-stone.
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 167
HELENA.
Thereafter further came my lord's imperious speech :
" Now when all things in order thou inspected hast.
Then take so many tripods as thou needful deem'st,
And vessels manifold, such as desires at hand
Who offers to the Gods, fulfilling holy use, —
The kettles, also bowls, the shallow basin's disk;
The purest water from the sacred fountain fill
In lofty urns ; and further, also ready hold
The well-dried wood that rapidly accepts the fiame;
And let the knife, well-sharpened, fail not finally ;
Yet all besides will 1 relinquish to thy care."
So spake he, uiging my departure ; but no thing
Of living breath did he, who ordered thus, appoint.
That shall, to honor the Olympian Gods, be slain.
'T is critical ; and yet I banish further care,
And let all things be now to the high Gods referred.
Who that fulfil, whereto their minds may be disposed,
Whether by men 't is counted good, or whether bad;
In either case we mortals, we are doomed to bear.
Already lifted oft the Offerer the axe
In consecration o'er the bowed neck of the beast.
And could not consummate the act ; for enemies
Approaching, or Gods intervening, hindered him.
CHORUS.
What shall happen, imagin'st thou not
Queen, go fonrärds
With courage !
Blessing and evil come
Unexpected to men :
Though announced, yet we do not believe.
Burned not Ilion, saw we not also
Death in the face, shamefullest death ?
And are we not here.
ih,Googlc
With thee qompanioned, joyoiisly serving.
Seeing the dazzliog sun in the heavens,
And the fairest of earth, too, —
Kindest one, thee, — we, the happy ?
Let come, what may ! Whate'er awaits me, it beseemi
That I without delay go up in the Royal House,
Which, long my need and yearning, forfeited almost,
Once more hath risen on my sight, I know not how.
My feet no longer bear me with such fearlessness
Up the high steps, which as a child I sprang across.
Cast ye, O sisters ! ye
Sorrowful captives,
All your trouble far from ye !
Your mistress's joy partake,
Helena's joy partake,
Who the paternal hearth
Delightedly now is approaching,
Truly with late-reluming
But with firmer and surer feet I
Praise ye the sacredest.
Still re-establishing
And home-bringing Immortals I
How the delivered one
Soars as on lifted wings
Over asjjerities, while in vain
The prisoned one, yearningly,
Over the foriress.parapet
Pineth with outspread arms !
But a God took hold of her,
The Expatriate,
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
And from Ilion's mins
Hither hath borne her again,
To the ancieot, the newly embelUshed
Paternal house.
From unspeakable
Raptures and tonnen ts,
Early youthful days,
Now refreshed, to remember.
It Leader of thb Chorus).
Forsake ye now the joy-encompassed path of Song,
And towards the portal's open valves your glances turn I
What, Sisters, do I see? Retumeth not the Queen
With swift and agitated step again to us ?
What is it now, great Queen, what could encounter thee
To move and shake thee so, within thy house's balls,
Instead of greeting? Thou canst not conceal thi; thing;
For strong repulsion written on thy brow I see.
And noble Indignation, struggling with amaze.
HELENA
{who htu lifi ihi wingt af the portal efen, txciuHly).
K common fear beseemeth not the child of Zeus ;
No lightly-passing hand of terror touches her ;
But that fell Horror, which the womb of ancient Night
Wilh first of things delivered, rolled through many foiiti«,
Likeglowingclouds that from the mountain's fiery throai
Whirl up expanding, even heroes' breasts may shnVe.
Thus terribly have here to-day the Stygian Gods
Mine entrance in the house betokened, and 1 fain,
Even as a guest dismissed, would take myself awav
From thi« oft-trodden threshold I so longed to tread.
But, no ! hither have 1 retreated to the light ;
Nor further shall ye force me, Powers, be who ye may I
ih,Googlc
Some consecTation wiU I muse : then, purified,
The hearth-fire may the wife so welcome, as the lord
LEADER OF THE CHORUS.
Discover, noble Dame, unto thy servants here,
Who reverently assist thee, what iiath come to pass.
What 1 beheld, shall ye with your own eyes behold,
If now that shape the ancient Night hath not at once
Re-swallowed to the wonders of her deepest breast
But I with words will yet declare it, that ye know.
When solemnly, my nearest duty borne in mind,
The Royal House's gloomy inner court 1 trod,
Amazed 1 saw the silent, dreary corridors.
No sound of diligent labor, going forwards, met
The ear, no signs of prompt and busy haste the eye ;
And not a maid appeared to me, no stewardess
Such as is wont to greet the stranger, friendly-wise.
But when towards the ample hearth-stone I advanced,
1 saw, beside the glimmering ashes that remained,
A veiled and giant woman seated on the ground.
Not like to one who sleeps, but one deep-sunk in thought
With words of stem command 1 summoned her to work,
The stewardess surmising, who meanwhile, perchance,
My spouse with forethought there had staüoned when
he left ;
But she, still crouched together, sat immovable.
Stirred by my threats at last, she lifted the right arm
As if from hearth and hall she beckoned me away.
1 turned indignantly from her, and swiftly sped
Unto the steps whereon aloft the I'halamos
Adorned is set, and near thereto the treasure-room :
But suddenly from the floor the wondrous figure SfKang,
Barring my way imperiously, and showed herself
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 171
In haggard height, with hollow, blood-discolored eyes,
A shape so strange that eye and mind confounded are.
But to the winds I speak : for all in vain doth Speech
Fatigue itself, creatively to build up forms.
There look, yourselves i She even ventures forth to light !
Here are we masters, till the lord and king shall come.
The horrid births of Night doth Phcebus, Beauty's friend,
Drive out of sight to caverns, or he binds them fast
{Vaotx.\A& afpears on Ihi thrtskeU, betwicn tht dooT'Posti.)
Much my experience, although the tresses,
Youthfully clustering, wave on my temples;
Many the terrible things I have witnessed,
Warriors lamenting, llion's night,
When it felL
Through the beclouded, dusty and tnaddened
Throngs of the combatants, heard 1 the Gods then
Terribly calling, heard I the iron
Accents of Discord clang through the field.
City- wards.
Ah, yet stood they, llion's
Ramparts; but ever the fiery glow
Ran from neighbor to neighbor walls,
Ever extending from here and there,
With the roar of its own storm.
Over the darkening city.
Flying saw I, through smoke and flame,
And the tongues of the blinding fire,
Fearful angering presence of Gods,
Stalking marvellous figures,
Giant-great, through the gloomy
Fire-illuminate vapors.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
Saw 1, or was it but
Dread of the mind, that fashioned
Forms so affrighting? Never can
Justly r say it? Yet that I Her,
Horrible, here with eyes behold,
Is to me known and certain :
Even to my hand were palpable.
Did not the terror restrain me,
Holding me back from the danger.
Which one of Phorkys'
Daughters then art thou ?
Since 1 compare thee
Unto that family.
Art thou, perchance, of the Graiic,
One of the dreaded gray-bom.
One eye and toolh only
Owning alternately ?
Darest thou. Monster,
Here beside Beauty,
Unto high Phcebus'
Vision display thee?
Step thou forth, notwithstanding I
For the Ugly beholds he not,
Even as his hallowed glances
Never beheld the shadow.
Yet a sorrowful adverse fate.
Us mortals compelleth, alas !
To endure the unspeakable eye-pain
Which She, the accuret, reprehensible,
Provokes in the lovers of Beauty.
Yes, then hearken, if thou brazenly
Us shalt encounter, hear the curse, —
ih,Googlc
Hear the threat of every abuse
From the denouncii^ mouths of the Fortunate,
Whom the Gods themselves have fashioned!
PHORKYAS.'"'
Old is the saw, and yet its sense is high and true,
That Shame and Beauty ne'er together, band in hand.
Pursued their way across the green domains of Earth.
Deep-rooted dwells in both such force of ancient hate,
Tlial wheresoever on their way one haps to meet
The other, each upon her rival turns her back :
Then forth again vehemently they hasten on,
Shame deep depressed, but Beauty insolent and bold,
Till her at last the hollow night of Orcus taltes,
If Age hath not beforehand fully tamed her pride.
So now'l find ye, shameless ones, come from abroad
With arrogance o'erfiowing, as a file of cranes
That with their hoarse, far-sounding clangor high in air,
A cloudy line, slow-moving, send their creaking tones
Below, the lone, belated wanderer to allure
That he look up ; but, notwithstanding, go their way,
And he goes his : and likewise will it be, with us.
Who, then, are you, that round the Royal Palace high
Like Mxnads wild, or like Bacchantes, dare to rave ?
Who, then, are you, that you the House's stewardess
Assail and howl at, as the breed of d(^ the moon?
Think ye from me 't is hidden, of what race yc are ?
Ye brood, in war begotten and in battle bred.
Lustful of man, seducing no less than seduced.
Emasculating soldiers', burghers' strength alike]
Methinks, to see your crowd, a thick cicada-swarm
Hath settled on us, covering the green-sown fields.
Devourcrs ye of others' toil ! Ve snatch and taste.
Destroying in its bud the land's prosperity !
Wares are ye, plundered, bartered, and in market sold I
ih,Googlc
174
FAUST.
HELENA.
Who ra.tes tlie servant-maids in presence of the Dame
Audaciously invades the Mistress' household-right:
Her only it becometh to commend what is
Praiseworthy, as to punish what is blamable.
Content, moreover, am I with the service which
They gave me, when the lofty strength of llion
Beleaguered stood, and fell in ruin : none the less
When we the sorrowful and devious hardships bore
Of errant travel, where each thinks but of himself.
Here, too, the like from this gay throng do I expect:
Not what the slave is, asks the lord, but how he serves.
Therefore be silent, cease to grin and jeer at them !
If thou the Palace hitherto hast guarded well
In place of Mistress, so much to thy credit stands ;
But now that she herself hath come, shouldst thou retire
Lest punishment, in place of pay deserved, befall !
PHORKYAS.
To threaten the domestics is a right assured.
Which she, the spouse august of the God-prospered
king,
By many years of wise discretion well hath earned.
Since thou, now recognlied, thine ancient station here
Again assum'st, as Queen and Mistress of the House,
Grasp thou the reins so long relaxed, be ruler now.
Take in thy keep the treasure, and ourselves thereto!
But tirst of all protect me, who the eldest am.
From this pert throng, who with thee, Swan of Beauty
matched.
Are only stumpy-winged and cackling, quacking geese.
LEADER OP THE CHORUS.
How ugly, near to Beauty, showeth Ugliness t
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 175
PHORKTAS.
How slUy, near to understanding, want of sense 1
{HauefoTtk tkt Choretids anmxr in turn, ttffping singly
ferthfTom iht Chobus.)
CHOKETID I."*
Of Falber Erebus relate, relate of Mother Night I
FHORKYAS.
Speak thou of Scylla, sister-children of one flesh 1
CKORETID n.
Good store of hideous monsters shows thy family tree !
FHORK.VAS.
Co down to Orcus ! There thy tribe and kindred seek 1
CHORETID IlL
Those who dwell there are all by far too young for thee.
On oM Tiresias try thy lascivious arts I
CHORETID IV.
Orion's nurse was great-great-grandchtld unto thee!
PHORKYAS-
rhee harpies, 1 suspect, did nurse and feed on filth.
CHORETID V,
Wherewith dost thou such choice emaciation feed ?
PHORKYAS.
Not with the b!ood, for which thou all too greedy art
ih,Googlc
CHORETID VI.
Thou, hungering for corpses, hideous corpse thyself I
PHORKYAS.
The teeth of vampires in thy shameless muzzle shine I
LEADER OP THE CHORUS.
Thine shall I slop, when I declare thee who thou art
PHORKYAS.
Then name thyself the lirst ! The riddle thus is solved
Not angered, but in sorrow, do I intervene,
Prohibiting the storm of this alternate strife I
For nothing more injurious meets the ruling Und
Than quarrels of his faithful servants, underhand.
The echo of his orders then returns no more
Accordantly to him in swiftly finished acts,
But, roaring wilfully, encompasses with storm
Him, self-confused, and chiding to the empty air.
Nor this alone : in most unmannered anger ye
Have conjured hither pictures of the shapes of dread,
Which so surround me, that to Orcus now I feel
My being whirled, despite these well-known native fields.
Can it be memory ? Was it fancy, seizing me ?
Was all that, I ? and am I, now? and shall 1 hence-
forth be
The dream and terror of those town-destroying ores ?
1 see tlie maidens shudder: but, the eldest, thou
Composedly standest — speak a word of sense to me I
PHORKYAS.
Whoe'er the fortune manifold of years recalls,
Sees as a dreim at last the favor of the Gods.
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
177
But thou, so highly dowered, so past all measure helped,
Saw'st in the ranks of life but love^esirous men.
To every boldeEt hazard kindled soon and spurred.
Thee early Theseus snatched, excited by desire,
LJke HeracISs in strength, a splendid form of man.
HELENA.
He bore me forth, a ten-year-old and slender roe,
And shut me in Aphidnus' tower, in Attica.
PHORKYAS.
But then, by Castor and by Pollux soon released.
The choicest crowd of heroes, wooing, round thee
Yet most my secret favor, freely I confess,
Patroclus won, the likeness of Pelides he.
PHORKYAS.
Wed by thy father's will to Menelaus then,
r, the sustainer of his house.
My sire the daughter gave him, and the government :
Then from our wedded nearness sprang Hermione.
PHORKYAS.
Yet when he boldly claimed the heritage of Crete,
To thee, the lonely one, too fair a guest appeared.
Why wilt thou thus recall that semi-widowhood,
And all the hideous ruin it entailed on me?
ih,Googlc
i;8 FAUST.
PHORKYAS.
To me, 3 free-bom Cretan, did that journey bring
Imprisonment, as well, — protracted slavery.
HELENA.
At once he hither ordered thee as stewardess,
Giving in charge the fortress and the treasure-stores.
FHORi^YAS.
Which thou forsookest, wending to the towered town
Of llion, and the unexhausted joys of love.
Name not those joys to mel for sorrow all too stem
Unendingly was poured upon my breast and brain.
PHORKYAS.
Nathless, they say, dost thou appear in double form',
Beheld in llion, — in Egypt, too, beheld.
HELENA.
Make wholly not confused my clouded, wandering sense I
Even in this moment, who I am 1 cannot telL
And then, they say, from out the hollow Realm of Shades
Achilles yet was joined in passion unto thee,
Who earlier loved thee, 'gainst all ordinances of Fate I
HELENA.
To him, the Vision, I, a Vision, wed myself; "^
It was a dream, as even the words themselves declare
I vanish hence, and to myself a Vision grow,
iSke ÜHki into tht armi cftht Sehichorus.)
ih,Googlc
Silence t silence 1
False-seeing one, ^se-speaking one 1
Out of the hideous, single-toothed
Mouth, wha.t should be exhaled from
Such abominable horror-throat I
For the Malevolent, seeming benevolent, —
Wolfs wrath under the sheep's woolly fleece,—
Fearfuller far is unto me than
Throat of the three-headed dog.
Anxiously listening stand we here.
When ? how ? where shall break again forth
Further malice
From the deeply-ambushed monster?
Now, stead of friendly words and consoling,
Lethe-bestowing, gratefully mild,
Stirrest thou up from all the Past
Evillest more than good things,
And darkenest all at once
Both the gleam of the Present
And also the Future's
Sweetly glimmering dawn of hope I
Silence! silence!
That the Queen's high spirit,
Nigh to forsake her now,
Hold out, and upbear yet
The Form of all forms
Which the sun shone on ever.
(Helena Aai rtccvirid, and standi again in tkt cmtre.)
PHORKVAS.
Forth from transient vapors comes the lofty sun of this
bright day,
ih,Googlc
l8o FAUST.
That, obscured, could so delight us, but in splendor
dazxies now.
As the world to thee is lovely, thou art lovely unto us;
Though as ugly they revile me, well 1 know tlie Beautiful
HELEN- A.
Tottering step I from the Void that— diszy, fainting, —
round me closed ;
And again would fain be resting, for so weary are my
Yet to Queens beseemeth chiefly, as to all men It be-
PHORKVAS
Standing now in all thy greatness, and iu all thy beauty,
Saj-s thine eye that thou commandest : what command'at
thou ? speak it out !
Beprepared, for much neglected in your quarrel, to atone!
Haste, a sacrifice to furnish, as the king hath ordered me !
PHDRKVAS.
AH is ready in the palace — vessels, tripods, sharpened
axe.
For the sprinkling, fumigating : iihow to me the victim
ilELEKA.
This the king not indicated.
PHORKYAS.
Spake it not ? O word of woe I
ih,Googlc
HELENA.
What distress hath overcome thee f
PHORKYAS.
Queen, the offering art the« I "*
HELENA.
And these.
CHORUS.
Ah, woe and sorrow !
Thou shall fall beneath the axe.
HELENA.
Fearful, yet foreboded ! 1, alas I
FHORKYAS.
There seemeth no escape.
CHORUS.
Ah I and what to us will happen f
PHORKYAS.
She will die a noble death ;
But upon the lofty beam, upholding rafter-frame and roof.
As. in binding-time the throstles, ye in turn shall strug-
gling hang !
(Helena and tht Chorus stand amattd and alami^d, in
Itriiittg, well-orrangtd groHfi.)
PHORKYAS.
Ye Phantoms ! — lilce to frozen images ye stand.
In terror thtis from Day to part, which is not yours.
ih,Googlc
1 8a FAUST.
Men, and the race of spectres like you, one and aE,
Renounce not willingly the bright beams of the sun;
But from the end may none implore or rescue them.
All know it, yet 't is pleasant unto very few.
Enough I ye all are lost ; now speedily to work !
{She (laps her hands : ihtretipott appear in Ike dooromy muf
tUd dwarfish forms, mhicA at onie carry out iailh aiatritj
Ihe eemmands expreiied.)
This way, ye gloomy, sphery-bodied monster throng I
Koil hitherwards ! ye here may damage as ye wilL
The altar portable, the golden-homed, set up !
The axe let shimmering lie across the silver rim !
The urns of water fill! For soon, to wash away.
Shall be the black blood's horrible and smutching stains.
Here spre.ii! the costly carpets out ujwn the dust,
That so the offering may kneel in queenly wise,
And folded then, although with severed head, at once
With decent dignity be granted sepulture !
LEADER OF THE CHORUS.
The Queen is standing, sunk in thought, beside us here,
The maidens wither like the late-mown meadow grass ;
Methinks that I, the eldest, in high duty bound,
Should words exchange with thee, primeval eldest thou '
Thou art experienced, wise, and seemest well-disposed,
Although this brainless throng assailed thee in mistake.
Declare then, if thou knowest, possible escape 1
PHORKVAS.
'T is easy said. Upon the Queen it rests alone.
To save herself, and ye appendages with her.
But resolution, anti the swiftest, needful is.
CHORUS.
Worthiest and most reverend of the Parcx, wisest sibil
thou.
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 183
Hold the golden shears yet open, then declare us Day
and Help I
We already feel discomfort of the soaring, swinging,
struggling;
And our limbs in dances first would rather move in joy
cue cadence.
Resting afterwards on lovers' breasts.
HELENA.
Let these be timid I Pain 1 feel, but terror none ;
Yet if thou know'st of rescue, grateful I accept I
Unto the wise, wide^seeing mind is verily shown
The Impossible oft as possible. Then speak, and say >
CHORUS.
Speak and tell us, tell us quickly, how escape we now
the fearful.
Fatal nooses, that so menace, like the vilest form d
necklace.
Wound about our tender throats ? Already, in anticl-
We can feel the choking, smothering — if thou, Rhea^
lofty Mother
Of the Gods, to mercy be not moved.
PHORKYAS.
Have you then patience, such long-winded course of
speech
To hear in silence? Manifold the stories are.
CHORUS.
Patience enough 1 Meanwhile, in hearing, still we liv&
PHORKYAS,
Whoso, to guard his noble wealth, abides at home,
And in his lofty dwelling well cements the chinks
ih,Googlc
And also from the pelting rain secures the root.
With him, the long days of his life, shall all be well :
But whosoe'er his threshold's holy square-hewn stone
Lightly with Hying foot and guilty oversteps,
Finds, when lie comes again, the ancient place, indeed,
But all things altered, if not utterly o'ertbrowo.
HELENA.
Wherefore decl^m such well-known sayings here, as
these?
Thou wouldst narrate : then stir not up annoying themes I
PHORKYAS.
It is historic truth, and nowise a reproach.
Sea-plundering, Menelaus steered from bay to bay;
He skirted as a foe the islands and the shores.
Returning with the booty, which in yonder rusts.
Then ten long years he passed in front of Uioa ;
But for the voyage home how many know I not
And now how is it, where we stand by Tyndarus'
Exalted House? How is it with the regions round?
HELENA.
Has then Abuse become incarnated in thee.
That canst not open once thy lips, except to blame ?
PHORKYAS.
So many years deserted stood the valley-hills
That in the rear of Sparta, nortihwards rise aloft.
Behind Taygetus ; whence, as yet a nimble brook,
Eurotas downward rolls, and then, along our vale
By reed-beds broadly (lowing, nourishes your swans.
Behind there in the mountain-dells a daring breed
Have settled, pressing forth from the Cimmerian Night,
ih,Googlc
And there have built a fortress inaccessible,
Whence land and people now they harry, as they please.
HELENA.
Have they accomplished that? Impossible it seems.
PHORKYAS.
They had the time : it may be twen^ years, in alL
HELENA.
Is one a Chief? and are they robbers many — leagued ?
PHORKYAS.
Not robbers are they ; yet of many one is Chief : "•
[ blame him not, although on me he also fell.
He might, indeed, have taken all ; yet was content
With sottu: free-gi/ts, he said : tribute he called it noL
How looked the man ?
PHORKYAS.
By no means ill : he pleased me well.
Cheerful and brave and bold, and nobly-formed is he,
A prudent man and wise, as few among the Greeks.
They call the race Barbarians ; yet I question much
If one so cruel be, as there by Ilion
In man-devouring rage so many heroes were ;
His greatness 1 respected, did confiüe In him.
And then, his fortress ! That should ye yourselves
behold !
'T is somelliing other than unwieldy masonry,
The which your fathers, helter-skelter tumbling, piled, —
Cyclopean like the Cyclops, stones undressed at once
On stones r.ndressed upheaving : there, however, there
ih,Googlc
1 86 FAUST.
All plumb and balanced is, conformed to square and rule.
Behold it from without ! It rises heavenward up
So hard, so tight of joint, and mirror-smooth as sleel.
To climb up there — nay, even your Thought itself slides
off!
And mighty courts of ample space within, enclosed
Around with structures of all character and use.
There you see pillars, pillarets, arches great and small,
Balconies, galleries for looking out and in,
And coats of arms.
What are they ?
PHOSKVAS.
Ajax surely bore
A twisted serpent on his shield, as ye have seen.
The Seven also before Thebes had images,
Each one upon his shield, with many meanings rich.
One saw there moon and star on the nocturnal sky.
And goddesses, and heroes, ladders, torches, swords,
And whatsoe'er afflicting threateneth good towns.
Such symbols also bore our own heroic band.
In shining lints, bequeathed from eldest ancestry.
You see there lions, eagles, likewise claws and beaks,
Then buffalo-horns, with wings and roses, peacock's- tails,
And also bars — gold, black and silver, blue and red.
The like of these in halls are hanging, row on row, —
In halls unlimited and spacious as the world :
There might ye dance !
CHORUS,
But tell us, are there dancers there'
FHORKVAS.
Ay, and the best ! — a blooming, gold-haired throDg o(
boys,
ih,Googlc
Breathing ambrosia] youth ! So only Paris breathed.
When he approached too nearly to the Queen.
HELENA.
Thou fall'st
Entirely from thy part : speak now the final word 1
PHORKVAS.
Tisthoushaltspealcit: saywithgrave distinctness, Yes!
Then straight will I surround thee with that fortress.
CHORUS.
Speak,
O speak the one brief word, and save thyself and us.'
HELENA.
What! Shall 1 tear King Menelaus may trniiRgrcss
So most inhumanly, as thus to smite myself?
PHORKVAS.
Hast thou forgotten how he thy Deiphobus,
Brother of fallen Paris, who with stubborn claim
Took thee, the widow, as his fere, did visit with
Unheard-of mutilation? Nose and ears he cropped,
And otl)erwise disfigured : 't was a dread to see.
HELENA.
That did he unto him : he did it for my sake.
PHORKVAS.
Because of him he now will do the like to thee.
Beauty is indivisible : '"' who once possessed
Her wholly, rather slays than only share in part
( Trumptts in the diilatKi: the CHORUS itarti tu terror.)
Even as the trumpet's piercing clangor gripes and tears
The ear and entiail-nerves, thus Jealousy her claws
ih,Googlc
Drives in the bosom of Ihe man, who ne'er forgets
What once was his, but now is lost, possessed no mor&
Hear'st thou not the trumpets pealing ? see'st thou not
the shine of swords ?
phorkvaS.
King and Lord, be welcome hither I willing reckoning
will 1 give.
CHORUS.
What of us?
PHORKYAS.
You know it clearly, see her death before your eyes ;
There, within, your own shall follow : nay, there is no
help for you I
HELtWA.
What I may venture first to do, have I devised
A hostile Daemon art thou, that I feet full well,
And much 1 fear thou wilt convert the Good to Bad.
But first to yonder fortress now I follow thee;
What then shall come, I know: but what the Queen
thereby
As mystery in her deepest bosom may conceal.
Remain unguessed by all ! Now, Ancient, lead the way I
CHORUS.
O how gladly we go,
Hastening thither!
Chasing us, Death,
And, rising before us,
The towering castle's
ih,Googlc
ACT I/I. It
iDaccessible ramparts.
Guard us as well may thejr
As Ilion's citedel-fort.
Which at last alone
Fell, through contemptible wiles I
jriu and spread, obscuring the background, oIm t
nearer portion of tht scene, aifleaaire.)
How is it? how?
Sisters, look around!
Was it not cheerfullest day?
Banded vapors are hovering up
Out of Euroias' holy stream;
Vanished e'en now hath the lovely
Reed-engnrlanded shore Trom (he sight)
Likewise the free, gracefully-proud.
Silently floating swans.
Mated in joy oi their swimming.
See 1, alas ! no more.
Still — but still
Crying, I hear them.
Hoarsely crying afar!
Os)inou5, de»[h-presaging!
An, may to us the tones not a\to,
Stead of deliverance promised,
Ruin announce at the lasCl —
Us, the awan-like and slender.
Long white- throated, and She,
Our fair swan-begotten.
Woe to ua, woe I
All is covered and hid
Round us with vapor and cloud :
Each other behold we not!
What happens ? do we advance?
ih,Googlc
I90 FAUST.
Hover we only with
Skipping footstep slong the ground?
Seest thou naught ? Soars not even, perchance,
Hermes before us? Shines not the golden raid,
Bidding, commanding us back again
To the cheerless, gray-twilighted,
Full of impalpable phantoms,
Over-filled, eternally empty Hades ?
Ves, at once the air is gloomy, sunless vanish now the
Gray and darkly, brown as buildings. Walls present
themselves before us.
Blank against our clearer vision. Is't a court? a moat,
or pitfall?
Fear- ins pi ring, any way! and Sisters, ah, behold ut
prisoned, —
Prisoned now, as ne'er before !
\liiHer c<mrlyard of a Caattt,"-^ turrounded with rüi, fim
taitic buildings of tht Middle Agii.)
LEADER OF THE CHORUS.
Precipitate and foolish, type of women ye I
Dependent on the moment, sport of every breeze
That blows mischance or luck I and neither ever ye
Supported calmly. One is sure to contradict
The oihers Aercely, and cross-wise the others her:
Only in joy and pain ye howl and laugh alike.
Be silent now, and hearken what the Mistress here,
High-thoughled, may determine for herself and us I
HELENA.
Where art thou. Pythoness ? Whatever be thy name,
Step forth from out these arches of the gloomy keep)
If tliou didst go, uuto the wondrous hero-tord
ih,Googlc
Me to announce, preparing thus reception (it,
Then take my thanks, and lead me speedily to him t
[ wish the wandering dosed, I wish for rest abac.
LEADER OP THE CHORUS-
In vain thou lookest, Queen, all ways around thee here}
Tliat [nU.\ shape hath vanished hence, perhaps remained
Therein themists, from out whose bosom hitherwards—»
I know not how — we came, awiflly, without a step.
Perhaps, indeed, she strays, lost in ihe labyrinth
or many castles wondrously combined in one,
Seeking august and princely welcome from the lord.
Hut see I up yonder moves in readiness a crowd ;
In galleries, at windows, through the portals, comes
A multitude of servants, hastening here and there ;
And this proclaims distinguished welcome to the guest
CHORUS.
i>fy heart is relieved I O, yonder behold
How so orderly downward with lingering step
The crowd of the jrouths in dignity comes,
In regular march ! Who hath given command
That they marshal in ranks, and so promptly disposed,
The youthfullest boys of the beautiful race 7
What shall most I admire ? Is 't the delicate gait,
Or the curls of the hair on the white of the brow,
Or the twin-rounded cheeks, blushing red like the peacl^
And also, like them, with ihe silkiest down ?
Fain therein would I bite, yet I fear me to try j
For, in similar case, was the mouth thereup«»
Filled — I shudder to tell !t ! — with ashes.
But they, the fairest^
Hither ihey come:
What do they bear ^
ih,Googlc
If)» ■ FAUST.
Steps to the throne
Carpet and seat,
Curtain and tent,
Or similar gear ;
Waving around, and
Cloudy wreaths forming
O'er the head of our Queen;
For she already ascendeth,
Invited, the sumptuous couch.
Come forward, now.
Step by step.
Solemnly ranged !
Worlhy, O, threefold worthy her,
May such a reception be blessed )
\4U that is described by the ClIORUS takes place by ■'egrea
Afltr the bays and squires Aave deicended in a limgproees-
lion, Faust appears aieve, at the head ef the staircase, in
knightly Court cDslume of the Middle Ages, and then conf
dawn slaialy and viiti dignity. )
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
[observing htpt attentively).
If now, indeed, the Gods to this man have not lent —
As oft they do to men — a brave, transcendent foim,
A winning presence, stalely dignity of mien,
For temporary service, all he undertakes
Will always bring him triumph, whether in fight with
Or in the minor wars with fairest ladies waged.
Him, verily, to hosts of others I prefer,
Whom, highly-famed withal, 1 have myself beheld.
With slow and solemn siep, by reverence restrained,
I see the Prince approach : turn thou ihy head, 0
Queen!
ih,Googlc
ACT III. ,91
PAUST
\fipprBaehing: a man in fillers at hit n'iü).
Instead of solemn greeting, as beseems,
Or reverential welcome, bring I thee.
Fast-bound in welded fetters, here, the knave
Whose duty slighted cheated me of mine.'"
Kneel down, thou Culprit, that this lofty Dame
May hear the prompt confession of thy guilt!
This, Sovereign Mistress, is the man select
For piercing vision, on the turret high
Stationed to look around, the space of heaven
And breadth of earth to read with sharpest glance.
If here or there perchance come aught to view, —
Between the stronghold and the circling hills
If aught may move, whether the billowy herds
Or waves of arm^d men : those we protect,
Encounter these. To-day — what negligence I
Thou comest, he proclaims it not: we fail
In honorable reception, most deserved,
Of such high guest. Now forfeited hath he
Hia guilty life, and should have shed the blood
Of death deserved ; but only thou shall mete
Pardon or punishment, at thy good will
So high the power, which thou hast granted me,
As Mistress and as Judge, although it were
(1 may conjecture) meant but as a test, —
Yet now 1 use the Judge's bounden right
To give the Accused a hearing : speak then, thou-i
LVNCEUS, THE WARDER OF THE TOWER.
Let me kneel, and let me view her.
Let me live, or let me die !
VOL. 11. 9 H
ih,Googlc
For enslaved, devoted to her,
This God-granted Dame, am I.
Watching for the Morn's advancing
Where her pathways eastward run,
All at once, a sight entrancing,
In the South arose the sun."i
There to look, the Wonder drew me:
Not the glens, the summits cold,
Space of sky or landscape gloomy, —
Only Her did I behold.
Beain of sight to me was given,
Like the Ij-ni on highest tree ;
But in vain I 've urged and striven,
'T was a dream that fettered me.
Could 1 know, or how be aided ?
Think oi tower or bolted gate ?
Vapor.> JOse and vapors faded.
And the Goddess came in state I
Eye and heart did I surrender
To the sottly-shining spell:
Blinding all with Beauty's spIendcM-,
She hath blinded me, as weU.
I forgot the warder's duty
And the trumpet's herald-call:
Threaten to destroy me ! Beauty
Bindeth anger, frees her thrall.
The Evil which I bro ight, I dare no more
Chastise. Ah, woe to ve ! What fate sever«
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 195
Pursues me, everywhere the breasts of men
So to infatuate, that nor them, nor aught
Besides of worth, they spare? Now plundering,
Seducing, fighting, hurried to and fro,
Heroes and Demigods, Gods, Demons even.
Hither and thither led me, sore-perplexed.
Sole, I the world bewildered, doubly more;
Now threefold, fourfold, woe on woe I bring.
Remove this ^iltless man, let him go free I
The God-deluded merits no disgrace.
FAUST.
Amazed, O Queen, do I behold alike
The unerring archer and the stricken prey.
I see the bow, wherefrom the arrow sped
That wounded him. Arrows on arrows fly,
And strilce me. 1 suspect the feathered hum
Of bolts cross-fired through all the courts and tower&
What am I now? At once rebellious thou
Makest my faithfullest, and insecure
My walls. Thence do I fear that even my hosts
Obey the conquering and unconquered Dame.
What else remains, but that I give to thee
Myself, and all 1 vainly fancied mine?
Let me, before thy feety in fealty true.
Thee now acknowledge, Lady, whose approach
Won thee at once possession and the throne I
LYNCEUS
{with a ehtil, and mm iiihe follow, btaring ntheri).
Thou seest me. Queen, returned and free !
The wealthy begs a glance from thee :
Thee he beheld, and feeleth, since,
As be^ar poor, yet rich as prince.
ih,Googlc
S FAUST.
What was 1 erst ? What now am I ?
What shall I will ? — what do, or try ?
What boots the eyesight's shaqKst ray?
Back from thy throne it bounds away.
Forth from the East we hither pressed,"«
And all was over with the West :
So long and broad the people massed,
The foremost knew not of the last.
The foremost fell, the second stood;
The third one's lance was prompt and good ;
Each one a hundred's strength supplied ;
Unnoted, thousands fell and died.
We onward pressed, in stormy chase ;
The lords were we from place to place ;
And where, to-day, / ruled as chief.
The morrow brought another thieL
We viewed the ground, but viewed in haste :
The fairest woman one embraced,
One took the oxen from the stall;
The horses followed, one and all.
But my delight was to espy
What rarest was, to mind and eye ;
And all that others might amass
To me was so much withered grass.
I hunted on the treasure-trail
Where'er sharp sight could me avaU:
In every pocket did I see,
And every chest was glass-to «e.
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
And heaps of gold I came to own,
With many a splendid jewel-stone:
The emeralds only worthy seem
Greenly upon thy breast to gleam.
'Twjxt lip and ear let swaying sleep
The pearly egg of Ocean's deep ;
Snch place the rubies dare not seek.
They 're blanched beside the rosy cheek.
And thus, the treasure's offering
I here before thy presence bring:
Laid at thy feet, be now revealed
The spoils of many a bloody field 1
Though I have brought of chests a store.
Yet iron caskets have I more.
Let me attend thee, do thy will,
And I thy treasure-vaults wiU fill.
For scarcely didst thou mount the throne,
Than bowed to own and bent to own
Thy Beauty's sway, that very hour,
Wisdom, and Wealth, and sovereign Power.
All such I held secure, as mine ;
Now freed therefrom, behold it thine !
I deemed its worth and value plain;
Now see I, it was null and vain.
What 1 possessed from me doth pass,
Dispersed like mown and withered grass.
One bright and beauteous glance afford,
And all its worth is straight restored !
ih,Googlc
,8 FAUST.
PAUST.
Remove with speed the burden boldly won,
Not blamed, indeed, but neither with reward.
All is her own already, which the keep
Within it holds ; and special offer thus
Is useless. Go, and pile up wealth od wealth
In order fit! Present the show august
Of splendors yet unseen ! The vaulted halls
Make shine like clearest heaven I Let Paradise
From lifeless pomp of life created be I
Hastening, before her footsteps be unrolled
The flower-embroidered carpets ! Let her tread
Fall OD the softest footing, and her glance.
Cods only bear undated, on proudest pomp 1
What the lord commands is slight ;
For the servants, labor tight :
Over wealth and blood and breath
This proud Beauty govemeth.
Lo ! thy warrior-throngs are tame ;
All the swords are blunt and lame ;
Near the bright fortn we behold
Even the sun is pale and cold ;
Near the riches of her face
All things empty, shorn of grace.
HELENA (A. Faust).
Fain to discourse with thee, I bid thee come
Up hither to my side ! The empty place
Invites its lord, and thus secures me mine.
FAUST.
First, kneeling, let the dedication be
Accepted, lofty Lady \ I^ me kiss
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
The gracious hand that lifts me to thy side.
Confirm me as co-regent of thy realm,
Whose borders are unknown, and win for thee
Guard, slave and worshipper, and all in one !
I hear and witness marvels manifold ;
Amazement takes me, much would I inquire.
Yet now instruct me wherefore spake the man
With strangely-sounding speech, friendly and strange:
Each sound appeared as yielding to the next, "J
And, when a word gave pleasure to the ear.
Another came, caressing then the first
FAUST.
If thee our people's mode of speech delight,
O thou shale be enraptured with our song.
Which wholly satisfies both ear and mind)
But it were best we exercise it now :
Alternate speech entices, calls it forth.
Canst thou to me that lovely speech impart?
PAUST.
T is easy : it must issue from the heart ;
And ii the breast with yearning overflow,
One looks around, and asks —
HELENA.
Who shares the glov
FAUST.
Nor Past nor Future shades an hour like this ;
But wholly in the Present —
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
HELENA.
FAUST.
Gain, pledge, and fortune in the Present stand :
What confirmation does it ask?
My hand.
CHORUS.
Who wouVd take it amiss, that our Princess
Granteth now to the Castle's lord
Friendliest demonstration ?
For, indeed, collectively are we
Captives, as ofttimes already.
Since the infamous down^ll
Of Ilion, and the perilous,
Labyrinthine, sorrowful voyage.
Women, to the love of men accustomed,
Dainty choosers are they not.
But proficients skilful ;
And unto golden-haired shepherds.
Perchance black, bristly Fauns, xaa.
Even as comes opportunity,
Unto the limbs in their vigor
Fully award they an equal right
Near, and nearer already sit
They, to each other drawn,
Shoulder to shoulder, knee to knee ;
Hand in hand, they bend and sway
Dver the throne's
Softly-piUowed, luxurious pomp.
ih,Googlc
Majesty here not withholds its
Secretest raptures.
Wilfully, boldly repealed
Thus to the eyes of the people.
I feel so far away, and yet so near;
And am so fain to say : " Here am I ! here."
FAUST,
1 scarcely breathe ; I tremble; speech is dead:
It b a dream, and day and place have fied.
I seem as life were done, and yet so new.
Blent thus with thee, — to Ihee, the Unknown, ti
To probe this rarest fate be not impelled !
Beli^ is duty, though a moment held.
PHORKYAS (viaUntly mlerins).
Spell in lovers' primers sweetly!
Probe and dally, cosset featly,
Test your wanton sport completely !
But there is not time, nor place.
Feel ye not the gloomy presage?
Hear ye not the trumpet's message?
For the niin comes apace.
Menelaus with his legions
Storms across the hither regions;
Call to batUe all your race !
By the victors execrated,
Like Deiphobus mutilated,
Thou shalt pay for woman's grace:
ih,Googlc
First shall dangle every light one,
At the altar, then, the Bright One
Find the keen axe in its place 1
Disturbance rash ! repulsively she presses in ;
Not even in danger meet is senseless violence.
Ill message makes the fairest herald ugly seem ;
Thou, Ugliest, delightest but in evil news.
Yet this lime shall thou not succeed ; with empty breath
Stir, shatter thou the air! There is no danger here,
And unto us were danger but an idle threat
[Signalt, txplonans froin Ik4 tmaers,"* irumpil$ and contdt,
marlUU music. A povurfui armed force marehet pott.)
No ! hero-bands, none ever braver.
At once shall thou assembled see :
He, sole, deserves the ladies' favor.
Whose ann defends them gallantly.
{Thlit leitdert b/ Ikt traept, taho detaeh themsetvei from tiU
cfflumni, and tame for^vardi.)
With rage restrained, in silence banded,
And certain of the victory-feast,
Ye, Northern blossoms, half expanded.
Ye, flowery fervors of the East !
The light upon their armor breaking.
They plundered realm on realm, at will :
They come, and lo ! the earth is quaking;
They march away, it thunders stilt I
In Pylos we forsook the waters ;
The ancient Nestor is no more,
And soon our lawless army scatters
The troopa of kings on Grecian shore.
ih,Cooi^lc
ACT in. 20J
Back from these walls, no more delaying,
Drive Menelaus to the sea I
There let him wander, robbing, slaying^
As was his wish and destiny.
1 hail you Dukes, as forth ye sally
Beneath the rule of Sparta's Queen !
Now lay before her mount and valley.
And you shall share the kingdom green !
Thine, Gennan, be the hand that forges
Defence for Corinth and her bays :
Acha'ia, with its hundred gorges,
1 give thee, Goth, to hold and raise.
Towards Elis, Franks, direct your motion ;
Messene be the Saxon's state :
The Norman claim and sweep the ocean.
And Ai^lis again make great !
Then each shall dweU in homes weU-dowered,
And only outer f oemen meet ;
Yet still by Sparta over-towered.
The Queen's ancestral, ancient seat
Each one shall she behold, abiding
In lands that lack no liberal right ;
And at her feet ye 'II seek, confiding
Your confirmation, law and light !
[Faust Asctnds from Iht threiu: Ihe Prituti farm a dn.
areund Aim, in order to receive sftcial commands and h
"■)
CHORUS.
Who for himself the Fairest desires.
First (rf all things, let him
ih,Googlc
304 FÄU!.T.
Biavely and wisely a weapon acquire I
Flattering, indeed, he may conquer
What on earth is the highest;
But he quietly may not possess.
Wily sneaks entice her away.
Robbers boldly abduct her from him :
This to hinder be he prepared!
Therefore now our Prince I praise,
Holding him higher than others,
Since he wisdom and strength combines.
So that the strong men obedient stand.
Waiting his every beckon.
They his orders faithfully heed.
Each for the profiting of himself
As for the Ruler's rewarding thanks,
And for the highest renown of both.
For who shall tear her away
Now, from the mighty possessor ?
His is she, and to him be she granted,
Doubly granted by us, whom he.
Even as her, within by sure walls hath sun
And without by a powerful host
FAUST.
The gifts they 've won by o_. ,
In fee to each a wealthy land, —
Are grand and fair : grant them possession !
We in the midst will take our stand.
And they in rivalry pioiect thee,
Half-Island, girdled by the sea
With whispering waves, — whose soft hill-chains cc
thee
With the last branch of Europe's mountain-tree !
ih,Googlc
ACT TIT. 3<
This land, before all lands id splendor,'"
On every race shall bliss confer, —
Which to my queen in glad surrender
Yields, as it first looked up to her,
When, 'mid Eurotas' whispering rushes
She burst from Leda's purple shell,
So blinding in her beauty's flushes,
That mother, brothers, felt the spell!
This Irnd, which seeks thy sole direction,
lis brightest bloom hath now unfurled:
Prefer thy fatherland's affection
To what is wholly thine, the world !
And though upon its ridgy backs of mountains
The Sun's cold arrow smites each cloven head.
Yet, where the rock is greened by falling fountains.
The wild-goat nibbles and is lightly fed.
The springs leap forth, the streams united follow;
Green are the gorges, slopes, and meads below :
On hundred hillsides, cleft with many a hollow.
Thou seest the woolly herds like scattered snow.
Divided, cautious, graie with measured paces
The cattle onward to the diizy edge,
Yet for them all are furnished sheltered places,
Whrre countless caverns arch the rocky ledge.
Pan guards them there, and nymphs of life are dwelling
In bushy clefts, that moist and freshest be;
And yearningly to higher regions swelling.
The branches crowd aloft of tree on tree.
ih,Googlc
2o6 FAUST.
Primeval woods! the strong oak there is regnant.
And bough crooks out &oni bough in stubborn state ;
The maple mild, with sweetest juices pregnant.
Shoots cleanly up, and dallies with its weight
And motherly, in that still realm of shadows,
The warm milk flows, for child's and lambkin's lijjs :
At hand is fruit, the food of fertile meadows.
And from the hollow trunk the honey drips.
Here comfort is in birth transmitted ;
To cheek and lip here joy is sent :
Each is immortal in his station fitted.
And all are healthy and content
And thus the child in that bright season gaineth
The father- strength, as in a dream :
We wonder; yet the question still remainetli.
If they are men, when Gods they seem.
So was Apollo shepherd-like in feature.
That other shepherds were as fair and fleet;
For where in such clear orbit moveth Nature,
All worlds in inter-action meet"'
( Taking Ail leal bfsidf her. )
Thus hath success my fate and thine attended ;
Henceforth behind us lei the Past be furled !
O, feel thyself from highest God descended !
For thou belongcst lo the primal world.
Thy life slnll circum'^cribe no fortress frowning!
Still, in eternal youth, stands as it stood.
For us, our slay with every rajjture crowning,
Arcadia in Sparta's neighborhood.
ih,Googlc
ACT III. 207
To tread this happy soil at last incited,
Thy flight was towards a joyous destiny I
Now let our throne become a bower unblighted,
Our bliss )>econie Arcadian and free 1
1 TTu seem ofatHon is lemplitely transformed. Againila rangt
of rocky tautrtts cleie öirweTi art conslrucUd. A tkadaiay
grcve exttndi /<• tht foot of tht rocks vhkh rist an all lidts.
Fausv and He.LEHKart not tan: Ike Chokvs lies ttaOend
aimU, sltipiiig\
PHORKYAS.
How long these maidens have been sleeping, know I not :
If they allowed themselves to dream what now mine eyes
So clearly saw, is equally unknown to me.
Therefore, 1 wake them. They, the Young, shall be
amazed, —
Ye also, Bearded Ones, who sit below and wait,'" —
Solution of these marvels fioaUy to see.
Awake ! arise ! and shake from off your locks the dew,
The slumber from your eyes ! Listen, and cease to blink I
CHORUS.
Speak and teU us, quickly tell us, all the wonders that
have happened I
We shall hear with greater pleasure, if belief we cannot
give it.
For both eye and mind are weary, to behold these rocks
PHORKYAS.
Children, you have hardly rubbed your eyes, and are you
Hear me, then \ Williin these caverns, in the grottos
and the arbors,
Screen and shelter liave been lent, as unto twain idyllic
To our Lord and to our Lady.
ih,Googlc
9o8 FAUST.
CHORUS.
How? «ritbin there?
PRORXVAS.
Separated
Frcm tbe world, me only did they summon to their qoiet
Honored thus, I stood beside them, but, as fit in one so
Looked around at something other, turning here and there
at random, —
Seeking roots, and bark, and mosses, being skilled in
healing simples, —
And the twain were left alone.
CHORUS.
Speakest thou as if within were spaces roomy as the
world is ;
Wood and meadow, lakes and rivers, — what a fable
dost thou spin !
PHORKYAS.
Certainty, ye Inexperienced I Those are unexplored
Hall on hall, and court on court succeeding, mu^ngly I
tracked.
All at once a laughter echoes through the spaces of the
As I look, a Boy is leaping from the mother's lap to
father's.
From the father to the mother : the caressing and the
dandling,
Teasing pranks of silly fondness, cry of sport and shout
of rapture.
They, alternate, deafen me.
ih,Googlc
Acr I/T 209
He, a G«nius naked, wingless, like a Fatm witlioiit the
beasthood.
Leaps upon the solid pavement -, ^et the pavement now
reacting.
Sends him flying high in air, and at the second bound
or third, he
Seema to graze the vaulted roof.
Cries, disquieted, the mother: "Leap repeatedly, at
•pleasure,
But beware of flying! for prohibited is flight to thee."
And thus warns the f aithiul father : " Dwells in earth
the force elastic
Which thee upwards thus impelleth ; touch but with thy
toe the sur&ce,
Uke the son of Earth, Antxus, straighturay art thou
strong again."
So he springs upon the rocky masses, from a dizzy
To another, and around, as springs a ball when sharply
struck.
Yet, a-sudden, in a crevice of the hollow gulf he 's van-
And it seemeth we have lost him ! Mother mourns, and
father comforts,
Shoulder-shru^ing, anxiously 1 stand. But now, again,
what vision !
Are there treasures yonder hidden? Garments striped
with broidered blossoms
Hath he worthily assumed.
Tassels from his shoulders swaying, fillets flutter round
his bosom,
In his hand the golden lyre, completely like a little
Phcebus,
Cheerily to the brink he steps, the jutting edge: we
stand astounded,
ih,Googlc
aro FAUST.
And the parents in their rapture clasp each other to the
What around his head is shining? What it is, were
hard to warrant,
Whether golden gauds, or flame of all-subduing strength
So he moves with stately gesture, even as boy himself
proclaimiag
Future Master of all Beauty, all the melodies eternal
Throbbing in his flesh and blood ; and you shall thus^
delighted, hear him, —
Thus shall you behold him, with a wonder never felt
before I
CHORUS.
Call'st thou a marvel this,
Creta 's begotten ? ™
Poetic-didactical word
Hast thou listened to never?
Never yet hearkened Ionia's
Never received also Hellas'
Godlike, heroical treasure
Of ancient, primitive legends ?
All that ever happens
Now in the Present
Mocks like a mournful echo
The grander days of the Fathers.
Not comparable is thy story
Unto that loveliE:tt falsehood,
Than Truth more credible,
Sung of the Son of Mala !
This strong and delicate, yet
Scarcely delivered suckling.
Swathe ye in purest downy bands,
ih,Googlc
Bind ye in precious diapered stuffs,
As is ihe gossiping nurse's
Unrea.son..ble notion !
Strongly anti daintily draws, no less,
Now the r<^ue the flexible,
Firm yet elastic body
Cunningly out, and leaveth the close.
Purple, impeding shell
Quietly there in its place,
Like Ihe completed butterfly.
Which from the chilly chrysalid
Nimbly, pinion-unfolding, slips,
Boldly and wilfully fluttering llirougb
Sunshine-pervaded ether.
So he, too, the sprightliest ;
That unto thieves and jugglers —
All the seekers of profit, as well, —
He the favorable Dxmon was.
Did he speedily manifest
By the skilfullesl artifice.
Straight from the Ruler of Ocean stole
He the trident, — from ArSs himself
Slyly the sword from the scabbard ;
/uTows and bow from Phcebus, and then
longs that Hephxstos was using.
Even from Zeus, the Father, bolts liad he
Filched, had the Are not scared him.
Eros, also, he overcame
In leg-tripping wrestling match ;
Then from Cypris, as she caressed him,
Plundered the lone from her bosom.
L4n ixquiitlt, pttriiy melodicus music rf siringtd iiulr:::;ientt
mounds from thi cavern. All btcatni attenlivt. ana soon
a^iptat tv Ac deeply moved. From l/ih pinnt IP tht fituM
diägnalid, there ii a full muiical ac!einfanimt>it.\
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
FHORKYAS.
Hark \ the music, pure and golden ;
Free from fables be at last !
All your Gods, the medley olden,
Let depart ! their day is past
You no more are comprehended ;
We require a higher part :
By the heart must be expended
What shall work upon the heart.
\Slu retires tcnvatdi Iht roetl.)
CHORUS.
If the flattering music presses.
Fearful Being, to thine ears,
We, restored to health, confess us
Softened to the joy of tears.
Let the sun be missed from heaven,
When the soul is bright with mom !
What the world has never given
Now within our hearts Is bom.
EUPHORION."'
Hear ye songs of childish pleasure,
Ye are moved to playful glee ;
Seeing me thus dance in measure,
Leap your hearts parentally.
HKLSNA.
Love, in human wise to blest tu,
In a noble Fair must be;
But divinely to possess us,
It must form a precious Three.
ih,Googlc
All ne seek has therefore found us ;
I am thine and thou art mine .'
So we stand as Love hath bound us :
Other fortune we resign.
CHORUS.
Many years shall they, delighted,
Gather from the shining boy
Double bliss for hearts united :
In their union what a joy !
EUPHORION.
Let me be skipping,
Let me be leaping!
1\> soar and circle,
Through ether sweeping,
Is now the passion
That me hath won.
But gently! gently!
Not rashly fMing;
Lest plunge and ruin
Repay thy daring.
Perchance destroy thee.
Our darling son !
EUPH ORION.
I will not longer
Stagnate below here I
Let go my tresses.
My hands let go, hercl
Let go my garments I
They all are mine.
ih,Googlc
O tliiiik ! Bethink thee
To whom thou belongest I
How it would grieve us,
And how ihou wrongest
The fortune Eairest, —
Mine, His, and Thine 1
CHORUS.
Soon shall, I fear me.
The sweet bond untwine 1
HBLENA AND FAUST.
Curb, thou Unfortunate 1
For our desiring.
Thine over-importunate
Lofty aspiring !
Rurally quiet.
Brighten the plain I
EU P MORION.
Since you will that I try It,
My flight I restrain.
M dance through tht Chorus, and dratmi^ tkem
■aiith J/in.j
Round them I hover free ;
Gay is the race :
Is this the melody ?
Move I with grace?
Yes, that is featly done :
Lead them through, every one.
ih,Googlc
ACT irr.
FAUST.
SooD let it ended be t
Sight of such jugglery
Troubles my heart.
ftnM EuPKOmoN, daiuing nmily tmd lingiitg, in inttrlink-
ing ranit).
When thou thine arms so fsür
Giarmingly liftest,
The curls of thy shining hair
Sbakest and shiftest;
/Then thou, with foot so light,
Brusheat the earth in flight.
Hither and forth ag^n
Leading the Unk61 chain.
Then is thy goal in sight,
Loveliest Boy 1
All of our hearts in joy
Round thee unite.
eUPHORIOM.
Not yet repose,
Ye light-footed roes I
Now to new play
Forth, and away 1
I am the hunter,
You are the game.
Wouldst thou acquire us,
Be not so fast I
We are desirous
ih,Googlc
Only, at last,
Clasping thy beauty.
Kisses to claim f
Through groves and through hedges I
O'er cliffs and o'er ledges f
Lighdy what fell to me,
That I detest:
What I compel to me
Pleases me best
HELENA AND FAUST.
How perverse, how wild he 's growing!
Vain to hope for moderation ;
Now it sounds like bugles blowing,
Over vale and forest pealing:
What disorder ! What a brawl !
{tnleriHg tiagly, in kasti).
Forth from us with swiftness ran he I
Spuming us with scornful feeling.
Now he drags from out the many
Here, the wildest one of all.
EUPHORION {tearing a yeuitgUAiaK»).
Here I drag the little racer,
And by force will I embrace her j
For my bliss and for my zest
Press the fair, resisting breast,
Kiss the mouth, repellent still, —
Manifest my strength and will.
MAIDEN.
Let me go t This frame infoldeth
ih,Googlc
ACT III
Also courage, strength of soul :
Strong as thine, our will upholdeth,
When another would control.
1 am in a strait, thou deemest ?
What a force thine arm would cl^m !
Hold me. Fool, and ere thou dreamest
I will scorch thee, in my game.
{She turtu tff flame <mäfla$hei ufi in tie air.)
To the airy spaces follow,
Follow me to caverns hollow.
Snatch and hold thy vanished aim!
EUPHORION
{lAaiing off the last flames').
Rocks all around me here.
Over the forests hung !
Why should they bound me here "i
Still am 1 fresh and young.
Tempests are waking now,
Billows are breaking now ;
Both far away I hear;
Fain would be near.
(He leaps ever/arlAer up tile roekt.)
HELENA, FAUST, AND CHORUS.
Chamois-like, dost thou aspire ?
Fearful of the fall are we,
EUPHORION.
I must clamber ever higher.
Ever further must I see.
Now, where I aro, I spy I
Midst of the Isle am 1 1
VOL. II.
ih,Googlc
Midst of Pelops' land,
Kindred in soul, I sUnd ! "
CHORUS.
Bide thon by grove and hitl,
Peacefully, rather t
We from the vineyards will
Grape» for thee gather,—
Grapes from the rii^es taaoe«^
Figs, and the apple's gold :
Ah t yet the lovely land,
Loving, behold I
EUFHORION.
Dream ye the peaceful day ?
Dream, then, who may .'
War! is the countersign:
Victory — word divine 1
CHORUS.
Who peace and tmity
Scometh, for war's array.
With impunity
Slays his hope of a better day.
EUPHORION.
They, who diis land have led
Through danger and dread,
Free, boundlessly brave.
Lavish of blood they gave, —
May they, with glorious
Untamable might,
Make us victorious,
Now, in the fight I
ih,Googlc
ACT III.
CHORUS.
Look aloft ! he seeks the Faniess,
Yet to U9 not small he seems.
Aa for battle, as in harness,
He like steel and silver gleams.
Walls and towers no more immurinfc,
Each in vigor stands confessed t
Fortress firm and most enduring
Is the soldier's iron breast
Would ye dwell in freemen's houses?
Arm, and forth to combat wild !
See, as Amazons, your spouses,
And a hero every child I
Hallowed Poesy,
Heavenward mounting, see !
Shining, the fairest star.
Farther, and still more far t
Yet, from the distance blown.
Hear ¥fe the lightest tone.
And raptured are.
EUPHORION.
No, 't is no child which thou behoMest —
A youth in arms, with haughty browt
And nrith the Strongest, Freest, Boldest,
His soul is pledged, in manly vow.
Igol
For, lol
Tbe path to Glory opens now.'»
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
HELENA AND PAUST.
Thou ihy being scarcely leamest.
Scarcely feel'st the Day's glad beam,
When from giddy steeps thou yeamcst
For the place of pain supreme 1
Are then we
Naught to thee ?
Is the gracious bond a dream ?
EUPHORION.
And hear ye thunders on the ocean ?
From land the thunder-echoes call ?
In dust and foam, with fierce commodon.
The armies shock, the heroes fall !
The command
Is, sword in hand.
To die : 't is certain, once for alL
HELENA, PAUST, AND CHORUS.
What a horror ! We shall rue it !
Ah, is Death command to thee ?
Shall 1 from the distance view it?
No ! the fate be shared by me !
THE ABOVE.
Danger his arrogance brings :
Fatally bold !
EUPHORION.
Yes ! — and a pair of wings
See me unfold I
Thitherl I must! — and thus!
Grant me the flight !
\Htcaat himttlf into tkt air: lAt garmenti tearhima m^
mtnt, hit head is iäumiaatiä, and a itrtai cf light faUafai.\
ih,Googlc
ACT III. aai
CHORUS.
Icarus 1 Icarus t
Sorrowful sight !
\A htauHful Youth fallt at tkt fat of the parents. Wt imagine
thai in the dead body me pirceioe a wtll-kntium form ; yet
tht cerporeal part vanishes at once, and the aureole rises lite
a lemtt taaards heaven. Tht garment, mantle, and lyre
Ttmain upon tht ground^
HELENA AND FAUST.
Joy is followed, when scarce enjoyed,
By bitterest moan.
EUPHORION (Jrom tht drpths).
Leave me here, in the gloomy Void,
Mother, not thus alone !
CHORUS. [Dirge.]"*
Not alone 1 where'er thou bidest ;
For we know thee what thou art.
Ah! if from the Day thou hidest,
Still to thee will cling each heart
Scarce we venture to lament thee,
Singing, envious of thy fatei
For in storm and sun were lent thee
Song and courage, fair and great
Ah ! for earthly fortune fashioned.
Strength was thine, and proud descent:
Early erring, o'er-impassioned.
Youth, alas ! from thee was rent.
For the world thine eye was rarest,
All the heart to thee was known :
ih,Googlc
.Thine wei« loves of women fairea^
And a song thy very owd.
Yet thou rannest uncontrolledly
In the net the fancies draw,
Thus thyself divorcing boldly
As from custom, so from law ;
Till the highest thought expended
Set at last thy courage free :
Thou wouldst win achievement splen<Ud,
But it was not given to thee.
Unto whom, then ? Question dreary.
Destiny will never heed ;
When in evil days and weary.
Silently the people bleed.
But new songs shall still elate them :
Bow no longer and deplore I
For the soil shall generate them,
As it hath done heretofore.
Cem^^ paust. Tht mmit aatt.
HELENA (ts Faust).
Also in me, alas! an old word proves its truth,
That Bliss and Beauty ne'er enduringly unite.
Tom is the link of Life, no less than that of Love ;
So, both lamenting painfully I say : Farewell I
And cast myself again — once only — in thine arms.
Receive, Persephone, receive the boy and me.
\Ske embraut FautT : her torporeal part diiafpean, htr gar-
vunt and vrii remain in ^s amu.)
FHORKYAS (A> FaUST).
Hold ^t what now alone remans to thee I
The garment let not go! Already twitch
ih,Googlc
ACT HI. 333
The Demons at its skhts, and they would fain
To the Nether Regions drag itl Hoklitbstt
It is no more the Goddess tbou hast kwt,
But godlike is it For thy use em[doy
The grand and priceless gift, and soar aloft I
'T will bear thee swift from all things mean and low
To ether high, so long thou canst endure.
We '11 meet again, far, very far from here.
\KKixtt\'i garaunti diaclvt inta clcuds,'^ turrmmd Paust,
lift Aim aloft in tkt air, and ibom aaay tiiUh him. )
PHORKYAS
\laitt up EuphorIOn's luni^, mantti, and lyre from thiiarik,
tttpt forward te HUproieemant, koldi ateft thtie remains, and
tpiaii).
Good leavings have I still discovered 1
The Flame has vanished where it hovered,
Yet for the world no tears I spend.
Enough remains to start the Poets living,
And envy in their guilds to send ;
And, if their talents are beyond my giving,
At least the costume I can lend.
{She laUt Atrtelf ufvH a raiumn in de praiftnium.)
Now hasten, maidens 1 we are from the magic freed,
The old Thessalian trollop's mind-compelling spell, —
Freed from the jingling drone of much-be wildcring
The ear confusing, and still more the inner sense.
Down, then, to Hades! since beforehand went the
Queen,
With solemn step descending. Now, upon the track,
Let straightway follow her the step of faithful maids !
Her shall we find beside the unfathomed, gloomy King.
ih,Googlc
924 FAUST.
CHORUS.
Queens, of course, are satisfied everywhere;
Even in Hades take they highest rank,
Proudjy associate with their peers.
With Persephone cloeely allied:
We, however, in the background
Of the asphodel-besprinkled meadows,
With the endless rows of poplars
And the fruitless willows ever mated, —
What amusement, then, have we ?
Bat-like lo squeak and twitter
In whispers uncheery ajid ghostly !
LEADER OF THE CHORUS.
Who hath not won a name, and seeks not noble works,
Belongs but to the elements : away then, ye !
My own intense desire is with my Queen to be ;
Service and faith secure the individual life.'^
\Exa.
Given again to the daylight are we,
Persons no more, 't b true, —
We feel it and know it, —
But to Hades return we never I
Nature, the Ever-living,'"
Makes to us spirits
Validest claim, and we to her also.
A PART OF THE CHORUS.
We, in trembling whispers, swaying nistle of a thousand
branches
Sweetly rocked, will lightly lure the rills of life, the
rootbom, upwards
To the twigs ; and, or with foliage or exuberant gush
of blossoms.
ih,Googlc
ACT in.
«s
Will we freely deck their flying hair for prosperous airy
growth.
Then, when falls the fruit, will straightway gather glad-
dened herds and people,
Swiftly coming, briskly pressing, for the picking and
the tasting :
All, as if before the early Gods, frill then around us
bend.
A SECOND FART.
We, beside these rocks, upon the far-ofE shining, glassy
Coaxingly will bend and fluctuate, moving with the gen-
tle waters ;
We Vi every sound will hearken, song of bird or reedy
piping i
Though the dreadful voice of Pan, a ready answer
shall we give ;
Comes a munnur, we re-munnur, — thunder, we our
thunders waken
In reverberating crashes, doubly, trebly, tenfold flung I
A THIRD FART.
Sisters, we, of nimbler fancy, hasten with the brooklets
onward;
For allure us yonder distant, richly-mantled mountain
Ever downwards, ever deeper, in meandering; curves
First the meadow, then the pasture; then the garden
round the house.
Marked by slender peaks of cypress, shooting clearly
into ether
O'er the landscape and the waters and the fading line
of shore.
ih,Googlc
136 FAUST.
A FOURTH PART.
Fare, ye othen, at your pleasure ; we will ^rdle and
o'errustle
The completely-planted hillside, where the sprouting
vines are green.
There at every hour the passion of the vint^^er is wit-
nessed.
And the loving diligence, that hath so doubtful a result.
Now with hoe and now with shovel, then with billing
pruning, tying,
Unto all the Gods be prayeth, chiefly to the Sun's
bright god.
Small concern hath pampered Bacchus for hi» faidiful
But in arbors rests, and cavenis, toyii^ widi die
youngest Faun.
For his semi^drunken visions whatsoever be hath needed,
It is furnished him in wine-skios, and in amphorse and
Kight and left in cool recesses, cellared for eternal time.
But if now the Gods together, Helios before the others.
Have with breeze and dew and warmth and glow the
berries 6Ued with juice.
Where the vintager in silence labored, all Is life and
motion,
Every trellis stirs and rnstles, and they go fnxa stake to
stake.
Baskets creak and buckets rattle, groaning tubs are
borne on back,
All towards the vat enonnous and the treaders' lusty
So is then the sacred bounty of the pure-bom, juicy
berries
Rudely trodden; foaming, spirting, they are mixed aad
grimly crushed.
ih,Googlc
ACT .WI- 327
Now the ear is pierced with cymbals and the clash of
brazen bosses,
For, behold, is Dionysos from his mysteries revealed !
Forth he comes with goat-foot Satyrs, whirling goat-foot
Satjresses,
While amid the rout Silenus' big-eared beast unruly
Naught is spared ! The cloven hoofs tread down all
decent custom ;
AH the senses whirl bewildered, fearfully the ear b
stunned.
Drunkards fumble for the goblets, over-full are heads
and paunches ;
Here and there hath one misgivings, yet increases thus
the tumult ;
For, the fresher must to gamer, empty they the ancient
skinl
\The eurlaiH falls.'^ Phorkvas, in lAt freictnium, ritttte
a giant height, ilept dmim from tki cothurni, rtmaves ktr
maiM and veil, and rnieals htrself as Mefhibtophiles, in
ardtr, to far at it may it ntetttary, to cemment tifon tit
fitet by -a/ay of Efi!egtu.\
ih,Googlc
HIGH MOUNTAINS.
Streng, serrated rocky ptakj. A doHd approaclUi, fauiei, and
leälet dcvm upon a frojeeting Itdgt. It then divUts.
FAUST {jtept forth).
DOWN-GAZING on (he deepest solitudes below,
I tread deliberately this summit's lonely edge,
Relinquishing my cloudy car, which hither bore
Me softly through the shining day o'er land and Ma.
Unscattered, slowly moved, it separates from me.
Off eastward strives the mass with rounded, rolling
And strives the eye, amazed, admiring, after it.
In motion it divides, in wave-like, changeful guise ;
Yet seems to shape a figure.'"' — Yes! mine eyes not
On sim-illumined pillows beauteously reclined,
Colossal, truly, but a godlike woman-form,
I see ! The like of Juno, Leda, Helena,
Majestically lovely, floats before my sight !
Ah, now 't is broken ! Towering broad and formlessly,
It rests along the east like distant icy hills.
And shapes the grand significance of fleeting days.
Yet still there clings a light and delicate band of mist
ih,Googlc
Around my breast and brow, caressing, cheering me.
Now light, delaylngly, it soars and higher soars.
And folds together. — Clieats me an ecstatic form,
As early- youthful, long-foregone and highest bliss?
The first glad treasures of my deepest heart break forth ;
Aurora's love, so light of pinion, is its type,
The swiftly-felt, the first, scarce<ompreh ended glance,
Outshining every treasure, when retained and held.
Like Spiritual Beauty mounts the gracious Form,
Dissolving not, but lifts itself through ether iar,
And from my inner being bears the best away.
{A Sevm-lengHt Boot trips forarard : 'y an^htr immediately
ßllnai. tAEFHiSTOPHELis t/fft ml ir/' tAem. TAi Beoti
ttride omixird in hasti. )
HEPHISTOPHELES.
I call that genuine forward-striding!
But what thou mean'st, I 'd have thee own,
That In such horrors art abiding,
Amid these yawning jags of stone ?
It was not here I learned to know them well ;
Such was, indeed, the bottom-^ound of HeU.
FAUST.
hi foolish legends thou art never lacking ;
Again thy store thou sei'st about unpacking.
HEPHISTOPHELES (siriouily).
When Cod the Lord — wherefore, 1 also know, -.
Banned us from air to darkness deep and central.
Where round and round, in fierce, intensest glow.
Eternal fires were whirled in Earth's hot entrail,
We found ourselves too much illuminated.
Yet crowded and uneasily situated.
The Devils all set up a coughing, sneezing,
ih,Googlc
ajo
FAUST.
At every vent without ceasition wheedng :
With sulphur-s tench and acids Hell dilated,
And such enormous gas was thence created.
That very soon Earth's level, iar extended,
Thick as it was, was heaved, and spht, and rended !
The thing is plain, no theories o'ercome it :
What fonnerly was bottom, now is summit
Hereon they base the law there 's no disputing,
To give the undermost the topmost footing :
For we escaped from fiery dungeons there
To overplus of lordship of the air ; —
A mystery manifest and well concealed,"»"
Actd to the people only late revealed.
To me are mountain-masses grandly dumb :
I ask not. Whence ? and ask not, Why ? they come.
When Nature in herself her being founded,
Complete and perfect then the globe she rounded.
Glad of the summits and the gor^s deep.
Set rock to rock, and mountain steep to steep,
The hills with easy outlines downward moulded.
Tin gently from their feet the vales unfolded !
They green and grow ; with joy therein she ranges,
Requiring no insane, convulsive changes.
HBPHISTOPHELES.
Yes, so you talk ! You think it clear as sun ;
But he knows otherwise, who saw it done.
For 1 was there, while still bek>w was surging
The red abyss, and streamed the flaming tide, —
When Moloch's hammer, welding rocks and forging,
Scattered the mountain-ruins far and wide.
O'er all the land the foreign blocks you spy there ; ■"
Who solves the force that hurled them to their place i
ih,Googlc
ACT jy.
The lore of learned men is all awi? there ;
There lies the rock, xai «e must let it lie there ;
We 've thought already — to our own disgrace.
Only the common, faithful people know,
And nothing shakes them in their firm believing i
Their wisdom ripened lot^ ago, —
A marvel 't is, of Satan's own achieving.
On crutch of f^th my traveller climbs the ridges,
Past Devil's Rocks and over Devil's Bridget.
FAUST.
Well, — 't is remarkable and new
To note how Devils Nature view.
What 's all to me P Her shape let Nature wear!
The point of honor is, the Devil was there !
We are the folk to compass grand designs :
Tumult, and Force, and Nonsense ! See the signs I —
Yet now, with sober reason to address thee,
Did nothing on our outside shell impress \hef. ?
From this exceeding height thou saw'st unfurled
The glory of the Kingdoms of the World.'is
Yet, as thou art, unsatisfied,
Didst feel no lust of power and pride ?
FAUST.
I did ! A mighty plan my fancy won ;
Canst guess it ?
MEPHISTOPHELES.
That is quickly done.
1 'd take some town, — a capital, perchance, — ■
Its core, the people's need of sustenance ;
With crooked alleys, pointed gables.
Beets, cabbage, onions, on the market-tables ;
ih,Googlc
'33
FAUST.
With meat-stands, wher« the blue flies muster,
And round fat joints like gourmands cluster :
There shall thou find, undoubtedly,
Stench, always, and activity.
Then ample squares, and streets whose measure
Assumes an air of lordly leisure ;
And last, without a gate to bar,
The boundless suburbs stretching far.
'T were joy to see the coaches go.
The noisy crowding to and fro.
The endless running, hither, thither.
Of scattered ants that stream together ;
And whether walking, driving, riding.
Ever their central point abiding.
Honored by thousands, should be I.
FAUST.
Therewith I would not be contented I
One likes to see the people multiply.
And in their wise with comfort fed, —
Developed even, taught, well-bred.
Yet one has only, when all 's said.
The sum of rebels thus augmented. '^^
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Then 1 should build, with conscious power and grace,
A pleasure- castle in a pleasant place ;
Where hill and forest, level, meadow, field.
Grandly transformed, should park and garden yield.
Before green walls of foliage velvet meadows.
With ordered paths and artful-falling shadows ;
Plunge of cascades o'er rocks with skill combined.
And fountain-jets of every form and kind.
There grandly shooting upwards from the middle,
While round the sides a thousand spirt and piddle.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. ,33
Then for the fairest women, fresh and rosy,
I 'd build a lodge, convenient and cosey;
And so the bright and boundless time 1 should
Pass in the loveliest social soliiude-
Womea, I say ; and, once for all, believe
That in the plural I the sex conceive I
FAUST,
Sardanapalus I Modem, — poor 1
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Then might one guess whereunto thou hast striven ?
Boldly-sublime it was, 1 'm sure.
Since nearer to the moon thy flight was driven,
Would now thy mania that realm secure ?
FAUST.
Not so ! This sphere of earthly soil
Still gives us room for lofty doing.
Astounding plans e'en now are brewing :
1 feel new strength for bolder toil
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
So, thou wilt Glory earn ? 'T is plain to see
That heroines have been thy company.
Power and Estate to win, inspires my thought !
The Deed is everything, the Glory naught
Yet Poets shall proclaim the matter.
Thy fame to future ages flatter,
By folly further folly scatter 1
ih,Googlc
All that is tax beyond thy reach.
How canst thou know what men beseech ?
Thy cross-grained self, in malice banned,
How can it know what men demand ?
MEPHISTOPHELBS.
According to thy will so let it be I
Confide the compass of thy whims to me 1
FAUST,
Mine eye was drawn to view the open Ocean : '^
It swelled aloft, self-heared and over-vaulting,
And then withdrew, and shook its waves in motion.
Again the breadth of level strand assaulting.
Then I was vexed, since arrogance can spite
The spirit free, which values every right,
And through excited passion of the blood
Discomfort it, as did the haughty flood.
I thought it chance, my vision did I strain ;
The billow paused, then thundered back agato,
Retiring from the goal so proudly won :
The hour returns, the sport 's once more begun.
MEPHtSTOPHELES (ad tptelatons).
'T is nothing new whatever that one hears ;
I 've known it many a hundred thousand years.
{contimäng impasntnedty).
The Sea sweeps on, in thousand quarters flowing,
Itself unfruitful, barrenness bestowing;
It breaks and swells, and rolls, and overwhelms
The desert stretch of desolated realms.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. 335
There endless waves hold swny, in strength erected
And then withdrawn, — and nothing is effected.
If aught could drive me to despair, 't were, truly
The iümless force of elements unruly.
Then dared my mind its dreams to over-soar :
Here would I fight, — subdue this fierce uproar !
And possible 't is ! — HoweVr the tides may fill,
They gently fawn around the steadfast hill ;
A moderate height resists and drives asunder,
A moderate depth allures and leads them on.
So, swiftly, plans within my mind were drawn :
Let that high joy be mine forevermore,
To shut the lordly Ocean from the shore,
The watery waste to limit and to bar,
And push it back upon itself afar I
From step to step 1 settled how to fight it :
Such is my wish : dare thou to expedite it I
\firtimt and martial naait in tAe rtar ef tht sftilateri, freu'
the JiitaiKe, on tht rig^t htaid.')
UEFHISTOPHELES.
Howeasy, that!— Hear'st thou the drums ?'"•*
FAUSI.
Who 's wise likes not to hear of coming war.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
In War or Peace, 't is wise to use the chance,
And draw some profit from each circumstance.
One watches, marks the moment, and is bold :
Here 's opportunity! — now, Faust, take bold I
FAUST.
Spare me the squandering of thy riddle-pelf I
What means i^ once for all ? Explain thyself I
ih,Googlc
^ FAUST.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Upon my way, to me it was discovered
Ttiat mighty troubles o'er the Emperor hovered :
Thou knowest him. The while we twain, beside him,
With weaJth illusive bounteously supplied him,
Then all the world was to be had for pay;
For as a youth he held Imperial sway,
And he was pleased to try it, whether
Both interests would not smoothly pair.
Since 't were desirable and fair
To govern and enjoy, together.
FAUST.
A mighty error I He who would command
Must in commanding find his highest blessing:
Then, let his breast with force of will expand,
But what he wills, be past another's guessing!
What to his faithful he hath whispered, that
Is fumed to act, and men amaze thereat ;
Thus will he ever be the highest-placed
And worthiest ! — Enjoyment makes debased.
MEPHISTOPHELES,
Such is he not! He /A'rf enjoy, even he!
Meanwhile the realm was torn by anarchy,
Where great and smalt were warring with each other.
And brother drove and slaughtered brother,
Castle to castle, town 'gainst town arrayed,
The nobles and the guilds of trade,
The Bishop, with his chapter and congregation, —
All meeting eyes but looked retaliation.
In churches death and murder; past the gates,
The merchants travelled under evil fates;
And all grew bolder, since no rule was drawn
For life, but : Self-defence ! — So things went od.
ih,Googlc
They went, they limped, they fell, arose again,
Then tumbled headlong, aod in heaps rem^n.
HEPHISTOPHELES.
Such a condition do man dared abuse.
Each would be something, each set forth his dues;
The smallest even as full-measured passed:
Yet for the best it grew too bad at last
The Capible, they then arose with energy,
And sii;l ; " Who gives us Peace, shall ruler be.
The Emprror can and will not ! — Be elected
An Emperor new, anew the realm directed,
Each one secure and sheltered stand,
And in a fresh-constructed land
Justice and Peace be mated and perfected !"
FAUST,
Priest-like, that sounds.
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
Priests were they, to be sure ;
They meant their well-fed bellies to secure;
They, more than all, therein were implicated.*)'
The riot rose, the riot was consecrated.
And now our Emperor, whom we gave delight.
Comes hitherward, perchance for one last fight
FAUST.
I pity him ; he was so frank, forgiving.
MEPH ISTOPHELES.
Come, we '11 look on ! There 's hope while one is livingl
Let us release him from this narrow valley I
He 's saved a thousand times, if once he rally.
ih,Googlc
Who knows how yet the dice may fall f
It he has fortuae, vassals come withal.
I TAey crvii avrr Ihi middle rangt »f mautUaim, and vitw
arrangtment ef Iht army in Hit valley. Drums and m
tary mutie risotmdfrom Af/«o.]
HEFHISTOPRELBS.
A good position is, I see, secured them ;
We 'U join, then victory wiU be assured them.
What further, I should Uke to know ?
Cheat! Blind delusion I Hollowshowl
HEPHlSrOPUELES.
No, — stratagems, for battle-winning I
Be steadfast for the grand beginning,
And think upon thy lofty aim !
If we secure the realm its rightful claimant,
Then shall thou boldly kneel, and claim
The boundless strand in feoS, as payment
FAUST.
In many arts didst thou excel :
Come, win a battle now, as well !
MEPHISTOPHELES.
No, tkou Shalt win it ! Here, in brief,
Shalt thou be General-in-Chief.
FAUST.
A high distinction thou wouldst lend, —
There to command, where naught 1 comprehe&d^
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. s
UEPKISTOPHBLES.
Leave to the Staff the work and Mame,
Then the Field-Marshal 's sure of fame !
Of War-UncouncUs I have had eaough,
And my War-Council fashion of the stuff
Of primal mountains' primal human might :
He 's blest, for whom its elements unite !
PAUST.
What do I see, with arms, in jouder place ?
Hast thou aroused the mountain-race 7
llEPHISTOPHEI.ES,
Nol But I 've brought, like Peter Squence,'»
From all the raff the quintessence.
TV 7%ra Mikity Mtn afiptar.'*
MEPH ISTOFHEI.es.
My fellows draw already near !
Thou seest, of very different ages,
Of different garb and armor they appear :
They will not serve thee ill when battle rages.
{Ad ifiatatora,)
Now every child delights to see
The harness and the helm of knightly action '
And allegoric, as the blackguards be.
They '11 only all the more give satisfaction.
BULLY
{yimng, ligMliy armed, eladin motlty).
When one shall meet me, face to face,
My fisticuffs shall on his chops be showered;
And midway in his headlong race,
Fast by his fl>-ing hair 1 '11 catch the coward.
ih,Googlc
^O FAUST.
HAVEQUtCK
i(maiily, tetll-armed, richly ilad).
Such empty brawls are only folly I
Tbey spoil whate'er occasion brings.
In biking, be unwearied wholly,
And after, look to other things I
HOLDFAST
{wtll inyiari, strongiy^annai, wilhctä nämeiii).
Yet little gain thereafter lingers!
Soon slips great wealth l>etween your fingers,
Borne by the tides of Life as down they run.
T is well to take, indeed, but better still to hold:
Be by the gray old churl controlled,
Aad thou shalt plundered be by none,
(Thty dtxmd tkt mnmlaiH l^ttitr.)
ih,Googlc
ON THE HEADLAND.«
Dmmi and military naaiifrom Mm. The Ehpexor'S tint
ispitcAtJ.
EuPEKOR. General-in-Chief. Life-Guari>shen.
GEHEKAL-IN-CHIEF.
IT still appears the prudentest of courses
That here, in this appropriate vale,
We have withdrawn and strongly massed our forces;
I firmly trust we shall not fail.
EMPEROR.
What comes of it will soon be brought to light ;
Yet I dislike this yielding, semi-flight
GENERAL-IN-CHIEF.
Look down, my Prince, where our right flank is planted t
The field which War desires hath here been granted :
Not steep the hills, yet access not preparing,
To us advantage, to the foe insnaring ;
Their cavalry will hardly dare surround
Our strength half hid, on undulating ground.
EUPEROH.
My commendation, only, need I speak ;
Now arm and courage have the test they seek.
VOL. IL I [
ih,Googlc
GENRRAL-IN-CKIEP.
Here, on the middle meadow's level spaces
Thou seest the phalanx, eager in their places.
In air the lances gleam and sparkle, kissed
By sunshine, through the Glniy morning mist
How darkling sways the grand and powerful squarel
The thousands bum for grea.t achievements there.
Therein canst thou perceive the strength of masses ;
And thine, be sure, the foemen's strength surpasses.
Now first do 1 enjoy the stirring si^t :
An army, thus, appears of double might
GENBRAL-IN-CHIBP.
But of our left I 've no report to make.
Brave heroes garrison the rocky brake;
The stony cliffs, by gleams of weapons specked.
The entrance to the close defile protect
Here, as I guess, the foemen's force will shatter,
Forced unawares upon the bloody matter.
And there they march, false kin, one like the otherl
Even as they styled me Uncle, Cousin, Brother,
Assuming more, and ever more defying.
The sceptre's power, the throne's respect, denying;
Then, in their feuds, the realm they devastated,
And now as Rebels march, against me mated I
Awhile with halting minds the masses go,
Then ride the stream, wherever it may flow.
GENEK A L-IN-CHl EP.
A faithful man, sent out some news to win.
Comes down the rocks : may he have lucky been I
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. 843
FIRST SFt.
Luckily have we succeeded ;
Helped by bold and cunning art,
Here and there have pressed, and heeded,
But 't is ill news we impart.
Many, purest homage pledging.
Like the faithful, fealty swore, —
For inertness now alleging
People's danger, strife in store.
EMPEROR.
They leant from selfishness self-preservation.
Not duty, honor, grateful inclination.
You do not thiiiK that, when your reckoning 's shown,
The neighbor's burning house shall fire your own I
GEMERAL-IN- CHIEF.
The Second comes, descending slowly hither;
A weary man, whose strength appears to wither.
SECOND spy.
First with comfort we detected
What their plan confused was worth ;
Then, at once and unexpected,
Came another Emperor forth.
As he bids, in ordered manner
March the gathering hosts away-.
His unfokled lying banner
All have followed. — Sheep are they I
EMPEROR.
Now, by a Rival Emperor shall I gain :
That / am Emperor, thus to me Is plaia
ih,Googlc
But as a soldier 1 the mail put on ;
Now for a higher aim the sword be drawn I
At all my shows, however grand to see,
Did nothing lack : but Danger lacked, to mt.
Though you but lilting at llie ring suggested,
My heart beat high to be in tourney tested;
And had you not from war my mind dissuaded,
For glorious deeds my name were now paraded.
But independence then did I acquire,
When I stood mirrored in the realm of fire :
In the dread element I dared to stand ; —
'T was but a show, and yet the show was grand.
Of fame and victory I have dreamed alone ;
But for the base neglect I now atone 1
(7^ IISRALUS are dtspal€ktd la ikilltjige the Xivai Emptror
Faust entirs, in armor, with kal/ilosed visor. The Thxes
MiGHTV Men, armed and clothid. as alriady dtscribtd.
We come, and hope our coming Is not chidden ;
Pnidence may help, though by the need unbidden.
The mountain race, thou know'st, think and explore, -
Of Nature and the rocks they read the lore.
The Spirits, forced from the level land to sever.
Are of the rocky hilb more fain than ever.
Silent, they work through labyrinthine passes,
In rich, metallic fumes of noble gases,
On solving, testing, blending, most intent:
Their only passion, something to invent
With gentle touch of spiritual power
They build transparent fabrics, hour by hour;
For they, in crystals and their silence, furled,'*
BehoU events that rule the Upper World.
ih,Googlc
EHPEROR.
I understand it, and can well agree ;
But My, thou gallant man, what 's that to me F
The Sabine old, the Norcian necromancer, '■■
Thy true and worthy servant, sends thee answer:
What fearful fate it was, that overhung him I
The fagots crackled, fire already stung him ;
The billets dry were closely round him fixed,
With pitch and rolls of brimstone intermixed;
Not Man, nor God, nor Devil, him could save,—
The Emperor plucked him from his fiery grave.
It was in Rome. Still is he bound unto thee ;
Upon thy path his anxious thoughts pursue thee ;
Himself since that dread hour forgotten, he
Questions the stars, the depths, alone for thee.
Us he commissioned, by the swiftest courses
Thee to assist. Great are the mountain's forces;
There Nature works all-potenlly and free,
Though stupid priests therein but magic see.
EHPEROR.
On days of joy, when we the guests are greeting,
Who for their gay delight are gayly meeting.
Each gives us pleasure, as they push and pull.
And crowd, man after man, the chambers full ;
Yet chiefly welcome is the brave man, thus.
When as a bold ally he brings to us
Now, in the fateful morning hour, his talents,
While Destiny uplifts her trembling balance.
Yet, while the fates of this high hour unfold.
Thy strong hand from the willing sword withhold,—
Honor the moment, when the hosts are striding.
For or against me, to the field deciding !
ih,Googlc
146 FAUST.
Self is the Man 1 '•* Whocrowii uidlhrone wouldclaim
Musi personally be worthy of the »me.
And may the Phantom, which against us stands,
The self-styled Emperor, Lord of all our lands.
The army's Duke, our Princes' feudal head,
With mine own hand be hurled among the dead I
FAUST.
Howe'er the need that thy great work be 6nl£hed,
Risked were thy head, the chances were diminished
Is not the helm adorned with plume ^nd crest ?
The head it shields, that steels our courage best
Without a head, what should the members bridle \
Let it but sleep, they sink supine and idle.
If it be injured, all the hurt confess in 't,
And all revive, when it is convalescent
Then soon the arm its right shall reassert,
And lift the shield to save the skull from hurt:
The sword perceives at once its honored trust,
Parries with vigor, and repeats the thrust :
The gallant foot its share of luck will gain, ,
And plants itself upon the necks of slain.
Such is my «Tath ; I 'd meet him thus, undaunted,
And see bis proud head as my footstool planted 1
HERALDS (rWbnwfff ).
little honor was accorded ;
We have met with scorn undoubted:
Our defiance, nobly worded.
As an empty farce they flouted :
" Lo, your Lord is but a vision, —
Echo of a vanished prime :
When we name him, says Tradition :
'Me was — once upon a timt /'"
n-./GoOglc
FAOST.
It 's happened as the best would f^n have planned,
Who, film and faidiful, stUl beside thee stand.
There comes the foe, thj amy waits and wishes ;
Order attack 1 the moment is auspicious.
EUPEROR.
Yet I decline to exercise command.
( Tb tkt General- in-Chief.)
Thy du^, Prince, be trusted to thy hand I
GEMBRAL-IN<HIEF.
Then let the right wing now advance apace !
The enemy's left, who just ijegin ascending.
Shall, ere the movement dose, give up their place,
Before the youthful force onr field defending.
FAUST,
Permit me, then, that this gay hero may
Be stationed in thy ranks, without delay, —
That with thy men most fully he consort,
And thus incorporate, ply his vigorous sport I
{HefoitUi tf tkt MlGHTV Man an lie right.)
BULLY {cemiHg/onpard),"^
Who shows his face to me, before he turn
Shall find his cheekbones and his chops are shattered :
Who shows his back, one sudden blow shall earn.
Then head and pig-tail dangling hang, and battered!
And if thy men, like me, will lunge
With mace and sword, beside each other,
Man over man the foe shall plunge
And in their own deep blood shall smother I
[Exit,
ih,Googlc
»4» FAUST.
GEHERAI^IH-CHIEF.
Let then our centre phalanx follow slow, —
Engage with caution, yet with might, the foe)
There to the right, already overtaken.
Our furious force their plan has rudely shaken I
FAUST (pointing tB thi middit ent\.
Let also this one now obey thy word 1
HAVEQUICK (cemttfOTVardS.
Unto the host's heroic duty .
Shall now be joined the thirst for booty ;
And be the goal, where all are sent.
The Rival Emperor's sumptuous tent I
He shall not long upon his seat be lorded:
To lead the phalanx be to me acc<wded I
SPEEDBOOTV
(tutUriss, fawtting upon him).
Though never tied to him by priest,
He is my sweetheart dear, at least
Our auiumn 't is, of ripest gold !
Woman b fierce when she takes hold,
And when she robs, is merciless :
All is allowed, so forth to victory press t
\ExeuntMK
GENERAL-IN-CHIEF.
Upon our left, as was to be foreseen.
Their right is strongly hurled. Yon rocks between.
Ours will resist their furious beginning.
And hinder them the narrow pass from winning.
FAUST
(btckont to tht MrCHTV MaN <■« the lift).
I beg you, Sire, let this one also aid ;
'T Is well when even the strong are stronger made
ih,Googlc
ACT IV.
r [coming fiira>ard£\.
Now let the left wing have no fear !
The ground is surely held, where I appear :
1 am the Ancient you were told of :
No lightning splits what I keep hold of I
HEPHISTOPHELBS
{ätscrtidiHg from aioiie).
And now behold, how, more remote,
From every jagged rocky throat
Comes forth an armdd host, increasing,
Down every narrow pathway squeezing.
With helm and harness, sword and spear,
A living rampart in our rear.
And wait the sign to charge the foemen t
{iliiiü, tu the knowing im«.]
You must not ask whence comes the omen.
I have not been a careless scout.
But cleared the halls of armor round about.
They stood a-foot, they sat on horses.
Like Lords of Earth and real forces :
Once Emperors, Kings, and Knights were they,
Now empty shells, — - the snails have crawled away.
Full many ghosts, arrayed so, have for us
Revamped the Middle Ages thus.
Whatever Devils now the shells select,
This once 't will still create effect
{Aloud.)
Hark ! in advance ihey stir their an^r,
Each jostling each with brassy clangor 1
The banner-rags of standards flutter flowing.
That restless waited for the breeze's blowing.
ih,Googlc
(^O FAUST.
Here standeth ready, tuiw, an ancient race ;
Id the new conflict it would £aiii have place.
\Tnmtttdoia ftal of tnanpttt frem ahavi: apereeftiiUvii
ing im tht hostile artny.)
FAUST.
The near horizon dims and darkles ;
Yet here and there with meaning sparklet
A ruddy and presaging glow ; *"
The blades are red where strife is sorest,
The atmosphere, the rocks, the forest,
The very heavens the combat show.
HEPH ISTO PHELES.
The right flank holds its ground with vigor:
There, towering over all, defiant,
Jack Bully works, the nimble giant,
And drives them with his wonted rigor.
EUPBKOR.
I first beheld one arm uplifted.
But DOW a dozen tossed and shifted :
Unnatural such things appear.
FAUST,
Hast thou not heard of vapors Banded.
O'er the Sicilian coasts expanded ?
There, hovering in daylight clear.
When mid-air gleams in rarer phases,
And mirrored in especial hazes,
A vision wonderful awakes :
There back and forth are cities bending,
With gardens rising and descending,
As form on form the ether breaks.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV.
EUFEKOR.
Yet how suspicious I I behold
The tall spears tipped with gleams of gold ;
Upon our phalanx' shining lances
A nimble host of flaroelets dances :
Too spectral it appears to roe.
FAÜST.
Pardon me. Lord, those are the traces
Of spirits of the vanished races, —■
The fires of Pollux and of Castor,
Whom seamen call on in disaster :
They here collect their final strength for thee.
But say, to whom are we indebted,
That Nature hath our plans abetted,
With shows of rarest potency P
«EPHISTOPHELES.
To whom, indeed, but that old Roman
Whose care for thee at last is proved ?
By the strong menace of thy foemen
His deepest nature has been moved.
His gratitude would see thee now delivered,
Though his own being for thy sake be shivered.
EMPEROR.
They cheered my march, with every pomp invested;
I felt my power, I meant to see it tested ;
So, carelessly, I found it well, as ruler.
To send the white beard where the air was cooler.
1 robbed the Clei^ of a pleasant savor.
And, truly, have not thus acquired their favor.
ih,Googlc
Shall I, at lasi, since many years are over,
The payment for that merry deed recover?
FAUST.
Free-hearted help heaps interest;
Look up, and cease to watch the foemeni
Methinks that he will send an omen ;
Attend ! the sign is now expressed. '"J
BHPEROR.
An Eagle hovers In the heavenly vault ;
A GrifEn follows, menacing assault
FAUST.
Give heed I It seems most favorable.
The Griffin is a beast of fable :
How dare he claim a rival regal,
And meet in fight a genuine Eagle P
EHPEKOR.
And now, in circles wide extended.
They wheel Involved, — then, like a flash.
Upon each other swifüy dash.
That necks be cleft and bodies rended I
FAUST.
Mark now the evil Griffin quail !
Rumpled and torn, the foe he fearetl^
And with his drooping lion's-tail.
Plunged in the tree-tops, disappeareth.
Even as presaged, so may it be I
I take the sign, admiringly.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV.
UEPHISTOPHELES (towardi Ihr righf).
From the force of blows repeated
Have our enemies retreated;
And in fight uncertain, shifting,
Towards their right Ihey now are drifting
Thus confusing, by their courses.
All the left flank of their forces.
See ! our phalanx, fimily driven,
Moves to right, and, like the levin,
Strikes them in the weak position. —
Now, like waves in wild collision.
Equal powers, with rage opposing,
In Ihe double fight are closing.
Gloriously the weapons rattle ;
We, at last, have won the battle 1
EUPEROR
{en thr Itfl. to FaUst).
Look! it yonder seems suspicious;
For otir post the luck 's capricious.
Not a stone I see them throw there ;
Mounted are the rocks below there.
And the upper ones deserted.
Now! — to one hujtc mass converted
Nearer moves the foe, unshaken.
And perchance the pass hath taken.
Such the unholy plan's conclusion !
All your arts are but delusion.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
There come my ravens, croaking presage;
What nature, then, may be their message?
I fear we stand in evil plight
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
EMPEROR.
What mean these fatal birds enchanted ?
Their inky sails are hither slanted,
Hot from the rocky field of fight
MEPHISTOPHELES [fe the Ravtni).
Sit at mine ears, your flight retarded I
He is not lost whom you have guarded ;
Your couDsel 'a logical and right
FAUST (lo tht Emfiror).
Thou hast, of course, been told of pigeons,
Taught to return from distant regions
To nests upon their native coast
Here, differently, the plan 's succeeded;
The pigeon-post for Peace ts needed.
But War requires the raven-post
UEPHISTOPKELES.
The birds announce us sore mischances.
Sec, yonder, how the foe advances
Against our heroes' rocky wall,
The nearest heights even now attaining 1
Should they succeed the pass in gaining,
Our fortunes, then, were criUcaL
EMPEROR.
Defeat and cheat at last are on me !
Into your meshes you have drawn me:
I shudder, since they bind me fast
MEPHISTO PHELES.
Courage \ Not yet the die is cast
Patience and knack, for knot-untying I
The close will be the fiercest stand.
ih,Googlc
Snre meBsengera for me are flying:
Command that I may give command I
GEKERAL-IK- CHIEF
{aiAo hat mtamoMiU arrwed).
To follow these hast thou consented ;
Thence all the time was I tonnented :
No fortune comes of jugglery.
The battle 'a lost, I cannot mend it ;
'T was they began, and they may end it :
My baton I return to tbee.
EHFEROR.
Retain it for the better season
Which Fortune still to us may send I
I dread the customers with reason, —
The ravens and their ugly friend.
{To Mbphistofheles.)
As for the baton, thou must leave it ;
Thou 'rt not, methinks, the proper man.
Command the fight, canst thou retrieve it !
Let happen all that happen can !
[Exit into fhe lent with the General-in-Chiei
HEPH ISTOPHBLES.
The blunt stick still be his protection t
'T would naught avail in our direction ;
There was a sort of Cross thereon.
FAUST.
What 's to be done ?
HEFHISTOFH ELES.
The thing is done ! >^ —
Now, my black cousins, speed upon your duties
ih,Googlc
35* FAUST.
To the mountain-Uke ! The Undines, watery beantles,
Entreat, the appearance of their floods to spare 1
By female arts, beyond our sharpest seeing.
They can divide the Appearance from the Being,
And all will swear the Being 's there !
Our ravens must, with flattery beladen,
Have sweetly coaxed each winsmne water-maiden ;
The trickling streams at once descend.
The bald and rocky shoulders of the mountains
Give birth to full and swiftly-flowing fountains ;
Their victory is at an end.
MEPHISTOPRBLES.
To such reception they 're not used :
The boldest climbers grow confused.
FAUST.
Now brook roars down to brook with mighty bubble ;
Then from the mouths of glens they issue double.
And fling themselves, in arches, o'er the pale ;
Then suddenly spread along the rocky level,
And to and fro foam onward in their revel,
As down a stairway hurled into the vale.
What boots their gallant, hero-like resistance ?
The billow bursts, and bears them down the distance ;
Before such wild uproar even 1 must quail
Nothing I see of all this moist illusion :
To human eyes, alone, it brings confusion, ■
And in the wondrous chance 1 take delight
They fly in headlong, hurried masses ;
ih,Googlc
ACT ZV. J57
That they are drowning, think the asses :
Though on the solid land, they see an ocean,
And run absurdly with a swimming motion.
It is a most bewildering plight.
( The Rtniens return^
To the high Master will I praise you duly;
But would you test yourselves as masters fully,
Then hasten to that smithy eerie,
Where the dwarf-people, never weary,
Hammer the sparks from ore and stone.
Demand, while there you prate and flatter,
A fire to shine, and shoot, and scatter,
As in the highest sense 't is known.
'T is true that distant lightning, quivering far-lights,
And failing, quick as wink, of highest star-lights.
May happen any summer night ;
Bnt lightning, loose among the tangled bushes,
Aod stars that hiss and fizsle in the rushes,
Are shows that seldom meet the sight.
Take no great pains, you understand ;
But first entreat, and then command I
{ExaiiUthe Ratani. All takei plare at preicribtd^
Upon the foe falls Night's thick curtain.
And step and march become uncertain I
In every quarter wandering blazes.
And sudden glare, that blinds and dazes 1
All that seems fine; yet we should hear
Their wild, commingled cries of fear.
FAUST.
The hollow armor from the vaulted chambers
In the free air its ancient strength remembers :
It rattles there, and clatters all around, —
A wonderful, a cheating sound.
ih,Googlc
HEPHISTOPHEIXS.
Quite right I The fonns there 's no restraining:
Already knightly whacks are raining,
As in the splendid times of old.
The brassarts there, as well as cuisses,
Are GueUs and Ghibellines ; and this is
Renewal of the feud they hold.
Firm in transmitted hate they anchor,
And show implacably their rancor :
Now far and wide the noise hath rcdled.
At last, the Devils find a hearty
Advantage In the hate of Party,
Till dread and nun end the tale :
Repvbive sounds of lage and panic.
With others, piercing and Satanic,
Resound along the frightened vale I
{Warliki tumuÜ in tht Orchtttra, ßtiaüy fatting imit livdj
martiai mtaiurti.)
ih,Googlc
III.
THE RIVAL EMPEROR'S TENT.
Throne; Rich Surroundings.
Havequick. Speedbooty,
sfeedbooty.
CO, we are here the first, I see I
HAVEQUICK.
No raven fliea so swift as we.
SPEEDBOOTY.
O, how the treasure-piles extend '
Where shall 1 once begin ? where end ?
HAVEQUICK.
But all the space is full I And now
I kcow not what to take, I vow I
SPEEDBOOTY.
This carpet is the thing I need t
My couch is often hard indeed.
HAVEQUICK.
Here hangs a morning-star, so strong,
The like of which I 've wanted long.
SPEEUBOOTY.
This crimson mantle, bound with gold.
Is like the one my dreams foretold.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
HAVEQUICK {lakiHg thiweapBtt').
With this, a man Is quickly sped;
One strikes him dead, and goes ahead.
Thou art already latleii so,
And nothing riglit thy sack can shov.
This rubbish, rather, here forsake,
And one of yonder caskets take !
The army's modest pay they hold,
Their bellies full of purest gold.
SPEEDBOOTY.
0 what a murderous weight is there I
1 cannot lift it, cannot bear.
HAVEQUICK.
Quick, bend and squat to take the pack 1
I 'U heave it on thy sturdy back.
SPEEDBOOTY.
O me ! Alack ! the burden slips :
The weight has crushed my back and hips.
( Tkt clust falls and bursli optK.\
HAVEQUICK.
There lies the red gold in a heap !
Quick, rake and take what thou canst keepl
SPEEDBOOTY ({nmihii^ ä(mn\.
Quick, let the booty fill my lap!
T will still be quite enough, mayhap.
HAVEQUICK.
So I there 's enough ! Now haste, and go t
{Sluri^s.)
The apron has a hole, ah woe 1
ih,Googlc
Wherever thou dost walk or stand,
Thou sowest treasure on the land.'"
GUARDSMEN (ofenr EmfEKOR).
What seek ye here with wanton eyes ?
Ye rummage the Imperial prize I
HAVEQUICK.
We hazarded our limbs for pay,
Aod now we take our share of prey.
In hostile tents 't is always so,
And we are soldiers too, you know.
Among our troops he comes to grief
Who 's both a soldier and a thief:
Who serves our Emperor fair and free,
I^t him an honest soldier be !
HAVEQUICK.
O yes ! such honesty we know :
'T is Contribution, — call it so ! ■•>
In the same mould you all are made .
" Give ! " is the password of your trade.
( To Speedbootv.)
With what thou hast, the coast we '11 dear :
As guests we are not welcome here.
\Exema.
FIRST GUARDSMAN.
Why didst thou not at once bestow
On the scamp's face a smashing blow ?
I know not, — had not strength to strike;
They seemed to me so phantom4ike.
ih,Googlc
THIRD.
Something there was disturbed my si^l^—
A flash : 1 could not see aright
I, also, can declare it not:
The whole day loi^ it was so hoi^
So sultry, close, and terrible ;
One man stood finn, another fell ;
We groped and fought, with valor rash.
The foemen fell at every slash ;
Before one's eyes there was a mist.
And something roared, and hummed, and hissed ;
So to the end, and here are we.
And how it happened, cannot see.
( 7^ EiiPBROB ffCWs, aeeampanied hy Foira PaiHCKS. Tlu
Gl^AKDSMEN reHn.)
EMPEROR. "»
Now fare he, as he may I For us is won the battle,
And o'er the plain the foe have fled like frightened cattle.
The trait'rous treasure, here, the empty throne, we've
found.
That, hung with tapestry, contracts the space around.
Enthroned in honor we, true guardsmen us protecting.
The preople's envoys are imperially expecting.
The messengers of joy arrive from every side.
And, loyal now to us, the realm is pacified.
Though in ourfight, perchance, some jugglery was woi;pn,
Yet, at the last, our own unaided strength we 've proven.
True, accidents sometimes for combatants are good ;
A stone may fall from heaven, on foes a shower of blood ;
From rocky caves may ring tremendous strains of wonder,
That lift our hearts with faith, and drive the foe asunder.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. 363
The Conquered yielded, scourged by Scorn's iminOTta]
rod;
The Victor, as he boasts, exalts the favoring God ;
And all responsive shout, unordered, unentreated :
" We praise Thee, God our Lord 1 " from million throats
repeated.
Yet as the highest praise, so rarely ebe expressed,
I tum my pious glance on mine own grateful breast.
A young and lively Prince may give his days to pleasure ;
Mim teach the years, at last, the moment's use to measure.
Therefore, without delay, 1 call ye, for support,
Beside me, worthy Four, in realm and house and court
(r<j/A^ First.)
Thine vnis, O Prince 1 the host's arrangement, wise in-
spection,
Then, in the nick of time, bereue, bold direction :
Act now in peace, as Time thine offices may show t
Arch-Marshal shalt thou be: the sword I here bestow.
ARCH-MARSHAL.
Thy faithful host, till now employed for civil order,
Thee and thy throne secured, shall strengthen next thy
Then let us be allowed, when festal throngs are poured
Through thine ancestral halls, to dress for thee the board.
Before thee brightly borne, and brightly held beside thee,
Thy Majesty's support, the sword shall guard and guide
theel
EUPEROR (le the SECOND).
He who as gallant man can also gracious be,
Thou, — be Arch-Chamberlain I — not light the place,
for thee.
Thou art the höhest now of aH the house-retainers
ih,Googlc
264 FAUST.
Whose strife makes service bad, — the threateners and
complainers :
Let thy example be an honored sign to these,
How they the Prince and Court, and all, should seek to
please I
A RCH-CH A UBERLAIH .
To speed thy high design, thy grace is fair precuisra' :
The Better to assist, and injure not the Worser, —
Be frank, yet cunning not, and calm vithout decdt 1
If thou but read my heart, I 'm honored as is meeL
But let my fancy now to festal service hasten !
Thou goest to the board, 1 bear the golden basin,
And hold thy rings for thee, that on such blissful days
Thy hands may be refreshed, as 1 beneath thy gaze.
EUPEROR.
Too serious am I still, to plan such celebration ;
Yet be it so I We need a glad inauguration.
( Tu /-(* Third.)
1 choose thee Arch-High-Steward ! Therefore hence-
forth be
Chase, poultry-yard, and manor subject unto thee f
Give me at all times choice of dhhes I delight in,
As with the month they come, and cooked with appe-
ARCH-HICH-STEWARD.
A rigid ^t shall be the penalty I wish,
Until before thee stands a goodly-savored dish.
The kitchen-folk shall join, and gladly heed my reason^
To bring the distant near and expedite the seasons.
Vet rare and early things shall not delight thee long :
Thy taste desires, instead, the simple and the Etnmf.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV. 365
t {leiht YovKtv.),
Since here, perforce, we pUn but feasts, and each is sharer,
Be thou for me transformed, youag hero, to Cup-bearer !
^reh Cup-Bearer, lake heed, that all those vaults of mine
Richly replenished be with noblest taps of wine !
Be temperate thyself, howe'er temptation presses,
Nor let occasion's lure mislead thee to excesses !
My Prince, the young themselves, if trust in them be
shown.
Are, ere one looks around, already men full-grown.
I at the lordly feast shall also take my station.
And give thy sideboard's pomp the noblest decoration
Of gorgeous vesseb, golden, silver, grand to see ;
Yet first the fairest cup will I select for thee, —
A clear Venetian glass, good cheer within it waiüng.
Helping the taste of wine, yet ne'er intoxicating.
One oft confides too much on such a treasured store:
Thy moderation, though. High Lord, protects thee more.
EMPEROR.
What, in this earnest hour, for you have I intended.
From valid mouth confidingly you 've comprehended.
The Emperor's word is great, his gift is therefore sure.
But needs, for proper force, his written signature :
The high sign-manual fails. Here, for commission
needful,
I see the right man come, of the right moment heedful.
(7"^ ARCHBISHOF-AUCH-CUANCELLOKMÜrr-A)
If in the keystone of the arch the vault confide,
Tis then securely built, for endless time and tide.
ih,Googlc
366 FAUST.
Thou aeest Four Princes here ! To them we 'v6 jost
expounded
How next our House and Court shall be more stably
founded.
Now, all the realm contains, within its bounds enclosed.
Shall be, with weight and power, upon Ye Five imposed !
Your landed wealth shall be before all others splendid ;
Therefore at once have I your properties extended
From their inheritance, who raised 'gainst us the hand.
You I award, ye Faithful, many a lovely land.
Together with the right, as you may have occasion,
To spread them by exchange, or purchase, or invasion :
Then be it clearly fixed, that you unhindered use
Whate'er prerogatives have been the landlord's dues.
When ye, as Judges, have the final sentence spoken,
By no appeal from your high Court shall it be broken;
Then levies, tax and rent, pass-money, tolls and fees
Are yours, — of mines and salt and coin the royalties.
That thus my gratitude may validly be staled,
You next to Majesty hereby I 'vc elevated.
ARCHBISHOP.
In deepest thanks to thee we humbly all unite:
Thou mak'st us strong and sure, and strengthenest thy
BHFEROR.
Vet higher dignities I give for your fulfilling.
Still for my realm I live, and still to live am willing;
Yet old ancestral lines compel the prudent mind
To look from present deeds to that which looms behind
I, also, in my time, must meet the sure Redresser;
Your duty be it, then, to choose me a successor.
Crowned, at the altar raise bis consecrated form,
That so may end in peace what here began in storm I
ih,Googlc
ARCH<HANCELLOR.
Vfitb pride profound, yet humbly, as our guise evinces,
Behold, before thee bowed, the first of earthly princes !
So long the faithful blood our living veins shall fill,
We are the body which obeys thy lightest will
Now, to conclude, let all that we have here asserted,
Be, for the future time, to document converted t
T is true that ye, as lords, have your possession free,
With this condition, though, that it uuparcelled be;
And what ye have from us, howe'er ye swell the treas-
ure,
Shall to the eldest son descend in equal n
On parchment 1, at once, shall gladly tabulate,
To bless the realm and us, the statute of such weight:
The copy and the seals the Chancery shall procure us,
Thy sacred hand shall then validity assure us.
EMPEROR.
Dismissal now I grant, that you, assembled, may
Deliberate upon the great, important day.
( 73« Secular Pritieii rtUrt.)
ARCHBISHOP
{rtmaim and ipeaJu ptUkcHcalfy),
The Chancellor withdrew, the Bishop stands before
thee:
A warning spirit bids tliat straightway he imjdore thee'
His heart paternal quakes with anxious fear for thee,
EMPEROR.
In this glad hour what may thy dread misgiving be?
ih,Googlc
808 FAUST.
ARCHBISHOP.
Alas, in such an hour, how much my pain mast greatei^'
To find tliy hallowed head in covenant with Satan !
True, to the throne, it seems, hast thou secured thj
right;
But, woe : in God the Lord's, the Holy PontiS's s(Hte.
Swift shall he punish when he leaxns the truth — the
latter:
Thy sinful realm at once with holy ban he 'U shatter 1
He still remembers how, amid thy highest state.
When newly crowned, thou didst the wiwird liberate.'*'
Thy diadem but made thy heart for Christians harden.
For on that head accurst fell its first t)eam of pardon.
Now beat thy breast, and from thy guilty stores, this
Unto the Sanctuary a moderate mite repay t
The spacious sweep of hills, where stood thy tent
Where Evil Spirits then, united, thee protected, —
Where late the Uar-Priace thy hearing (Ud secure, —
Devote thou, meekly taught, to pious use and pure.
With hill and forest dense, far as they stretch extended.
And slopes that greenly swell for pastures never ended,
Then crystal lakes of fish, unnumbered brooks that flow
In foamy windings down, and braid the vale below [
The broad vale then, itself, with mead, and lawn, and
hollow !
Thus penitence is shown, and pardon soon shall follow.
EMPEROR.
For this, my hea\'y sin, my terror is profound :
By thine own measure shalt thou draw the Imrders
ARCHBISHOP.
First be the spot profane, where nn was perpetrated.
ih,Googlc
ACT IV.
.09
To God's high service soon and wholly dedicated I
With speed the walls arise to meet the mind's desire;
The rising morning sun already lights the choir;
The growing structure spreads, the traosept stands ex-
alted ;
Joy of Believers, then, the nave is lifted, vaulted ;
And while they press with zeal within the portals grand,
The first clear call of bells is swept across the land,
Pealed from the lofty towers that heavenwards have
The penitent draws near, new life to him is given.
The consecration -day — O, may it soon be sent! —
Thy presence then shall be the highest omamenL
EMPEROR.
So great a work shall be my pious proclamation
To praise the Lord our God, and work mine expiation.
Enough ! 1 feel, e'en now, how high my thoughts as-
pire.
ARCHBISHOP.
As Chancellor, next, the formal treaty I require.
ZHPEROR.
A formal document, — the Church needs full requital'.
Bring it to me, and I with joy will sign her title !
ARCHBISHOP
[has taktn Uirve, but turns back again at the doer').
At once unto me work devote, that it may stand.
Tithes, levies, tax, — the total income of the land.
Forever. Much it needs, to be supported fairly.
And careful maintenance will also cost us rarely :
And, that it soon be built, on such a lonesome wold,
Thou 'It from thy booty spare to ua some little gold.
ih,Googlc
270
FAUST.
Moreover, we shal] want — here, most, we claim assist-
ance—
Lumber, and lime, and slate, and such like, from a dis-
The people these shall haul, thus from the pulpit taught;
The Church shall bless the man, whose team for her
has wrought
\Bxit.
EHFBKOR.
The sin is very sore, wherewith my soul is weighted :
Much damage uuto me the Sorcerers have created.
ARCHBISHOP
[rihtrmi^ enee agün, laUk frofaandtst gmußtetiom').
Pardon, O Prince ! to him, that vite, notorious man.
The Empire's coast was given ; but him sliall smile the
Unless thy penitence the Church's wrath relaxes
There, too, with tithes and gifts, and revenues and taxe^
EMPEROR [Ul-humorediy).
The land doth not exist : far in the sea it lies.
ARCHBISHOP.
Who patient is, and right, his day shall yet arise.
Your word for us remains, and makes secure our trover!
{Exit.
EMPEROR («./«).
I might as well, at last, make all the Empire overl
ih,Googlc
ACT V.^
OPEN COUNTRY.
WANDERER.
YES ! 't is they, the dusky lindens ;
There they stand in sturdy age :
And again shall I behold them,
After such a pilgrimage ?
'Tis the ancient place, the drifted
Downs, the hut that sheltered me,
When the billow, stonn-uplifted.
Hurled me shoreward from the sea I
Here with blessing would I greet them.
They, my hosts, the helpful pair, —
Old, indeed, if now 1 meet them.
Since they then had hoary hair.
Pious folk, from whom I parted !
Be my greeting here renewed,
If ye stiU, as open-hearted,
Taste the bliss of doing good !
BAUCIS'^ {a littit woman, very tU).
Gendy, stranger! lest thou cumber
Rest, whereof my spouse hath need !
He but guns from longest slumber
Strength for briefest waking deed.
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
WANDERER.
Tell me, mother, art thou even
She, to whom my thanks I bear, —
t, the youth, whose life was given
By your kind, united caxe ?
Art thou Baucis, who the coldly
Fading mouth refreshment gave ?
( The Hmband appears. )
Thou, Philemon, who so boldly
Drew my treasure from the wave ?
From your fire, so quickly burning.
From your silver-sounding bell.
Changed my doom, to fortune turning
When the dread adventure fell.
Forth upon the sand-hills stealing,
Let me view the boundless sea 1
I^et me pray, devoutly kneeling.
Till my burdened heart be free !
(tit vmlks formard upon the doamt. )
PHILEMON (to Baucis).
Haste, and let the meal be dighted
'Neath the garden's blooming trees I
Let him go, and be affrighted !
He '11 believe not what he sees.
(Fallowt, and standi besidt Iht Wandekbr.1
Where the savage waves maltreated
You, on shores of breaking foam,
See, a garden lies completed,
Like an Eden-dream of home 1
Old was 1, no longer eager,
Helpful, as the younger are :
And when 1 had lost my vigor,
Also was the wave afar.
ih,Googlc
Wise lords set their serfs in niotioii,
Dikes upraised and ditches led,
MinishiDg the rights of Ocean,
Lords to be in Ocean's stead.
See the green of many a meadon.
Field and garden, wood and town I
Come, our table waits ia shadow I
For the sun is going down.
Sails afar are gliding yonder ;
Nightly to the port they fare :
To their nest the sea-birds wander,
For a harbor waits them there.
Distant now, thou hardly seest
Where the Sea's blue arc is spanned,'^—
Right and left, the broadest, freest
Stretch of thickly-peopled land.
ih,Googlc
II.
IN THE LITTLE GARDEN.
The Three at the Table.
BAUCIS (tu tAt Stranger).
ART thou dumb ? Of all we 've brought here^
In thy mouth stuill nothing fall i
PHILEMON.
He would know the marvel wron^^t here :
Fain thou speakest : tell him all !
BAUCIS.
'T was a marvel, if there 's any !
And the thought dbturbs me still :
In a business so uncanny
Surely helped the Powers of IlL
Can the Emperor's soul be perilled,
Who on him the strand bestowed ?
Gave the mandate not the herald,
Trumpeting, as on he rode ?
Near our downs, all unexpected.
Was the work's beginning seen.
Tents and huts ! — but, soon erected.
Rose a palace o'er (he green.
BAUCIS.
Knaves in vain by day were storming,"«
ih,Googlc
ACT V.
Flying pick and spade alike ;
Where the fires at night were swarming,
Stood, the following day, a dike.
Nightly rose the sounds of sorrow,
Human victims there must bleed:
Unes of torches, on the morrow,
Were canals that seaward lead.
He would seize our field of labor,
Hut and garden, godlessly :
Since he k)rds it as our neighbor,
We to him must subject be.
PHILEMON.
Yet he bids, in compensation,
F^r estate of newer land.
Trust not watery foundation I
Keep upon the hiU thy stand t
Let us, to the chapel straying,
Ere the sunset-glow has died,
Chime the vespers, kneel, and, prayings
Still in our old God confide I
ih,Googlc
Spacious Pleasure^ardek : broad, stkaiohtlt-
CUT Canal.
Faust {in txtrtme eld 1^, vaUing about, meditaHvt),
LYNCEUS, THE WARDER
{Ihraug* thi sftaking-lTumfet).
THE sun goes down, the ships are veering
To reach the port, with song and cheer :
A heavy galley, now appearing
On the canal, will soon be here.
The gaudy pennons merrily flutter,
The masts and riggii^ upward climb :
Blessings on thee Üie seamen utter,
And Fortune greets thee at thy prime.
( The little UU ringt on UU tfoamj.)
FAUST [liarting^i.
Accurst chime ! As in derision
It wounds me, like a sfriteful shot:
My realm is boundless to my vision,
Yet at my back this vexing blot !
The bell proclaims, with envious bluster,
My grand estate lacks full design : '"
The brown old hut, the linden-cluster,
The crumbling chapel, are not mine.
If there I wished for recreation,
ih,Googlc
Anodier's shade vrould give no che« :
A thorn it is, a shaip vexatioii, —
Would I were Ear away from here !
WARDER {from abatit).
With ereuiig wind and ^voiing tide^
See dK gay galley hhher glide 1
How richly, on its rapid track,
Tower chest and casket, bale asd sack )
\A tpUndid Gallty, richly and brilliantlj ladtm witk Hit pry
duttions of FertigH Caunlritt.)
Hephistopheles. Thb Three Migrtv Men.
CHORUS.
Here we have landed :
Furl the sail !
Hail to the Master,
Patron, hail !
{TlUy Jütmiark : the goods are btvuglU aiäwt.)
HEPHISTOPBELES.
We 've proved our wortii in many «rays,
Delighted, if the Patron praise t
We siüied away with vesseb twain,
With twenty come to port i^wn.'*
Of great successes to relate,
We only need to show our freight
Free is the mind on Ocean fre» -
Who there can ponder sluggishly ?
You only need a rapid grip ;
You catcit a fish, you seize a ship ;
And when you once are lord of thre^
The fourth is grappled easily ;
The fifth is then in evil plight;
You have the Power, and thus the Right.
ih,Googlc
078 FAUST.
You count the What, and not the Hov:
If I have ever navigated,
War, Trade and Piracy, I vow.
Are three in one, and can't be separated!
TBE THREE MIGHTY HEN.
No thank and hail?
No hail and thank?
As if onr freight
To him «ere rankl
He makes a face
Of great di^ust ;
The royal wealth
Displease him must
MEPHISTOPHELES.
Expect no further
Any pay;
Your own good share
Ye took away.
THE UIGHTY MEN.
We only took it
For pastime £wr ;
We aU demand
An equal share.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
First, arrange them
In hall on hall, —
The [H^cious
Together all I
If such a sfJendor
Meets his ken,
Aad be rqpuds it
ih,Googlc
More closely then,
A niggard he
Won't be, at least :
He '11 give our squadron
Feast on feast
To-morrow the gay birds hither vend,*^
And 1 can best to them attend.
( 7%e cargf ii remirvetf. )
MEPHISTO PHELBS (/a Faust),
With gloomy gaze, with serious brow,
Of this great fortune hearest thou.
Crowned is thy wisest industry,
And reconciled are shore and sea;
And from the shore, to swifter wakes.
The willing sea the vessels takes.
Speak, then, that here, from thy proud seat.
Thine arm may clasp the world complete.
Here, on this spot, the work was planned ;
Here did the first rough cabin stand ;
A little ditch was traced, a groove.
Where now the feathered oar-blades move.
Thy high intent, thy servants' toil.
From land and sea have won the spoil
From here —
FAUST.
Still that accursed //ert I
To me a burden most severe.
To thee, so clever, 1 declare it, —
It gives my very heart a sting ;
It is impossible to bear it !
Yet shamed am I, to say the thing.
The old ones, there, should make concession;
A shady seat would I create :
The lindens, not my own possession.
ih,Googlc
IMsturb my joy in mine CBtate.
There would 1, for a view uabaffled.
From bough to bough erect a aoiffold,
Till for my gaee a look be won
O'er everything that I have done, —
To see befcn% me, tmconfined,
The masteipiece of human mind,
Wisely asserting to my sense
The people's gain of residence.
No sorer plague can us attack.
Than rich to be, and somediing lack I "^
The chiming bell, the lindens' breath,
Oppress like air in vaults of death :
My force of will, my potence grand,
Is shattered here upon the sand.
How shall 1 ban it from my feeling I
I rave whene'er the bell b pealing.
HEPHISTOPHBLES.
'T is natural that so great a spite
Thy life should thus imlntter qnite.
Who doubts it 7 Every noble ear,
Disgusted, must the jan^e hear ;
And that accurst bim-bam4>ooming,
Throi^h the clear sky of evening glooming
Is mixed with each event that passes.
From baby's bath to burial-masses,
As if, between its bam and iim.
Life were a dream, in memory dim.
FAUST.
Their obstinate, opposing strain
Darkens the brightest solid gain,
nil ooe, in plague and worry thrust
Grows thred, at last, of being just
ih,Googlc
IfEPHISTOPRELES.
Why be annoyed, when thou canst well desfHse them ?
Wouldat ihou not long since colonize them ?
FAUST.
Then go, and clear them out with speed t
Thou koowest the fair estate, indeed,
I cbose for the old people's need.
11 EPH I5TOPHEI.ES.
We 11 set them down on other land ;
Ere you can look, ag^n they '11 stand :
When they 've the violence outgrown,
Their pleasant dwelling shall atone.
{Ht tgAütUi lAiilfy.)
The Three enter.
IIEPH ISTOPHELBS.
Come, as the Master bids, and let
The fleet a feast to-morrow gel !
THE THREE.
Reception bad the old Master gave:
A jolly feast is what we crave.
HEPHIST0PHELE3
{atf ipeclatorti).
It happens as it happed of old :
Still Naboth's vineyard we behold 1 ■■»
ih,Googlc
DEAD OF NIGHT.
LYNCEUS, THE WARDER
{lingiifg' tm the vaick-tmatr of lAt Palace),
FOR seeing iDtended,
Employed for my sight,
The tower 's my dwelling,
The world my delist
I gaze on the Distant,
Hook on the Near,—
The moon and the planets,
The forest and deer.
So see I in all things
The grace without end,
And even as they please me^
Myself I commend.
Thou fortunate Vbion,
Of all thou wast 'ware,
Whatever it might be,
Yet still it was fair I
Pansr.
Not alone that I delight me.
Have 1 here been stationed so: —
What a horror comes, to fright me.
From the darksome world below !
Sparks of fire I see outgushing
Through the night of linden-trees ;
Stronger yet the glow is flushing,
ih,Googlc
ACT V. 381
Panned tofiuy by the breeie.
Ah t the c^im bums, nnheeded,
Damp and mossy though it stand;
Quick assistance here is needed,
And no rescue is at hand !
Ah, the good old bther, mother,
Else BO careful of the fire.
Doomed amid the stnoke to smother! —
The catastraji^e how dire !
Now the blackening pile stands lone^
In the flames that redly swell :
If the good old folk be only
Rescued from the burning hellt
Dazzling tongues the crater launches
Through the leaves and through the biaochcai
Withered boughs, at last ignited,
Break, in bumtog, from the tree :
Why must 1 be thus far-sighted ?
Witness such calamity ?
Now the little chapel crashes
'Neath a brackJi's falling Mow ;
Soon die climbing, spiiy flashes
Set the Cree^ps in a glow.
Down to where the tninks are planted
Bum they like a crimson dawn.
Lang fautt. CkoMt.
What erewhile the eye entJtanted
Wth the centuries b gone.
(TAUST
(oM tAe iaUmy, tavurcU He dnm\.
Above, what whining lamentation?
The word, the tone, too late I heed.
My warder wails ; i feel vezatüm
ih,Googlc
^ FAUST.
At beut, for this impatient deed
Yet be tbc liodess extirpated.
Tin batf-chaned tmoks Ibe spot deface,
A look-in-tbe-land is soon created.
Whence 1 can view the boandless qnce.
Tfaence shall I see the newer dwelling
Which for the ancient pair I raise,
Who, my benign fcK^xaraocc feeling,
Shall there enjoy tbeir latter days.
■EPBISTOPHELES ATTD THE THRBE (fc/Mi).
We hither come upon the nm !
Forgive ! not happily 't was done."*
We knocked and brat, but none replied,
And entrance ever was denied ;
Of jtJts and blows we gave good store,
And broken lay the rotten door;
We called aloud, with direst threat.
But still no hearing could we get
And, as it baps, with such a deed,
They wotdd not hear, tbey would not heed ;
Bnt we began, without delay.
To drive the stubborn folks away.
The pair had then an easy lot :
They fell, and died upon the spot.
A stranger, who was there concealed,
And foi^t, was left upon the field;
But in the combat, fierce and ^t.
From coals, that round about were cast,
The straw took fire. Now merrily
One fimeral pile consumes the threes
ih,Googlc
■»3
Exchange 1 meant, not robberf.
The inconsiderate, savage blow
1 cDTse ! Bear ye the guilt, and go I
CHORDS.
The proverb old still inns its course :
Bend nillin^y to greater force !
If you are bold, and face the strife.
Stake house and home, and then — your life!
[Sxttmi.
FAUCT (pn the ialamf).
The stars conceal their glance and gtow,
The fire sinks down, and flickers lov ;
A damp wind fans it with its wings,
And smoke and vapor hither brings.
Quick bidden, and too quick obeyed I —
What hovera hither Uke a shade i
ih,Googlc
V.
MIDNIGHT.»^
Fntr Gray IVtme» enti
■jV/fYnaiMiitis
Want
SECOND.
THDtO.
And mine, it is Care.
FOURTH,
Necessity, mine.''"
THREE TOGETHER.
The porta] is bdted, we cannot get in :
The owner is rich, we 've no business wilhiiL
I shrink unto nan^L
NECESSITY.
The pampered from me turn the iace and the ÜKnf^
ih,Googlc
ACT V, aS;
CARE.
Ye Sisters, ye neither can enter, nor dare ;
But the iceylwle is free to the entrance of Care.
(Cake diiapptars.)
WANT.
Ye, grisly old Sisters, be banished from here I
GUILT.
Beside thee, and bound to thee, I shall v^^eax I
KECESSITY.
lAt your heels goes Necessity, blight in her breath.
THE THREE.
The clouds are in motion, and cover each star !
Behind there, behind ! from a&r, from afar,
He Cometh, our Brother I he comes, he is
Death I
FAUST Mh lAe folate).
Four saw I come, but those that went were three ;
The sense of what they said was hid from me,
Bat something like " Nectssity " I heard ;
Thereafter, " Death," a gloomy, threatening word t
It sounded hollow, spectrally subdued :
Not yet have I my liberty made good :
If I could banish Magic's fell creations.
And totally unlearn the incantations, —
Stood I, O Nature ! Man alone in thee,
Then were it worth one's while a man to be 1 ■*>
Ere in the Obscure I sought it, such was 1, —■
Ere 1 had cursed the world so wickedly.
ih,Googlc
aSS FAUST.
Now fills tbe air so many a haunting shape,
That no one knows how best he may escape.
What thoi^h One Day with rational brightness beai
The Night entangles us in webs of dreams.
From our young fields of life we come, elate :
There croaks a bird : what croaks he ? Evil fate I
By Superstition constantly insnared,
It grows to us, and warns, and is declared.
Intimidated thus, we sOnd alone. —
The poital jars, yet entrance b there none.
\% any one here P
Yes ! must be my repfy.
FAUST.
And thou, who art thou, then ?
Wen, — here unl.
FAWST,
Avauntt
CARE.
1 am where I should be.
FAUST
(first angry, then eomfieud, adJreitir^ kimir^.
Take care, and speak no word of sorcery I
CARE.
Though no ear should choose to hear me,
Yet the shrinking heart must fear me :
ih,Googlc
ACT V. j8g
Though transfonned to mortal eyes,
I Grimmest power I exercise.
On the land, or ocean yonder,
I, a dread companioo, wander.
Always found, yet never sought.
Praised or cursed, as I have wrought I
Hast Jiou not Care already known ?
FAUST.
I only through the world have flown :
Each appetite I seized as by the hair;
What not sufficed me, forth I let it fare,
And what escaped me, 1 let go.
I 've only craved, accomplished my delight.
Then wished a second time, and thus with might
Stonned through my life; at lirsl 'twas grand, completely,
But now it moves most wisely and discreetly.
The sphere of Earth is known enough to me ;
The view beyond is barred immutably :
A fool, who there his bunking eyes directeth.
And o'er his clouds of peers a place expecteth !
Firm let him stand, and look around him well !
This World means something to the Capable."*
Why needs he through Eternity to wend ?
He here acquires what he can apprehend.
Thus let him wander down his earthly day;
When spirits haunt, go quietly his way ;
In marching onwards, bliss and torment find.
Though, every moment, with unsated mind t
CARE.
Whom I once possess, shall never
Find the world worth his endeavor:
Endless gloom around him folding.
Rise nor set of sun beholding,
VOL. n. 13 s
ih,Googlc
O FAUST.
Perfect in external senses,
Inwardly his darkness dense is ■,
And be knows not liow tc
True possession of his ti
Luck and 111 become caprices;
Still he starves in all increases ;
Be it happiness or sorrow,
He postpones it till the morrow.
To the Future only cleaveth ;
Nothing, therefore, he achieveth.
FAUST.
Desbt ! So shalt thou not get hold of me f
I have no mind to bear such driveL
Depart ! Thy gloomy litany
Might even befool the wisest man to eviL
CARE.
Shall he go, or come ? — how guide bim?
Prompt decision is denied him ;
Midway on the trodden highway
Halting, he attempts a by-way ;
Ever more astray, bemisted.
Everything beholding twisted,
Burdening himself and others.
Taking breath, he chokes and smothers,
Though not choked, in Life not sharing
Not resigned, and not despairii^ !
Such incessant rollii^, spinning, —
Painful quitting, hard beginning, —
Now constraint, now liberation, —
Semi-sleep, poor recreation.
Firmly in his place insnare him
And, at las^ for Hell prepare himl
ih,Googlc
Ilknnened spectres ! By your treatment strays
A thousand times the human race to error :
Ye even transform the dull, indiffereot days
To vile confusion of entangling terror.
'T is hard, I know, from Demons to escape;
The spirif s bond breaks not, howe'er one tries it ;
And yet, O Care, thy power, thy creepii^ shape.
Think not that 1 shall recognize it I
So feel it now : my curse thou It find.
When forth from thee I "ve swiftly passed !
Throughout their whole existence men are blind;
So, Faust, be thou like them at last !
(Sit trealka in Mi/aee.)
PAUST {bliruUd).
The Night seems deeper now to press around me.
But in my inmost spirit all is light ;>*<
I rest not till the finished work hath crowned me :
The master's Word alone bestows the might
Up from your couches, vassals, man by man!
Make grandly visible my daring plan !
Seize now your tools, with spade and shovel pre»« 1
The work traced out must be a swift success.
Quick diligence, severest ordering
The most superb reward shall bring ;
And, that the mighty work completed stands.
One mind suffices for a thousand hands.
n,g,t,7rJM,GOOglC
GREAT OUTER COURT OF THE PALACE
Torchei.
HEPHISTOPHELES (»> oAiarKe, as Onerlttr).
COME here, come here ! Come on, come on !
Yc Lcmores, loose-hung creatures I
Of sinew, tigarnent, and bone
Yonr knitted serai-oatares I
LEHURES (tn Chena).
Without delay are we at hand.
And half 't is our impression
That thb concerns a spacious land,
Wherectf we '11 have possession.
The pointed stakes, we bring them all,
The measuring-chain, for distance ;
But we 've forgotten why the call
Was made for our assistance.
MEPHISTOP HELES.
Here is no need of your artistic zeal :
Proceed as yo« may think it best !
Your tallest lay full length, from head to bttl,
And lift the turf around him, all the rest!
As for our fathers made, prepare
To excavate a lengthened square !
From palace to the narrow house transferred,
Such is, at last, the issue most absurd.
ih,Googlc
(aliffn^wM meeiing gtitttni).
In youth when I did love, did love,
Methought it was very sweet;
When 't was joDy and merry every way,
And I blithely moved my feet.
But now old Age, «ith his stealing steps.
Hath clawed me with bis crutch:
I stumbled over the door of a grave ;
Why leave they opca such?
FAUST
^emti JertkfroM At Paiace, groping hü way along Iht dear-
fetts).
How I rejoice, to hear the clattering spade I
It is the crowd, for me in service moiling,
Till Earth be reconciled to toiling,
Till the proud wares be stayed,
And the sea girded with a rigid zone.
UBPHISTOPHELES {aädt).
And yet, thou 'rt laboring for us alone,
With all thy dikes and bulwarks daring;
Since thou for Neptune art preparing —
The Ocean-Devil — carousal great.
In every way shall ye be stranded ;
The elements with us are banded.
And ruin is the certain fate.
M EPHISTOPHELES.
Here I
ih,Googlc
394 FAUST.
FAUST.
However possible,
Collect a crowd of men with vigor,
Spur by indulgeace, praise, or rigor, — '
Reward, allure, conscript, compel 1
Each day report me, and correctly note
How grows in length the undertaken moab
HEFHISTOPHBLBS {hal/aletd).
Whea they to me the information gave.
They spake not of a moat, but <d — a gravt.'"
PAUST.
Below the hills a marshy plain
Infects what I so long liave been retrieving;
This stagnant pool likewise to drain
Were now my latest and my best achieving.
To many millions let me furnish soil,
Though not secure, yet free to active toil ;
Green, fertile fields, where men and herds go fortb
At once, with comfort, on the newest Earth,
And swiftly settled on the hill's firm base,
Created by the bold, industrious race.
A land like Paradise here, round about :
Up to the brink the tide may roar without.
And though it gnaw, to burst with force the limit,
By common impulse all unite to hem it
Yes ) to this thought 1 hold with firm persistence ;
The last result of wisdom stamps it true :
He only earns his freedom and existence,
Who daily conquers them anew.'"
Thus here, by dangers girt, shall glide away
Of childhood, manhood, age, the vigorous day :
And such a throng I fain would see, —
Stand on free soil among a people free 1
ih,Googlc
ACT V. 395
Then dared I hail the Moment Aeeii^ :
" A k, still delay — tkouarlsofair.'"
The traces caimot, of mine earthly bein^
In icons perish, — they are there I —
In proud fcH^-feeling of such lofty bliss,
I DOW enjoy the highest Moment, — this I
IFaust wUr Av:t .' l4rLEHURE5 laic Mim atiä lay JiiM ufeit
lAegTaund.)
MKPHISTOPHELES.
No joy could sate him, and suffice no bliss t
To catch but shifting shapes was his endeavor :
The latest, poorest, emptiest Moment — this, —
He wished to hold it fast forever.
Me he resisted in such vigorous wise,
But Time is lord, on earth the old man lies."»
The dock stands still —
CHORUS.
Stands still 1 silent as midnight, now I
The index falls.
KEPKISTOPHBLBS.
It falls ; and tt is finished, here I
CHORUS.
Tis past!
UEPHISTOPHELES.
— Past ! a stupid word.
If past, then why ?
Past and pure Naught, complete monotony !
What good for us, this endlessly creating ? —
What is created then annihilating ?
"And now it's past!" Why read a page so twisted?
T is just the same as if it ne'er existed,
ih,Googlc
ig6
Yet goes In circles round as if It bad, however;
I 'd rather choose, ioEtead, the Void forever.
SEPULTURE. -J"
LEMUR. SiJa.
Who then hath built the house so ill,
With shove] and with spade f
LBMURES. Choral.
For thee, dull guest, in hempen vest,
It all too well was made.
LKMUR. Solo.
Who then so ill hath decked the hall ?
No chairs, nor table any !
LEHURES. Charta.
'T was borrowed to return at call :
The creditors are so many.
MEPHISTOPHELES.
The Body lies, and if the Spirit flee,
1 'II show it speedily my blood-signed title. —
But, ah ! they 've found such methods of requital^
His souls the Devil must oft abstracted see )
One now offends, the ancient way;
Upon the new we 're not yet recommended :
Once, I alone secured my prey.
But now by helpers need to be befriended.
In all things we must feel the spite 1
Transmitted custom, ancient rii^ht, —
Nothing, indeed, can longer one confide in.
Once with the last breath left the soul her house ;
I kept good watch, and like the nimblest mouse.
ih,Googlc
ACT r.
"97-
Whack I was she cai^t, and fs^t my cbtws her hide in I
Now she delays, and is not fain to quit
The diemal place, the corpse's hideous mansioi;
The elements, in hostile, fierce expansion,
Drive her, at last, disgracefully from it.
And though I fret and worry till 1 'm weary,
WA« f f/owf and Where f remiuna the fatal query:
Old Death is now no longer swift and strong ;
Even the IVhether has been doubtful long.
Oft I beheld with lust the rigid members :
'T was only sham ; Life kindled from its embers.
(Fantastic, luhirlinggttitiTn t^ cimfuratien.)
Come on ! Strike up the double quick, anew.
With straight or crooked horns, ye gendemen infernal 1
Of the old Devil-grit and kernel.
And bring at once the Jaws of Hell with you I
Hell hath a multitude of jaws, in short,'''
To use as suiteth pbce and dignity ;
But we, however, in this final sport.
Will henceforth less considerate be.
( Tkifeatfai Jaws b/ Hill open, on Ike Uft.)
The side-tusks yawn : tiien from the throat abysmal
The raging, fiery torrents flow.
And in the vapors of the background dismal
I see the city flame in endless glow.
Up to the teeth the breakers lash the red arena ;
The Damned, in hope of help, are swimming through;
But, caught and mangled by the fell hyena,
Their path of fiery torment they renew.
In every nook new horrors flash and brighten.
In narrow Space so much of dread supreme !
Well have you done, the sinners thus to frighten ;
But sdll they 11 think it he, and cheat, and dream 1
{To tMe ittui Devili, with tkert, itraigil kamt.)
13*
ih,Googlc
39» FAUST.
Now, paunchy scamps, with cheeks so redly bnming 1
Ye glow, so fat with hellish sulphur fed ;
With necks thick-set and stumpy, never taming, —
Watch here below, if phosphor-light be shed :
It is the Soul, the wii^M Psyche is it;
Pluck off the wings, H is but a hideous worm .- 't*
First with my stamp and seal the thing 1 11 visit,
Then fling it to the whirling, fiery storm 1
The lower parts be well inspected,
Ye Bloats ! perform your duty well ;
H there the Soul her seat selected
We cannot yet exactly telL
Oft in the navel doth she stay :
Look out for that, she thence may slip away !
( Tolkt lion Dmät, vntk long, erceJud Juntu.)
Ye lean buffoons, file-leaders strange and giant,
Grasp in the air, yourselves no respite give !
Strong in the arms, with talons sharp and pliant.
That ye may seize the fluttering fugitive 1
In her old home discomforted she lies,
4nd Genius, surely, seeks at cmce to ttsc'^
{Gleryfrom ojnv, on tht ri^.\
Envoys, unhindered,
Heavenly kindred.
Follow us here !
Sinners forgiving.
Dust to make living t
Lovingest features
Unto aU creatures
Show in your swaying,
Delaying career I
ih,Googlc
UEPHI STOPHELES.
Discords I bear, a harah, disgusting strumming,
flung from above with the unwelcome Day;
T is that emasculate and bungled humming
Which Pious Cant delights in, every way.
You know how we, atrociously contented,
Destruction for the human race have planned :
But the most infamous that we 've invented
Is just the thing their prayers demand.""
The fops, they come as hypocrites, to fool us !
Thus many have they snatched, before our eyes :
With OUT own weapons they would overrule us ;
They 're also Devils — in disguise.
To h>se this case would be your lasting shame ;
Od to the grave, and fortify your claim !
CHORUS OF ANGELS (iraatriHg rata).'»
Roses, ye glowing ones.
Balsam-bestowing ones I
Fluttering, quivering.
Sweetness delivering.
Branching unblightedly.
Budding delightedly.
Bloom and be seen !
Springtime declare him,
In purple and green I
Paradise bear him.
The Sleeper serene I
HEPHISTOPHELES {it tit SatOni).
Why do ye jerk and squat ? Is this Hell's rule ?
Stand to your ground, and let them sprinkle !
Back to his place each gawky fool I
They think, perhaps, with such a flowery crinkle^
ih,Googlc
300
FAUST.
Aa if 't were snow, the Derila' heat to cool :
Your breath shall make it melt, and shrink, and wrinUc
Now blow, ye Blowers ! — 'T is enough, enough I
Before your breath fades all the floating stuff.
Not so much violence, — shut jaws and noses I
Forsooth, ye blow too strongly at the rosea.
The proper measure can you never learn ?
They sting not only, but they wither, bum I
They hover on with flames of deadly lustre :
Resbt them ye, and dose together cluster I —
Your force gives out ; all courage fails you so :
The Devils scent the strange, alluring glow.
Blossoms of gratitude,
Flames of beatitude.
Love they are bearing now.
Rapture preparing now.
As the heart may I
Truth in its nearness,
Ether in clearness.
Give the Eternal Hosts
Everywhere Day !
HBPHISTOPHBLße.
O curse and shame upon such dolts be aped I
Each Satan stands upon his head !
In somersaults the stout ones whirl and swerve,
And into Hell plunge bottom-nppemioal.
Now may your bath be hot as you deserve I
But 1 remain, unflinching, at my post
{Bta:iHg eff lAt kMirriifg rvui.)
Off, will-o'-the-wisps I Bright aa ye seem to b^
When caught, the vilest clinging filth are ja^
ih,Googlc
Why flutter thus? Off with you, quick I —
Like pitch and sulphur on my neck th^ stick.
CHORUS OF ANGELS.'"
What not appeitaineth
To you, cease to share iti
What mwardly paineth,
Refuse ye to bear it !
If it press in with might,
Use we our stronger right:
Love but the Loving
Leads to the light I
HBF RISTOFHELES.
Hy head, heart, liver, by the flames are rent I
An over-dcniish element ! —
Sharper than Hell's red conflagration !
Thence so enormous is your lamentation.
Unfortunate Enamored 1 who, so spumed.
Your heads towards the sweethearts' side have turned
Mine, tool What twists my head in like position?
With them am I not sworn to competition ?
The sight of them once made my hatred worse.
Hath then an alien force transpierced my nature?
I like to see them, youths of loveliest stature ;
What now restrains me, that I dare not curse?''' —
And if I take their cozening bait so,
Who else, henceforth, the veriest fool will be?
The stunning fellows, whom I hate so,
How very charming they appear to me I —
Tell me, sweet children, ere I miss you,
Are ye not of the race of Lucifer ?
You are so fair, forsooth, I 'd like to kiss yon;
It seems to me as if ye welcome were.
I feel as comfortable and as trustful.
ih,Googlc
joa
FAUST.
As though athousand times ere tfite we'd met t
So surreptitiously catlike-lusthil :
With every glance ye 're fairer, him yet
O, nearer come, — O, grant me one sweet look I
ANGELS.
We come ! Why shrink ? Canst not our presence
brook?
Now we approach : so, if thou canst, remun !
(71u Angils, amUig/Brtoard, occupy tht tn** tfaci.\
UEPHISTOPHELBB
{■mlui it crmmUd inte t»* frmeenaoK).
Us, Spirits damned, you brand with censure.
Yet you are wizards by indenture ;
For man and woman, luring, you enchain. —
What chance the curst adventure brings me ?
Is this Love's chosen element?
The fire o'er all my body stings me ;
My neck 1 scarcely feel, so hotly sprent —
Ye hover back and forth ; sink down and settle !
Move your sweet limbs with more of worldly metdel
The serious air befits you well, awhile,
But I should like, just once, to see you smile ;
That were, for me, an everlasting rapture.
I mean, as lovers look, the heart to capture ;
About the mouth a simper there must be.
Thee, tall one, as enticing 1 '11 admit thee ;
The priestly mien does not at all befit thee,
So look at me the least bit wantonly 1
You might be nakeder, and modest made so :
Your shirts' long drapery is over-moral. —
They turn! — and. from the rear surveyed so,
With their attraction there 's no need to quarrel 1
ih,Googlc
CttOKUS OF ANGELS. >K
Love Still revealing.
Flames, become clearer I
All, cursed with error.
Truth be their healing !
Glad self-retrieval
Free them from EvQ,
In the all-folding Breast,
Blessed, to rest!
MEPHISTOPHELES {eelltcting Mimulf).
How is 't with me ? — Like Job, the boils have cleft me
From head to foot, so that myself 1 shun ;
Yet triumph also, when my self-inspection 's done, —
When self and tribe 1 have confided in.
The noble Devi^iarts, at least, are left me 1
This love-attack 's a rash upon the skin.
Burned out already are the scurvy fires.
And one and all 1 damn you, as the case requires 1
CHORUS OF ANGELS.
Hallowed glories 1
Round whom they brood,
Wakes unto being
Of bliss with the Good.
Join ye, the Glorified,
Rise to your goal !
Airs are all purified, —
Breathe now the Soul !
{Ttuy riu, bearing away Iht immortal part of WaVST.)
MEPHISTOPHELES (Itvking arminJ Urn).
But how ? — at once I find them failing !
This race of minors takes me by surprise t
ih,Googlc
J04 FAUST.
They with tfaeir booty heavenwards are sailing;
Thence on this giave they cast their greedy eyeat
My rare, gnat treasure they have peculated:
The lofty soul, to me hypoÄecated,
They 've rapt away from me in cunning wise.
But unto whom shall 1 appeal for justice ?
Who would secure to me my welteamed right ?
Tricked so in one's old days, a great disgust is ;
And I deserve it, this inlemal spite.
I "ve managed in a most disgraceful fashion;
A great investment has been throws away :
By lowest lust seduced, and senseless passion.
The old, case-hardened Devil went astray.'*
And if, from all this childiah-silly stuff
His shrewd experience could not wrest hin^
So is, forsooth, the folly quite enough.
Which, in conclusion, hath possessed him.
.d'h,Googlc
MOUNTAIN-GORGES, FOREST, ROCK,
DESERT.
Holy Anchorites,""
I>mded iit atcenJiHgflamt, foittd amcng ÜU nant«A
F'
CHORUS AND ECHO.
CRESTS are waving grand.
Rocks, they are huge at hand,
Cutching, the roots expand,
Thickly the tree-trunks stand;
Foaming comes wave on wave ;
Shelter hath deepest cave ;
Lions are prowling dumb,
Friendly where'er we come,
Honoring the sacreä place,
Refuge of Love and Grace I
FATER ECSTATICOS"*
(ktveräig 1^ ami lüam).
Endless ecstatic fire,
Glow of the pure desire,
Pain of the pining breast.
Rapture of God possessed I
Arrows, transpierce ye me,
Lances, coerce ye me,
Bludgeons, so batter me,
Lightnings, so shatter toe,
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
That aU of mortality's
Vain unrealities
Die, and the Star above
Beam but Eternal Love t
FATER PROFUNDUS,"*
(Lamer Region.)
As at my feet abysses cloven
Rest on abysses deep below ;
As thousand severed streams are woveo
To foamy floods that plunging go ;
As, up by setf-impulsion driven,
The tree its weight sustains in air.
To Love, almighty Love, 't is given
All things to form, and all to bear.
Around me sounds a sav^e I'oaring,
As rocks and forests heaved and swayed,
Yet plunges, bounteous in its pouring.
The wealth of waters down the glade.
Appointed, then, the vales to brighten ;
The bolt, that flaming struck and burst,
The atmosphere to cleanse and lighten,
Which pestilence in its bosom nursed, —
Love's heralds both, the powers proclaiming
Which, aye creative, us infold.
May they, within my bosom flaming.
Inspire the mind, confused and cold.
Which frets itself, through blunted senses,
As by the sharpest fetter-smart !
O God, soothe Thou my thoughts bewildered,
Enlighten Thou my needy heart I
PATER SERAPH ICUS."**
[Middle Rtgim.)
What a cloud of morning hovers
ih,Googlc
O'er the jane-trees' tossing hair !
Can 1 guess what life it covers ?
They are sfürits, young and iaii.
CHORUS OF BLESSED BOYS.'^
Tell us, Father, where we wander ;
Tell us. Kind One, who are we.
Happy are we ; for so tender
Unto all, it is, To Be.
PATER SERAPHICOS.
Boys, brought forth in midnights haunted^
Half-unsealed the sense and brain.
For the parents lost when granted,
For the angels sweetest gain I
That a loving heart is nigh you
You can feel : then come to me I
But of earthly ways that try you.
Blest ones I not a trace have ye.
Enter in mine eyes : enjoy them.
Organs for the earthly sphere !
As your own ye may employ them :
Look upon the landscape here !
{He laJUi them into kimsilf,)^
Those are trees, there rocks defend tis ;
Here, a stream that leaps bebw,
And with plunges, wild, tremendous,
Shorteneth its journey so.
BLESSED BOYS {from witHtt kirn). '
To a vision grand we waken,
But the scenes too gloomy show ;
We with fear and dread are shaken :
Kindest Father, let us go I
ih,Googlc
|o«
PATER SKRAPHlCnS.
Upward rise to higher bonten I
Ever grow, insensibly.
As, by pure, eternal orders,
God's high Presence strengtiiens yet
Such the Spirits' susteatation,
With the freest eHier bleodiog;
Love's eternal Revelation,
To Beatitude ascending.
CRORU3 OP BLESSED BOYS
{cinlmg antmd lAt kfgkttl aammäi.
Hands now enring ye^
Joyously wheeling I
Soar ye and sing ye,
With holiest feeling!
The Teacher before y%
Tjuat, and be bold I
Whom ye adore, ye
Him shall betudd.
ANGELS
mtkt kiglirralm«tfiitrt,bearii^Atimm«r1aifort^
Faust),
The noble Spirit now is free,
And saved from evil scheming :
Whoe'er aspires unweariedly
Is not beyond redeeming.*'
And if be feeb the grace of Love
. That from On High is given,
The Blessed Hosts, that wait above,
Shall welcome him to Heaven I
THE YOUNGER ANGBL3.
They, the roses, freely spended
ih,Googlc
ACT V.
By the penhent, the gknioDS,
Helped to malce the fight victoriotn,
And the loftj trork is ended.
We this precicxis SoqI have won us;
Evil ones we forced to shun ns ;
Devik fled us, when we hit them :
'Stead cf pangs of Hell, that bit them,
Love-pai^ felt tbey, sharper, vaster:
Even be, old Satan- Master,
Pierced with keenest pain, retacated.
Now rejoice 1 Tlie wort's completed I
THE MORE F
Earth's residue to bear
Hath sorely pi<essed us ;
It wefe not pure and fair,
Though 't were asbestus.
When every element
The mind's high forces
Have seized, subdued, and blent,
No Angel divorces
Twin-natures single grown,
That inly mate them :
Eternal Love, abne,
Can sq>arate them.'"
THE VOUNGER A
Mist-like on heights above.
We now are seeing
Nearer and nearer move
Spiritual Being.
The clouds are growing clear ;
And moving throngs appear
Of Blessed Boys,
Free from the earthly gloom,
ih,Googlc
FAUST.
In circling poise,
Wbo Uste the cheer
Of the new spring-time bloom
Of the upper sphere.
Let them inaugurate
Him to the perfect state.
Now, as their peer I
THE BLESSED BOYS.
Gladly receive we now
Him, as a chrysalis :
Therefore achieve we now
Pledge of our bliss.
The earth-flakes dissipate
That cling around him !
See, he is fair and great !
Divine Ufe hath crovmed turn.
((■« thl highest, fnritl cell).
Free is the view at last,
The spirit lifted :
There women, floating past,
Are upward drifted ;
The Glorious One therein,
With star-crown tender. —
The pure, the Heavenly Queen,
[ know her splendor.
(ÄanflureJ.)
Highest Mistress of the World 1
Let me in the azure
Tent of Heaven, in light unfurled,
Here thy Mystery measure !
Justify sweet thoughts that move
Breast of man to meet thee,
ih,Googlc
ACT V.
And with holy bliss of love
Bear him up to greet thee !
With unconquered courage we
Do thy bidding highest ;
But at once shall gentle be.
When thou pacifiesL
Virgin, pure in brühtest sheen,
Mother sweet, supernal, —
Unto us Elected Queen,
Peer of Gods Eternal I
Light clouds are circling
Around her splendor, —
Penitent women
Of natures tender,
Her knees embracing.
Ether respiring,
Mercy requiring 1
Thou, in immaculate ray,
Mercy not leavest,
And the lightly led astray.
Who trust thee, receivest I
In dieir weakness fallen at '.i^tigth,
Hard it is to save them :
Who can crush, by native strength.
Vices that enslave them?
Whose the foot that may not slip
On the surface slanting?
Whom befool not eye and lip.
Breath and voice enchanting?
\Thi Mater Glokiosa soars iiite Ihi tface.) '^
OF WOMEN PEMItENTS.
To heights thou 'rt speeding
Of endless Eden :
Receive our ijleadin^
ih,Googlc
Transcendent Maiden,
With Merqr laden I
HAONA PECCATRtX.'«' ISt. Latkt, vit jti.)
By the love before him kneeling, —
Him, Thy Son, a godlike vision ;
By the tears like balsam stealing,
Sfnte of Pharisees' derision ;
By the box, whose ointment precious
Shed its spice and odors cheery ;
By the locks, whose softest meshes
Dried the holy feet and weary I —
MULIER SAMARITANA. {St. JM«, IT.)
By that well, the ancient station
Whither Abram's flocks were driven ;
By the jar, whose restoration
To the Saviour's lips was given ;
By the fountain, pure and vernal.
Thence its present bounty spending, —
Overflowing, bright, eternal,
Watering the worlds unending I —
MARIA £GYPTIACA. {Acta Satutonait.'^
By the place, where the Immortal
Body of the Lord hath hun ;
By Äe arm, which, from the portal,
Warning, thrust me back again ;
By the forty years' repentance
In the lonely desert-land;
By the blissful farewell sentence
Which I wrote upon the sand t —
THE THREE.
Thou Thy presence not deiuest
ih,Googlc
Unto sinful women ever, —
Uftest them to win the highest
Gain of penitent endeavor, —
So, from this good soul withdraw not —
Who but once forgot, transgressing,
Who her loving error saw not —
Pardon adequate, and blessing t
VSA PtKNITENTlUK "■
(/armerfy natntd Margaret, Otaiimg dottt^.
Incline, O Maiden,
With Mercy laden,
In li{^t unfading.
Thy gracious countenance upon my bliss I
My loved, my lover,
His trials over
In yonder worid, returns to me in this !
BLESSED BOYS
(apprBOthing in havering circlti).
With mighty Umbs he towers
Already above us ;
He, for thb love of ours,
Will richlier love us.
Early were we removed,
Ere Ljfc could reach ua ;
Yet he hath learned and [MXived,
And he wiU teach us.
THE PENITENT
{fürtnerly named Afargant\.
The sjürit-choir around him seeing.
New to himself, he scarce divines
His heritage of new-bom Being,
When like the Holy Host be shines.
^OL. u. 14
ih,Googlc
Behold, how he each band hath cloven.
The earthly life had round him thrown,
And through hb garb, of ether woven,
The early force of youth is shown 1
Vouchsafe to roe that I instmct him I
Still dazzles him the Day's new glare.
HATER GL0RI05A.
Rise, thou, to higher spheres ! Conduct hi
Wht^ feeling thee, shall follow thei« 1 ■«
DOCTOR H ARIA NHS
{pTOifratt, adaria^.
Penitents, look up, elate.
Where she beams salvation j
Gratefully to blessed fate
Be our souls, as they have been,
Dedicate to Thee !
Virgin Holy, Mother, Queen,
Goddess, gracious be \
CHORUS MYSTICÜS."»*
All things transitory
But as symbols are sent :
Earth's in sufficiency
Here grows to Event:
The Indescribable,
Here it is done :
The Woman-Soul leadeth ua
Upward and on t
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
" Both Pum in tjnBmeuial id tbeir uructnn. ThaPintnontw
dtlibente iwiftoM Irom Hano thnugh the World 10 Hall : tbt &
ond niunii tbtnftoiD ihroufh the World lo HeaTCn. Bcimcn Ih* I
liu hii Leihe, hii uumiladon of Ihe PuL
" In Rgird lo ubiDncc, the FinI Pin
netiphiHcil, and Mmiiiiuei elhially. The Second Pan baciu athi-
callr. becomet Bitbedc, and tenninatea nligioutly. In cm*, Leva and
Knoiiledge an omfrooted with eich «her ; in the other, Pndical Ac-
■iTiiy a>id An, the Ideal of ihe Beiuiihd,
ooflaEoguB ind dUloEue ; the Second Pan Ttori monologue and dialogue
ID Ihe diihynmbic, cloeinE with the hymo, which here gbrified not alone
The Lonl isd Hi> wKOmprahendcd lofty workt, but the Human in the
pin CM of ill union wiih Ihe Difiae, ihiciiifh RedeBpiian and AiDnement."
Rosin KiAMi.
ih,Googlc
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
This fvM scene htti the character of s Prologoe to the
Seoond Part of FautI, the action of which commences with
tlie tallowing itcene. An indefinite period of time separates
tlie two parti of the drama. Neither in his own life nor in his
poetical creations did Goeihe ever give space to mnome for
an itrevocable deed. When Faust disappears with Mephis-
tophdes, all his later tortuie of soul has been already suggest-
ed to the reader, and nothing of it can properly be introdnced
bere, where the whole p)ui and scope of the work is changed.
Goetbe firmly believed in healthy and final recovery A'ora
moral aa frotn physical hurt : his remedial agents were 'nme
and Natore. In Ricmer's collectiOD of Brtcardk» I find the
fcdlowing fragiDent : —
Nidit* U^t Unggduld,
Jens vermetin ijis ScbuM,
'Impatience is of no service, still less Renoi^e. That
increases the offence, this creates new oSenccs.) He over-
came his own great sorrows by temporarily withdrawing from
sodelj and surrendering himself to the influences of Nature;
and we are to suppose that Faust repeats this experience.
The healing process is symbolized Id this opening scene,
ih,Googlc
3i8 FAUST.
wherrin the elvei represent the delicate, mytterioui agendes
through which Nature operates on ihe human soul. Ariel
— who was Poetiy in the Inttrmato of the Wal purgis- Night
— here takes the place of Oberon aa leader of the ctves, pos-
ubly because the soul capable of a poetic apprehension of
Nature is most open to her subtle consolations.
3- Four pauses makes the Night upon her courses.
Goethe here refers to the four vigäia, or night-watches, of
the Romans, each of three hours ; so that the whole, Irom
six in the evening until six in the nomii^, include both sun-
set and sunrise. I see no reason to suspect, in addition, a
reference to Jean Paul's four phases of slumber, especially
as the latter division is rather üntastic than real, the phMC*
of healthy slumber being only three. The line. —
"Then ipnTiklE him nilh Lelbe'i diDiny tpny,"
recaHs a passage in one of Goethe's letters to Zelter : " With
every breath we draw, an ethereal current of Lethe flows
through our whole being, so that we remember our joys bnt
jmpeifectly, our cares and sorrows scarcely at >U."
3. Chorus.
The four verses of the Chorus correspond to the four vigi-
tia. The first describes the evening twilight ; the second,
the dead of night ; the third, the coming of the dawn ; and
the fourth, the awaking to the day. The direction in regard
to the chanting of the verses by the alternate or caltective
voices of ihe elves was added, in view of the possible repre-
sentation of the drama upon the stage. Even where he had
no such special intention, Goethe was fond of attaching a
thtalriial realily to his poetic creations ; but throughout the
Second Part he has purposely done this, in order to counter-
act the tendency of his symbolism to become vague and form-
less. '
4. With a crash the Light draws tum:
We may conjecture that Goethe had in his mind the Ros-
pigiiosi .-Xurora of (iuido, which suggests noise and the sound
of trumpets ; but he also referred both to andent myths atid
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
319
the guetMS of the science of hi« day. Tacltas speaks of a
legend current among the Germans, that, beyond the land of
(he Suiones, the sun gives forth audible sounds in setting.
The same statement is found in Posidonius and Juvenal. In
Macpherson's Orrian, " the rustling sun comes forth froni-
his green-headed waves." Also in the German medieval
poem of " Titurel," the sun is said (o utter sounds sweeter
than lutes and the songs of birds, on rising. The crash de-
scribed by Ariel is only audible to the " spirit-hearing " of
the elves, who al once disappear, and Faust awakens, hia
being "cleansed <rom the suffered woes."
5. Leei 1^1 — The mtHnimn tttmmiti, grand, mftrnti.
The scene described is Swiss, and from the neighborhood
of the Lake of the Four Forest Cantons. Goethe's projected
journey to Italy in 1797 terminated with a lour in that region,
in company with the artist Meyer. In the third volume of
Eckermann's Conversations, he is reported as having given
the following account of hia studies for the proposed epic of
" Tell," and the use he afterwards made of the material ; —
" I visited again the lake and the little Cantons, and those
attractive, beauliüil, and sublime landscapes made such a re-
newed impression upon me, that I was tempted to embody
in a poem the variety and richness of the scenery. In order,
therefore, to add the proper interest and lile to my descrip-
tion, I resolved to people the important locality with equally
important personages, and the legend of Tell was the very
thing I needed."
After sketching his conceptions of the different characters,
Goethe conthiued ; ** I was entirely possessed with thesubject,
and already began, from time to time, to hum my hexameters.
I saw the lake in quiet moonshine, with illuminaled mist in
the gorges of the mountains. I saw it in Ihe glow of the
loveliest morning sun. and the awakening life and rejoicing
of grove and meadow. Then I painted a storm, a thunder-
gust, hurled from the gorges upon the lake. Moreover,
there was no lack of night and silence, and secret meetings
on bridges and Alpine paths."
ih,Googlc
3«
FAUST.
"I communicated all thi* to Schiller, in whose soul mj
landscapcH and characters grew to a drama. Since I had
other things lo do, and postponed more and more ibe fulfil-
ment of my plan, I finally made over my material to him,
and he thereupon produced his admirable poem."
"I stated," said Eckennann, "my impretsion, that tbe
splendid description of sunrise, written in Urta rima, in the
fij^t scene of the Second Pan of Faust, might have sprui^
from tbe memories of (hose landscapes of the I^ake of the
Four Forest Canioaa."
" I will not deny," said Goethe, "that the features of the
description are thence drawn. Nay, I could not even have
imagined the substance of the ttranen, without the in»h im-
pression* of that wonderful scenery. But that is all which I
coined for myself out of the gold of my TelMocalities : tbe
rest I relinquished to Schiller."
There seems to be a slight obscurity in the passage com-
mencing : —
" 'T ia thw, wbtD unto fsimlni hope'* eaätnor."
The substance of German comment is, thai Faust is over-
whelmed, as when the Earth-Spirit appears to him in the
Fir«t Part, by the apparition of perfect and universally illu-
minating Truth, which his human eyesight cannot endure.
The sudden and complete liilfilment of a hope, he reflects,
has the same bewildering effecl ; and he hides himself "in
youthful drapery" {ivii, in the original), since youth is con-
tent with an amazed acceptance of the highest revelations
of Life, without seeking (o penetrate their mysteries.
6. Lift iituH H^, bia tki refraettd ti^or.
Here the above thought is repeated in a metaphor drawn
from Goethe's studies of Color. The walerTall is a symbol
of human endeavor, — impetuous, never-ending, destructive.
yet iiupiring, and creating Ibrce ; and the rainbow is the
divided ray of the Intolerably keen white light of Truth, as
it is reflected in and overhangs the movement of life. Shel-
ley expresses exactly a similar thought in a different itn-
ih,Googlc
"Life, lilu 1 dome of muy-colond glu^
Suiu ihe wniu ndunce of Elcnilr-"
In Goethe's description ol the Falls of the Rhine, at
Schaffhausen, we und the germ froni which his thought
grew r " The rainbow appeared in its greatett beautf : it
stood with unmoving foal in the midst of the tremendous
foam and spiay, which, threatening foicibly to destroy it,
were every moment forced to create it anew."
I have not translated the above line strictly in bannony
with Goethe's Farbtnithre. " Am /arbigen Abglaru Aaiai
mir dot Lebai" is, literaUy; "In the colored rcßatum we
have Life." Goethe's theory is that Color is not produced
by the rtfraeticn of the ray, but is the result of the mixture
of light and darkness, in diSeient degrees. His conclusions
were drawn from only partial observation, and have been
proved to be incorrect. I therefore feel justified in using a
term which best interprets his thought as a poet, without
reference to this glimpse of his theory as a man of science.
The opening scene strikes the keynote which reverber-
ates through [he Second Fart Faust lets his "dead Past
bury its dead " : but his intellect has been purified by his
experience of human love, delight, and suffering. He re-
sumes, in another and more enlightened sense, his aspiration
(or the "highest being," and we must accompany him,
henceforward, with our intellectual, and Dot, as in the First
Part, with our emotional nature.
7. Emperor.
On the 1st of October. 1817, Goethe read the manuscript
cf this scene to Eckeimann. "In the Emperor," said he,
• 1 have endeavored to represeot a Prince who has all possi-
ble qualities for losing his realm — in which, indeed, he after-
wards succeeds.
" The welbre of the Empire and of his subjects gives him
no trouble ; he thinks only of himself, and how he may
amuie himself, from day to day, with something new. The
land is without order and law, the judges themselves accom-
plices with the criminals, and all manner of crime is comp
ih,Googlc
3>3
FAUST.
milled unhindered and unpunUhed. The army is unpaid,
without disciijline, and ranges around plundering, in otder
to help itself to its pay, as best it can. The treasury is with'
out money and without the hope of further conbributinn*.
In the Emperor's household things are not much better:
there are deficiencies in kitchen and cellar. The Lord High
Steward, more undecided from day to day what course to
pursue, is already in the hands of usurious Jews, to whom
everything has been mortgaged, and even the bread on the
Emperor's table has been eaten in advance.
" The Council means to represent to His Majesty all these
evils, and to consult with him how they may be removed;
but the Most Gracious Ruler has no inclination to lend his
ear to such disagreeable ihiiigs: he would much rather be
diverted. Here, now, is the true element for Mephisto, who
has speedily made away with the (brmer Pool, and as new
Fool and Councillor stands at the Emperor's side."
Goethe took from the old legend the idea of presenting
Fausi at the Court of the German Emperor. The proper
manner of Faust's introduction, however, seems to have
given him a great deal of trouble : more than one outlined
sketch must have been rejected, and this initial difficulty
probably retarded for many years the completion of the
work. Falk gives us the following plan, as having been
communicated to him by Goethe (probably between iSo6
•nd 1813)! —
" Because Faust de»res to know the whole world, Mephis-
topheles proposes to him, among other things, that he shall
seek (or an audience with the Emperor. It in the time of the
tatter's coronation. Faust and Mephislopheles arrive safely
in Frankfurt, and must now be announced. Faust refuses
bcc.iuse he knows not ufion what subject to converse with
the Finperor. But Mephislopheles encourages him with the
promise that he will accompany him at the appointed time,
support him when the conversation flags, and, in case it
should fail entirely, will assume both his speech and his form,
so that the Emperot will really not know with whom he has
spoken or not spoken. With this understanding Faust finall;
ih,Googlc
KOTES 3,j
■CR pts the proposition. Both betike chemselvcB to the hall
of audience and are received. Faust, in his pari, in order
to show himself worthy of (he Imperial grace, summons up
all his wit and knowledge, and speaks of the loftiest things.
Neverthelew, his fire warms only himself: the Emperor re-
mains cold, yawns continually, and is on the point of termi-
nating the interview. Mephistopheles perceives this in the
nick of time, and comes to Faust's assistance, as he had prom-
ised. He assumes the same form, and stands bodily before
the Emperor as Faust, with the latiei's mantle, doublet, ruff,
and the sword at his side. He now continues the conversa-
tion, just where Fausl left oS; but with a very different and
much more brilliant result. He chatters, swaggers, and
prates so lo the right and the left, hither and thither, of all
things on earth and outside of il, that the Emperor is beside
himself with amaiemcnt, and assures the lords present that
this is a thoroughly learned man, to whom he could listen
for days and weeks, without becoming weary. At first, in-
deed, he was not particularly edified, but after the man had
warmed to his subjccl, nothing finer could be imagined than
the manner in which he set forth all things so briefly, yet so
gracefully and inlelUgently. He, as Emperor, must confess
that he had never before found united in one person such
treasures of thought and experience, with such knowledge of
human nature, — not even in the wisest of his Councillors."
This plan, although humorous, would require too much
elaboration to serve as the mere vehicle of Faust's introduc-
tion at Court ; and the fact that Goethe related it to Falk is
sufficient proof that he had already rejected it. We have
his own word for the fact that he never dared to communicate
)iis poetical ideas in advance, even to Schiller ; and he would
be much leas likely lo bestow so intimate a confidence upon
a man so vain and garrulous as Falk,
8. Whai 's cuTied and vnkemity exftctid f
Mephistopheles commends himself to the Emperor's grace
by a riddle of which himself (the Fool) is the solution. Some,
however, consider "Justice " lo be the true inletpreialion.
ih,Googlc
9- MUKUURS OP TUB CKOWD.
The pail given to the crowd of spectators in this and the
IblloHing scene ia evidently imitated from the Greeli Chonu.
The "murmurs" are confused and fragmentary comment*
on the action, and they also seem to have been partly de-
signed to represent the masses who passively accept Life in
whatever Tonn it comes to iheiu, or as it may be moulded for
Ihcm by active and po^tive individual natures. The satite
indicated in these passages is for the most part pointless,
and we cannot but feel that tbey add an unnecessary heaviness
to what b, without them, the least edifying part of the drama.
lo. Btil tell me viky, m dayi tojmr.
Goethe's conception of the character of the Emperor (given
in Note 7) is here illustrated. The Fool and the Astrolt^er,
standing on his right and left hand, are the two Court offi-
cials to whose counsel he is most inclined to listen. The
former relieves the tedium of state aflbirs, and the latter has
cast an auspicious horoscope of his fortunes 1 yet, even with
their aid, he consents reluctantly and with a halfprotest to
heat the reports of his ministers. The lilies of the latter
are taken tram the mcdiseval organization of the German
Imperial Court, where they were hereditary in certain
princely houses. The dignity of Arch Chancellor belonged
10 the Elector of Mayence ; of Arch Banner-Lord (for
which Goethe has substituted "General-in-Chief") to the
Elector of Wurtemberg ; of Arch -Treasurer to the Elector
of Brunswick ; and of Arch-Marshal 10 the Elector of Sax-
ony. 1 have translated the word Marsciali, on account of
the character of the office, into " Ixiid High Steward." In
spile of the conjectures of some of the German comment alors,
it is not probable that reference is made to any particular
historical period. The decadence of <ik Empire is necessary
for the part assigned 10 Mephistupheles and the laler impa-
tience of Faust with bis experience of " the greater woild.''
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 32s
II. Tht Saints and Kni^ art they.
The salire in this passage — of which the Chancellor him'
■elf is quite unconscious — needs do explanation. Nature
and Mind, in all ages, are the bugbears of privileged classes,
and the speaker, here, is the representative of both the
Saints (the priesthood) and the Knights.
In (he Paralifomtna there is a fragment of a scene which
must have been intended as a Substitute liir the present It
is sketched in prose : —
tdih» utau— «plmdidTica. It ii jii«,IM thai re
iL hard : what uy V^ BiihopP
Vilhoat etadinf (he h
Pardon 1 Fi^an viFtvca? I would
Fit may not be othcnvi», we will p«
fft abcolved, and again in tbv right.
13. Tht iphtret ef Himr and ffauti are in iii /ten.
The astrologers divided the celestial hemisphere into twelve
yorts, whidi were called Houses. In casting a horoscope,
it was necessary lo have, first, the hour of tnrih and the lat-
itude and longitude of the birthplace. The location of the
sun, moon, planets, and the signs of the zodiac in tlie dil-
(erent houses, was then ascertained. As eacn house repre-
sented a >]>vcial human interest or paasion, and each planet
a special controlling force, the various combinations which
thus arose furnished tlie material out of which the horoscope
was constructed.
ih,Googlc
3a6 FAUST.
The speech of the Astrologer, piompred by MephiMopb-
eleu, refer« to the seven meuls, to which the medizval al
chemists attached the name« of the seven planets The sua
is gold, the moon silver ; Mercury is quicksilver, Venus
copper, Mars iron, Jupiter lin, and Saturn lead.
13. Then lUi tlu fiddler, thm lAeguUII
Ctemens Brentano, in his " Boy's Wonder-hom," slates
(hat it is a common superstition in Geimany, that, when one
acddeniaily stumbles, he Is passing over the spot where a
fiddler is buried.
The expressions of Mephistopheles refer to the power of
divination supposed to be possessed by certain persons.
They suggest a passage in Wilhelm Miistir, where Jarnu de-
scribes a man who accompanies him On his mineralogies]
joameys : " He possessed very wonderful faculties, and a
most peculiar relation to all which we call atone, mineral, or
even element He fell not only the strong effect of the sub-
terranean streams, deposils of melal, strata of coal, and all
such substances as are tbund in masses, but also, what was
more remarliable, his sensations changed with every change
of the soil." Goethe, himself, seems to have had a half-
belief in the possibility of an »ccull instinct of this nature.
14. Ht steks mllptire where the clay^aaUt stand.
Old walls, especially in damp cellars and subterranean
passages, become covered with an incrustation of saltpetre,
the collection of which «as formerly a government monopoly.
IJ. A caik oftarlar holds the wine.
It is a general belief in Germany that when a cask of wine
has lieen kept for centuries, it gradually deposits a cru«t of
tartar, which may acijuire such a consistency as to bold the
liquid when ilie staves have rotted away. The wine thus
becomes it^ own cask, and preserves itself in a (hick, oily
slate. It is then supposed to possess wonderful mediana]
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 337
t6. Carnival Masqubradb.
In Üie " Camlval Masquerade " we reach the finl en-
tangling epitode of the Second Part of Faiut. That the
entire scene is an allegory, is evident ; and we can scarcely
be mistaken in acsuming its chief motive to be the represen-
tation of the human race in its social and political oigani-
"■ation. This basis has been accepted, almost unanimously,
b;' the Gennan critics 1 but upon it each has built his own
individual theory of the development of the idea ihtough
the characters introduced. Whether intentionally or uncon-
»riously, Goethe himself has added not a little to the coii-
fosion by introducing, now and then, a double (possibly even
a IripU) symbolism ; therefore, although we may ieel toler-
ably secure in regard to the elements which he represent»,
»o many additional meanings are suggested that we walk the
labyrinth with a continual suspicion of our path.
I shall endeavor to hold fast to the firm determination
with which 1 commenced the wnrk, — (hat of not adding
another to the many theories already in existence. The
reader, nevertheless, requires, if not an infallible clew, at
least an adequate numtier of indications pointing in the same
direction, to carry him forwards. Unless he is sufficiently
interested to add his own guesses, on the way, to those of
the -ritics and commentators, — to perceive, at least, the
concentric meanings in which the allegorical forms are en-
veloped,— he will probably grow weary long before this di-
gression returns again to the original course of ttie drama.
The design nf the Carnival Masquerade is similar to that
uf Scene II. ("Before the City-Gate") of the First Part
The latter gives us a picture of lite in a small German (own,
— a narrow circle of individual characters, as they would
appear to Faust in his " little world." The broader spliere
into which he has now entered requires an equally broad
and comprehensive picture of Human Life, as it is moulded
by Society and Government. Schiller, to whom Goethe con-
fided his literary plans mure fully than to any other friendi
loresaw the difficulty lo be encountered. He wrote (in June
ih,Googlc
J38 FAUST.
I -j^-j^ . u A Boarce of inzict; to me is, that Faust, according
to your design, seems to require such a great amount of
material, if the idea is linaJly to appear complete ; and 1 find
no pcetical hoop which can endrcle such a cumulative mass.
Well, you will no doubt be able to help yourself. For ex-
ample ; Faust must necessarily, to my thinking, be conducted
into the active lire of the world, and whatever part of it you
may choose out of the great whole, the very nature of it
seems to require too much particularity and difliiseness."
Goethe, who wrote to Schiller, "it gives one a new spirit
for labor, when one sees one's own thoughts and purposes
indicated externally, by another," was unable, in the end, to
select any detachable phase of Society, and therefore at-
tempted to present the elements which enter into all human
association, under the form of a mask. We are first intro-
duced to types of the classes of ]>ersons who arc Ibund in
Society ; then to the moral elements, represented by the
Graces, the ParcK, and the Furies ; the symbol of a wisely
organized government follows, with an interlude in which
Poetry appears as the companion of Wealth. The debasing
influences of the lust of gain and the madness of speculation
are set forth, the Fauns, Satyrs, and Gnomes are introduced
as types of the ruder forces of human nature, and the Car-
nival closes with a catastrophe in which most of the critic*
see Revolution symbolized.
This is the simplest and roost obvious outline of the scene.
At every step, however, there are additional references and
suggestions, ihe most important of which are explained lu
the succeeding Notes. The views of German cominen(a:or.
are tolerably accordant in regard to Goethe's general design;
but, when they come to particulars, they strike so many in-
dividual tangents from the central thought, DUntzet says;
"The collective representations of the Masqueiade refer to
civil and political life. The first group of masks whom we
meet exhibit (he external blessings of life, followed by an-
other group who set forth those mora! features of life which
are most influenced by external possessions. The StaK^
prudenilv governed, and made prosperous by the wise acti»
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
329
fty of hs Ruler, is then presented to as in an allegorical pic-
lure, whereto the concluding symbol of a State overthrown
by [he scltishDcss and weakness of a self-indulgent Ruler
forms an explanatory contrast"
Schnetger divirles the scene into five parts: I. *'A pic-
ture of the cheerful, rich garden of Lite." II, A «ketch ol
the disorganiüng influences in human society, which require
to be governed ; of the beneficent powera which have lost
their swaf in our modem world, and of the duker elements
which have taken their place. HI. / representation of a
well-goven»ed State. IV. The worship 01 Mammon in hu-
man society, aiul the vulgar hunger of the maliitude for gold.
V. The collision of the cupidity of the People with that of
the Prince, followed by a general conflagration.
Härtung considers that the forms and forces of social life
are directly presented, and finds a class ol fermiu, not of
idau, behind each mask. He seems to include tlie elephant
and its attendants (generally accepted as the symbol of the
Stale) among the social allegories, but sees, in the conclu-
lion, the overthrow of dvil order.
Deycks and Köstlin reject the idea of a complete and con-
sistent allegory of Society and Government. The latter,
moreover, gives a diSecent c:[p1anation of the final catastro-
phe, which is quoted in its appropriate place.
Kreyssig says of the scene : " Here the poet introducei
that singular masquerade in which the aalon of the next fol-
lowing scenes is announced and allegorically hinted, and
which, to the dispassionate mind, if not exactly the most dif-
ficult 10 be comprehended, is yet one of the meet entangled
and unrefreshing portions of the whole poem. Here the dic-
tion first displays all those ostentatious singularities, which
have brought the Second Fart of Faust into such bad repute
with a part of the reading world. Here the poet first mani-
fests, in easy latitude, his known tendency to mysterious,
symbolic pranks, and loads the poem with a multitude of
adjuncts which seem to us unnecessary for the comprehen-
sion and proper efiect of the whole — but rich material for
the ioterpreteis who are skilled in assthetic filigree-work."
ih,Googlc
33«
FAUST.
The careAil ruder will find ibat there a some tnitb ta
cacK one of the foregoing explanations, and that the chief
confusion has arisen from the circumstance that Goethe
could not find, as Schiller feared, a poetic hoop capable of
encircling such a cumulative mass of material. I will aa\j
add, that, in the Notes which follow, referring to the sepa-
rate masks, I have given preference to the simplest and most
direct interpretation, which is always the mote poetic and
the more consistent with the laws of Goethe'a mind, as man-
ifested in his other works.
The scene of the Masqnerade is not in Italy, as some sap-
pose, but at the German Court, after the Emperor's return
from his coronation by the Pope, at Rome. Maximilian I.
was the first German Emperor who omitted this ci
17. Garden-Girls.
The Masquerade is properly opened t^ the lightest, gay-
e element of Society, — Itie young,
unmarried women. Goethe look tiie fieraje of Florence
(not the present race !) as types of grace, beauty, and that
ail which seems aitlessness. These qualities are the " Sow-
ers which blossom all the year." Härtung, in his notice of
this passage, says; "Every woman, who dresses herself
with taste, is an artist for her own liody."
"They" (the Garden-Girls) "represent, in contrast to the
foregoing description of the needs of the Court, the simple,
joyous, and enjoying nature of the race. The picturesque
charac'.er of the poetry and the sententious grace of the ad-
dress make this one of the most agreeaUe groups." —
Liutbeihtr.
18. Olive-Branch, with Fruit.
If the allegory is consistently developed, we must suppose
that the Olive-Branch, the Wreath of Ears, and the Fancy-
Wreath are types of female character, or of the different
forms of attraction whereby women draw towards them the
complementary male characters. Schnecger. however, gives
a different interpretation! "Joy and enjoyment flonrisb
ih,Googlc
i^OTES.
331
ntder the Bhelteriog branch of Oltve, the certain inrraiit of
peace. Under its shadow, ia the Garden of Life, Nature
creates (he Golden Ear for the one who desires the Beauti-
ful in union with the Useful ; and Fancy, or Art, creates a
thousand wreaths for the other, who only takes delight in
gay and graceiiil forms."
Goethe's maxim, throughout the whole of the Ma-squerade,
seems to have been that of the Manager, in the " Prelude on
the Stage " : —
" Who offen nuch, briap Hnaethiflg unla tataj."
I do not think it necessary, therefore, to toad each (tetait
with all the varieties of explanation. The reader, in any
case, win find himself infected by the suggestiv en ess of the
text, and thereby unconsciously led to interpret the fonns
according to his own individual taste.
19. WkalOHT naini is, Thiefhraitui.
The reference is not 10 Theophrastus Paracelsus, but to
Theophrastus of Lesbos,, bom B. C. 390, the disciple of
Plalo and the successor of Aristotle. Among his extant
works is a " Natural History of Plants," a translation of
which, by Sprengel, was published at Altona, in 1S22 ; and
his name was probably thereby suggested to Goethe.
The " Fancy Nosegay " seems to be designed as a type of
the wilful, artful, bewildering power of woman, which doe»
not attract all of the opposite sex, but the more surely fasci-
nates a portion of it. This version of the mask Is certainly
indicated by the "Challenge," which next appears, and
which is one with the " Rosebuds." We are to suppose
that the emblematic rosebuds which she carries are tempo-
rarily concealed, and then suddenly produced as a contrast.
exhibiting the superior charms of sweet, timid, modest
maidenhood over the glamour of acquired feminine art
Härtung »ays : " The Fancy-Wreath and the Fancy Nose-
gay mean to unite Art and Poetry, which create a second
artificial nature within Nature ; and especially the latter, the
poetic temperameDi, seeks a heart capable of recognjtjon
ih,Googlc
332
FAUST.
ind love. The Rosebud, on the contrary, does not make
beraelf conspicuous by show and glitter : she will only open
her glowing bosom to the lucky finder."
In Goethe's " Four Seasons " theie is the following dis-
tich:—
lo. Gardeners.
Although some commentatun assert that the preceding
masks of flowers represent the atlraclioa of afpearanct, anti
the fruits which are now brought forward must therefore
represent positive poiteiiioit, I prefer to stand by the more
obvious solution, and to see in the gardeners only the male
element of Society. In the latter, grace and beauty are sec-
ondary qualities ; the decision which follows mutual attrac-
tion must not be left to the eye alone ; the internal flavor of
character must be tasted. The spectacular arrangement of
the Ihiits and flower?, under green, leaiy arcades, suggest*
Goethe's description of the Neapolitan fruit-shops, in his
ItalitHiicke Reise.
II. Mother and Daughter.
Here the meaning is not easily to be mistaken, and the
criticB, although some of them have shown remarkable skill
in their cflbrts to attach some additional significance to the
characters, have not been able to escape the direct allusion
to scbetning mothers with marriageable daughter«. The
masks are appropriately introduced as a transition from the
natural, nnperverted attraction of the sexes in youth, which
is the primitive cause and charm of Society, to the iniroduc-
tion of other and disturbing elements.
The game alluded to in the third stanza (Dritter Matm),
I only know by its old English name of " Hindmost of
Three," which rnay possibly be a local designation ; but it
will at least indicate the game to those who happen to know
it under another name.
The stage direction*, in brackets, followiDg tbi* pasng^
ih,Googlc
I/OTES.
333
u «ell u those on page 39, were added by Riemer, under
Goethe's direction. They thus appeared in the twelfth vol-
nme of Goethe's Complele WotIu, in iSaS, and it is under-
•tood that they were intended to indicate additional scenes,
not written at the lime. The Eulure, aftecwards, to fill these
gaps, was certainly not forgetful ness, as EHintEer charges,
but rather weariness and the absence of fortunate moods, on
the part of the octogenarian poet.
'A theatrical atmosphere undoubtedly pervades, not only
this, but many other scenes of the Second Part of Fault, and
the English reader who may be not always agreeably con.
M30US of this drcumatance, should bear in mind that
öoelhe's long management of the Weimar theatre, and his
constant production of plays, masques, and vaudevilles
tmany of them of an "occaüonal" character), led him to
consider, while writing, the possible representation of the
urama upon the German stage. Prince Radzivill had
Mlready composed music for the First Part (in 1814), and at
the very time when Goelbe was preparing the Carnival Mas-
querade for publication, in 1838, Karl von Holtd was en-
gaged in bringing out the Plrst Part as a melodrama, with
music by Eberwein. Nor must we forget that the German
public had been educated to an appreciation and enjoyment
of even allegorical representations. After Sophocles had
been produced on the Weimar stage, and Schiller had re-
vivea the antique Chorus in his " Bride of Mestba," Goethe
not unreasonably conjectured that the Second Fart of Fami
might be acceptably represented The attempt has not yet
been made ; but a day may come when it shall be possible.
a^, Wcnlb-CUTTEKS. PULCINBLLI. pARASlTES.
The ruder ana less attractive — nay, frequently repellent
— elements of äomty are represented in these three classes.
The interpretation uf each *ill depend upon the drcom-
stance, whether we give them a purely social, or also a polit-
ical character. In the former case, öe Wood-Cutters are
tyj^cal of those coarse-nalured, bruKjoe ^dividuals, who
pride themselves on disregardii^ the social graces uu, lo-
ih,Googlc
334
FAUST.
prietiei ; tbe Puldnelli are the obaequioDS Idlers, trifler^
and {[OMip-iliongers ; the Parisites are «lescribed bjr theit
name. If «e are asked to give them a broader significance,
the Wood-Cutters are the nide, unrefined masses, apon
whose labor rests the finer fabric of Society; the Puldnelli
are the loafers who manage to live without anjr TisiUe mean«
of support, and are never idler than when tbey seem to be
most busy : and the Parasite« remain the same, only with a
broader field of action.
Some linea in the address of the latter suggest * passage In
the Third Satire of Juvenal : —
Grift^ aud Ihey grieve ; iff« «sap bleally,
Tben Ren» m »lent echo in (heir eye :
Tfaey cnDM noum like rou, but lliey cm ay.
Cdl for ■ fin, Iheir winier cIbUhi Vomj tika :
Elecin TDD bill ta ■hlTcr. lad ihajr ihlk* :
in fro« aod loow. if you compUin of heat,
Tbey rub th' uotweatiof brow, and iweir Iher aweit.
S3. Dkunkbm Han.
Goethe's object, here, is to represent sensaal indulgence,
of which intemperance is but one form. This bdng the last
of the masks which symbolize sodal classes, there is all the
more reason for restricting the explanation to Sodety alone ;
since, if the author had meant lo typify political dassea, be
must have necessarily closed tbe group with criminals in-
stead of sensualists. Dünner, nevertheless, insists that this
and the three preceding masks represent " the slavish de-
pendence of men uponoxiemal possessions"! But Lentbccher
surpasses all other commentators in asserting that the Wood-
Cutlers, the Puldnelli and Parasites typify " intellectual
manifestations and their relation to each other," while in the
Drunken Man he finds " the itraggle of tbe Real as a coun-
terpoise to itie Ideal " ! I
34. Tlu fftraU aMmmiuei varimt PaeU.
Prom ibis point to the appearance of the Graces, w« have
the skeleton of an unwritten scene, tbe characMr of which
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
335
Buy partly be conjectured (rom Goethe's expresnon* to Edt-
ennann. The various clasaes of poeti whom he meant to rep>
resent, and the jealousy of the cliques with which they were
uiocialed (unfortunately a characteriitic of German literary
life at the present day), may readily be guessed. Although
no OIK allows the others to speak, the Satirist succeeds in
declaring that his delight is in uttering what no one like* to
hear. Under the title of " Night and Churchyard Poets "
the author may have tiinted at Matthisson and Salis, and the
earliei lyrics of Lenau, The allusion to the vampire we are
able definitely lo trace. Early in 1827, Merim^e published his
La Giala : Points Illyrigtut, of which Goethe wrote : " The
poet, as a genuine Romanticist, calls up the ghostliest forms :
even his localities create a dread. Churches fay night, gravC'
yards, cross-roads, hennits' huts, rocks and ravines uncannily
surround the reader, and then appear the newly dead, threat-
ening and terrilying, alluring and beckoning as shapes nr
flames, and the moat horrid vampirism, with all its concoml-
The new Romantic school in Prance, and especially its
leader, Viaot Hugo, aroused Goethe's keenest wrath. He
called N6trt Dame de Paris " an abomiriable book 1 " and
thus enpresscd himself 10 Eckennann ; " In place of the
beautiful substance of the Grecian mythology we have devils,
witch-hags, and vampires, and the noble heroes of the early
time must give way to swindlers and galley-staves. Such
things are piquant r They produce an effect I Bui after the
public has once eaiea of this strongly peppered dish, and be-
come accustomed to the taste, i' irill demand more and
itronger ingredients." Herein is an explanation of (he refer-
ence to the Grecian Mythology, " which, even in modem
masks, loses neither its character nor its power to charm."
25. The Gracbs.
Here the masks represent social qualities and forces, not
varieties of individual character. In the Graces we see giv-
ini^ lecetving. and thanking or acknowledging, not in the nai'
itjwct .-«Dse of an ai.-t, but as symbolical of the intercourse of
ih,Googlc
336 FAUST.
tuen, — the communicattop of one ninm to another, the ist-
preuioDB beiEowed uid received, the redpTocal appreciaiioa
of cbaracter.
Aeon-ding to Heuod, the Grace* were Aglaia, Euphrosyne,
and Thalia. In place of the latter Goethe aubatituted He-
gemone (one of the two Graces revered by the Atheniana),
perhapa for the reason that the name of Thalia ii better
known as that of a Muse.
36. Thi Paec«.
Ab in the Graces we have the activity of beneficent aocia]
qaalitiea, so now, in the Parcc, we find those forces of order,
restraint, and control, without which there could be no per-
manence in human intercourse. Härtung consider* that they
represent the " necessities " to which life must submit, and
Diintter ca)U tbem the embodiment of " moral limltationa "
— but these are simply different forms of the same solution-
Goethe has purposely changed the parts of Atropos aod
Clotho. The former carefully »pins a soft and even thread,
warning the maskers that it must not be stretched too bz^
even in enjoyment. Clotho, the youngest of the Fates, an-
nounces that the shears have been given to her, because
Atropoa prolonged useless lives and clipped the thread* of
the young and hopeful, and she, therefore, thrusts die shean
into the sheath, in order to malce no similar mistakes. I
conjess I am unable to explain the exact significance of thi*
action. Some find in it a hint (hat the ancient gloomy, inex-
orable idea of Fate is banished from modem sodety ; other*
that the needful moderation and self-control will make the
threatening shears unnecessary.
The lash of Lachesis is evidently to arrange and twist to-
gether the separate threads into an even, ordered chain, —
a symbol which requires no further explanation.
vj. TS^drvTuBFuatss.
Here we have the activity of evil forces in sodety. Goethe
changes the Erinnys of the Greeks, who were represented aa
fietce.balefiilfiguies, with snakes and torches in their baad%
ih,Googlc
Into fiur, yonng, wheedling crcatuTei, seemingly hannlesa a«
iora. HU design cannot be for a moment doabted. The
onresting Alecto of modem society is the insinuation that
breeds mistniat. the slander that weus an innocent face, ihe
power that in a thousand ways thrusts itBelf between ap-
proaching hearu and drives then apart Megxra typifies
the alienation which arises from selfish whims, Irom indif-
feience or satiety ; and Tlsiphone alone, the avenging Fury,
remains true to her ancient name and ofBce.
38. AndAere Aimodi as my fellawer Uad.
Aaniodi (or Askmedai), the Destroyer, was *o evil derooa
of the Hebrews. He is mentioned in the Talmud, and Jew-
ish tradition reports that he once drove Solomon from his
kingdom. Since, in the Book of Tobias, he kills in succes-
sion the seven husbands of Sara, he has been credited with a
special enmity to married happiness. In this quality he ap-
pears as the follower of MegRra. As " Asmodeus " we find
him in Wieland's Obcron, and the Diaile Bailaix of Lesage,
through which he is almost as widely known as Mephistoph-
eles.
39. Yea lie a mountain prasing tkratigh Ike throng.
The Herald's expression : " For thai which comes is not
to you allied," seems to indicate a change in the character
of the allegory ; and I am disposed to agree with those who
attach a political meaning to the coining masks, rather than
with those who would include the latter in the representa-
tion of society. The Ibrmer interpretation is certainly the
more simple and complete. The elephant is Civil Govern-
ment, or The State, as another form of organised human
life. He is guided by Prudence, while on either band walk
Fear and Hope, in fetters. Fear, who shrinks from every
'iiidertaking, and Hope, who would undertake all things
without considering results, are, as Prudence declares, " two
of the greatest of human foes." They thus represent the
political elements of blind conservatism and reckless passion
fcr change. In an ordered and intelligent State both these
forces are chained. Prudence guides the colossal organism,
VOL, 11. IS V
ih,Googlc
338 FAUST.
and tbe Goddeu of all victorious sctive forces üti aloA an
her throne. Each change in Ihe courte of the allegory, tha
reader will observe, commences with the bright and altiac-
tive aspects of life and Chen advances to tbe opposite.
Eckermann reports a conversation which he had with
Goethe in December, 1S39, concerning this scene : " We
spoke of the Carnival Masquerade, and how tar it would be
possible to represent it on tbe stage. ' It would still be
something more,' said I, ' than the market in Naples.'
" ' It would require an immense theatre,' remarked Goethe,
' and is hvdly conceivable.'
" * 1 hope to live to see it,' was my answer. ' I shall take
especial delight in tbe elephant, guided by Prudence, with
Victory abuve, and Fear and Hope in chains at the wdes.
Really, there can scarcely be a better allegory.'
"'It would not be the first elephant on the stage,' said
Goethe. ' One in Paris plays a complete part. He belongs
to a politica] party, and takes the crown from the King to
•et it on his rival's head So you see that in our Car-
nival, we could depend on the elephant. But the whole is
tnuch too great, and would require a manager, such as is not
easily found.' "
Tlie addresses put into the mouths of Peai, Hope, and
Prudence have less point and importance than any others in
the Masquerade.
30. Zoilo-Thkrsitks.
Goethe takes Thersites from the Itiad, and unites him to
Tbe Thracian banator, Zo'ilus, who, In tbe third century be-
fore Christ, became so renowned by his venomous abuse of
Plato. Isocrates, and especially Homer, that his name was
applied by the Greeks to all vulgai, malicious scolds. The
two characters, combined, represent the class o( political
slanderers, defamers of all goad works, pessimists in the
most ofTenüve sctue. The characteristics of this class are
exhibited in still stronger and more repulsive forms, when
Zoito-Thersites is changed into the Adder atKl Bat by the
magic wand of the Herald,
ih,Googlc
The " Munnan of the Crofwd " are here introduced, as In
Scene II., to sapply the place of a Chorus, and assist in de-
scribing the action.
31. Blatk lightning of the eyis, the dari locks glfftoing.
The costume of the Boy Charioteer, a* described by the
Herald, is that of the Apollo Musagcies. It is the same
wUch Schlegel gives to AHoh, in his well-known ballad : —
" He hid» bia lirnt» of lanlien noulil
Id Kold SDd jwrplo wDodroui Hh ;
ETcn u hi* fam Eill., fald m IbU,
D. F. MofCariky,
The appropriateness of this costume is explained in the fol-
lowing note. '
I have used the phrase "a four -horse chariot," because, in
tht origins] tent, it is thrice spoken of as a Vier^spann, —
" a team of four," — and the Boy Charioteer uses the word
■■ «leeds " {Rasse\. Düntzer and some other German writers
consider that the chariot is drawn by dragons, although the
latter are specially mentioned as guardians of the treasure-
chests. This is not a matter of much importance : I give the
original words, in order that the reader may take his choice.
33. t lan Profasiim. I am Poesyl
Eckermann, in 1S39, reports : " Wc then talked of the
Boy Charioteer.
" 'That Faust is concealed under the nask of Plutus, and
Mephistophelea under that of Avarice,' Goethe remarked,
•you will have already perceived ; but who is the Boy Char-
ioteer ? '
"I hesitated, and could not immediately answer.
"'It is Euphorion,' said Goethe.
" ' Bui how can he appear in the Carnival here,' I asked,
when be i* not bom until the third act^
ih,Googlc
340
FAUST.
"'Euphorion,' replied Goethe, 'is not a hunun but u
allegorical being, to hint is peraonified Poetry, wbjdi is
bound neither to time, place, nor person. The same spirit,
who afterwards chooses to be Euphorion, appears here at
the Boy Charioteer, ^nd is so Eu like a spectre that he can
be present everywhere and at all times.' "
The episode of Plutus and the Boy Charioteer is a doable
allegory. The first and most direct interpretation is that
which belongs to the characters as a portion of the masquer-
ade. The Boy is not only Poetry, but the poetic element
as it it manifested in all Art ; and we may therefore say that
he represents the highest intellectual possessions, as Plutus
represents material possessions. Further on, we shall see
the manner in which the gifts of both are received by the
multitnde.
33. And eniy gives wAat gaidiit g/eami.
Although Poetry and Profusion are one, and the Poet
(Artist) is rich in proportion as he spends his own best
goods — although Art and Taste esteem themselves wealth-
ier than Wealth itself since they bestow all which the latter
can never of itself possess — nothing is lest appreciated by
the mast of mankind than the gifts which they freely scatter.
Pearls become beetle«, and jewels butterflies, and even the
vision of the courtly Herald (possibly a type of the wholly
artilicial society of Courts) sees nothing beyond the e»temal
appearance.
The " flamelets " which the Boy also scatters, and which
he afterwards describes at leaping back and forth among the
crowd of masks, lingering awhile on one head, dying out in-
stantly on others, and very seldom rekindled into a tempo-
rary brilliancy, need not, itow, be liirtber interpreted to the
,14. Tky brow when laitnli dtttratt.
Haue I tut them with hand and Janty hratjtdi
The appeal of the Boy Charioteer to Plutus brings tia to
the second and more carefully concealed allegory, whicli Iki
ih,Googlc
JifOTES.
34 t
beneath Ibe first, and does not Eeem to have been gueaa«d
by the German commentators. The onlj' ipedal reason
why Faust appears in the mask ot Plutus is the part which
Hephieiopbeles arranges for him to play at the Emperoi'a
Court — to assist in restoring the shattered finances of the
realm by a scheme of paper-money based on boried treasure.
At thi.s point, and hence to (be close of the Carnival Mas-
querade, a thread taken from the regular course of the
drama is also introduced, and lightly woven into the alle-
gory. There is no difficulty in fidlowing both, and we
might, if it were really necessary, be satisfied without look-
ing further ; but Ibe conversation between Plutua and the
Boy Charioteer, on pages 41 and 44, provokingly hints of an
additional meaning. When Plutus says "soul of my soul
art tboul" it is certaiiJy not Wealth speaking 10 Art:
when tbe Boy Charioteer says "as my next of kindred, do I
love theet" it is certainly not Art speaking to Wealth.
The Chancellor votj Müller, in his work: "Gocihe as a
Man of Action," was the first and only one to discover the
key to these expressions. The noble and intimate relation
which for fifty years existed bclween ihe Grand Duke Karl
August and Goethe — the Ruler and the Poet — is here most
delicately and feelingly drawn. The manner in which the
Grand Duke assisted Goethe in his flight into Italy ; the care
with which he watched lest Ihe duties of his office should
interfere with bis poetic and scientific activity ; the beautiful
renown given by the latter in return for this freedom, — are
all indicated in a few lines. When the Her^d first describes
Plutus, it is neither FausI nor Wealth whom we see, but
Karl August as Goethe saw him ; —
The correspondence between Goethe and the Grand Doke
M thoioughly justifies this interpretation, that t do not see
bow it can be avoided. The strong impression which I have
ih,Googlc
343
FAUST.
received from a carefiil Etudy of Ihe HiUna (Act III.), thai
Euphoiiun is not really Byion. but GORTKB kimstlf in Mit
foetu acHt'ily, is justified by Goethe's declaration that ibe
Boy Charioteer and Euphorion are one, and also — as 1 shall
endeavor to show in subsequent notes — the Nomunnilus of
the Classical Walpurgis- Night Although this theory has
not been adopted by any of the German critics, it seems to
me to furnish Ihe simplest and most satisbctoiy solution of
the most perplexing puzzle which the Second Part contains
— simplest, because all the illustrations which support it are
drawn (rom Goethe's life and poetical developioent, and
most satisfactory, because I can find no Other which harmo-
nizes and consistently eiplaitis the three characters.
It is proper to make the statement now, tihere the fiist
evidence is furnished. The additional reasons which I shall
oßer to the consideration of the reader will be given when
Homunculus and Euphorion make their appearance.
3S. Then Avantia tKu tny name.
Mephistopheles, true to his character of Negation, wears
the mask of Avarice, which is the opposite of active and
ostentatiously exhibited wealth. His address to the women
is suggested by the difference of gender between the ancient
Latin word, atraritia, which is feminine, and the German, Jrr
Cat. which is masculine. 'I'hc Women are perhaps intro-
duced here, iiislcad of the former mixed crowd, becanse ava-
rice is more repulsive to their nature and habiu than to
those of the iiKn
36. Drttv lion this peifU from thtßeld!
With the departure of Euphorion, the additiona] character
given to Plulus cease% and he is simply the type of Wealth.
When he opens the treasure-chest, the action of the multi-
tude, contrasted with their reception of the Boy Ctiarioleer's
gifts, explains itself. The intellectual wealth turned into
beetles in their hands ; the tongues of flame, cast upon Iheif
heads, flickered and went out ; but now the show of Tiche^
which the Herald declares to be a cbealv a joke of Cuniral
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
343
cxates them to * maddening exhitrition of greed The w-
tion of Plutus, in driving back the crowd with bis burning
wand, appears to sjmbuliM the usual terminatiim of thoM
popular excitements which have wealth for their object, —
such golden bubbles, for instance, as the Mississippi scheme
of Law, the railway mania in England, pttroleumln America,
etc. The fiir; for sudden enrichment is followed by a gen-
eral scorching.
37. WiaiviiU the lean fool do?
The predomiDance of a coarse, material greed of gain in
the people brings after it a general demoraliulion, the em-
bodiment of which in a palpable form is appropriately given
to Mephistopheles. He takes the gold and kneads it into
shapes, the character of which is so evident that they need
not be described, and which express Ihe natural consequences
of wealih without culture and refinement. It seems proba-
ble, as many commentators have surmised, that Goethe had
in view the condition of France under Louis XV. and XVI.
Diintzer says 1 " He shows us how, in a period of material
prosperity, the passion for wealth and indulgence increases,
until it leads the people to the highest pitch of shameless
immorality."
38. TTuy knmo not wkilhtraiard they 'n meiuiing,
Baatitt they have net looked ahead.
We now reach the last group of the Carnival masks, and
the closing scene of the allegory. The commentators (with
the exception of Köstlin and Kreyssig) are agreed that it
represents the revolutionary overthrow of a Stale, and they
differ only in regard to (he interpretation of the details. The
"savage hosts" are the masses of iiinorant people, whose
ruder qualities are presently lypified under the forms of
Faurij, Satyrs, and Gnomes. Since they lack that foresight
which comes of intelligence and wider experience, they drift
into Revolution without knowing whitherward they are wend-
hig. Schnelger thinks the Emperor takes the mask of Pan
Itbe All), in the sense in which Luiiis XIV. declared:
ih,Googlc
344
FAUST.
" L'Etat, c*«! moi 1 " Härtung insists thst tbe lioe " Full
well I know what every one does not" refers to Free-Ha-
aoniy and its supposed connection with the French Revolu-
tion 1 DUnUer considers that the Ruler and his Court are
responsible for the catastrophe [a view which seems lo be
justitied by Goethe's eipressions, quoted in Note 7), while
others assert that it is brought on by ihe thirst of the people
for gold and their subsequent demoralizatian.
There is one objection lo this interpretation, which I give
for what it maybe worth. The Fauns, Satyrs, Nymphs, and
Gnomes are Ihe attendants of Pan {the Emperor), and their
parts are played — as the catastrophe shows us — by the
personages of the Court. Kreyssig says : " They storm on-
wards like a savage host, the Emperor as Pan, his assodaie*
as Gnomes and Fauns, collectively the representatives of
rude natural farces and desires, in contrast to the spiritual-
ized, Olympian forms of light, and when they rashly approach
the Are and spirit fountain of Plutus, after their first, amaied
admiration, they are properly tormented by the magic glow,
although meanwhile only in sport. The part they play is
more distinguished and exlemally stalely, but not much
more dignified than that of Ihe holiday carousers whom
Mephistopheies so tricked in Auerbach's Cellar."
39. Gnomes.
Diinuer asserts (hat tbe Fauns represent unrestricted io-
dalgence in alt forms of sensual appetite: the Satyns the
arrogant will of a Ruler who looks down upun and despises
the people \ Ihe Gnomes ihe unbounded greed of power and
wealth; and the Giants the stupid and stubborn nature of
those counsellors who surround the throne and endeavor lo
crush every movement arising from Ihe development of the
people. Neither this nor any other of the mote particular
elucidations of the scene seems to me infallible. According
to Härtung, ihe Fauns are peasants iSauern], and the Sa-
tyrs demagogues. The field of conjecture, here, is still open
to whoever wishes to enter it ; and I shall not undertake tu
decide whether -the masks represent classes or qualities-
ih,Googlc
//OTBS.
34S
The Gnomei are the ootj ones who have something mora
than «n allegorical part to play. They are evidently intro-
duced as the guardians of buried treasure, in connecdon with
the tinandal scheme of Mephistopheles. This is clearly ex-
pressed, when their Deputation approaches Pan and an-
nounces the new and wonderful fountain of wealth, the spell
of which must be broken by him. The Chancellor refers to
this episode in the fallowing scene (page jS), when he as-
sures the Emperor that the latter actually signed the man-
date authoriung the issue of paper-money.
The greeting "Glück auf!" (which I have translated
" Good cheer I " though it may also be rendered " Lock to
you I") is in use among the miners, everywhere throughout
Germany. It appears to be exclusively an underground bail,
and therefore appropriate to the Onomefl.
The Giant», as they are here described, nalted, with an .
uprooted fir-tree in the hand, may still be seen <hi the coat-
of-arma of more than one princely house in North Germany.
They are called fVaJdmänner (Men of the Woods) by the
people, and are supposed, by some archxologists, to be lin-
eal deacendants of the Gredan Fauns.
40. At midday sleeping, if er Aii brme.
" The foliage of these oaks and beeches is impenetrable
to the strongest sunshine : I like to sit tiere after dinner on
warm summer days, when on yonder meadows and on the
park all around there reigns such a silence, that the ancients
would have said of it : ' Pan sleeps,' " — GoetAe la Ecker-
»w«.,I&4-
" The hour of Pan now fell upon me, as always upon my
journeys. I should like to know whence it derives such :.
power. According to my view, it lasts from eleven or twelve
until one o'clock ; therefore the Greeks believe in Pan's
hour, the people and also the Russians in an hour of day,
when the spirits are active- The birds are silent at this
time 1 men sleep beside their Implements. In all nature
there is something secret, even uncanny, as if the Dreams
vere oeeping around the luwiulay sleepers. Near at band
ih,Googlc
346 FAUST.
■U i* ailent ; in the distance, on the borden of the sky, thera
«re hovering sounds. Not only do we recall the pist, but
the Fast overtakes us and penetrates us with hungry yeam-
vig; the nty of Life is broken into singularly distinct colors.
Towards the vesper, existence gradually gtows fresher and
stronger, " — RUhtir, FUgilj,thre.
Perhaps as a contrast to this silence of the sleeping Pan,
the Nymphs recall the old Greek tradition of his icrrible
voice, wherewith he even alarmed Che Titans fighting against
Jove. In battle, also, his cry was sometimes heard, and we
itill retain the expression of the sudden, collective terror it
was supposed to inspire, in our word piaüc.
41. TTu Emptror bums and aU hit tkrtng.
Although this scene is generally accepted as symbolizing
Revolution, Its character is not so clear and consistent as Co
forbid other interpretations. The Emperor's account of his
vision during Che magic conflagration, given in Che next stkne,
scarcely harmonizes with an allegorical representation of his
own overthrow ) and there are various details — such as the
Dwarfs (Gnomes) being the conductors of the Emperor to
the fount of fire, the Herald holding the wand which Plutus
afterwards uses to quench the flame — to which we cannot
easily give > political symbolism.
I have quoted Kreyssig's view (Note 38), and here add
that of Köstlin : " When Pan, or the Emperor, arrives wiA
his suite, a deputation of the Gnomes, the spirits of the met-
als, advances and conducts him to the flowing gold in the
chest of Plutus, which they have just discovered. The chief
object of the Carnival Masquerade is therewith fulfilled ; the
Emperor is solemnly declared to be lord of the inexhaustible
store of metals hidden in the earth. Then the whole, since
it b only illusion and pleasantry, apparently terminates terri-
bly not the Revolution, as Düntser's gloomy interpre-
tation asserts, but, as it is immediately afterwards styled, a
cheerful "jugglery of flame," which terrifies only to banter,
and also serves, through the seeming terror and the speedy
quelling of the conflagration, to show the magic irt of Faoat
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 347
in its entire glory. At tbe most, there ia herein a hint tliat
wealth may result in damage, and that all material splendor
ii threatened with the danger of annihilation."
It it poMible that the scene may be a phantasmagoric pic-
tare of the consequences of the new financial scheme, wiiich
the Emperor has just (unconsciously) authorized. MoBl of
the Gennau commentators, however, accept the theory of
" Revolution." There is nothing, indeed, to prevent us from
applyii^ both solutions at the same time.
Some have supposed that the burning of the Emperor and
the surrounding oiaaks was suggested by Ihe terrible confla-
gration which occurred at the ball given by Prince Schwar-
zenbe^ to Napoleon, at Paris, in 1810. But It is much more
likely that Goethe remembered the following pass^e from
Gottfried's Ckremt, which he must have read as a boy :
" About two years afterwards (1394), when things were a lit-
tle better for the King (Charles VI. of France), divers lords
sought to do him a pleasure, to which end, on Carol) day In
January, they arranged a masque and disguised six of them-
selves in Ihe likeness of Satyrs or wild men. The garment
which Üiey had on was tight, lying close upon Ihe body,
thereto smeared with pitch or tar, whereon tow hung like
as hair, that so they appeared rough and savage. This
[rieased the King so well that he was foin to be the seventh,
and in like form. Now it was at night, and they must use
torches, because this dance was begun in the presence of the
ladies. The King came thus disguised lo Ihe Duchesse de
Beny, and, to her thinking, made himself all too silly and rude,
wherefore she held him fast and let him not go till she should
find who be was. But as he did not dii^close himself, ihe
Due d'Urleans, who was beholding the dance, took a torch
from the hand of a servant, and lighted under the King's
fitce, whence caught the pitch on the rool's-gatmeni, and the
King began to bum. Now when Ihe Olhet» saw such, forgot
they their garments, ran thither, and would quench the King's
blaze ; bat they were in like guise caught by the flame, aitd
because every one hurried to the King, bur of those French
gentlemen were btiraed «o miserably that they tbereupoD
ih,Googlc
died. Tnilj the King wa> preaeTved. and no paitieiiar in-
jury to bis body, but because of the frigbt utd the peat oW-
ctj he fell again into hk fonner madness-"
43. &> tear and at thi foriunt-fiäghltd latf.
Carnival and Allegory close together, and wiib this Bceae
we return to Faust, and his experiences at the Couit al the
EtnpcTOT. As I have already tetnarked, the Emperai's de-
scription of what he saw in the realm of fire does ncit at all
haimoniie «nth the Kevoluiiooary solutionii whence Düntcer,
who hold» ^t to the latter, is obliged to suimiBe that Goethe
mmt have lotgotten the doee of the (uregoing scene wbCB
he wtole the cnmnencement of thisi I should much prda
to believe that Goethe aUowed one part of hi« di^licalc alle-
gory to drop (its purpose havii^ been fulfilled), and here
tnttoduccs the Emperor'» vision as a further eiplanatioD o(
Ibe other part, — a deoeptive picture of the additional spleo-
doc aoA hoau^e which »ball ibllow the new financia] scbcia&
Mephistopheles blls irooicaUy into the same itrün, and
KoA while be seems adroitly to flatter.
Tbe paper-oKincy device was probably suggested by the
history of John Law's operalions in Paris, under the Orleans
Regency, — &om 171610 1720. It is also likely that Goethe
remembered a passage in P<qje's epistle to Lord Balhnnt
("On the Use rf Riches"): —
That Imb connplkii ligbUr winci to tj \
Gold iiDp'd bj thEC. eu irocnpaia tnidol fm^f,
Cu pock« iBIo, on fcich V carry kinp ;
A m^ lafihill wift ui Mmj o'er,
Or ifaip cf Kiutei ta Bomc dinvit «hoTB ;
A lot liki Sib^l'i, KMUr la md fro
O« fau* ud rorliiDci u llv wia^ akiU blov i
PrvgUDI TJIh ihifTnHTi flili Ihr imp imwifi.
And aiknl seTk a king or buji a queen."
Edteimann writes, December >7, 1S39: "After d
to-day, Goethe read to me the paper-money a
ih,Googlc
mo TBS.
349
Hephiatophelea promises to bimkh it. This subject nuia
through [he Ma^quende, «herein Mephistopheles so man-
ager that the Emperor, in the mask of the great Pan, sign*
a paper, wbich. receiving the value of money &oin hia sig-
natuie, is then a thousand-fold copied and circulated. Now
in this new scene the circumstance is discussed before the
Emperor, who does not yet know what he has done. Tbe
Treasurer hands over the bank-notes, and expl^ns tbe
transaction. Tbe Emperor, at £rst angry, but aAer a closer
compreheubiou of his gain deUgbied, bestows the new paper-
money lavishly upon tbe circle around him, and ftnalty, in
leaving, drops several thousand crowns, which tbe &t Fool
gathers together arKl then hastens at once to change ftotn
paper bto real estate.'
" Scarcely had the scene been read and «Kme remarks con-
coning it been exchanged, when Goethe's son came down
and took his seat at the table. He spoke of Cooper's laU
romance, which he had )ust read, and which be very inlelli-
gently discuiüied We made no reference (o the scene which
had been read, but be began, of his own accord, to talk of
the Prussian (reasury-notes, and that (bey were taken at
more than their actual value. White the young Goethe thus
spoke, I looked at the father with a smile which he answered,
and we thereby showed that we both felt the seasonable
character of tbe scene."
Soret reports, in 1830 ; "Goethe mentioried his want of
bilh in paper-money, and gave reasons based on his own
experience. As another evidence he related lo us an anec-
dote of Grimm, in the time of tbe French Revolution, when
the latter, who was no longer safe in Paris, returned to Ger-
many and was livii^ in Gotha." Goethe then described how
Grimm, one day at dinner, had exhibited his lace sleeve-
ruffles, declaring that no king in Europe possessed so costly
a pair. Tbe others estimated their value at from one to
two hundred louis d'or 1 whereupon he laughed and said:
" I actually paid 250,000 francs for them, and was lucky to
get that much for my atsigitait, which, tbe next day, were
not worth a frnhinf. "
ih,Googlc
3SO
FAUST.
The pnrpoM of the «cene, as a part of the plot, b to pn>
cure Faust a position at the Imperial Court. The character
of its satire is drawn from subjective sources, and hence —
since ail successful satire must have a basis of generally evi-
dent truth — is only partially effective.
43< T%ty Anuse wMin tAeir iffdal Hadts.
Goethe now returns to the original Faust-legend (vidi Ap-
pendii I^ First Fart) in giving Faust the task of invoking
the shades of Paris and Helena. In the legend, however,
Mephistopbeles voluntarily produces Helena as a mccuba,
to be the spiouse of Faust : here he remains true to his
Gothic character and his negation of Beauty. The heathen
race, be confesses, has its own special Hades, with which be
has no concern. His disinclination to assist Faust is so very
evident that we may almost ascribe to him an instinct of the
elevating and pniiiying influence which Helena, as the sym-
bol of the Beautifiil, will aftemards exercise. Being, never-
theless, bound by the terms of the compact, he consents to
piunt out the method of invocatioo, leaving the performance
to Faust
44. TSo"""' The Mothers !
Here is the second enigma, a complete and aatitfactOTy
solution of which is not to be expected. I will first quote all
that Goethe himself has said in relation to this passage. On
the loth of January, 1830, Eckermann writes: "To-day. as a
Fupptement to the dinner, Goethe gave me a great enjoyment,
by reading to me the scene where Faust goes to the Mothers.
The new, unsuspected character of the subject, ti^icther with
ihe tone and manner in which Goethe recited the scene, took
bold of me with wonderful power, so that I found myself at
once in the condition of Faust, who feels a shudder ciecp
over him when Mepbistophelcs make» the communicatiou.
"I had heard and clearly comprehended the description,
but so much of it remained enigmatical to roe that I feh
tnvwlf forced to beg Goethe to enlighten me a little. He,
however, according to his usual hatät, ai
ih,Googlc
Tb« Molhoi I Modien 1 It louDda h lingular t
" ' I can only betray »o mudi,' he then said, ' that in read-
ing Plutarch, I found that in Grecian antiquity the Mothers
are spoken oT as Goddesses. This b all which I have bor-
rowed, however ; the remainder is my own invention. Von
may lalce the manuscript home with you, stady it careAilly,
and se« what success you wUt have with it' "
Riemer, in his MUthtihatgtn uttr Gettht, relates that during
a season at Carlsbad, the latter tead the whole of Plutarch's
Morals, in Kaltwasser's .translation. "This," says Riemet,
"gave us n?>terial for conversation at the table, or in out
walks, and the cnigroalical ' Mothers ' in Fiaal may have re-
mained in Goethe's memory from some one of these occasions.
For when he questioned me on this point twenty years artcr-
waids — perhaps about the time when he wished to use the
material in working on Fatal — I could not immediately say
where the Mothers were to be found ; but he then remem-
bered that he had read of them in Plutarch. At first I could
not und the passages, and n^lected or forgot to make further
March % but, aftjr his death, when 1 arranged the manuscript
of Fault, memory and research awoke again. I found both
passages, but did not quote them because they give no ex-
planation of the use which Goethe ha« made of those mystic
daemons."
Plutarch's mention of the Mothers, however, is not to be
found in his Maraiia, but in the Life of Marcellus: " In
Sicily there is a town called Engyium, not indeed great, but
very andent and ennobled by the presence of the Goddesses,
called tbe Mothers. The temple, thef say, was built by the
Cretans ; and tbey show some spears and brazen helmets,
inscribed with the names of Meriones, and {with the same
spelling as in Latin) of Ulysses, who consecrated them to
the Goddesses "
Härtung has discovered another pass^e in Plutarch {Dt
Dtfici. Orac. 21), wherein the Mathers are not mentioned.
ih,Googlc
J5»
FAUST.
It it true, but which Goethe evidently bore in hii miitd km)
applied in ih[s scene : " There ire a hundred and eighty-three
worlds, which are arranged in the form ofa triangle. Each
side has sixty worlds in a line, the other three occupying the
corners. In this order they touch each other softly, and ever
revolve, as in a dance The apace within the triangle is to
be conudeied as a common fold for all, and is called the
Field of Truth. Within it lie. moveless, the causes, shapes,
•nd primitive images of all things which have ever existed
and which ever shall exist They are surrounded by Eternity,
itom which Time flows forth as an effluence u|>on the world». "
The reader must bear in mind that Paris and Helena are
together typical of the highest and purest physical embodi-
ment of the idea of Beauty — the Hutnan Form (nde Note
87 to the First Part), and that Helena, alone, afterwards be-
comes the symbol, both of Beauty and ofthe Classic element in
Art and Literature. The Mothers, therefore, (admitting the
significance of themn^', which suggested their use to Goethe)
must of necessity symbolize the original action of those ele-
mental fuiccs in Man, out of which grew the aesthetic devel-
opment of the race, in whatever form. We may find the
primitive source of all science in material necessity ; our
other knowledge is based upon the operation«f natural laws :
but the Idea of the Beautiful has a more mysterious origin,
springs from a diviner necessity, and finds only bints, not
perfect results, in the operations of Nature.
Gocibe made it a rule to discover some positive, however
dimly outlined. Form, in which to clothe abstract ideas.
This is always a difficult and sometimes a hazardous eiperi-
ment. Here the forma, instead of more clearly representing,
seem to have further confused the thought, if we may judge
from the variety of interpretations which have bren offered.
Dr. Anster has managed to present the latter with bo much
brevity, and at the same time so correctly, in his note on this
passage, that I fallow the order of his summary, only en-
larging it hy the introduction of additional views and giving
a translation of the phrases he quotes.
Eckermaan. after tailing home Goetbe's mamuctipt aafl
ih,Googlc
353
NOTES.
daljr pondering over it, evoWed out of bii inniaet c
tiess ihc discovery that the Mothers are the " creating and
Mutaining principle, from which everything proceeds that
has life and form on the surface of the Earth." Kösllin de-
nies that they are creative, but says (bey are the sustaining
and conservative principle, adding : " They are Goddesses,
wbo preside over the eternal metamorphoses of things, of
all that already exists." Dtintzet calls the Mothers the
"primitive forms (or ideas) of things," — Urbildtr der Dii^.
But, according to Rosenkranz, they are "(he Platonic Ideas,"
while Härtung, agreeing with Dunlzer that they are " the
primitive forms of things," adds thai " they dwell in the
desert of speculative thought" Weisse slates that they are
"the formless realm of the inner world of spirit — (he invisi-
ble depih of the mind, straggling to bring forth its own con-
ceptions." From this view it is but a step to the matri<a
of Paracelsus, which, in fact, we find partly accepted by
Deycka. who sees in the Mothers, as in the matrictJ, "the
elemental or original material of alt forms." Riemer'sview
is substantially the same, — "they are the elements from
which spring all (hat is corporeal as well as all that is intel-
lectual "
The theories which most of the above critics spin from
these interpretations arc too finely and consistently meta-
physical to have been intended by a poet liice Goe(he, whose
nature recoiled from metaphysical sysiema. Nevertheless,
they are all guesses in the same direction, and perhaps if wc
do not attach too Hieral a significance to Goethe's mysterious
Deep, wherein is no Space, Place, or Time, and are content
to stop short of the very "utterly deepest bottom" of conjec-
ture, we may get a little nearer to his actual conception. It
is not easy to conceive how Formlessness can be represented
by Form, though we may very well accept it as a vast, mys-
terious background ; and this is all, 1 feel sure, that Goethe
Intended.
Schnetger has picked up the most satisfactory clew,
Kreyssig has followed it, and Goethe himself has given ua
in tmconsdous hint of i(s correctness. The commentary of
ih,Googlc
354
FAUST.
the first Is much too long to be quoted, but it is subntin-
tially this : The primitiv« idea of forms does not exist in
Nature, which works according to the pattern set by a First
Designer. The realm of the original conceptions of things
it therefore outside of Space and Time, and the Mothers are
imaginary existences, who typify the unknown and unfathom-
able origin of all forms, and chiefly, here, of those eternal
Ideals of Beauty which bei;ome more real (o the Poet and
Artist than the never utterly perfect work of Nature.
Kreyssig says : " The poet evidently prepares to lead ibe
character of his hero towards that refining and purifying ex-
perience, to which he himself consciously owed bis grealeat
gain and bis highest joy, — tbe refinement following an ear-
nest, creative worship of those ideals of Beauty which have
descended to earth in the masterpieces of classic art. With
what fervor Goethe and his equal friend (Schiller) rever-
enced these, with what sacred feeling, what severe, devoted
•olemnily they served at (he same shrine, their common
activity is a wngle, continuous evidence. Goethe, especially,
dated a new life, a complete spiritual regeneration, ftoro
his penetration into the spirit of the ancient masters. A
profound withdrawal into himself, an almost abrupt relin-
quishment of the society around him, characterized the first
earnest beginning of his studies Only a firm, manly
resolution leads Faust to the sacred tripod, the primitive
symbol of Wisdom, through the contact of which he wins
power over the primitive forms of things, over the radical
conditions of that beautiful state of being, accordant with
Nature, which the Artist must know before he can "call the
Hero and Heroine from the Shades," and create imperish-
able forms as (he fair material revdatioos of his dreams.
What Goethe here celebrates under the form of the Mothers
enthroned in Solitude, is sung by Schiller, if our instinct
does not deceive us, in that thoughtful poetn, "of (he re-
gions where the pure forms dwell,"»
In Eckermann's third volume, he describes a conversation
which he had with Goethe, during a drive along the Erfurt
ih,Googlc
ÄTOTES.
3SS
road, in April. 1827: "'I must laugh at the acMhetidans
{j£ttketiJier)' said Goeth«, ' who so lormeni themaelve« to
epitomize in a few abstract nords all the unutterable ideas
for wbicb we use the expression, baaoiful. The Beauiilul ia
a primeval pkenvtnttioH, v)kkk iiideeä nrver btcamei vitMt
itaff, but the reflection of which is seen in a thousand vari-
ous expressions of the creative mind, as various aiid as man-
ifold, even, as the phenomena of Nature.'
" ' I have often heard it said,' Eckermann remarked, ' that
Nature is always beautiful, — that she is the despair of the
artist, because be is seldom capable of fully eqaalling her.'
"'I well know,' Goethe answered, 'that Nature often
CEhitnts an unattainable charm ; but I am bf no means of
the opinion that she is beautiful in all her manifestations.
Her designs are always well enough, indeed, but not so the
conditions which are necessary in order that the desigiu
shall be completely developed.' "
The realm where the Mothers dwell is visible to the secret
vision of the Poet and the Artist The Goddesses only see
"wraiths"; around them is "Formation, tTansformation " ;
there is no way to them, and no spot whereon to rest, — but
who and where they are is clearly revealed it)
" The Ught that nenr wu en sei or land.
They are the unknown, "unreachable," " unbeseechable "
sources of all immortal embodiments of Beauty, — the mys-
terious, primeval forces which manifest themselves through
Genius in a manner inexplicable to all ordinary human con-
sciousness; which remove those who know them !xc from
Space and Time, into a spiritual isolation which only the
brother-genius can comprehend, but even he cannot share.
In the Dedication to his Poems, Goethe thus addresses
the Muse: —
There might seem a contradiction to the purely xstbetic
interpretation of this scene, in the circumstance that Faust
ih,Googlc
356 FAUST.
n directed to tbe Mothers b; MifkUi^htlei, bat berc, as
occasionally elBcwhere in the Second Pan, tbe nask (A
Mephistopheles drops and we see the face of Goethe him-
•elf. To inast on the rdle of Negation, which explains the
Ibrms assumed by HepUstophdes in the Carnival Masquer-
ade, the Classical Walpuigis- Night, and the Helena, would
lead lo great confiision. There is, however, a partial return
to diamatic truth in tbe expression of Faust, thai be hopes
to find his All in the Nothing of Mephistopbele*.
45. Htrt, take this key t
The symbols of Che Key and Che Tcipod have also given
rise 10 much speculalirm. Thcii iseaning, of course, iü en-
tiiely dependent upon that which may be attributed to the
Uothers, since the key is (o guide Faust to tbe latter, and
then enable him to gain possession of the tripod, the incense-
■Tooke of which will shape itself into the ideals of Human
Beauty. Schnelger and Kreyssig agree that the tripod is a
•ymbol of the piofoundest wisdom, and tbe Ibnner attache«
to it the idea of "intuition," What we call the intuilioo
of Genius, however, is the highest and purest form of wi«-
dom, and Goethe, therefore, may have intended to typify (hat
wondrous, unerring instinct, which from the "airy rvothing"
of the incense smoke can evoke the immortal Beautiful.
Schnelger coniiders the key to be a " glowing sense of the
charms of the material form." With others, it is a symbol
of intense, passionate Desire. If Goethe had Specially in
view the creation of ideals of Beauty by tbe Grecian mind,
still other meanings would lie sugj^ested. We must seek in
Nature lor the keys to the myths of Greece, which, them-
selves, were designed lo be keys A> Nature.
What Mr. Ruskin says of the works of Homer : " TTiey
were not conceived didactically, but they are didactic in their
essence, as all good art is" — is equally true of this and
other episodes of the Second Part of Fau^. We find trace«
of that truth which reaches the poet by a deeper intuition,
having the involuntary nature, yet also the distinctness, of a
dream ; and which always contains mote than its ntterer can
ih,Googlc
dearly express. He cannot reject it, for it comes to him
with an irreaisiible authority : be miiit ihereibre be ailint,
*nd suffer it to Btond as a mystery for bin coDlemporaiiea.
46. A gmtU Utk ftrmit, tieit,from myfoett
The motive of this scene seems to be, 10 renew the contraat
between the »hallow, artificial society of the great world, artd
pure devotion to ideal aims. At the same time it enables
Mephistoptieles to resume his old character, and Goethe
(through him) (0 satirize tlie homaopalhic theory of medicine,
in the cure of the Brunette.
Id the Pamüpemena there arc two fragments whid) seem
to belong here : —
W« with (ba u
CooHdawn mt ]
47. HlKALD.
The Herald, whose office is to proclaim in advance th«
character of the action, acknowledges himself baffled : he
sees only " a wildcring distraction " in the coming perform-
aoce, and therefore describes the scene instead Even in
the few lines of description there is a covert satire. The
Empetor is placed where he may comfortably see the pictures
of battles ; in the background aie lovers, who recognize in
the occasion only an opportunity for coming together.
Goethe intended at one time to introduce a play, as in
" Hamlet," and he appears to have chosen Foitinbras, Ham-
let's successor, as the hero. The fragment of a scene which
remains gives us no hint of the character of the play, nor
can WE be certain that it would have been introduced in con-
nection with the appearance of P^ris and Helena. Never-
theless, the fragment may be here given : —
ih,Googlc
358
Thmtm.
(r*,«*». wkttu^ii.Ki^, o/,«».»««««»»*?)
s. Bnn, old Fordnbru, old c
hapl Youuefeeliac
b«ll,:f™o.n,h
m 1 'm »rry for r«i. Uiki
a» .Hbrt,-OBl» a km
«ordinan! Wt
hill not »OD Iglin luua Kin« Ulli.
Chahcklwi.
■»lead of Ihat. « ihall ha» Ihi fcrmiM, t» kcar iba
wiK rcmuki of Hu II*j«ty >h> Enp«« to n«h
s. ThaliiunethiDiwydiflc
«L YoflfEiDetleDCT
DHd not pmuu.
Whii « Mb« «urda aar ia qa
Faust. H<uta 1
taaah 1 he Dinea afaiiL
Acid«. Dipin
tb«iaiici»>lawan.dapaRl Bh»«] be (Iuh forlhr
lui KDb iDd all ih
e (ood »hich thou haat apoken.
The evil,whkA thou
-BtohliWf-»».
amdl
LoiiD High SnwAKD. Do not ipnk k> loud 1
The Emperor aleepi;
Hi> M^tur do«
one™ will
48. Architect.
The seen« upon the stage is a Doric temple ; the musive
character of the pillars is here hitited, and the triglj^hs ara
afterwards mentioned. By introducing the Architect, Gcethe
means not only to satirize the exclusive devotion of the Ger-
man mind to Gothic art. but also to show how the Classic
and Romantic lepel each other when first brought into con-
tact. It was simply necessary thai be should remember the
character or bis own development. In 177z he published an
essay " On German Architecture " (the word Ctrvtan being
purposely used instead of Gotkit)., containing a glowing pan-
egyric on Erwin von Steinbach, the architect of Strasburg
Cathedral. Yet in 1810 he wrote to Count Reinhard ; " For-
merly I had also a great interest in these things, and cher-
ished I sort of idolatry for the Strasburg Cathedral, tbe
facade of which I siill consider, as then, greater than that at
Cologne. But the most singular thing to me is out German
patriotism, which endeavors to represent the evident Sara-
cenic growth as having originally sprung up on German soil."
The Doric temples at Girgenti and Pgestum produced such
ih,Googlc
XOTES.
359
a profoand impres^n upon Goethe's mind, tbat, by a nat-
tual reMtion, he was for a time repelled by Gothic art. In
describing the architrave of the Temple of Antoninua and
Faustina, in Rome, he wrote : " This is indeed »omething
other than onr cringing saints of the finical Gothic spirit,
piled one over another on brackets and corbels, — some-
thing other than onr tobacco-pipe columns, pointed turrets
and flowery pinnacles. From these, thank God, I am now
eternally delivered I "
49. Wiai/er ence mar, Ihtn turns and brigAttnsJru
lit tptmdor — far V vteuldfaiH eternal be.
Faust's invocation, it seems to me, cannot easily be inter*
preted from any other point of view than that which I have
chosen for the Mothers. The expression "Whate'er once
was " (xrtainly does not apply to all forms olLife upon the
earth — still less to absiract thoughts, speculations, or philo-
sophical systems. What can It be but all creations of Beauty,
whether lost to the world or still possessed ? Tliey would
&in be eternal, and the Artist never admits to himself that
they have actually perished. In that mysterious realm of
the imagination where their forms were first designed, thejt
still exist as "wraiths," in company with all those forms
which never advanced from design to fulfilment, — with the
unwritten poems of Homer, and Dante, and Shakespeare,
thf unchiselled gods of Phidias, the completed Dawn of
Michel Angelo, the unpainted dreams of Tintoretto and
Raphael. I interpret the line: —
" Life Kius urn. aloBK hii (radau cmnc,"
as referring less to the life of these conceptions in Art, than
to the occasional revelations of the Beautifiit in Man and
Nature. The Magician, who arrests other forms, and " be-
stows as his faith inspires " would then be the Artist, whose
nature is for the time (as we have already seen) typified in
FausL
ja Whodeth mi hiamhe gtntlt FarisvxIU
The description of the Doric temple first prepares us for
ih,Googlc
jöo FAUST.
tbe apparition of (he Gredan kkala of B«aiRy, and dow the
mysterious music, the ringing of the shafts and triglyphs, the
■inging of the «hole bright temple, is introduced with won-
derfiil effect. When Paris advances " with rhythmic Blep,"
we have x suggestion of Poetry, in addition to Music and
Architecture, m that all Art celebrates the coming of the
highest dream of Beauty in tbe Hijmin Form.
The personages of the Imperial Court not only represefi^
through their comments on Paris and Helena, the manner in
which the Artist's purest achievements present themselves
to commonplace and conventional natures, but, if Riemer be
correct, ihey have a persona) character, also. He says : '* To
the Weimar public, or rather to the priviJeged persons of the
Weimar Court circle, there was an elemenl of interest which
WB cannot feel : (he six or seven ladies and gcntieinen who
take part in tbe dialogue represented well-known persons."
This scene may have been suggested by one of Count Ham-
ilton's talcs, " The Enchanter Faustus," wherein the latter
calls up Helen of Troy, and other women noted for their
beauty, before Queen Elizabeth and her Court. The impres-
sion which Helen makes upon the Queen and courtiers is so
similar tu Goethe's description, that I qtioie a portion of
"This figure walked a certain time before the company,
and then turning fiux to face with Ihe queen, (hat she might
have a better view of her, (ook leave of her with a kind of
half-pleasant, half-haggard smile, and went out by rite other
" As soon as she had disappeared, (he queen exclaimed,
' What ! is that the lovely Helen f Well, I don't plume
myself on my beauty,' she continued, ' but may 1 die, if I
would change faces with her, even if it were pos.tiUe.'
" ' I told your Majesty as much,' replied the magician, ' and
jret you saw her enactly as she appeared when in ihe very
zenith of her beauty.'
" ' Still,' said Lord Essex, ' I think her eyes may be con-
sidered tine/
"'It must be admitted,' rejoined Sydney, 'that they an
ih,Gobglc
NOTES. 361
hrge, nobly «luped, black, and sparklh^ bat what expre»-
Bion is there in them i '
" ' Not I particle,' replied the favorite. The qaeen, nhoee
face that da; was ai red as a turkey-cock's, asked them «hat
they thought of Helen's porcelain complexion.
" ' Porcelain ! ' cried Essex, ' 't is but common delf at the
best.-
" ' Perhaps,' continued the queen, ' such may have been the
fashion in her time, but you roust agree with nie that there
never could have been an age when such a pair of feet would
be loierated. I don't dislike her dress, however, and I 'm
not sure whether I shall not bring it into fashion instead of
those horrid hoops, so embarrassing on certain occasions to
iu> women, and on others to you men."'
51. Thiferm, lAal long treuhilt my fiuuji tapliirtd.
This is one of the few references to the First Part, which
we find in the Second. Faust remembers the form which be
saw in the magic minor, in the Witches' Kitchen (First
Part, Scene VI.), and which, we may now be sure, was nei-
ther Margaret nor Helena, but, as I have already stated, the
beauty of the female form. There, it was the visible beauty,
as it is more or less developed in every living form : here, it
is the perfect IdeaL Let the reader compare the ex|>ression
of Faust's passion for Margaret (First Part, Scene XII.) ■—
To yield ou wholly, ud la feci ■ tapniR,
In vieldjDg, that iniut be fllenial \
Elenul I — tbr the end muld be deipur.
Ko, no, ^ na «iidinc I no ending I
wiA the ecstasy following the revelation of an esthetic
Ideal : —
'T u tboo. to *bon the idr of ill uy tm*«,
The Mience of my paetion't foroe«, —
Lote, &ncy, wonhip, madneie, — here T ituder 1
and the meaning of the passage cannot be doubtful to anjr
one who appreciates the firte spiritual passion which poa-
•esses the Poet and the Artist
Kieyssig alone, of all the German cominenialors, seems to
VOL. II. 16
ih,Googlc
363 PAUST.
hiTe comprehended tbe spirit of this scene. HeHT«: "The
Artist has seen his Ideal. His joy, his yearning, rises to a
burning desire, to a resolution so powerful that nothing can
intimidate it. Again the old, passionate blood seethes, al-
though now wanned by a nobler fire. The impetuous, ruh
attempt to win at one blow as a permanent poiwession that
which has only been revealed in a. fleeting glimpse, tails,
like his former attempt, through that radical law, which only
gives the most pfedoua gifts in return for labor and patience.
The apparition vanishes, and in the abrupt reaction we see
him, who would Gun be superhuman, lying senseless on the
earth. The first assault of his ambitious claim has been re-
sisted, but bis resolution remains irrevocable. He cannot,
now, remain longer at the Emperor's Court The man of
ideal vision and creation must equally bit to find his place
there, as formerly among the dissolute groups of (he Blodis-
berg. The period of his intellectually-artistic development
and maturity commences, and the poet inaugurates it by a
series of sometimes varied and fantastic allegories, in order
(o complete it afterwards in the Third Act, the scenes of
which are excellent and truly dramatic, in spite of all tbdr
symbolism and allegory."
It is a great consolation to find a view which one can so
heartily and totally accepL
51. laiU thtpiiii: The Rape of Helena.
The Astrologer, apparently, only uses this expres^on in
order to exdle Faust by the apprehension of loss, and thus
bring about the catastrophe with which the act doses. In
Hen IwtlKild H I Reaiili« h« centre I
we have a striking contrast to Faust's impatience and dis-
gust with the results of all Icnowledge, in the opening mono-
l(^ue of the First Part. It is almost a prophecy of that
supreme content which would delay the flying Moment ; and
Mephistopheles might hope soon to claim his wager, iMit for
the circumstance that his negative nature is utterly incapable
of comprehending Faust's passion for the BeantifiiL
ih,Googlc
//OTES. 363
Schne^er sa;a : " The title (The Rape of Helena) sbnplp
means to eiprets more clearly that the fomi was only a
prophetic vision, and now vanishes ; that Faust is not yet
aufficiently advanced to retain the Beautiful ; that Helena,
the highest ideal of An, resembles that form of the Shades,
which seems so near that Faust cries ; ' How can she nearer
be '. ' and yet is ever stolen Irom him who would too impetu-
ously grasp her."
Mr. Lowell, in his poem of " Hebe," expresses the same
idea: —
"Oapnidthrin Hula I amil the Godii
There is one slight concluding pnizle in this scene. If
the key which Faust holds represents Desire, why should it
be aimed (in the manner of a pistol) against Fans? The
latter is bere a part of the Ideal Beauty. If the act indicates
more than Faust's unthinking rashness, I cannot explain it.
53, MSPHISTOPHELES {coming forth frma bthinda curtain).
In December, 1829, Goethe read the opening scene of the
Second Act to Eckermann. At iu close, he »aid: "The
conception is so old, and I have so carried and considered
it in my niind ibr fifty years, that the material has greatly
increased, and my most difficult work, at present, consists in
•election and rejection. The invention of the entire Second
Part of Fautt is really as old as I say.« Hence it may be an
advantage to the work, that I now write it, after all the affairs
of life have become so much dearer to roe- My experience
büke that of one who possesses in youth a great many small
wlver and copper coins, which he gradually exchanges In
the course of his life, until he finally sees all his early wealth
^ng belbre him as pieces of pure gold."
I^ as teems probable from the evidence, the dialogue be-
* GdmIm nuM DMin. here. Ifac original conecplian or gnnnd.pliin of
ih,Googlc
304 FAUST.
tween Mephistophdei and the Baccalanreua was written •OOM
thiily or forty years before, the opening page» of the scene
may undoubtedly be refened to (he year 1819. What Goethe
•ays of its conception must not be taken 100 literally. We
may guess Chat bis lirst intention was to give FausE a part to
play in bis old Gothic chamber : the reappeannce of Che
Student of the First Part as Baccalaureus »eems to be hardly
a sufficient motive for the return to Place and the porposed
contrast of Time. Hephistopheles, whose part, througbout
the period of Faust's aesthetic development (Acts II. and
III.), ii supposed to be Ignorance as «ell as N^atioD, for-
gets himself in almost the first words he spealis: —
" Whom Htlvia «hull ponlf]»
The idea of the Beautiful is this " insane root," which. Id
the eyes of conventional humanity. Cakes the Artist's reason
prisoner. Faust lies senseless until he reaches the Pharsa-
lian Fields, in the Classical Walpurgis- Night, and Goethe,
meanwhile, becomes prompter to Mephtstopheles, as the
latter was to the Astrologer. The reader must be wanted
not to expect any dramatic consistency in this and the follow-
ing scen& While writing them, the First Part, it is very
evident, was constantly before Goethe's mind, not as a still
secret and vital inspiration, but as something gone from bim
forever, something considered, judged and set in its place by
the world, shorn of the joy of private possession and poirer-
less to reproduce its own original power. He translates his
thoughts (roni the natural language of Age into that of
Youlh, and, as in all translation, he is not quite equal to the
original.
54. CreHheU farevtr muil bi haUlud.
There is a pun in the German which cannot be given.
GtUUh means both criclati and croUhcti or splenetic humors,
the first reference being to the insects which Mephistopheles
has shaken oat of the old fur. In describing this act Goethe
makes use of the word far/areUin to designate one variety
•f insects, — probably a mistake, intended for the Italian
ih,Googlc
KOTES.
365
word firfaldtt, wbkh has the samB donUe meuiiig aa
Gritlen.
Taking these two wiMdt in connectkm with tlie foregoing
■atire of Mepbistopiicles, we may conjecture that the "Cho-
rn* of Iniects" is inleoded to represent all the whims,
crotchets, and theories of mechanical acholanliip, — the ver-
miniferous life which is bred in tlie mould of pcdantty. At
the cloM of Scene IIL, First Part, Mephistophelcs declare«
himself to be
"The tori of nB and ckg of mm.
Of Binuil bedbagi. frnciand ÜMt"
for which reason, apparently, the insects hail him as patron
and äther. Diintzer says : " The Devil ridicules the dead
scholarship, the waste and mould of the chamber, wherein
CriOen most ever be produced : we might even suppose that
the insects, especially the farfaUtti (moths) and cicadas, are
an indication of the crotchets and distorted views of life to
which taixaa are so eauly disposed."
55. BACCAUtVktUS.
The new Famolus, who it a spiritual descendant of the
Wagner of the First Part, is introduced to give Mephis-
tophelcs the opportunity of continuing liis irony. Some
imagine that in the latter's description of the immense repu-
tation and authority whidi Wagner has acquired Goethe
intended a reference to the extravagant popularity which
Kchte enjoyed at the University of Jena. Inasmuch as the
irony of (he passage is sufficiently dear without this personal
application. I do not think it necessary to give the grounds
on which the conjecture is based.
Ii seems to me evident that the conversation between
Mephistophelcs and the Baccalaureus (commencing on page
90) b oue of the earlier fragments. Frau von Kalb de-
clared that Goethe read to her the whole or a portion of it,
at least twelve years before the publication of mc First Part,
consequently in 1796, about which time there are passagea
in the correspondence with Schiller which furnish an indirect
ih,Googlc
366 FAUST.
explanation of tome of the exprestfons. The Baccalanrens,
moreovei. is so admirable and consialent a continuation of
(he Student, and Mephislopheles (»cepl at the very close
of the interview) ii so like his old self^ that the reader of the
original cannot help remarking Che difierence in execution.
I trust there maj be Bome evidence of it in the transliHon.
The earlier pasaage commences at the line: "li, ancient
Sir," etc.
Eckennann asked Goethe whether a certain class of ideal
philosophers was not typified in the Baccalaurens.
"No," said Goethe; "he is the personification of that
presumption which spedally belongs to youth, and of which
we had so many striking examples in the years immediately
after our War of liberation. Every one, however, believes,
in his young days, (hat the world really began with him, and
that everything exists for his individual sake. Thus there
was once a man in the Orient, who as.«emb1ed bis people
about him every morning and suffered them not to be^
their labors nnCil he had commanded the sun to rise. Of
course he was shrewd enough not to utter the command
until the sun was on the point of rising without it"
In an earlier conversation (upon a work of Schubart),
Goethe said : " 1 have always kept myself entirely free Irom
Philosophy : my standpoint was that of sound human under-
standing."
5a. But den'l ga, oAielutr, hamt from here.
There is a philosophical antithesis implied in the words
"resolute" and "absolute," in this couplet Mephistoph-
elei uses the former word in its double sense of " deter-
mined" and "dissolved," while the latter, according to
Kreyssig, is a sarcastic allusion to the Hegelian philosophy.
It would seem from what follows, however, that Goethe had
Fichte in his mind, rather than HcgcL
57. Witt Mte hoj paistd kit thirtieth year,
OfU then iajait the same at dead.
The reference to Fichte is here not (o be mistafcen. Tha
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 367
fcllowing pMSi^ occurs in his works ; " When tbey hare
passed their thirtieth year, one well might wish, fur their
own reputation and the advantage of the world, that they
would die ; since, from that age on, their lives will only
be an Increasing damage to themselves and their assoda-
When Flehte first appeared as PTofessor at Jena in 1794,
Goethe was very ävorabiy inclined towards him and his
theory, but the prepossession gradually wore away, partly in
consequence of FIchle's boundless assumption of infallibility,
and partly, no doubt, from the indiscreet conflict of his disd-
pte» with the much smaller circle aronnd Goethe and Schil*
ler. The latter writes, on one occasion : " According to
Fichte's own expressions, the Me is also creative through its
reptescntalions, and all reality eiists only in the Me, The
world, to him, is nothing but a ball which the Me tosses up,
and which, in its contemplation, it catches again I He thus
actually seems to have dedaied Ua own Godhood, as we
recently antidpated."
The expression of the Baccalaureus :
" Saw through irjr will, no DenI cut there be,"
and the magnificent glorificatioa of the Idea, with which he
departs from the chamber, certainly do not simply express
the ordinary presumption of youth. If the reader will recall
the stanza headed " Idealist," in the Intermette of the First
Part, which was also written in 1796 (a drcumsiance corrob-
orative of Frau von Kalb's testimony), and which is univer-
sally accepted as a representation of Fichte, he will recog-
oJM precisely the same features here.
58. Who can think viia or itufnd thingi at all,
Tkal wert not thought alrtady in Ihi Pastf
Goethe was acquainted with a little-known volume of
'^me. some of the maxims of which, translated by himsetl^
were found among his papers and ignorantly published as
original fragments by Eckennann and Riemer. The work,
which i« entitled: "The Koran, or Essay*, Sentiments,
ih,Googlc
368 FAUST.
Character«,uidCaUniuc)iie*iifTriaJaiKtihUno.M. N. A.
or Master of No Arts," wa* poblished to Vieniu in 179&
Tbere appears to have been an earlier edibon ; but I ana
nnablie to sa;, in view of certain resemblances betweea
Sterne and licbtenbeij^ which borrowed from the other.
The following passage is undoubtedly Steme's : —
" But that nothing is new under the sun «as declared bf
S^omon some years ago : and it ii impoiaible lo provide
again« evils that have already come to pass. So that I am
sure I have reason to cry ou^ with Donatus, apud Jerom —
Ptreant qta aHü noi nostra Jixtrtaitl For I have ever wrott
without study, books, or example, utd yet have been charged
with having borrowed this hint from Rabelais, that fron
Montaigne, another from Martitius Scnbleru*. etc., withoot
having ever read the first or remembered a word of the latter.
" So that, all we can possibly say of the most original as*
tbors, nowadays, ii not that they say anything new, but
only that they are capable of saying such and such things
themselves, ' if they had never been said before them.' Bat
as monaichs have a right to call in the specie of a state, and
raise its value, by their own impression ; so there are Certain
prerogative geniuses, who are above plagiaries, — who can-
Dot be said to steal, but, from their improvement of a thought,
rather to borrow it, and repay the commonwealth of letters
with interest again ; and may more properly be said to adopt,
than to kidnap, a sentiment, by leaving it heir to their own
Goethe, In his conversations, very emphadcally repeated
this view. In 1815, he said : " People talk forever of Origi-
nality, but what docs it all mean ! As soon as we are bom
the world begins to operate upon us, and continues to do so
to the end. And everywhere, what can we call spedally our
own, except energy, strength, and will ? If I shoold declare
for how much I am indebted to great predecesaora and con-
temporaiiea, there would not be a great deal left"
Three years later, he thus expressed himself to Eckennann :
" It is true that we bring capacities into life with us. but wa
owe our development lo the ttiousand inHuenosa of a gresC
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 369
world, from which we aufmilMe M we am. I owe mncb to
the Greeks and to the Freoch ; raj debt to Shaketpcare,
Steme, and Goldsmith is immeasurably great. NevertbelcM,
the sources of my culture are not therewith indicated : to name
them all would be an endless tasic, and to no purpose. The
main thing is, that a man has a soul loving the Truth, and
accepting it wherever be finds it. But the world is now so
old, and for thouaands of years past so many impoTtanC men
have lived and thought, that few poeitively new things can be
discovered and said."
The expression of Mephistopbeles, however, seems to have
been more directly suggested by a line in Terence : NuUtim
tHjam dictioH, qtied mm diettim litfiritu.
The sudden introduction of a theatrical detail at the doM
of ibis scene is a piece of satirical wilfulness on Goetbe't
pan. The younger auditors in the parquet do not applaud,
because they are all in sympathy with the Baccalaureus, even
as the students of Jena, severally and collectively, were en-
thusiaslic disciples of Ficbte. The movement among tbe
German youth, which culminated in the famous Wartburg
convention of 1817, was extremely distaslefiil to Goethe, and
led to a coolness on the part of the students which did not
paM away until the next generation. From various utter-
ances of Goethe on this alienation of youth from him, I
quote the following verse : —
Ai Ibe old ODU nine "bbb.
So twiuercd ümb the youDR 01» ;
The young bow give Ihe vhythm,
Aod old muH nog il with 'em.
When tuch tbe (niw and «rill ii»
The be« thing, to keep itill it.
59. HUMITHCIJLUS.
This whimsical, artitidat manniiiin is, in reality, the chief
personage in Act II. Since be is no less an enigma to the
Clitics than the mysterious " Mothers," and suggests even a
greater varicly of meanings In tbe course of his adventures,
it will not be so easy to give, in advance, a full and satisfac-
tory esplanaticMi of his character. I prder. therefore, to oSer
i6* X
ih,Googlc
tbe reader choice of Kveral tncks, leaviiiK th« «bich I bb-
lieve to be the true one to be further followed in succeeding
The nunc and mode of origin of Homunculus arc taken
from PiraceUus, and some hint of the character, possibly,
from Sterne. The former, in the first book of hii /fe Geiie-
ratient Rmtm, says : " But now the grneratio AemuncuUrnm
is by no means to be forgotten. For there is something in
it ; although such his hitherto been held in the greatest se-
crecy, and there has been no small doubt and question among
divers of the old philosophers, whether it may even be posu-
bje, that a man may be bom without the natural mother.
Thereto I answer, that it irnot at all contrary to the art
Spagyriea and to Nature, but is quite possible. And although
such has hitherto been concealed itaia the natural man, yet
«as it not concealed from the sytvatm, and nymphs, and
giants, but long ago revealed, whence also they originate.
For from sncb hemtmailit they grow to Ailt age, monstrous
dwatb and other like wonderful creatures, which are em-
ployed as powerful agendes, are victorious over (heir ene-
mies and know secret things, which men otherwise could not
know. And by art they receive their life, by art they receive
body, flesh, bones, and blood ; by art are they born : there-
fore Art is in them incarnate and self-existing, so that they
need not learn it from any man, but are so by Nature, even
as roses and other flowers."
Paracelsus thereupon gives minute and exact direction*
how the Homunculus may be created \ and the attempt has
no doubt been actually made thousands of times. Sterne, in
(he second chapter of THstram Shandy, treats the subject
with more than his usual wit and grace, averring that the
Homunculus is as much a man and a brother as the Lord
Chancellor of England. The attraction which such a con-
ception (intellectually speaking) presented to Goethe's mind
may be readily guessed, and a curious coincidence probably
led to its embodiment in this scene. The philosopher, Jo-
bann Jacob Wagner,* seems to have possessed tome of the
■ Ha na bom it Ulm in 1775, uid died Ihn* in 1141. He Modied at
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
371
characteristic! of his namesake of (he First Pail After th«
^pearance of the latter, in iSoS, Prof. Köhler, of Wiirzbnrg,
gave a lecture upon it, in which, either as jest or malice, be
declared thai bis fellow-professor was the original of Faost'i
Famuliu. About the same time, Wagner propounded the
most astonishing views in his lectures, some of which — as,
for instance, " all organisms are nothing but developed met-
als," and the assertion that " Chemistry would finally suc-
ceed in producing organic bodies, even in creaiing humatv
beings bp crystallization " — were repeated all over Germany,
and must have reached Goethe's ears. The scene, as it
stands, WM thus suggested 10 him ; for the attempt to create
life artificially harmonizes completely with the lifeless pedan-
try of which Wagner is the representative.
Professor Wagner was an enthusiastic admirer of the origi-
nal " Fragment " of Fatat. He lectured upon it, and even
published an analysis of the work, in 1S39 ; but he rejected
both the Second Part and the additions to the First Part
which appeared in 1 S08 1
Nothing which Goethe has himself said concerning Ho-
mancnlus will much enlighten us. Indeed, his expressions
seem to have been purposely uncertain and mystical: both
here, and in his remarks upon Euphorion, the care with which
be guarded the Key-secret is ver}' apparent. After reading
the scene to Eckermann (December 16, iSzg), hesaid : " Vou
will have noticed, in general, that MephisCopheleH appears lo
a disadvantage in contrast with Humunculus, who is his
equal in intellectual clearness, and much his superior through
his inclination for the Beautiful and Ibr a promotive activity
Besides, he calls him Sir Cousin ; for spiritual beings, like
Homunculus, who were not obscured and limited by a com-
Jcu ind GtttiKE«. and wu Ibr miny fan Pmfnicir id Wfinbuic
Amoflg hit «orlu arc " A Thmr of Wuinih and Li(h1," " A Syiuni ol
Idtal Phikw^T." "Phllmophy oT Education," "Palilial Ecodobit."
- Phik>«iphy ind Mcdkint." «sd " The Principle of Life " He mw
ihc i,)»m> of Kai». Fichie. Sdiellii« ud UbmIC H« had, at 0«
tiiM« a andt of devout boHavor»
ih,Googlc
plete buman incoqKiration, were djased aaumg the Daenton^
and tbeTefi>reaiortDfrdationshipina.]rbepTe*unicd between
the two."
" MepbiBtupheles," said Eckemunn, " certain!]' appear*
here in a subordinate position ; but I cannot eiicape the idea
that he is secretly implicated in the creation of Homuncuin«,
according to our fanner knowledge of him, and also from
his appearance in the HeUna as a secretl]>-wor1dng agency.
Thus he is again elevated, u a whole, and, with his superior
impassiveness, he may overlook some of the details."
" You have a very just instinct of the relation ."said Goethe;
" it is really ho ; and I have already reflected wbecher, when
Hepbistophelcs goes to Wagner, and Uomunculus is ctHning
into being, I should not put scKoe lines in his mouth, which
might make his co-operation clear to (he reader."
'* There would be no harm in thai," Edtennann answered.
" Yet it ie already hinted, when Mephistophelc* doae* the
iceiw with the words : —
' Upon ihe cnitui«! wt Iutb nad*
We ue. ound«, u lui, depmluL' "
The following additional note was found among Riemet^
poalhumous papers : " In answer to my question, what
Goethe meant to represent in Homunculus, Eckermann sjüd :
Goethe thereby meant to present the pure EnUtchit C&n-
Mx"", An Aristotelian word signifying tht mhtal ietHg of a
IhingI, the Reason, the Spirit, as it enters life before experi-
ence ; for the Soul of Man is highly endowed on its arrival,
and we by no means team evetylhing, we bring much with
ns.* To Goethe himself the world was very early opened,
in advance of experience ; he penetrated it, before he knew
it through his life. He also pointed out to Eckermann Ihe
shrewdness and attentive perception of his little granddaugh-
ter Alma. Yes, Goethe himself ha* a eon of respect for
Homunculus."
* " Nol ID enlLrv fn^iftihieii,
And not in niter nakedD«»,
Bui IniCinsclogdt of alory, dowvoiaift."
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
37a
There ia probably a good deal of purposed mystification in
all this. Nothing tliat is here reporled explains Ihe office of
Homunculus as guide to tlie Classical Walpurgis-Night and
the prominent part which he there plays, to Ihe exclusion of
Faust. Let us now consider, as briefly a» jiossible. some of
the most important interpretations of the critic* Weisse
says : " Hotnunculus is the objective expression, the hypo-
static form of Faust's present spiritual condition, struggling
for a new birth into another and unknown condition of exist-
ence." I^utbecher's explanation is : " He appears as -he
petsonification of that spiritual condition in Faust, which,
sprung to life in the realm of external, mechanical scholar-
ship, and awakened by the keen irony of sensuous being, is
liiTthered by the repose of the genuine and truly poetical
spirit, — a condition in which he first overlooks the whole
mythical world of antiquity, and through which it is possible
for him to comprehend tlie being of the True, the Ethical,
and the Beautiful, which that world holds concealed."
Another series of opinions, having some metaphysical oi
psychological relationship to the above, may next be quoted.
Düntrer says : " Homunculus is the thoughtful, striving
force, urged in vital, self-conscious power towards the Ideal
Beauty, which it hopes to attain, not, like Faust, by a wild
assault, but by a gradual and certain march." According to
Horn, he is " the yearning for the creation of the Beautiful,"
while Rölscber considers that he is an embodiment of Faust's
imperious yearning for the original home-land uf Art
Schnctger lakes a similar idea, and compresses it into a
more definite form. "Homunculus," Mys he, "is the hu-
man embryo, the germ of the perfectly beautiful human
frame ; he is the highest Beauty, developed through a scale
of thousands of forms, — in a word, he is the embryo of He-
lena ! .... Homunculus is Human Beauty in process of
creation, Helena antl Galatea are Created Beauty."
I add, in conclusion, those interpretations which varj
more or less widely from the foregoing. Härtung declares
that "what Helena is to Faust, that is Homunculus to
Uephistopheles, a creation of his fancy, and, ueverthetess, bia
ih,Googlc
374 «'«'^
ruling spirit." H« ignores anjr oonnection between Homim-
cuius and Faust RoseDknnz nrnpl; elates that Homunca-
lus is a " comical " figure, who, at tlie dose of the Classical
Wal purgis- Night, "manifests himself as Eroa." Köstlin
■ays, with unconcealed irritatioD : " Grant that the new
spirit is drama (icalljr necessary, grant that he is cleverly
invented, the figure is and remains an uncdifying trick, a
ridiculous image, with which the poet himself plays a game
which totally annihilates it It is difficult to say, indeed,
what should have appeared in place of this Homunculus,
but that is no excuse lor the poet .... The figure suffers
from the contradiction, that it is cmnical and not comical, at
the same time." Deycks thinks he is an elemental spirit,
perhaps of fire, and adds : " He appears as bom Knowl-
edge, yet yearning for the real, corporeal. He endeavors to
find them in the natural knoirlcdge of the aodents, and
returns to the elements, as fire, like phosphorus in union
with water." Friedrich von Sallet considered him to be
German Poetry before Schiller and Goethe, and Julian
Schmidt Greek- Romantic Poetry.
KreysMg, who insists that the reader mtist approach this
part of the drama with "a vital, receptive spirit, free ftom
prejudice or prcpossessioii," if he wishes to enjoy and under-
stand it, endeavors to solve the problem in a different man-
ner. He attaches a spedal meaning to the relation between
Wagner and Homunculus. accepting the former as a type of
solid research and knowledge, while he sees in Fanst a per-
sonification of Genius. " What the explorer has laboriously
produced," he says, " becomes a living light to Genius, guid-
ing him into regions which Fate has dosed against the
former." Kreyssig does not seem to perceive that this
living light (Homunculus) is a quality inherent in Genius
itself, and not In the productions of sdenlific research. Vet
he approaches, unconsdoualy, a little nearer the secret, in
the passage ; "We know in what full measure the funda-
mental law ofa healthy artistic development was ejiem)^ified
in Goethe's life ; how he. in the maturity of his power, br
from the daring wantonness of the ' Storm and Stress ' yeai\
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 375
found no forni of knowledge Atj and nniinpoTtant which had
any bearing on Nature and Art ; how he studied at the same
time Geology, Botany, Anatomy, Optics, and Metrics, the
histoiy of Literature and Art"
I am satisfied that much more of Goelhe's own struggle
towards a higher intellectual and aesthetic development is
reflected in the Second Part of Fausi, than the critics seem
willing (o admit. The first three Acta are saturated, through
and through, with his intellectual subjectiveness. It was not
his habit of mind to build theories, nor could he have taken
the least interest in the representation of abstract ideas.
He was never satisfied until the vaguest gossamer-wraith of
the imagination had found some corresponding reality of
form. A careful study of his correspondence with Schiller
and Zelter will illuminate all this portion of the drama with
a multitude of broken and transient lights, which may some-
limes confuse, but, in the end, will discover much that
seemed hidden at fiist.
My impression that the Boy Charioteer, Homunculus and
Euphorion, are one and the same elfish, elusive Spirit, which
is the Poetic Genius of Goethe himself (as its enteiakeia,
other allegorical garments being thrown over it at will),
grew into very distinct form as a feeling, or instinct, before I
made any endeavor to apply it. Such an interpretation does
not reject those of Weisse, Lcutbechcr, Düntier, Horn,
Rötscher, or Schnetger : it only completes and harmonizes
all of them. Leutbechcr, indeed, stops a little short of the
same view, when he says ; " As in the First Part, Wagner
and Mephistopheles are person ifications of certain tenden-
cies in Faust, so also here the same thing must be assumed,
and Homunculus is added as the personification of a new
tendency." Now, in i8z7, in speaking of Ampire's review
of Fausi, Goethe said : " He has expressed himself no less
intelligently, in asserting that not only the gloomy, unsatis-
fied striving of the chief personage, but also the scoffing and
sharp irony of Mephistopheles, are parts of my own being."
Add to this confession the play of that pranksome {mutk.
"if^ig) spirit in Goethe, which even age could not tame.
ih,Googlc
J 76 FAUST.
«od hia delight in mysti&cation, which bad constant food ia
(he respectful credulity of lesser intellects, and I find it easy
to understand how he has conliised, in endeavoring to con-
ceal, his design. There will be sufficient opportunity to add
whatever illustrations are possible, before we reach the end
of the Classical Walpurgis- Night ; and I will, now, only b^
th* reader to notice that the Ideal which led Goetbe onward
and upward during the best years of hia life, is very nearly
described in the words of Paracelsus, — " Art is in them in-
carnate and self existing, so that they need not leant it from
any man, but are so by Nature, even as roM* and other
60. Far tetTKry I
In this passage Homunculus describes the dream of the
sleeping Faust, which is visible to bim alone Faust has
already gone liirtber back towards the origin of Beauty, in
this picture of Helena's parents, Leda and the Swan-Jupiter.
The separation of the Classic and Romantic elements, which
commenced in the First Act, now becomes complete, and
the occupation of Mephistopbeles — at least in bis original
character — is gone for a time. Eckermann said to Goethe,
alter the latter had read the manuscript of the passage :
"Through this dream of Leda in the Second Act, the Hflena
afterwards witks its proper Foundation. There much is said
of swans and the swan- begotten ; but here the event is pic-
tured, and when one, with the impression on his :<enses,
comes afterwards to Helena, how mucb more distinct and
complete everything will appear ! "
Goethe assented to this, and said: "Vou will also lind
that already, throughout these first acts, the Classic and the
Romantic vibrate, and come to expression, so that, as by a
gradually ascending slope, we are carried upwards to the
Helena, where both forms of Poetry come prominently to the
light and find a species of adjustment."
The ignorance of Mephistophetes concerning the Classicai
Walpuigis-Night is accounted for by the fact that he is a
Gothic, medieval Devil, from the North, and "brought forth
ih,Googlc
/fOTES. 377
h the age of mist." The classic world had ceased before be
hegan to exist. He hai brought Faust lo the old «tudj to
recovei) but Homunculus sees tliat (like Goeihe in Weimar
before his Italian journey) Faust will die unless he is io-
fttantly traniported to the land where his dream can be made
6i. But, cUarlirr uen, 'tit ilait that fightt with tlavt.
Goethe, here, entirely forgets Mephislopheles and speaks
with his own voice. There are man; slips of the bind, as
the reader will have already noticed, but none quite so un-
dramatic as this.
The scene, allhongh not strictly geographically correct, !■
admirably chosen, since the classic age may be said to ter*
ininate with the Battle of Pharsalia (B. C. 48). The Peneu*
and Tempe, Greece beyond Findus, on the right, Olympus
and Ossa overlooking the plain, the sea in front, with Samo-
tbrace, Lesbos, Tenedos, and the Troad beyond, — these are
the features, not all visible, hut all suggested by the locality.
63. / may deUct the det upon Iki " /."
This expression (which Goethe sometimes oses in his cor-
respondence to denote finish, completion) is explained by
the endeavor of Homunculus, afterwards, to break the glass
in which his artificial being is confined, and commence a A%e
and natural existence. A sdentific as well as a literatr
meaning is thereby suggested, and the clews to both will be
found in the true history of Goethe's own development
63. Upim the ertaturit vx haoc utadt
We an, eurrelvti, at last, dtpeitdaii.
These are the lines quoted by Eckermann to Goethe, as
an evidence that Homunculus is really the creation of Mephis-
topbeles. and not of Wagner, Goethe's answer was : " You
are quite right. To an attentive reader, the lines might
be almost enough ; but I will reflect, nevertheless, whether
there should not be other hint*."
ih,Googlc
378 PAUST.
"But that condmioo," Eckennann then taid, " cootafaw ■
greal meaning, which ia not to be exhausted so eaiil^r."
"I ahould think," Goethe answered, "there was proven-
der enough in it, to last for a dnie. A &tber, who has six
■ons, is lost, no matter wliat disposition he maf make of
himseir. Also kings and ministers, who have placed many
persons in high offices, majr apply thb profitably to their
own eiperience."
The other lines, wherein the coniperation of Mephisioph-
eles in producing Homunculus is indicated, — which were
either not noticed by Ecketmann or afterwards added by
Goethe, — are the following.
On page 88: —
Ad emnnofl vhy ibould he ikn^ mo \
1 11 upediu hii luck, ir ha 'II bm »t om I
Oo pages 96 and 97 : —
Tboo TOKne, Sir Csuun I >wrc I find ttlH, vxt
And Ht the proper lim« [ My Ihjuiki «re das :
A lucky tbrlung led ihac hen to ne.
Thou Ml »droit in «hoTteniDg my wiy,
&+. Classical WALPUHOis-NrcHT.
This allegory occupies the same place in the Second Act,
as the Carnival Masquerade in the First, and, like it, is a
digression from the direct course of the drama. Unlike it,
however, its substance is poetic rather than didactic. Nei-
ther the many puzzles which it contains, nor the wilful spirit
in which Goethe has loaded his original, purely xsthettc
design with a weight of extraneous seien lific ideas, can
restrain the breeze of Poetry which blows through it, fresh
from the mountains and seas and isles of Greece.
When we have once accepted his double intention of con-
ducting Faust to a higher plane of life through the awaken-
ing and development of his sense of Beauty, and, at the same
lime, of bringing together the Classic and Romantic ele-
ments in Literature and Art, in order to reconcile them in a
legion lofty enough to abolish all fubions of Rue and Tiok
ih,Googlc
JVOTES.
379
we have no diflkaItT in ünq/ii^ how the plan of a Classical
Wal pargii- Night niDst have presented il«lf to Goethe's
mind, as a pendant to the Wal pargis- Night of the Fint
Part, which is Golhiq Hedizval, Romantic We may also
conjecture that it was no easy tasli to arrai^ the scenes and
figures of such an episode, as a natural framewurk, capable
of enclosing both the allegory and the narrative, — the
former so wry, subtile, and »hifiing. that, while It could only
be expressed through Pom, it perpetually eluded the con-
finement of Ibrms of thought, and the course of the latter so
determined in advance by the completed Httena, that it
could not fiirther accommodate itself to the allegory.
There is direct evidence that this difficulty of execution
was fell by Goethe, no doubt with his first conception of the
episode. The first sketch, or outline, was probably made in
1800, while he was writing the Walpurgis- Night, and when
the first pages of the Hehna were produced. We have Eck-
ennann's testimony that it was only a sketch in 1827, when
Goethe said to him : " The plan exists, indeed, but the great
difficulty is yet to be overcome ; and the execution really de-
pends altogether too much on sheer good-tuck. The Classi-
cal Walpurgis -Night must be written in rhyiaes, and yet
everything must wear an antique character. It is not easy
to invent the proper form of verse : and then, the dialogue I "
Eckcrmann asked if that was not already planned tn the
sketch. " The What, I may say," Goethe answered, ** but
not the Hum. And then, just consider how much must be
said in that wild night 1 Faust's address to Proserpine,
moving her to restore Helena. — what speech must (hat
be. which shall move Proserpine herself to tears ! Nothing
of all this is easy to do: a great deal depends on luck,
yes, almost entirely upon the feeling and power of the
moment."
The poetic elaboration of this early sketch, which must
have been in prose, was not commenced until January, 183O;
and was finished, as we leam fivim Eckermann's tetter from
Geneva, in Augnst of that year, the eighty-ßrit of Goethe's
life I He knew how to detect and secure hit fortunate
ih,Googlc
380 FAUST.
Biooda ; the plan ms traced ont. like the pattern of a piece
of embroidered tapestry, and he worked here and there, ac-
cording to the color and form which were best adapted to
hi» intervals of creative desire. The very manuscript, some
pages of whkh I have seen, suggests the care and fidelil<r
with which he labored. The hand is firm and cleai, the in-
terlineations few but always excellent, and there are somc-
timei broad spaces between the stanzas, which suggest long
and ülent pacings back and forth on the study-floor or the
garden walk.
Goethe tells us that the Classical Walpm^s-Nigbt is aa
ascending slope, npoD which we gradually rise to the Jfelema.
Its leading motive, tberefbie, must be the development of
the Idea of the Beautiüil ; and to this chief clew we must
bold iast. Bat Mcphistopheles, the Spirit of N^ation, i*
also bitroduced, and a reason must be found for his presence
in a scene where be has, apparently, no business. If there
it such a thing as xsthelic irony, Goethe has attempted it
bere^ In the forms introduced, with which Faust arvd Ho-
manculus conic in contact (the latter taking the tbrmer'a
part in the ead), there is a gradual upward rooveioent od
the line of Beauty, from tbe Sphinxes and Griffins 10 the
a^qiarit on of Galatea on her chariot lA shell In fbllowir^
Uephistophtles, however, ftom tbe same starting-point, we
.move downward on tbe line of Ugliness to its iniensest titu-
rical embodiment m the Phoikyads. Woven between these
two threads, and sometimes cunningly blended with them,
are personiücatiortt of the Neplunic and Plutonic theories in
geology, with satirical UlustrationB of tbe latter and a reso-
nant glorification of the formet. Flashing over all, like a
Will-o'- the- Wisp, is Homuncalns, with his yeamii^ to com-
mence a natural existence.
Here are the four leading elements of the episode, onljr
the latter of which can really be called problematic. What-
ever variety oS interpretation may be gjven to the separate
fbrms, or to detached passages, we can hardly be mistaken
in r^ard lo the first three motives ; and I find that the Ger-
mao aitka a^ta bcrc lesb acüve in consLructini; iDdependen:
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 381
Aiearies than in bending thes« evident elements to tbeir ser-
vice, in explaining the details. Rosenkranz, for instance,
(ays that " F'aust is led thtmigh Nature to Art," but inas-
much as he afterwards admits that the highest result of Art
is the perfect human forni, he thus comes back to the origi-
nal clew. Weisse remarks, I'ery correctly, that the scene«
" are filled with an anticipation of coming Beauty." Köst-
lin, Schnetger, DiinCzcr, and others do not difler id sub-
stance, and their views rteed not be quoted.
Leatbecber says ; " As is well known, Goethe himself
lived and strove in that process of cumine into being, of the
new creation of the antique spirit in his time, aitd to his
share therein is due the eiecution of this important part of
the poem." Add to this Schnetger's declaration that " th«
key to the Classical Waipur^is- Night is Homunculus ; hts
importance determines the knpoitance of the entire scene,
for his development into being is its chief motive," — and we
shall see thai by accepting Homunculus as the embodiment
of Goethe's own yearning for a h-ee and beautiful poetic be-
ing, we have the simplest key, not only to the Classical Wal-
purgis-Night, but (o many of the views which it has su^ested
Only thus, indeed, can we understand
ling promineiice of Homunculus, and tbe early
K of Faust
Deycks, also, has this passage : " This much seems to be
clear : the scene has little or nothing to do with the history
of Faust. At best, it prepares his way lo the attaiimtent of
Helena \ but he, hiinsel£| plays a secondary part. Neither
is Mephistopheles much more prominent i he meets with
(something quite new to him} one embarrassment after an-
other. There are all the betMr grounds for assumiitg that
Goethe, here, had other purposes, birther evidence of which
is shown in the visible love and elaboration wherewith tbe
abundant forms are presented, the beauty and importance of
so many visions, and the cheerful humor which throws a sin-
gular, shifting charm over the whole. It is full nf alluring
and mysterious suggestion, like the endless laughter of the
tea-waves, Jn the ancient poet."
ih,Googlc
382 FAUST.
. Anolber remark o( Goethe (made in 1831) may be üiter-
esiing to the reader : "The old Walpiu^s- Night is monar-
chical, since the Devil is there everywhere respected as the
positive ruler. But the Classical is thorinighly republican,
because all are broadly placed side by side, one being as
valid as the other, none subordinate or concerned for tbe
.Äthers. But for,> life-long interest in the plattic arts, the
execution of (he scene would not have been possible. Ner-
erlhelcss. it was very difficult to be moderate with such abun-
dant material, and to reject all figures which did not com-
pletely accord with my design. For c^iample, I made BO
use of tbe Minotaur, the Hartes, and various other mcm-
Mephistopheles is seduced to overcome his dislike fix
"antique cronies" by tbe mention of Thessalian witches,
and the scene is accwdingly opened by the witch Erichlho,
described by Lucan as dwelling in the wild* of Haemo»,
where she was consulted by Pompey, before tbe battle of
Pharsalia. Her allusion to the " evil poets " is imdaub<ed1y
meant Ibr Ijican and Ovid. She speaks in the measure
called iambic trimeter (douUe) ; it is really an iaminc hez-
imeter, scarcely known to the English language, but the lat-
ter, nevertheless, adapts itself as readily to the additional
foot as the German.
65. Hat, 9it Gredan land.
Faust recovers fro« hb trance as soon as he toudies the
classic soil : bis artistic instinct tells him at once that he b
on the track at Helena. How much of Goethe's own feeling
is expressed in these lines may be seen from the (bllowing
passage in his works : " Clearness of vision, cbeerfalness of
acceptance, and easy grace of expression, are the qualitiea
which delight us : and now. when we affirm that we find aU
these in the genuine Grecian works, achieved in the nobleet
material, the most proportioned form, with certainty and
completeness of execution, we shall be understood, if we
always refer to them as a basis and a standard. Let each
DDC be a Gredan, in his own way : but let him Ac one I "
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 383
66. I find ■wiftrlfm itnmgt, it diicmieerteä.
Mephistopheles, on the oiher hand, is entirely out of his
proper element His disgust with the nudity of the antique
forms is an admirable bit of humor, through which we can
detect Goethe's own well-known defence of the chastity of
ancient art. The delicate satire of the line, Dock das Aniikt
finif ich tu Itbendig, is lost in translation. We may almost
surmise that when Mephistopheles speaks of overplastering
the figures according to the fashion, Goeihe referred to the
indecent rehabilitation of the staluea in the Vatican.
Mephistopheles finally addresses himself to the Griffins
and Spninxcs, as the most grotesque and unbeiutiful of the
brms around him.
67. Tilt source, ■aihcrefivm its derivation springs.
Diintzef explains that this passage is in ridicule of certain
philologisis, who, in Goethe's day, grouped words together
at random according to their initial letters, and then at-
tempted to trace ihem to a common root. The answer of
Mephistopheles is a play upon the words Greif (Griffin) and
greifin (to grip) — sufficiently like the English words to be
intelligible in translation. The Griffin accepts this explana-
tion, and conlinns it by slightly changing the Latin proverb
Fertes Fm-tunajuvat, which he applies to bis own advantage
68. Thk Ariuasprans.
According to Herodotus, the Arimaspeans were a one-eyed
race who inhabited a distant part of the Scythian steppes,
and were engaged in continual conflict with the gold-guard-
ing Griffins. The colossal Ants, which were somewhat
la^er than foxes and dwelt in Central Asia, threw out gold-
dust in making their subterranean burrows.
I confess I can offer no satisfactory explanation of the ap-
pearance of these creatures, beyond that of their repulsive
forms. Schnetger finds a scale of development in them, in
the following order; Griffins, Ants, Arimaspeans, Sphinxes,
and afterwards Sirens, each grade approaching aearer die
ih,Googlc
j84 FAUST.
haman fonn. Härtung, on the other hand, Gnda that the
Griftina aie philologists ; the gold, scientific treasures ; the
Adu, diligent collector? of knowledge -, the Arimaspeans,
clever «riters, who live by stolen thoughts, and the Sphinxes,
Hiütoiy. Goethe would hardly have buried an allegory so
deep as this. Schnetger's explanation would answer vety
well, were it not for th« Ants and Arimaspeans, who have no
place in a progressive development based on Art. All we
can be sure of is, that they are primitive forms of the Ugly,
without (he suggestion of possible beauty which we find in
the Griffins and Sphinxes.
69. Exfrtti tkysilf, and 't tmU a ridiBt it.
It is evident that the Sphinxes immediately recognized
Mephistophelea. and their questioos are only " chaffing."
When they say that their spiril-tones become material, to
him, they bint that he sees nothing more than their semi-
bestial form. In the answer of Mephistopheles to the demand
for his name, Goethe naes the English words "Old Iniqui-
ty." This term was given, in the Moralities, 10 a personifi-
cation of Vice, or Sin, who accompanied the Devil when he
appeared, teased bim and beat him with a whip. The Clown,
in Shakespeare's ■* Tivelftb Night," refers to this character
b hisBong: —
I T be with yoa tt^
Lika lo the Old Tmt,
Wbo wiib dVRcr oTIUh,
Crin, ah, h> I to the DnU :
Although Mephistopheles is an entire stranger amoi^
these antique ibnns, we must not suppose that he has never
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 385
heard of them, and that his demand for an enEgma from the
Sphinx is uut or keeping wilh the part he plays. But his
RoTnanlic sneer is at once Crushed under the BiEocian irony.
The retort of the Sphinx shows that she fully comprehends
the medixval Devil. Its keenness will be properly appre-
ciaied when I sine that the word Plaslrm (which I have
translated " breast-plate ") is a piece of inipenelrible armor,
worn by fencing-masters, in order to let their pupils lunge at
them nitfa impunity, even as the Devout, in Faust's day,
flattered their ascetic idea of holiness by keeping up an
imaginary conflict with the Devil. We cannot much wonder
that Mephistopheles should lose his temper, on receiving
*uch a thrust
70. SiKBNS.
The Sirens are first mentioned ^r Homer as two in num-
ber, but two more were afterwards added by the Atheniant-
They were located in various places, — Crete, Sicily, or
Capri, — and there were contradictory accounts of their
origin and character. It was generally believed, however,
that they were fated only to live until some one should pass
their island without being captivated by their song, whence
tbc corresponding myths of the Argonauts and Ulysses.
After the confused and uncertain forms with which the
Classical Walpurgis- Night opens, Goethe seems to have
selected the Sirens as a point of departure for the opposite
paths of Faust and Mephistopheles. They were generally
represented as beautiful maidens to the waist, the lower half
having a bird-form, wilh hideous falcon claws. The gro-
tesque atid beautiful are more intimately blended in the
woman and lion of the Sphinx : in the Sirens Beauty and
Uglitie»! are simply and sharply joined to each other. After
leaving them. Fausl begins to rise towartls his Ideal, while
Mephistopheles descends lowatds his
In the description which the laltei gives of the Siren*'
tang, commencing "These are of novelties the neatest,"
Härtung see$ " Goethe's opinion of certain modem poets."
Some such meaning is certaiidj suggested by the Uites ; but
VOL. n. 17 »
ih,Googlc
386 FAUST.
«e aie already ßuniliu «ritb Goelhe's babit of double and
triple allegory, and shall not be bewildered by thete minor
BlotK..
71. In the Ripultroe, grand anj telidfcalurit.
Thia line throws a clear light all along the path we have
chosen. FiusI recognises the rai-ofT predictions of the
Beautirul in the Torms ai Indian and Egyptian art, the tbre-
runneis of that of Greece. He is eVcn reconciled to what ia
repulsive in ihem, by their assodalion with the early memo*
ries of Grecian History and Literature. He i» filled with
fresh spirit, for he now feels that he has a clew which shall
guide him to Helena. To Mephistopheles, who rememben
Faust's disgust for the grotesque phantom« of the Blocks-
berg, his satisfaction is of course incomprehensible.
Tlie Sphinxes direct Faust to Chiron, the CenUur, who is
not only purely Greek, but also the last struggle of the ar-
tistic Ideal of Beauty with animal forms ; while, after recall-
ing the Stymphalicbirds and the heads of tbeLenuean Hydra
for the benefit of Mephistopheles, they shrewdly send him
after Ihe Lamiae, who have aroused his desire at the first
73. Pen BUS.
The Fharsalian Fields lie upon the Enipeus, a branch of
the Peneus, and many of the commentators charge Goethe
with having made a mistake ; but it is very evident that he
meant to include in the scene the whole ref[ion froni Pbarüa-
lus 10 the base of Olympus and the shores of the £gean Sea.
In the river-god, Peneus, with his attendant Nymphs and
Triiiulaiy Streams, we reach a higher plane of development.
Here the forms, though representing Nature, are entirely
human, and an atmosphere of Poetry, as well as of Art, en-
circles ihem. The vcme changes, also, suggesting a clearer
moonlight and fresher air.
Faust's dream of I^da and the Swan, which was described
by Homunculus in Wagner's laboratory, is here purposely
repeated, as tbe reality of what was there only presentiment.
Now, however, Leda heiself ia not seen : the thick (Wage
ih,Googlc
NOTES. . 387
conceal* her fonn. Faust ü not jet prepatcd to behold tbe
conception of the BMntiluL
73. Chiron.
The Ccntutr Chiron w» tbe son of Satum and Philyia,
tbe daoghlet <Ä Oceanus. Homer calls him the wisat and
most juBt of the Centaurs. He was said to have taught the
human race oaths, joyous sacrificial tetvices, and music In
his grotto on FcHon he educated the grandest Grecian heroes,
among tbem Peteus, Ajax, Achilles, .£sculapiuB, Theseus,
and Jason.
Schnetger has a very ingenious explanation of the »ytnboli-
cat significance of Chiron in this scene. He interprets the
szpression of the Sphinx to Faust :
Ovi -nri lul «» •lain br Herciilei,
as indicating the overthrow of the monstrous fbnns of earljr
Art ; and Hercules therefore marks the commencement of
the Human period. He then says; " If the old forms are
entirely overcome by the new, in Hercules, then must Chiron,
his inatructot, be considered as standing equally in both
periods of development. This position, half here, half there,
is clearly illustrated in his figure, which is a horse behind
and in Iront a nobly formed man. Chiron represents to us
the bridge, tbe transition from the foimer coarseness and
distortion to the later and loftier forms, and upon him Faust
must pass to approach that which he seeks."
One of the finest of the Pompeian frescos, now in the
Uuuo NiaiimaU at Naples, represents Chiron teaching the
young Achilles to play upon the lyre. Goethe never saw it,
but he has unconsciously given to the Centaur the same
dignity, nobility, and yearning sadness of expression, which
are there so wonderfully painted.
74- No sfcond sUik tutih Gaa gratited.
There is a seeming contradiction in this passage. When
Faust suggests the name of Hercules, which Chiron has
omitted Stota the list of his Argonautic pupils and friends.
ih,Googlc
388 FAUST,
(he Centaar'B buret of enthmiaam for the hero whose poi-
soned airow accidentally caused hi* own death is, to «ay the
least, uneipecled ; while Faust's following speech:
" The ^rest Man taul thsu dcpidnl,
couples Hercules with Helena as the Ideals of male and fe-
male beauty. Hut il was Paris and Helena whom he called
from the Shades. We must assume that when he speaks of
the latter pair lo Mephislopheles, in Scene V. Act I,, as ■■ the
model forms of Man and Woman." he is merely repeating the
conveniional ideas of the Emperor and the Court dtde. In
any case it is Goeihe himself who speaks here. Il was prob-
ably the lamons torso in the Vatican which first gave him the
impreüsion that Hercules is. as he more than once declares in
his papers on Art, "the highest glorification of masculine,
beneficent activity and harmonious combination of power,"
tbeietbrc in his form the highest embodiment of masculine
beauty. I n his Vier yahrimileii. he says : " Grace is only
revealed from the fulness nf Strength." In 1S31, only a
month before his death, Goethe said to Soret : " The Her-
cules of antiquity is a collectiie licing, the great bearer of hi>
own deeds and the deeds of others."
75. 'T is curious Toith yrmr mytholope Jamt.
A trifling personal experience is here interpolated, or, at
least, suggested. When Faust says t " But seven years
old I " and Chiron answers :
we are directly reminded of a passage in Eckermano.
Goethe was speaking of a line in one of his own poems,
where Professor Göttling had persuaded him to change
" Horace " into " Propertius," to the damage of spirit and
sound. " In the same manner," said Eckermann, "the
manuscript of your Helena showed that Theseus carried her
off as a ' ten-year-old and slender roe.' But Gotlling's rep-
is led you to print, instead, 'a seven-year-old and
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 389
■lender roe,' which w much too young, both for the beautifiil
maiden, and for h«r twin-brotheis, Castor and Pollux, who
rescued her."
" You are right," said Goethe ; " 1 am also of the opinion
that she should be ten years old when Theseus carries her
0% and for that reason I afterwards wrote : —
' Sba ha* been woRhlut from ber UDlh yui dd.' <Pigt ti.)
In the next edilion, therefore, you may still make a teu-
yeais' roe out of the »cTco-years' one."
Faust answers Chiron, as a Poet; "Then let no bond»
of Time be thrown arouod her ! " He refers to an obscure
legend (mentioned by Müller, in his work on "The Do-
rians "), that Achilles ascended from the Shades to wed
Helena on ihe isle of Leuke, — not Phrra, which seems lo be
a mistake of Goethe, — where they had a eoo, Euphonon.
76. Manto.
Goethe baa wilfully taken Manto fi-om blind Tiresias,
" prophet old," whose daughter she was, and given her ^s-
culapius as a &ther, perhaps to account for her tamiliarity
with Chiron, and enable the latter, through her, to send
Faust further on his ardent pilgrimage. She was, in reality,
devoted to the service of Apollo. After her father's death
she wandered 10 Italy, where her son, Oknus, founded and
named for her the city of Mantua. (Virgil refers 10 this in
the Tenth Book of the j£neid, and Dante in the twentieth
Canto of the Infirm,.)
The temple shining in the moonlight, the dreamily Man-
to, and the few Orphic sentences which she utters, prepare
OS for Faust's mysterious descent to Persephone. Goethe's
ovm words (quoted in Note 64) show that he had projected
the scene; but here, in the vestibule, the doors suddenly
dose, and no voice from the adytum of Hades reaches our
ears. Faust disappears, and we see him no mure until the
middle ol the next Act, where the character of the allegory
is entirely changed. There can be no doubt that Goethe
found his powers inadeqnate to the execution of hii deugi^
ih,Googlc
390 FAUST.
■nd, aa at the clow of the Finl Put. he left the reader^
im*ginaiion to ipan the chasm for which he coold build do
poetic bridge.
The Classical Walpurgis- Night falls, Datundlf. into three
diTisiofis of neailjr equal length. The fint division closes
here : the representation of ihe derelopment of the Beautiful
through the Grecian mind is temporuiljr suspended, and a
vciy diflerent element is introduced.
77. Health it lume vihere matrrfeiU !
V/e return from Manto's Temple, at the fool of Olympus,
Ki the Upper Penens, where ihe preceding scene itpens.
The premonitions which Ihe River-god then uttered, are
about to be verified. The Sirens reappear, but (we must
assume) stripped of their former symbolism : Ihey are now
evidently representatives of the Neptunic theoiy in geology,
and the " ill-starred folk " of whom they sing must be the
Pluionists. The above line — in German, Oiiu Waiser iit
iein Htill — declares the former theory at once, though it
also suggests the well-known phrase of Pindar, orirtDn mat
hudor. The word Hiil means either health or satiation ;
■nd Ihe latter rendering would perhaps be more correct
here. Goethe undoubtedly selected the Sirens (o describe
the earthquake, because they are the only characters al-
ready introduced who are directly associated with the Sea.
78. Seismos.
Goethe makes a personification of the Earthquake (£t«r-
flit), in order the better to satirixe the Pluionists.
It is now time that 1 should endeavor to represent, as
clearly as may be possible, what Goethe has introduced in
this division of the Classical Walpurgis- Night, and why he
has introduced it. A thorough and satisläctory commen-
tary would involve the statement of scientific questions
which require much special knowledge ; but, on the other
hand, it is inexpedient to wander too far from the tracks we
have been following. Goethe did not intend this episnde to
be a digression. The pains he has taken to weave together
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
391
Jm two dumds, of tuch inecondtabl« textore^are verjr «vi-
dent, yet he baa none the less biled in his attempt I only
feci bound, therefore, to preseot «baiever may be strictly
necessary (o the undeistanding of this foreign element, and
its elimination bam the genuine substance of ihe dtatna.
Düntier has carefully collected the principal focts. and so
skilfully arranged them that I only need to abbreviate his
material, and add to it a few illustrations from Goethe's
writings.- The Neptunic theory in geolo^, to which Goethe
early became a convert, originated with Werner, and is
based on his obeervadons of mouniain-Btrau. Taking gran-
ite as the original base, he taught that the later formations
were succe-tsive deposits from a primeval ocean or from
denser atmospheres ; that, as Goethe expresKd it. the Earth,
slowly and by a progressive, harmonious development, build-
ed Itself; and that earthquakes and volcanic fiies, although
permanent phenomena, «ere not universal creative agencies.
When Werner, in 1788, declared that bssalt was farmed
through Ihe action of water, the struggle of theories com-
menced, and the terms "Nepluniso" and "Plutonisis"
began to be heard. In the Ximen, written in 1796, Goethe
speaks of the short-lived triumph of the latter, in regard (o
basalt
Nevertheless. Plutonism was not dead. The theoty of
the upheaval of mountain -chains through the action kS in-
ternal forces rapidly gained ground in the scientific world.
Its champions were two distii^ulshed geologists. Leopold
von Buch in Germany and Elie de Beaumont in France, to
whom, about iSao, was added Alexander von Humboldt
Goethe, aroused from his security in regard to Ihe Neptunic
theory, now began to express his views, less in the way of
impartial scientific discussion than as a matter of feeling, —
we may even say. prejudice. He wrote, at this time :
" When the Earth began tu inleresi me in a scientific sense,
and I endeavored lo become acquainted with its mountain
masses, internally and externally, in generals as in particu-
lars,— in those days, we had a foothold where 10 stand, and
we could not have wished a better oae. We wen directed
ih,Googlc
39»
FAUST.
to Granite m the highest and the deepest, we respected it in
this sense, and labored to investigate it more closely."
It is evident that the rapid and general acceptance of the
theory of upheaval was a great annoyance to him. Like an
earthquake, it seemed to threaten his äith in the stability of
the Earth ItselC To his mind, it substituted violence, con-
vulsion, and a series of chaotic accidents, for the quiet, un-
disturbed, sublime process of creation. In a paper entitled
'* Geological Problenu and an Attempt at iheir Solution,"
he wrote : " The case may be as it pleases, but it must be
written that I curse this execrable racket and lumber room
of the new order of creation I And certainly some young
man of genius will arise, who shall have the courage to
oppose this craiy unanimity." In a letter written to Zelier
in 1837, he says, referring to Leopold von Buch, " I know
very well what we owe to him and others of his class ; but
it is not well that the gentlemen immediately set up a priest-
hood, and try to force upon us, together with that for which
we are grateful, that which they do nut know, possibly do
not believe. Now that the hutnin race moves especially in
herds, they will soon lead the majority after them, and a
purely progressive, problem -reverencing mind will stand
alone. Since I will quarrel no more, — wtiich I never did
willingly, — I now allma myulfia ridiailt. and to attack their
weak Hide, of which they are no doubt aware."
I must add one mire passage, from a letter written to
Zelicr in November, 18*9, while Goethe was preparing the
material of the Classical Walpurgis- Night : "Unfonunaiety,
my cotemporaries are quite too eccenliic Recently the
Milanese announced to me with amazement, that Herr von
B. |Buch| would demonstrate to their eyes that the Euga-
nxan Hills, which they have hitherto looked upon as a nat-
ural outpost of the Alps, rose up suddenly Irom the earlh at
some time or other. They are about as well pleased at that,
as savages at the preaching of a missionary. Now, last of all,
h is announced (Humboldt's Siberian Journey r| that the
Altai was once conveniently squeezed up from the depths.
And you may thank God that the belly of the earth does not
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 353
diooM to bi\ in somewhere between Berlin ind Potsdam, io
order to get rid of the termentalion in the same way. The
Academy at Paris bas aanctioned the declaration that Mont
Blanc arose from the abyss last of all, after the crust of the
earth was complelely formed. Thus the nonsense accumu-
lates, and will become a universal failh or the people and
savans, like the failh ia witches, devils, and their works, in
the darkest ages."
If Ihes« passages show the bitterness of Goethe'* preja-
dices, the unreasoning hostility he manifested to views based
on honest and careful research, they show at the same liine
the secret sonrce of his irritation. He must have considered
the new theory as one of the phenomena of an approaching
" Storm and Stress " period in Science, and have turned from
it with the same revulsion of feeling as from that period in
Literature, fifty years before. He suffered his xsthetic in-
^incts to mould his scientific opinions, for the two had long
been harmonized in his own mind. We must, therefore,
now turn to that fancied harmony for an explanation of the
intrusion of his scientific opinions into the lofiy aesthetic plan
of this episode. The iwo errors account for each other.
The desperation with which be clung to the ground, which
we can see he felt to be slipping from beneath his feet, showa
how his intellect had succeeded in uniting Man and Nature,
the individual, the race, and the planet, in one consistent
and harmonious scheme, wherein the poem and the moun-
tain, the flower and the statue, obeyed the same law« of
growth. It was thus much mote than the Neptunic theory
of which the PluConists deprived him.
Viewing the scene from this standpoint, we may gucM
that Goethe justified it to his own mind, and perhaps consid-
ered that his Ideal of the development of Nature should of
right be interwoven with his artistic Ideal. The pari given
to Homunculus in the iliustration of the Neptunic scheme
■trengthens this conjecture The details of Ihe double plan
trill be further explained in the following Notes.
It is also probable that penions. circumstances, and events
ue occasionally indicated. The prominence of the geolo^
17«
ih,Googlc
394
FAUST.
coJ discuwion has long since pissed awaj; ; bat the WItcbev
Kitchen and Walpurgis-Night of the First Pan betray a wil-
ful habit of reference to passing events or temporary inter-
ests, which we ma; well suppose is retained in this scene.
Goethe, speaking of the Classical' Walpurgis- Night as a
whole, said to Eckennann : " I have so separated from the
particular subjects and generalized whatever of pique 1 have
introduced, that the reader may indeed detect references,
hut win not recognize any one to whom they would properly
apply. I have endeavored, however, to represent everything
in the antique manner, in distinct outlines, and to avoid any
vagueness and uncertainty, sudi as is allowed by the Ro-
mantic method."
79. Fer tkt Sfhitati km art flouted.
The arbitrary manner in which Goethe employs the form*
of his duplicate allegory, using one or the other separate
meaning, or blending both, at will, must not lor a moment
be lost sight of; in threading the maxes of the Classical Wal-
purgis-NighL If the Sphinxes, in the preceding scenes, rep-
resent the struggle of Art to rise from the animal to the hu-
man Ibrm, it is very evident that such a symbolism is entirely
out of place here, where the new element is introduced.
They were the prophecy of coming Beauty, to Faust, the
" grand and solid features," manifested in spite of the repul-
siveness belonging to all undeveloped forms. Here, they
seem to represent calm, stability, unchange, in imposition to
the violence and convulsion of Seismos. We may even con-
jecture that the lines :
" Bui na fiinhcr ihall I» graattd,
Cor Ihe Spliiniia hen m plinted,"
indicate that, while Goethe admits the local operation of
volcanic forces, he insists that their agency is limited and
restricted by the eternal cosmic law of gradual and harmo-
nious creation.
The reference to the island of Delos is a variation of a
legend mentioned by Pindar, wherein the island, which had
previously floated on the vraves, was made »tationary bj
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
395
Apollo. Ibr [he sake of his mother Latona. Pliny tüM
Bpeaka of Ibe volcanic origin of Delos and other isles of the
Wlien Seismos answers, the poetic aspect of force, which
Buggettted the Titans, seems, in äpite of his theory, lo have
Lindled Goethe's imagination. Forgetting his scientific prej-
udice, he gives full play to the new and picturesque fanqr;
the passage is perhaps the änest in the scene. Some of the
<:oiniiientators imagine thai the line ;
" How Rood iitoft your mountaiiu ever,"
contains a reference to Elie de Btatantoü; but the pun would
be incomplete, and its application not very clear.
Sa GsippiNS.
The sndden appearance of the Griffins, Emmets, Pygmies,
and Dactyls, as inhabitants of the newly-created mountain,
and their activity, both in collecting gold and aiming lo at-
tack the Herons (Neplnnists), is a new bewilderment, and
many of the German critics leave it without attempting an
explanation. While we cannot hope for a clear and complete
interpretation of every detail, the design of the whole scene
at least points out the direction which our guesses should
take. The drcnmstance that Goethe represents the Pluto-
nists by those purely grotesque forms, from which Mephis-
topbeles takes his departure towards the Ideal UglitHSS,
shows his attempt to blend ibe accidental scientific element
with his original esthetic plan This can hardly be a mere
coincidence. Thus tar, if we acceot it, the choice of char-
acters is explained.
For their further ugniGcance. we must remember the ex-
tent lo which Goethe was irritated bv the general acceptance
of the Plutonic theory. The Griffins and Ants, we may
guess, represent those who at once give in their adherence lo
every new scientific r^me, and fancv thai its principles are
so many great intellectual treasures, wtiich they liasten to
collect and possess. The Pygmies and Dactyls (Thamblinga
and Fingerlings) are the crowds of students and sroattereTS
ih,Googlc
396 FAUST.
nho are unable to free thenuelvet from the chaim of tbe
new theorist ; who find theiUBelves. without knowing how it
happened, under his authority, intellectual serls, forced to
service and obedience, «riihout any reference to their own
wills. The Pygmy-Elders and the General istimo arc, of
course, the rulers : it would hardly be too much to say that
the former represent the members of the French Academy,
and that the latter is Elie de Beaumont or Leopold voo
Buch. Homer's account of the battle between the Pygmiet
and the Cranes suggested tbe introduction of the Heron*
as Neptunists. The Generalissimo orders tbe slaughter of
these water-haunting birds, that the Pygmies may fealber
their helmet« with the crested plumes.
8i. Thb Cranes of Ibvcds.
The " &t-paunched. bow-legged knaves " of Platonists a»
triumphant, and wear the plumes they have plundered from
the slaughtered Neptunists. But the Cranes, in their airj
voyage, have seen the murder, and like tbe " Cranes of lb)^
CU.1," in Schiller's ballad, ihey are the agents appointed by
Fate to revenge the deed.
Ibycus, the poet, on his way from Rhegium to attend tbe
Isthmian games, was attacked by robbers in the pine-grove
dedicated to Neptune, near Corinth. Far from all help, cut
down, and dying, with his last breath he called to a flock of
cranes, flying in a long tile over the grove, and invoked them
to bear abroad the new« of tbe murder. His body was found,
carried to Corinth, and recognized; and tbe grief of the popa-
lace, assembled at the games, was loud for the loss of their
favorite singer, tbycos. Suddenly, during a pause in the per-
formanc«, while the great amphitheatre was silent, a file of
cranes passed overhead, and a mocking voice was heard, say-
ing : " There are the Cranes of Ibycus ! " The suspicions of
the people were instantly aroused, the speaker and his ac-
complice were picked out from the audience, and the amphi-
theatre became a tribunal of judgmenL The murderer*
tMifessed the deed, and tlie Cranes revenged Ibgrctn. Sucfe
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 397
ta the story which Schiller hu embodied in one of hü most
admirable ballads.
When Goethe wrote, in lS37, " Certainly some young man
of genius will arise, who shall have the courage to oppose
this crazy unanimity," lie inlidpated the overthrow of the
Plutonic theory. In his selection of SchiUer*! " Cranes of
Ibycus," to sununon his Neptunic kindred to the revenge
which is only announced, not immediately performed, there
it a touching suggestion of his own loneliness. The " end-
less bate " which is sworn is not the true substance of bate
(which Goethe declared to be a passion only possible to
youth } : it is merely an impatient exclamation, veiling a
pang of longing for the great friend who had passed away,
uid of disappointment that no one came to his side to help
him turn his intrenched defence into an open assault.
82. Dawn Iltt waUhaJbr tafreat htr lUiu.
Schnetger says : "There is also a little venom in the at-
cumstance, that the reappearing Mephisiopheles finds whM
Le seeks in this world of the Vulcanists. 'In your fire-
world,' Goethe virtually exclaims, 'the Devil can attain his
object ; there ia enough of the Ugly, the Vulgar, the Abum-
fnable there, but nothing whatever of the Noble and the
Beautiful.' But even the Devil grumbles over these new
sarface-ioDations, and praises his secure Brocken of a thou-
sand years, with its primitive and eternal forms of the Ilsen-
stein, Heinrichshöhe the Snorers, and Elend : he greatly
prefers such a soil to this uncertain quake-world."
Mephistopheles nkcntions not only " the region of Schierko
and Elend " of the first Walpnrgis-Nigbt, but also the llsen-
stein, which is one of the features of the approach to the
Brocken on the northern side, by way of the Ilsethal. Heine,
m his Kristbildrr, describes the stream of the Use, as il
plunges down the glen, ftom the Heinrichshöhe, in a spir-
ited passage, which 1 quote from Mr. Leiand's transla-
" No pen can describe the merriment, simplicity, and gen-
ItenesB with which the Ilae leaps or gTMes amid the wildly>
ih,Googlc
398 FAUST.
^led rodn whtch rise in ber path, so (hat the w
whiczes or roania In one place among rifted rocks, and in an-
other wells through a thousand crannies, as if from a giant
watering-pot, and then, in collected «iream, trips away over
the pebbles like a merry maiden. Ves — the old l^end is
true, the Use b a princess, who. laughing in beauty, nina
•down the mountain. How her white foain-garment gjeMna
fn the santhine I How her silvered scarf flutleis in the
breeae t How her diamonds flash! .... The flowers oo
Ae bank whisper. Oh lake ns with tbee ; take us widi thee.
Tbou •bill ba blut uid m
83. Lamia
The original Lamia, the daughter of Belns and Libya, was
beloved hj Jupiter, and then transformed, through Juno's
jealousy, into a hideous, child -devonring monster Lilith,
ibe nocturnal, female vampire of (he Hebrews, mentioned in
Isaiah, is rettdered Lamia in the Vulgate. In the plnral,
they appear to have corresponded, very nearly, lo the witches
of the Middle Ages, wtto, indeed, »ere then irequendy called
Lamia. Keats's poem of " Lamia." in which the bride, rec-
ognized by Ihe keen-eyed sage, returns to her original ser-
pent-tbrm, represents another of ihe superstitlans attached
to the race.
Mephiitophele* (probably remembering the Thessalian
witches promised by Homunculiu) is attracted by forms
having so much Tamily likeness to those with which he is
fiimiliar ; and when we recall Goethe's opinion of M^m^
and Victor Hugo {vidt Note 34), we may suppose an indi-
ita reference, in this epiaode, to the approach of the Classic
ih,Googlc
and Ronumtic ichools in the elements farthest removed from
Beaut;. The scientific satire, at least, is here temporarilj
•upended, but to be soon again resumed. '
84. Emfiiua, with the asisfoot.
Empusa (the "one-footed," as the name denotes) had one
fauoaji foot and one ass's hoot and is therefore fairly en-
titled to call Mephisto pheles "cousin." Goethe probably
toolc her, as well as some other characters of the Classical
Walpurgts- Night, from Böttiger, with whose works he was
well acquainted. Empusa is mentioned in " The Frogs " of
Aristophanes, and also in the life of Apollonius Tyana, by
Philostratus. She had not the same habit of transfofmation
■B the other Lamice, but surpassed them all in her hideous
appearance and her cannibalic hatnts.
Mephistopheles, however, is too ugly and repulsive for
even these. They simply amuse themselves with him, and
then send him further. The transformations which they un-
dergo when he attempts to grasp them are characteristic of
the Lamix, but, at the same time, they suggest some addi-
tional meaning. What it Is I cannot guess, and I find noth-
ing in any of the commentaries which throws the least light
cm the passage. Diintzer's explanation is entirely inade-
quate.
Sj. Oread {from tJit lutiirai raci).
Here the Oread b the spirit of a primeval mountain,
created according to the Neptunic theory. But she is not
introduced s<ilely tor (he purpose of ridiculing the neighboi-
ing Plutonic mountain which Seismos has created by up-
heaval, and which, she declare», " will vanish at the crow of
cock." When Mephistopheles exclaims:
" Honor to Ihee. Ihou RveRitd Had 1 "
it is again Goethe who speaks ; and the circumstance that
Homimculus, who has been invisible during the whole Plu-
tonic episode, now suddenly shows his light among the
thickets covering fie natura/ rock, hints that the Oread is
immediately responsible for his reappearance. If we attach
ih,GoogIc
400 FAUST.
to Homuncola* the pan which I haTC TeDtnred to propose
— if ne a-'sume that he is the zithetic principle in Goelhe'i
own nature, seeking the connDencemenl of a free, joyoui and
harmoniuus being, — the passage receives a distinct and
easily intelligible meaning. As I have given, in Note 59, the
other varieties of interpretation, the reader may apply them
for himielf, here as elsewhere, if he finds reason to reject my
S& Anaxagoraü (te Thalbs).
The representatives of the two geological theories are now
Introduced. Goethe'n choice of Anaxagoraa and Tbales ia
too evidently dictated by what is known of the syslem« dl
those philosophers, to need any further explanation. Tbe
fomier wrote of eclipses, eanhquakes, and meteoric stonei (
the tatter derived all life and physical phenomena from war
ter; yet both based their theories on "Nature," and equally
•ought to solve her mysteries. Homunculus, impatient to
begin existence, seems to heed the counsel of Mephistuphele«
(Goethe) to dare (0 etr, as the only means of arriving at un-
derstanding.* Consequently, no tooner does the dispute
between the two philosophers recommence, than be steps
between them, seeking guidance.
The words of Thales ; —
tindonbtedly indicate what Goethe considered to be the easy
acquiescence of other geologists in the Plutonic theory, and
his own stubborn position ; yet it is a little singular that he
should have chosen the Neptunic "billows" as ayinbola of
bis antagonists I
* Thit i* A jiuxim which Gceth« hu Bkprfttud ld minlfold fomqa.
The line ID tlic Prologue in Kuvtn: "fj irrl dtr Mtmch, u la^ tr
UriU," li in imporuni pan of ihe argunenl ol Faiat. Id WHMm
Mtitttr he >»ens ihu euh nun niuM be developed in hii nra mir kl
order la ittiin ■ genuine indepeDdence ; and tberafore, Ihit he had beKM
BTT when ermr will pidmlly lead him into bii own Inw padi, than mto
■Hchunoilly uigfai on tb« path pcncnlied for hi» br angth«.
ih,Googlc
87- And '111 not Forc4, aim en a m^Afy ttaU.
The foui lines very teiaely express Goethe's scientific
creed. In 1831 he wrote; "The older I grow, the more sur«'
ly I lely upon thai law by which the rose and the lily blos-
som." He rect^nized no beauty except in proportion, no
harmony except in gradual, ordered development. When
we remember his constant aspiration, as an author, lo attain
unto a pure objective vision, we may well wonder that in
this instance he was not only unable, but fiercely unwilling,
to liberate himself from prejudice. But, after caiefully study-
ing his life, we find that we have to deal with more than
an intellectual peculiirily ; it rests on the deeper basis of
his moral, and even physical, nature, and was directly inher-
ited ürom his mother. The Fran Aja, as she was affection-
ately called by the 'Weimar courl-drde, was a woman of
clear, lively intellect, of admirable frankness and honesty,
and of warm and strong feelings. Yet, with all her force of
character, she was unable to endure anxiety, suspense, the
ordinary shocks and plagues of life. She always begged her
family aivd friends to hide frum her every coming appearance
of misfortune, and only to mention that which was past, and
lo be inevitably supported. The circle around Goethe were
so familiar with [he same peculiarity in his nature, thai they
■voided speaking to him of losses which they knew he felt
keenly. Even the love of woman seems lo have been, la
him, more an unrest ihan a bliss, as is clearly shown in his
relations to Frederike and Lili.
Il would be easy to give many direct illuslTalions of
Goethe's hostility to every influence which interfered with
his quiet, harmonious development, and to show how such a
strong quality of his nature must have moulded (perhaps un-
consciously to himselO his scientific views. The belter our
knowledge of the poet, the less we shall be surprised to find
him introducing, here, an element foreign to the original plan
of the drama. The aiiisiic mistake which we perceive was
not one to him.
The two philosophers take ito notice of Homtmculus, >mli]
ih,Googlc
403
FAUST.
AnaxaROtu, after sediig that the new mcnuitiin \t ilreid;
peopled, offers to nuke the former king over the Pygmies
and Dactyls. Düntzer says of this passage : " Anaiagora*
does not recognize the genuine nature of Homunculus ; he
sees only the external appearance, the little form, the impria-
onmenl in the phial. On account of his lUllrmii, and not,
as others assert, because be is a spirit of fire, does Anaxago-
raa esteem him to be competent to rule over the little people.
He seeks to exist, to enter the reality of life, which can only
be attained through gradual development ; but Anaxagoras
desires to make him king at one blow, quite in thi. ipiril of
the theory of upheaval, which would create all thicgs sud-
denly and violently."
Thalea answers as a Nepttmbt, ana describe* the destruc-
tion of the Pygmies by tbe Cranes of Ibycus. The latter
event was possibly intended as a prophecy ) or, at least, ai
1 satirical declaration that the Plutonists, if forced to give op
the theory of upheaval, would next Insist that mountain-
peaks were created by meteoric stones projected Irom the
volcanoes uf the moon. This view is entirely consistent ivilh
all that we know of Goethe's temper, before and during the
!ime wlien the scene was written.
&8. Thtn -wtrt it /rut, Tktstaiian Fytkontati.
This is a reference to an old Grecian myth, mentioned in
the Ctfr^'or of Plato and tbe C/nujIr of Aristophanes. Horace,
alsii, (CanH. V.,) has the lines ■ —
We are to suppose that only a meteoric sicne has &)1«n,
but that Anaxagoras, in his excited fancy, imagines that the
orb of the moon is rushing down upon the earth. Thales
perceives nothing but that " the Hours are crazy " ; tbe
moon is shining quietly in her place. But a meteoric mass
has really (alien, giving a pointed head to the round Hill of
Seismos. and crushing Pygmies and Cranes in one common
ilcsiruciion. Perhaps Goethe meant to hint, satirically, thai
the theory of creation ' from above " (as Homunculus says)
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 403
to qoile u ntional u Ihat of creation b)r apbcavtl. ir ac,
ne hu cnrioiuljr antidpitecl one of the moat resent «dentific
ideas, — that of the growth and physical cbai^ of planets,
by accretioa from the meteoric belts.
Tbales «ay«, positively, tu Homunculns : " 'T wm but
imagined Bo." and then seta out, with him, for his favorite
element, leaving Anaxagoras prostrate on hie üxx. Here
the dirtet sdentiGc allegory tenninates, and we pick op the
Esthetic thread again.
89. Tht Phortyads!
The Phorkyads, or, more correctly, PherläiU, were tbe
three daughtera of Phorkys (DarkneM) and Keto (Tbe
Abyss). Their names were Deino, Pephredo, and Enyo :
Hesiod, in his Thet^ony, gives only the two last. They
were alto called (he Grata. They were said to have, in
common, but one eye and one tooth, which they used alter-
nately, and to dwell at the uttermost end of the earth, where
neither sun nor moon beheld them. They represent the
climax of all which the Greek imagination has created of
horrible and repulsive. Mcphistophelcs, consequently, is
ravished with delight : he has found the Ideal Ugliness.
His flattery serves also to hint that while Northern or Ro-
mantic Art (in the Middle Ages) was accustomed to rep-
resent the Devil and all manner of hideous and grotesque
Fiends, Clasuc Art only occupied itself with shapes of
beauty. The Phorkyads dwelt in gloom, unknown, and
only not unnamed. The Lamiz rejected the Northern
Devil, for he was still uglier than they, but the Phorky-
ads admit him into their triad. He suflcrs a cl^issical
change into something hideous and strange, and disappeat»
from the Walpurgis-Night, to reappear, in his new form,
in the Htlata.
90. Rocky Covms op tkk Xx,%»m Sba.
With this scene commences the third and last of the three
parts into which the Classical Walpurgis-Night naturally
divide« itselC The first port, as we have seen, gradually
ih,Googlc
404
FAUST.
eliminaus tlie Beautiful from the Grotesque, aeparates the
op|>aaile paths of Fauat and Mephiitopheles, and closes
with (he disappearance of Faiut, on his war to implore
Helena hom (he shades. The second put introduces the
Plutonic theory in geology as a disturbing element, satirizes
it, sjmboliies its overthrow, decides the course of Homun-
culus by attaching him to (he Neptunic Thales, and dose*
with the anion of Mephistophele« and his ugly Ideal.
Thedeveloptncnt of the Ideaoflhe Beautiful is now taken
up at Ihe point where it was suspended, and carried onward ;
but Homunculus is henceforth the central figure of the
changing groups. The reader will remark, however, that
this and the following scene are strictly Neptunic : the char-
acters all belong to the Ocean, and the occasion which call*
them together is a festival of Nereus. Although Goethe's
scientific creed ia constantly suggested, it is subordinate to
his aesthetic plan, and hardly interfcies with it His few
brief references are like so many low rocks, which cannot
interrupt the multitudinous dance of the waves.
Oken, for »ham Goethe felt a hearty and admiring re-
spect, has the following passage : " Light shines on the salt
Rood, and it becomes alive. All life is from the sea, iMthing
from the firm land : the entire ocean is living. It is a bil-
lowy, ever-np heaving and again subsiding organism
Love is a birth of the sea-foam The first organic
forms issued from the shallow places of the great ocean, here
plants, there animals. Man, also, is a child of the warm
shallows of the sea, in the neighborhood of the land." This
passage, which Goethe certainly knew, and probably accepted
in a poetical sense, will throw some light on what folkiwi.
91. Sletring irway to SamaAraei.
We must suppose that the scene opens on the Theasalian
coast, near the mouth of the Pencus, and theiefore almost in
ught of the mountain-isle of Samothrace. The purpose of
the Nereids and Tritons. In ibeir journey thither, will be
presently revealed. Meanwhile Thales conducts Homuncu-
his to Mereus, the Graybeaid of the Sea, whtmi Heaiod
ih,Googlc
XOTES.
405
describes as just and friendly, iUkI well-dispoied towards tho
human race.
Nereus, however, in words which ate almost an echo of
üuetlic's own expressions, refuses to give cuunseL "The
giving of advice is a peculiar thing," said Goethe to Eclter-
niann, "and when one has bad some chance of seeing how,
in ihe world, (he most intelligent plans fail and Ihe absurd-
est often turn out snCEessfully, one is inclined to give up
the idea of furnishing advice to anybody. At the bottom,
indeed, the asking of adviM denotes a restricled nature, and
the giving of it an assuming one." The reference to Paris
is suggested by a passage in Horace (Ode I.}, where Nereus
is represented as having appeared in a calm to Paris, on his
way to the Troad with Helena, and predicted to him Ihe
coming war and ruin.
93. 77it Cratej of the Sta, Iht Daridet.
The Dorides were the daughters of Nereus and the »ca-
rymph Doris, but are called Nereids in the Grecian mythol'
ogy. Goethe's object in calling them Deridta, and present'
ing them as Ihe daughters of Nereus, while the Nereids are
inlioduced without any hint of their relationship, has puzzled
the commentaiors ; and since any attempt at explanation
must be merely conjecture, without evidence, I leave the
question as it stands. There seems, also, to be no ground
whatever for the declaration of Nereus that Galatea was
worshipped at Faphos in the place of Cypris (Aphrodite).
Thus far, none of the Olympian Goda or Goddes-ses have
been introduced; and the fresco of Galatea by Ka|ihael.
which Goethe knew, together with the description of a very
similar picture, mentioned by Philostratus, undoubtedly sug-
gested lo him the propriety of giving het the place which
really belongs to Aphrodite, as the representative of Helena
■Beauty).
It is possible that the reason why Nereus refuses lo help
Horounculus to being, and refins bim lo Proteus, is, lliat
Goeihe intends the former lo be an embodiment of accom-
plished, completed existence, while the latter represents
ih,. Google
Transfonnation, and therefore — since Momunqilus most
begin mch the lowest fonti of organic life — he must be tint
consulted,
93. Three have we brought hither.
The introduction of the CaUri, ancient Egyptian AnA
Phixnidan deities, in this place, is more difficult to explain
than thai of the geological element in (he preceding scene.
1 can discover no diamatlc, lesihetic, or even metaphysical
reason for turning back from the human forms which we
have reached, with their increasing poetry and beauty, to
the uncouth gods of Samothrace, — especially since nothing
comes of the circumatance. The whole episode seems to
have been wilfully inserted, as the consequence of a whim or
a temporary interest [n the subject.
Schelling's work "The Deities of Satnothrace," published
in 1815, first directed Goethe's attention to these primitive
creature». Creuzer, in hi* "Symbolism and Mythology"
and Lobeck in his " Aglaophamus " continued the archzo-
logical discussion, which, considering the remote and uncer-
tain nature of the subject, was carried on for a time with a
good deal of sarcasm and triltemess. The dispute had not
subsided when Goethe wrote this scene in iSjo ; and it was
perhaps natural that he should have overrated its impoi-
The Cabiri were originally three. In Memphis they had
a temple and were worshipped as the sons of Phihas (He-
phxstos). They appear to have been colonized on Samo-
Ihrace by the PhtEnidanx, and [heir mysteries were celebrated
there with orgies borrowed from the phallic worship of the
Egyptians. Three female deities wer« subsequently added
to their number ; but Creuzer insists that there were seveiL
cnitesponding to the seven planets, uritb a possible eighth,
representing the sun. The names of the first three were
Axierus, Axiokersus, and Axiokersa, and the fourth, Kad-
milus, being added as a uniting principle, they became to-
gether, according to Creuzer, a symbol of the sphend har-
mony. This may explain Goethe's allusion to the fourth.
ih,Googlc
/\JOTES.
4^7
The Hebrew word, Kdiiirim, is translaled by Geaenius,
" The Mfßhty." Fiiret says that Kabhirim was the name
of the »even sons of Tzadik, in Phccnician mythology. The
Arabic word kebttr (great), still in use, is evidently the same,
94- Thea intotnparabU, uiuhaiHaMe.
This quatrain aeems to be aimed at the archxologista.
Schelling had asserted that the Cabiri represented a chain
of symbols, the first being Huttger, the second Nature, grad-
ually rising to the latest and highest, who corresponded to
the Zeus of the Greeks. Goethe transfers the desiie of these
lower deities to reach ihe places of the higher to the de»re
of Ihe archxologists for unattainable Itnowledge.
The answer of the Sirens is a play upon Creuzer's ad-
herence to the Oriental symbolism of the sun, moon, and
Klars. Their reference to the Fleece of Gold, (hat is. The
Cabiri, is also meant for satire, although it is so weak as to
be scarcely apparent
95. Had eartlun potafar models.
Creuzer, again. He asserted that the Cabiri were origi-
nally worshipped under the form of thick'bellied earthen jars,
or pots. Schelling's in lerprelalion of the names had been
opposed, not only by Creuzer, but by Paulus, De Sacy,
Welcher, and others, — whence the mention of "stubborn
Heie the episode, which we cannot but feel is altogether
unnecessary and unedi^ng, comes to an end.
96. He has no lack a/ qualities ideal.
But Jar toe much of palpable and real.
The description which Thales gives of Homunculus di-
rectly suggests many hints which Goethe let fall in regard to
his own nature. Ideas were never lacking to him ; on the
contrary, their very profusion was a source of unrest and per-
plexity, since it was associated with a difficulty in discover-
ing the appropriate reality of form which Poelry requires.
The perfect fusion of the two elements was what he moM
ih,Googlc
4o8 FAUST.
aitmired and ciK'Kd in Shakeipeare ; and the struggle »T his
life, (o unite (he Classic and the Komantic, was noLning more
than to give the rare and subtile and delicate spirit or the
latter the positive, palpable, symmetrical form vrhich be rec-
ognized in the former. If Homunculus verily be Goethe's
own Poetic Genius, it ia all the more easy to perceive ho«
he was here able to symbolize a powerful aspiration of his
nature, for which no other form of expression could be tbund.
The theme suggest« a multitude of illustralions, and I resist
with difficulty the temptation to develop it further.
97. One ttarit tktrt first •wilkin a nammipaU.
Homer describes the Iransfnrmalions of Proteus in tb«
Fourth Book of the Odyssey, where Menelaus forces him to
appear in his proper form. Thates makes use of the curios-
ity of Proteus to accomplish the same resulL
Goethe, here, and from this point to the end, attaches id
additional meaning to Homunculus, partly, no doubt, in or-
der to disguise the secret, personal symbolism of the latter,
and partly, also, because it enabled him to give a hint of his
own palingenetic ideas. He suggcsu the gradual develop-
ment of life, constantly evolving higher forms from lower as
a part of his theory of creation, in accordance with the
Wemerian system. But when Thales says, in the following
scene (pages 156, 157) : —
fcrudyfor
Ih. nvid plan 1
The
re. by emujj cinoiu »e
ding.
Thr,
ughll-o
»»]. mjrriid f
Tho
Mu
he expresses the psychological view of the ancients rather
than the scientific system of the moderns, of which Darwin
is the latest and most succesarul illustrator. Goethe perhaps
considered that as all the series of organic life are traversed
in the development of the human embryo, so. reversely, the
lowest series already contains the preparation fur, and the
prophecy of, the highest Schnetger's interpretation, that
Proteus represents Nature and bears Homunculus on his
ih,Googlc
back as Che embiyo of the bDiMn race, wbich is to ascend
" througli thousand, myriad forms " to Man, is entirely con-
Mstetit wilh this view.
98. Telchines of Rhodes.
The Telchines of Rhodes, who were called Sons of the
Sea, were the first workers in metals. They made the knife
of Krono» and the trident of PoseidiM, and cast (he first
images of Che Gods in bronie. Their appearance, here, indi-
cates the dawn of the age of higher Grecian art. Pliny and
Theophrastus are Goeche'a authorities for the sunny weather
and pure atmosphere of Rhodes. The very movement of
the verse suggests brightness ; we feel that the »un and air
are not (hose of Rhode* alone, bat of all Classical art and
literature.
The Telchines exalt Luna as the sister of Phcebus. who
was (he tutelar deicy of Rhodes : the conclusion of cheir
cboruit seems to indicate the union of Religion and Art, and
suggests Coleridge's "fair humanicies of old religion." Pro-
teus exalts organic being, lite in the waters, over Che dead
works of the Telchines, and hints at the overthrow of the
Rhodian Colossus by an earthquake.
Hartung's words upon this passage may also be of servier
to the reader : " From the rude fetich to an Olympian Zeus
by the hand of a Phidias, there is as great a gap as from the
mollusk to the human form ; and Art must run through the
whole career. In this festival of Che Sea, the poet has placed
the development of organic forms in Nature, rising in con-
tinual progression to Man, side by side with (he develop-
ment of Art, in Religion, from the fetich [Cabiri ?] to (be
height of a Phidias."
99. That I alio think ii btit.
The words of Thales are not meant as a reply to Nereus.
They are simply a continuation of what he has before said : —
ih,Googlc
4IO FAUST.
loa PSYLLI AND HARSI.
Goethe took from Plin; the Psylll and Maral, who wem
«nake- channers in Southern Italy and on the Libyan shore.
He arbiliarily makes them guardians of the chariot of Cypris,
in which they still conduct Galatea by night, "unseen to the
new generations," fearing neither the Roman eagle, the
winged lion of Venice, the crescent of the Saracen, nor the
cross of the Crusader. Why tbey are here introduced, is
not so easy to explain. Diintzer insists that, being magi-
cians, they represent the magic power of Beauty 1 Schnetger
says they aie nearer to GaJaiea than the Telchines of
Rhodes, because they destroy snakes, which are ugly, and
which, according to the Bible, are hostile, to womani
It is not necessary to quote the variety of meanings given
by the commentators to the interlude of the Dorides and the
young sailors whom they have rescued from shipwreck.
They, as well as (he Telchines, the Psylli and Marsi, belong
to the triumphal convoy of Galatea. Hence they are all
prognostications of the coming Beauty, perhaps her symbol-
ized attributes ; and no single explanation could be satisläc-
tory to every reader. Hartung's guess seems to me very
plausible, at least : "The poet has had in his mind the bble
of Aurora and Tithonus, for that goddess could not prevent
her lover, for whom she had obtained immortal life, from
withering up into a grasshopper, from ape. And thus we
further petceive from the passage that Nature may indeed
create the highest beauty, but can only retain it for a mo-
ment ; for Beauty increases until human maturity, then im-
mediately begins to fade."
lOI. Galatea appToachis on hir chariot a/ih^ll.
Galatea, the lovely Nereid, here takes the place of Helena,
■s Homuncuhis takes the place of Faust. She Is the Ideal
Beauty, the sea-born successor of Aphrodite. Goethe not
only selected her as a Neptunist, but he was alio directed to
her, as [ have already remarked, by Raphael and Philostratua,
The latter thus describes a picture of her : "The broad
watery floor heaves gently under the chariot of the Beau^ ;
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
411
lour dolphins, harnessed tt^etber, seem urged loTward by
one impulse ; young Tritons bridle them in order to curb
their wanton plunges. But she stands on her shell-chariot ;
the purple mantle, a sport of the wind, swells above her
head like a sail and shades her." Goethe say« : " It is
important lor our object, to place beside this description
what Raphael, the Caracd and others have done with the
same subject" Raphael's fresco, in the Farnesina Palace
in Rome, represents Galatea standing in a chariot drawn by
dolphins, who are driven by a Cupid. Around her are
Tritons, blowing their conch-shells, and embracing the at-
tendant Nereids.
It is only a passing glimpse which the poet allows. Thales
has hardly ßnished his pxan to Water, as the creating and
sustaining principle of life, when the triumphal procession is
already afar. The long line of symbols has now reached its
trown, and the allegory must close.
lOX. Whatßtty marvel the billows eitlighUni t
HomunculuB sees at once the beginning and the perfect
result of existence. Beauty is all around him : his imprison-
ing glass glows and vibrates urith his passionate yearning,
and shivers itself at the feet of Galalca. The waves around
the shell-chariot are covered as with tire 1 he begins life in
the phosphorescent animalculx of the Ocean.
Some, here, imagine thai Homunculus represents Ero«;
others that he is Galatea (I); others that he is Faust's es-
thetic passion. I will only say that to one who has closely
studied Goethe's life ; who has detected how the cramped
and restricted existence in Weimar became almost unendura-
ble to him, how a new freedom came through his acquaint-
ance with Classic Art in Italy, with what passionate devotion
he strove to comprehend the Ideal of beauty in the humatt
(brra, shivering all former moulds in which his intellectual
being was confined, and pouring his naiure forth in an effu-
sion of free and joyous desire to create a new being for him-
self, — to such a one, both symbols, which are here united
in Homunculus, become clearly intelligible. If, in the Boy
ih,Googlc
413
FAUST.
Charioteer and Ptatus we reci^ite Goetbe'i relation to Kail
August, crowned by-the leiiure for poetic activity which the
princely friend secured to the poet, may we not find aynbol-
ized in Homunculus the straggle which resulted in that
(esthetic growth, (hat intellectual freedom, into which Goethe
rose during and after his Italian journey, and finally, in
Euphorion, the harmonious union oTthe Classic and Roman-
tic elements in hii own poetry, commencing with Ipkigt»i»
in TauTÜ and Taaa t
The concluding chorus glorifies Eros, whom Hesiod men-
tions as one of the original creative Powers. The four Ele-
ments— Water, Fire, Air, and Earth — are celebrated, and
Love is the generative principle through which all life, irom
its first nidimcniaiy forms to the Supreme Beauty, is begot-
ten from them. We are reminded of one of Goethe's epl-
Thou. in usuenient, ibMi'iI niE Ihc Sea ; il uiini lo be bnrnint :
With HTB bfokcn in flaiDe. meeliDg theaigUl-gunf tliipl
I vn no loagv unuad : from IbA Sea waiboni Aphrodite;
Wm nM tlMD bom Inn her li» the Fiure, u ber a« r
103. HlUXHA.
The Third Act is known in Germany as Tkt Hilcna, not
only because it was separately published in 1827 uuder tb*
title of " Helena : a Classico- Romantic Phantasmagoria,"
but also because it is a complete allegorical poem in itself
inserted in the Second Fart of Fiout by very loose threads
of attachment. It represents, indeed, in one sense, the ges-
thelic development of Faust's nature, as an important part
of his experience of " the greater world," and a step by which
he attains to the higher being to which he aspires ; but this
has already been announced, and, in itself, demands no such
elaboration. The chief motive which governed Goethe wax
the reconciliation of the Classic and the Romantic ; this dic-
tated the form of the episode, which is quite as remarkable
as its substance. Gnethe, himself, recogniied the preponder-
ance of the latter allegory, and at one time debated whether
he should not complete the Helaia as a separate work. It
ih,Googlc
ATOTES. 413
WIS perh^w Schiller's death which prev«nt«<l the fulfUment
of this plan.
I have related (in Appendix IL, First Part) bow Ecker-
mann's suggestion led him, in iSzj, to take up th« neglected
fragment, which was written in 1800. We can scarcely be
wrong in assumii^ that the earlier scenes, read at the Conrt
or Weimar in 17S0. were of an entirely different character,
and that nothing of ihero waa retaiiKd. At Itiat time the
terms "Classic" and " Romantic" were not heard: Schil-
ler's essay "On Naive and Sentimental Poetry" led to that
liieiary discussion which divided the German authors into
distinct parties, thus designated. A quarter of a century
later the conflict was transferred lo France, where it has
scaicely yet subsided. The eigniücance of the terms is,
therefore, now so generally understood that no special ex-
planation is Tiecessary. We need only remember that the
culture of (he German people was then so high, and (heir
intellectual interests so keen, that the subject ponsessed an
importance which we are likely now (o undervalue.
When the Hdtna was published, in 1827, Goethe himself
announced it in bis journal, Kunst und Alltrtkum, in an arti-
cle which must needs be quoted entire ; * —
"HELENA. INTERLUDE IN FAUST.
" Faust's character, in (he elevation to which latter re-
finement, working on the old rude iradition, has raised it,
represents a man who, feeling impatient and imprisoned
within the limits of mere earthly existence, regards the pos-
session of the highest knowledge, the enjoyment of (he fair-
est blessings, as insufficient even in the slighte<it degree (o
satisiy his longing : a spirit, accordingly, which, struggling
out on all sides, ever returns the more unhappy.
" This form of mind is so accordant with our modem dis-
position, that various persons of ability have been induced to
undertake the treatment of such a subject. My manner of
* 1 buTTDw Cut; la's tantlitiOD 6on hx utkia " Coaiha'i Helen.'
ih,Googlc
4'4
FAUST.
ailempting it obliined approval : distinguished men consid.
ercd the matter, and commented on my performance ; all
which I thankfully observed. At the aanie lime I could not
but wonder that none of those who undertook a continuation
and completion of my Fragment, had lighted on the ihoußht,
which seemed so obvious, that the composition of a Second
Part must necessarily elevate itself altogether aivay from
the hampered sphere of the First, and conduct a man of
■uch a iiature into higher legions, under worthier drcum-
" How I, for my part, had determined to essay this, lay
(dlently before my own mind, from time to lime exciting me
to some progress ; while, from all and each, I carefully
guarded my secret, still in hope of bringing the work to the
wished-for issue. Now, however, I must no longer keep
back j or, in publishing ray collective Endeavor^ conceal
any further secret from the world ; to which, on the con-
trary, [ feel bound to submit my whole labors, even though
in a fragmentary state
" Accordingly I have resolved that the above-named Piece,
a smaller drama, complete within itself, but pertaining to the
Second Part of Fausl, shall be forthwith presented in the
first portion of my Works.
" The wide chasm between that well-known dolorous con-
clusion of the First Part, and the entrance of an antique
Grecian heroine, is not yet overarched \ meanwhile, as a
preamble, my readers wilt accept what follows :
"The old Legend tells us. and the puppet-play falls not to
introduce the scene, that Faust, in his imperious pride of
heart, required from Mephistopheles the love of the lair
Helena of Greece ; in which demand the other, after some
reluctance, gratified him- Not to overlook so important a
concern in our work was a duty for us : and how we have
endeavored to discharge it will be seen in this Interlude.
But what may have furnished the proximate occasion of such
an occurrence, and how, after manifold hindrances, our old
magical Craftsman can have found means to bring back the
individual Helena, in person, out of Orcus into Life, axusA,
ih,Googlc
NOTES. ^(5
fn this stage of the business, remain undiscovered. For the
present, il is enough if our reader will admit that the real
Helena may step forth, on antique tragedy-colhumus, before
her primitive abode in Sparta. Wc then request him (a>ob-
serve in what way and manner Faust will presume to court
bvor from this royal all-famous Beauty of the world."
104. Chorus.
The opening of the act appears to be imitated from " The
Eumenides " of j^scliylus. Until the appearance of Faust,
the form of the veise is purely classic, the iambic hexameter,
and aflenrards (he trochaic octameter, alternating with (he
Irregular yet wonderfully metrical strophes of the Choiui.
Some features in the description of (he burning of Troy, in
this Chorus, are taken from the j^neid. but (he form and
character are Goethe's own. The first four strophes, in the
ori^nal, are very grand. From the opening of the Act until
the introduction of rhyme, afier Faust's appearance, I hare
been able to retain the exact metres, while giving (be lines
very nearly as literally as in a prose translation,
Carlyle, whose version of this passage and of Helena's de-
scription of the encounter with Phorkyas is so excellent, (ha(,
had he given us the whole Act, no other translation would
have been necessary, says of the metres ; " Happy, could we,
in any measure, have transfused the broad, yet rich and
chaste simplicity of these long iambics : or imitated the tone,
as we have done the metre, of that choral song ; its rude
earnestness, and tortuous, awkward -looking, artless strength.
as we have done its dactyls and anapxsts To our own
minds, at least, there is everywhere a strange, piquant, quite
peculiar charm in these imitations of the old Grecian style ;
a dash of (he ridiculous, if we might say so, is blended with
(he sublime, ye( blended with it softly and only to temper its
austerity ; fur often, so graphic is the delineation, we could
almost feel as if a vista were opened through the long gloomy
distance of ages, and we, with our modern eyes and modern
levity, beheld afar oif, in clear light, the very figures of that
old grave time ; saw (hem again living in their old anliqua-
ih,Googlc
rian costume Mid envitonmeiit, and heard them audibly dia-
courw in a dialect which had long been dead. Of all this,
no man is moie maiter tlian Goethe."
lOS- Phobkvas.
The leader will not have forgolten the translbrniation of
Mephistopheles into a Phork^ad (page 144), in the Classical
Walpurgis-Night, and vill thus understand how he, as the
Spirit of Negation, here appears in a female maslc, as Ugli-
ness, to torment and threaten Beauty. Carlyle says : " There
is a sarcastic malice in the ' wise old Stewardess ' which
cannot be mistaken."
106. Chorktid I.
The quarrel between Phorkyas and the Chorus has been
variously interpreted ; but it is evidently an imitation of the
Greek tragedy. Very similar scenes occur in the Ajax and
EUetra of Sophocles. The sole purpose, here, seems to be
to bring out in sharper distinctness the malice of Phork)ras,
and to identiiy her more completely with Mephistopheles.
In the " Eumenides " of iEschylu», the members of the
Chorus speak singly, in one scene, fifteen times in succession.
Goethe's Chorus evidently consists of twelve, of whom six
(one Semichorus) now speak.
107. To him, Iht Vuien, I, a Viäsn, vnd myielf.
The German word is Idol [atlalan) : I follow Carlyle in
translating it " Vision," although the word " wraith " ex-
presses the meaning more closely. Stesichorus is Goelhe's
authority for this myth concerning Helena : he even declares
that it was only her eidolon, not herself, which was present
in Troy. Professor Lehrs {Pepiäärt Aufsäiu aus dim Alttr-
Mum] says: "He (Stesichorus) was probably the inventor
of the fable of the airy image, which he connected with the
legend of Helena's residence in Egypt, and which he appears
to have formed from the analogy of the tididim of i^neat,
about which the armies fight in the Iliad, and of that which
Here substituted for herself, for the embraces of Izion."
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 417
Her captivitf in Egypt and her rescu« from King Proteus,
there, is the subject of the Helena of Euripides.
The union of Achilles, called from the shades, to Helena,
on the island of Leulte, in Pontus (not Phers, as Goethe
gays), \s mentioned by Arctinua and I'ausamas The name
of her son by him was Eufhurion. Lehis says : "That she
was wedded lo Achilles on the island of Leuke, which ap-
pears to have been an Urieiital Kiysium, is based on the
idea of uniting the highest beauty of Man and Woman."
The meaning of Helena's swoon is passed over by most
commentators. It seems to me thai it must be accepted in a
dramatic, not an allegorical sense ; or, if the latter be de-
manded, that it may have some reference to the apparent
death of the Classic spirit, before its rtnaisiaHce in the Middle
Ages. What Goethe said to Riemer, after completing the
Hilcna (and he expresses himself similarly in a letter to
Wilhelm von Humboldtl, may here be quoted.
" It is time that the passionate conflict between the Classic
and Romantic schools chould be at last reconciled. The
main requisite is that we are developed ; vjhemc our devel-
opment comes would be ii^ifferent, were it not that we must
fear to shape ourselves wrongly by false models. In the
hope of sympathetic inaight. 1 have Ireely followed my own
mood In elaborating the HHina, without thinking of any
public or of any single reader, convinced that he who easily
grasps and comprehends the whole will also be able, through
loving patience, gradually to accept and assimilate the de-
tails."
108. Quit«, tkt offering art fiou.
Goethe here follows one of the many Greek legends in
relation to Helena. Although Homer relates that Menelaus
threw away his sword, overcome by her beauty, when he
again met her, yet there are frequent references in the poets
IKuriptdes, among others) 10 a story of her having been sac-
rificed, Goethe makes a skilful use of it, to account for
Helena's migration from Classic lo Romantic soil. Phorkyas
tnalidously imuses herself with the terror of the Chorus ;
l8« AA
ih,Googlc
4i8 FAUST.
the aummoning o( ihe dwarls to prepare for the sacrifice is
but a grim joke : she is bound, a» Mephistopheles, to obey
Faust's command. Her threat or death to the Chorus is
suggested by Ihe punishment which Teleniachus, in thb
Odyssey {Book XXII.), inflicts on the faithless tnaids.
109. Not radbtrs art ihty: yttof many one ii Ciif/.
We now begin 10 feel, as by a Hubtile premonition, the
approach of the Romantic element. Although the line " So
many years deserted stood the valley -hills," may be taken m
a reference to the blank ages which followed the passing
away of the classic world, yet the form in which the allegory
is clothed has a singular distinctness and reality. Kreyssig
speaks of the "sun-biight atmosphere " of the Hilnm, and
Carlyle uses nearly the same eipression ; " It has every-
where a full and sunny tone of coloring ; resembles not a
tragedy, but a gay, gorgeous mask." Nothing, indeed, is
more wonderful than the delicate transition by which the
antique form, spirit, and speech resolve themselves into the
life, movement, and dithyrambic freedom of Modem Song.
The two elements are equally represented in the external
art, and in the characters, of the Inuilude.
This must be borne in mind, when we attempt to find a
special symbolism in every detail. Some things are un-
doubtedly introduced for the sake of artistic tont; others,
g^in, for their intrinsic picturesque iiess ; others, perhaps,
are the result of fleeting hints and suggestions which dropped
into Goethe's mind as he wrote, surrendering himself freely
to the mingled visions of the highest culture of the ancient
and modem world. A full and consistent allegory is here
impossible : but, through the dissolving forms and colors of
the " Phantasmagoria," we catch continual glimpses of the
leading idea.
The race, jiressing forth from the Cimmerian Night, is of
course the German, as we learn from the gold-haired boy».
Diintzersays that the "/'■«-^>?,("' of which Phorkyas speaks
refer to the medixval custom of purchasing security of the
feudal barons; but the circumstance that Goethe has itali-
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
419
dzed the word hints of some particular sEgnifican«, which I
cannot discover. The description of Gothic architecture and
the coata-of-anns is not ironical, as some assert, for under
the tnask of Phorkyas there is a mediaeval Devil.
1 10. B natty is inäivisiMt.
Fhorkyas, here, and not when Helena chides her, forgets
her part The allegory becomes clear again, and its histori-
cal element is more pronounced. Kreyssig has a passage
which explains this crisis in Helena's fate 1 "The allegory
shows us, in narrow space, a few boldly conceived dramatic
scenes of that enormous revulsion, filling nearly a thousand
years, which laid the antique culture in the grave of barba-
rism, in order to summon it forth therefrom, in the fulneis of
time, rejuvenated and reinspired, as the beaming dawn of a
Dew day of the world. The dem oral iiaiion uf the i^lcllenic
favorites of the Gods themselves tore the crown from the
head of that Culture, even as Menelaus, possessing through
the favor ofthe Gods the highest Beauty, drives, in his ignoble,
vulgar pas.iion, the innocent victim from the house of her
fathers, and compels her to seek protection among the liar-
liarians of the Cimmerian North."
Catlyle says o( the remarkable Chorus, wherein the char-
acters are carried in mist and vapor from the high House of
Tyndarus lo a feudal Castle of the Middle Ages; "Our
whole Interlude changes in character at this point ; the
Greek style passes abruptly into the Spanish : at one bound
we have left the Stven be/ore TTubti (-f^schylus) and got into
the Vida 11 Surno (Calderon). The action, too, becomes
more and more typical ; or, rather, we should »ay, half-typi-
cal i for it will neither hold rightly together as allegory nor
as matter of fact,"
lit. Tintr CBurl-yard Bf a CaslU.
The reader will notice that although the classical form of
verse is still retained, the Gothic character of the subject
makes itself more and more prominent When the Chorus
describes the procession of blond-haired pages, the intro-
ih,Googlc
430 PAUST.
daction of m alternate anapaeslic foot, followed bjr the
Bhurt choriambic lines, prepares us for a coming metrical
change. The traniformaiion of lime, place, and spirit is
so artfully managed, that it is accomplished before we are
aware, and aa in dissolving views, the fading outline we have
been watching proves to be the growing outline of a new
The description of the youths suggests both Tadtus ai>d
theiVim Angli ltd cmgrli rA Vo^ Gregory. It is the appear-
ance or a new type of human beauty. The doubt and uncer-
tainly of Helena and the Chorus, on finding Ihemselvei
suddenly In the Gothic court-yard, are thus eicplained by
Schnelger : " When Classic culture, with iu ideal of Beauty,
began to migrate northwards, it found the old Romantic
world imprisoned In the darkness of priesthood, and sunken
in monastic barbarism ; the spirit of the North «as as
gloomy and unlovely as were its castles, cloisters, and
churches. Fear. inspiring, as a deep, dark pitlall, the me-
dixval walls meet the gaze of the daughter of Greece, ac-
customed to freedom and to nature; she stands alone, un-
welcomed on alien soil, for the Romantic world had in the
beginning no recognition for the lovely guest from afar."
I iz. Wheit duty sligkud ehiattd nil of mint.
Faust drops one foot from the double trimeter, and speak*
in modem heroic measure. The Leader of the Chorus, in
her description, agrees with Phurkyas, preferring him \9
many of the antique models uf manly beauty. He is herf
not yet Auui/,— not even the Faust of the Classical Wal-
purgis-Night, — but the new, virile element in Literatnrfi
and Art, the growth of the Middle Ages, now so far devel-
oped that it recognizes its ideal of Beauty in the supreme
aesthetic culture of Greece. Only towards the close of the
act does he again become the hero of the drama.
The Warder, Lynceua (pilot of the Argonauts), whom he
leads in chains to Helena's feet, is variously interpreted.
According to some, he represents both the Provencal trou-
badours and the German Minnesingers, — the poets of lov«
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
431
who, with all their iharp-slghledness, siw not the tne art
Carlyle's guess seems to me more successful i " We cannot
but suspect bim of being a School Philosopher, or School
Philosophy itself, in disguise." He may be the embodiment
of Lore, in Ihc schol»stic sense, which, during the Middle
Ages, plumed itself on the treasures which it had secured
from antiquity, blind to the &r greater treasure which was
afterwards recalled to life, in the finer development of the
113. In tht SaulH areu the lun,
" As it has frequently happened to the Germans," says
Kreyssig. We surely have a reference here to the revival of
the antique Beauty in Italian Art and Literature. It would
be easy to illustrate this, as well as other passages, at length ;
IhiI I must endeavor to confine myself stricily to what is ne-
cessary, in these Notes. The text suggests a wealth of allu-
sions, for it is the attempt lu epitomize the eighty years'
knowledge and ihoughi of one of the clearest and must
active of all human brains. But the thoughtful reader will
be satisfied with a guiding hint, and the one who takes up
the Second Part of Fauil for a simple recreation will never
return to it again.
With Lynceus, rhyme, and the Romantic metre first ap.
pear, although, for a short distance further, the Classic char-
acters retain their native fonn of speech.
114. Forth from thi Eait vx kUher preiied.
The second address of Lynceus describes the migration of
the races from the East, under which the whole Cla-ssical
world was buried, until it slowly arose from the inundation
to assist in shaping a new phase of hutnan culture. The
chief import of the verses seems to be. that all which War
and Colonization achieved — territory, power, wealth, per-
manence— becomes null and vain beside this new vision.
It can only be restored, and to a better value, through the
abiding presence of the Beautiful, the worship of which is the
crowning element of Civilization.
ih,Googlc
4J3 FAUST.
115. Each lound a^carid as yielding te the ncxL
Goethe has taken a Persian legend (related in his own
Wtst - (Eslliiktr Divan) of two lovers, Behram-gour and
Dilaram, who invented rh^tne in Ibeir amorous dialogues,
and has applied it here with consummate skill, aa a means
of bringing Faust and Helena nearer. The gifts are not all
on one side : the Romantic welcomes and worships ihe
Classic, but in return it adds the music of rhyme to the
prujiorlion of metre. Thus the new element continues to
absorb the old, through the loving mutual approach uf the
two. The allegory becomes so incarnate in the chief charac-
ters Ih^t it impresses us like an actual htiman passion, and
la so described by the Chorus. The very soul and l>eiiig of
the antique world — the proportion, the reality of form, and
the sublime repose of Classic Art — are wedded, in a union
perfect as that of love, to the sentiment, the passion, and
the rreeriom of Romantic Art : and the latter, equally yield-
ing, forgets Time, Place, and Race, and feels only that it
now possesses the supreme Ideal of Iteauty.
This is loo much for Phorkyas- Mephistopheles : she
breaks in upon the lovers, addressing ihem in rhymes which
seem intended to satirize Rhyme itself, — so violent is their
contrast 10 the melting speech of (lelena and Faust. The
iuterpenetration of the ancient and modem metres in thii
portion of the act is a wonderful piece of poetic art, and t
must call the reader's special attention to iL Faust answers
in the Greek iambic trimeter (tor the first time), then returns
to rhyme, while the Chorus and Phorkyas continue the clas-
sic forms until the appearance of Euphorion, when the trai)-
»ition is complete.
116. Sigiialt, expleiiem frem the Imorra.
Diinlzer conjectures thai these "explosions" give us a
hint of the invention of gunpowder and the use of artillery,
tcwards the close of (he Middle Ages. The commentalnm
are generally agreed that Faust is here a type of the roman-
tic, chivalrous spirit, which was expressed in the Minnesing-
ers and Troubadours, as the forerunner« of Modem Liter
ih,Googlc
/i/arES.
423
alurc. The apportionment of the Peloponnesus (except
Spina and Arcadia) among the Dukes is certainly a literary
rather than an historical symbol. The literatures of (he
German, the Goth (Spain), the Prank and ihe Norman
(England) share equally in the classic inheritance. May we
not guess, then, that, as Helena is Queen over al], hei spe-
cial Spartan and Arcadian realm, wherein ihe Romantic or
Modem spirit is her spouse, is that region of (he loftiest
achievement, where Ar( and Li(eralure cease 10 be nanowly
national, but are for the world and for all time t
117. This land, ie/ort all lands in if lender.
Yes : the question, asked at (he close of (he foregoing
note, is answered. The Arcadia of Paust and Helena is the
home-land of (he highest Art and Song : Ei <fo in Arcadia
is the password which has been transmitted from generation
to generation, and from race to race, through (he long course
of the ages. The name i(3eir has a golden clang, and never
was its mystic, illuminating power more thoroughly mani-
fested than in (hese stanzas of the aged Guethe. We are
reminded, it is true, of Ovid, , Horace, and olher ancient
poels, and of Tasso's " O, Mia elA dtW era'. " —but here the
ideal character of the realm is so blended with an exquisite
picture of the actual Grecian province, that its hills, gorges,
and happy meads rise palpably on our sight, as we read.
In (he spring of 1S5S, after spending days beside the Eu-
rotas and among the fastnesses of the Taygetus, I climbed
from Messene into Arcadia, and everywhere, — whether
plucking violets on the " Mount Lycsean " of Pan, or gazing
on the lonely beauty of the temple of Apollo Epicuteus,
crushing the wild hyacinths along the mountain paths, or
resting beside the herded goats and kine in the green vale
of the Alpheus, — I felt both the magic of the name and its
immemorial cause The mountains, thai swell and fall in
rhythmic undulations; (he wealtli of crystal streams; (he
prand forests of oak and pine ; the pure, delicious air, and
Ihe sweet, happy sense of seclusion which seems to brood
Ukc a blessing over every landscape, must have been an in-
ih,Googlc
o the earliest poet who sang to its people. Let h
e a name for the dream of the pure and
perfect life which Poetry picdictE, and will predict fbiever!
1 18. All vrorldi in inUr-iutiim mttf.
The original : —
Denn n Nilur in rElnn Kniw mliet,
Ergrrilen nil« Welles ^h, —
Is one of ihose pregnant expressions which make the trans-
lator despair, — for, the more thoroughly he is penetrated
with the meaning, the less does it seero possible to express
that meaning in any words. The literal translation is, " For
where Nature sways in a pure circle (or orbit), all worlds
(human and divine) redprocalty take hold on one another."
The series is nowhere violently interrupted : the Gods reveal
themselves through men, even as men rise to resemble Gods :
the orbits of all spheres of existence are harmoniously inter-
linked. But we here approach the highest regions of Che
Ideal ; and he who has not some little intuition to guide him
will hardly follow the thought further.
1 19. Yt, alio, Btardtd Ones, who lit ielew and moil.
" It appears too, that there are certain ' Bearded Ones,'
(we suspect. Devils,) waiting with anxiety, 'sitting watchful
there below,' to see the issue of this estraordinary transac-
tion ; but of these Fhorkyas gives her silly women no hint
whatever." — CarfyU.
" If the French otily recognize the Helena, they will per-
ceive what may be made of it for their stage. The piece, as
it is, they will ruin ; but they wltl employ it shrewdly (or
their own purposes, and that is all one can wish, or expect.
They will certainly supply Phorkyas with a Chorus of mon-
sters, which, indeed, is already indicated in one passage." —
Coiihe to Eckermann, 1S31.
Düntzer, who so rarely lets anything escape him, does not
seem to have noticed Goethe's remarL He insists (hat the
** Bearded Ones " are the spectators, whom Mephisto (iheles
addresses iiv Act II., Scene I., and in Act IV. For my part
ih,Googlc
I find Goethe's meaiüng »o veiy oDcertaln, tlut I prefer w
haiud no conjecture.
laa Cail'it thou a ntarvtl thü,
Crda's btgetttM t
The son of Faust and Helena, as be ii first described b;
Phcfkyas, is Poetry, not ta individual In his naked beauty,
his pianks and his sportive, wilful ways, he suggests not only
tbe greater freedom of the Romantic element, but also the
classic myths of Cupid and the child Hermes (Mercury).
Phorkyas, in proclaiming him the "Ititure Master of all
Beauty," quite forgets that she Is Mephistopheles.
The Chorus describes the birth and childish tricks of
Hermes, as they are related in Homer's hymn and Lucian's
dialogues of the Gods. There is, perhaps, a " poetic-didac-
tical word " for the reader, in their relation, as well as for
Phorkyas. Hermes may possibly typify the Poetic Genius,
which boldly steals the attritHites of all the God^ and even
long* to grasp tbe thunderbolts of Zeus, the Father.
121. EUPHORtON.
In tbe origiiutl legend, FausI has by Helena a son, to whom
he gives tbe name of Justus Faustus, and who disappears
with ber when his compact with Mephistopheles comes to an '
end. In one of the ancient Grecian myths, Helena bears >
son to Achillea (recalled from Hades) on the island of Leuke.
This »on, bom with wings, was called Euphorion (the awifi
or lightly waAed), and was slain by the lightning of Jupiter.
Goethe unites the two stories, and adds his own symbolism
to the airy, wiiful spirit, resulting from IbeuL
We have, at the outset, three positive circumstances to
guide us. Euphorion is here, as when he fotnierly appeared
In the Boy Charioteer, Poetry ; he is born of the union of
the Classic and Romantic ; and, shortly before he vanishes
from our eyes, he becomes the representative of Byron. The
last of these characters, however, was not included in Goethe's
original plan. Indeed, it could not have been, since that plan
was sketched while Byron was a boy at Harrow. We are
ih,Googlc
436 FAUST.
able to üx both the lime and the special influences whlcli led
to ihe introduction of Byron ; and. moreover, the point in
the allegory where the change commences may be easily de-
tected.
Neither as we know bim, nor as Goethe knew him, could
Byron be the child of Faust and Helena ; the only modem
English poet to whom the lymboliam would in any wise
apply, is Keats. Among the Germans we might, if there
were any indication pointing towards him, accept Schiller ;
but we at once feel, I think, that no poet of this age has so
subtly and harmoniously blended the two elements in bis
highest achievement, as Goethe htmselC His IphJgmia in
Tanris, Taiso, Hermann and Dorothea, and Dit NoHirtickt
Tochlcr (a singularly neglected masterpiece) will suggest
themselves as illustrations, to all who are acquainted with
his works. Besides, the order in which the three boyish
sprites are introduced reflects the order of his own develop-
ment. In the Boy Charioteer we have his relation to Karl
August, and his liberation from Court and otticial life ; In
Homunculus, his lirsi acquaintance, through Art in Italy,
with the spirit of the Classic world, and his strudle to lift
himselfinlo another and purer poetical existence ; and Anally,
in Euphorion, the regeneration and birth of his nature in his
greatest works. The allegory is carefully veiled, for long
isolation, misrepresentation, and abuse had taught him to
be cautious ; but he would not, in any case, have made it
obvious to the running reader. The secret was too intimate
and predous to be easily betrayed, yet it has not been hidden
beyond the reach of that "love and patience" on which he
relied for a full and final rccc^niiion. He who discovers the
symbolisni must first pass through one chamber after another
of the poet's nature, and, when he has reached the Inner
sanctuary, he has breathed the same atmosphere (oo long to
tee either vanity or arrogance, or aught but a justified self-
consciousness, in these lair and mysterious forms.
During Ihe appearance of Euphorion upon the stage, the
Classic form is «holly lost, absorbed in the Romantic. The
measure becomes a wild, ever^changing, rhymed (UthyiambiQ
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
427
ohich, in the original, produces an indescribable sense of
movement and muaic I can only hope that something of
the infectious excitement and delight which I have fell while
endeavoring to reproduce it may have passed into the Eng-
lish lines, and will help to bear the reader smoothly over
the almost endless technical difficultjes of translation. The
spirit of the scene is quite inseparable li-om itii rhythmical
character.
There are references, in the first atlerances of Phorkyaa
and the Chorus, to the new elements of Sentiment and
Passion in Modem Poetry, as contrasted with the Classic;
but ihey need no further explanation. Some have supposed
that Helena's ßrst staniji : "Love, in human wise lo bless
us,' etc, gives the additional meaning of the Familjr to her
relation with Faust. The stania, certainly, has this charac-
ter, but only incidentally : the reference is too slight to be
applied to the entire allegory.
We may accept the lawlessness of Eupborion as, to a
certain extent, reflecting Byron's wild, unregulated youth.
Some of the German commentators, however, force the
parallel quite too far, endeavoring to discover definite inci-
dents of the poet's history in his dances with the Chorus,
and his pursuit of the maiden who turns into flame. The
individual character of Euphotion is very gradually intro-
duced, and is first declared in the above lines.
Byron became acquainted with the First Fart of Fauil
through Shelley, in igi6. There was at thai time no Eng-
lish translation of the work, and he offered lo give a hundred
pounds if he could have it in English, for his private |>erusat.
His Mitnfrid, which was written immediately afterwards, be-
trays the strong impression which Famt left on his mind, —
Ml impression which Goethe mstantly detected, on first read-
it^ Manfnd, the following year. The two poets appear lo
have occasionally exchanged greetings, through common
acquaintances, and it was the wish of both that they might
ih,Googlc
4i8 FAUST.
meet. Byron dedicated his tragedy of Siirdanafclai to Goetkci
in words, ihe like of which a poet lias rarely addressed ta
one of his contemporaries : " To the itlustriaus Goethe a
»(Tanger presumes lo offer the homage of a literary vassal
to his liege-lord, (he first of existing writers, who has created
(he literature of his own country, and* illustrated that of
Europe." In February, 1823, Go«(be sent the following
lines to Byron : —
"Htvho, •riih hiioini ioanHlTiiinr,
Gnm* Uront, IhmiiEh wont, 10 b«ar It» dfleptM paiOt
Ba ii hU w[ih him, whan he himielf ih^ know I
Dire he, Up nunc himaelf u highly blcucd»
When ihc iironi Muk ihall <>veicon.e hit fanp.
And may lie know himeelC u I ha>e knowD hini I"
This, (bilowed by Byron's letters from Genoa and Le{^
born, Wöis their only approach towards a nearer intercourse.
Goethe was engaged in completing the Helena, in lS36.
when Mr. Murray, (he publisher, sent him (he au(ograph of
(he Dedication to Saräanapaltu ; and, from some bints which
he let fall to Eckermann, his daughter-in-law, Üttilie von
Goethe, who was an enthusiastic admirer of Byron, was an-
other of the additional influences which, in combination, led
him lo change the chancier of Euphorion.
Goethe said to Eckermann (in 1827): "I could use no
one but him, as the representative of our recent poetic time i
he is, without question, the greatest talent of the century.
And then, Byron is not antique, and is not romantic, but he
embodies the Present Day. Such a one I needed. He was
also appropriate through his unsatisfied nature, and his mili-
tary ambition, which ruined him in Missolonghi I
had intended, formerly, an entirely different conclusion 10
the Htltna 1 I had elaborated it, for myself, in various ways,
one of which was quite successful ; but I will not betray it
to you. Then time brought me Byron anil Missolonghi, and
I let all else go. Vou have remarked, however, that the
Chorus quite loses its part in the Dirge ; formerly it was
antique throughout, or at least never contradicted its maiden-
nature, but now it suddenly becomes grave and loftily te>
ih,Googlc
KOTES. 439
flective, and gives utterance to things «hidi it never before
thought or could have been able to think."
Goethe's estimate of Byron is not genenlV} understood :
it has, at least, been frequently misrepresented. I have,
therefore, carefully gone through the correspondence with
Zelter and Eckermann's three volumes, for the purpose of
selecting such passages as may give, in the briefest space, a
fair representation of his views. There is much more ma-
terial, of the highest interest to the liierary critic, but the
following extracts may perhaps suffice to explain the fleeting
adumbration of Byron which we find in Euphorion : —
"That which I call inventioH I find more pronounced in
him than in any other man in the world. The manner in
which he disentangles a dramatic knot is always beyond
one's eipeaation, arid always better than one's own precon-
ceived solution "
" Had he only known how to impose upon himself moral
restrictions I It was his ruin that he waa unable to do this,
and we are justified in saying that his lawlessness «as the
rock on which he split."
"This reckless, inconsiderate activity drove him out of
England, and in the course of time would have driven him
out of Europe. Circumstances were everywhere loo narrow
for him, and with all his boundless personal freedom he felt
himself oppressed : the world was for him a prison. His
going to Greece was not a spontaneous resolution; he was
driven to it through his false relation to the world."
" We are forced to admit thai this Poet says more than we
wish j he speaks the truth, but it gives us a sense of discom-
fort, and we should prefer that he remained silent. There
are things in the world which the Poet should veil rather than
reveal ; yet this is precisely Byron's character, and «e should
destroy hi» individuality in attempting to change him "
*' Byrnn's l>oldnc38, wilfulness, and grandiose manner, is it
not an element of development? We must avoid seeking
that element exclusively in what is decisively pure and ethi-
cal. All thai is greii/, as soon as we appreciate it, furthers
Mtr development."
ih,Googlc
43«
FAUST.
" Brron'« (ataJ fiuüt wu his polemkal tendencr."
" Nevertbeleu, altbongh Bjrron died so «aily, it wat iwl
a material Iom to LJIerature, through tbc probable fiuther
eipaiuion of bb powert. He had reached the climax of his
creative force, and, whatever he might have afterwards ac-
complished, lie could scarcel; have enlarged the bordei»
within which his talents were already confined."
From these, and other utterances of Goethe, it is very
evident that what he most admired in Byron was not the
harmonious onion of the Classic and Romantic elements;
not the artistic perfection of form ( not the breadth and vi-
tality of that Genius which lid« itself slowly, but on strong
wings, through the still higher and clearer ether of thought :
but that restless, mysterious, ever-creative qnality which
Goethe called Daimanie, the native, effortless splendor of
rhythm and rhetoric, the sentiment of Nature pervaded and
exalted by Imagination, and that virile power of transmitting
himself to other minds, which we never can clearly analyze.
Mr. Matthew Arnold has declared Byron to be " the greatest
demtnial pnwtr in English Literature, since Shakespeare,"
and this phrase briefly expresses Goethe's judgment. The
latter was probably the first who ever looked beyond the
prejudices of Byron's day, unmoved by the opposing gusts
of worship and hate, and separated the poet's supreme and
immortal qualities from the confusion of his life and the
dross of his simulated misanthropy.
HJ. T^ polk In Clary Bpms nme.
The Chorus entreats Euphorion to bide in the peaceful
Arcadian land of Poetry; and his answer is entirely in ac-
cord with the spirit of the Philhellenes, during the Greek
Revolution. The heroic struggle of the Suliotes, in which
even women and children shared, is indicated In the pre-
ceding verses, and then follows the closing chant, in which
the wail of the coming dirge is fore-felt through the peal of
trumpets and the clash of cymbals. I am not able to state
whether Goethe had read Byron's last poem, written at
Missolonghi, on his thirty-sixth birthday, when he wrote the
ih,Googlc
concluding portion of the Helena. It is strangely snggetted
here, in spit« of the allegory, and the diflercoce of metre.
124. Chorus. \I}irgt.\
Here all allegory is thrown aside ; the four stanias are a
lament, not Tor Euphorion, but for Byron. They express
Goethe's feeling Tor the poet, while the profound impression
created throughout Europe by the news of his death was still
A-csh.
125. Hilena' t garmaits diiMlvt inte elmds.
When Phorkyas bids Faust hold bst to Helena's garment,
saying r —
" I1 U no more Lhe Goddeu thou hui loai,
Bui godlike H it," —
we are forced to forget the part she plays. She, — Mephis-
topheles in the mask of the Ideal Ugliness, — to call the
garment of the Beautiful a " grand and priceless gift," which
will bear Faust " from all things mean and low " I This is
a singular oversight of Goethe, and we can only guess that
it was not noticed during his life, for the reason that the re-
mainder of the Second Fart was still in manuscript, and the
character of Phorkyas thus not entirely clear to the critics.
Since Faust is only temporarily typical of the Artist, the
symbolism embodied in the disappearance of Helena, and
his elevation upon the clouds into which her garments are
transformed, is not difficult to guess. The Ideal Beauty is
revealed to few ; but even its robe and veil form a higher
ether over all the life of Man. In (he direct course of the
drama, zsthetic culture is the means by which Faust rises
from all forms of vulgar ambition to that nobler activity
which crowns his life.
126. Servici and faith seeurt tie iadwidual lift.
Panthalis, the Chorage, is the only member of the Chorus
who has manifested an individual character throughout the
Interlude; consequently she retains it here, where the other
members are about to be lost in the elements. We are
reminded, by what she says, of Goethe's vague s
ih,Googlc
43»
FAUST.
in reganl to the Aitnre life. He liints on more thtn one oc-
casion that a strong, independent indiTidaalitj may preser*«
iU enltltckie (actual, distinctive being), while the mass of
persons in whom Ihc human elements are comparatively
formless will continue to exist onl^ in those elements. In
1829, he said to Eckermann: "I do not doubt our perma-
nent existence, for Nature cannot do without the eiiielahU.
But we are not all immortal in the same lishion, and in order
to manifest one's self in the future life as a great mitltckie,
one must also become one." The »ubjea seems to have
been discussed with others; for wc find Wilhelm mn Hum-
boldt, in 1S30, writing to Frau von Wolzogen: "There is a
spiritual individuality, but not every one attains to it. As a
peculiar, distinctive form of mind, it is eternal and immuta-
bl«. Whatever cannot thus individually shape ittel^ may
return into Ibe universal life of Nature."
137. Naturt, tkt Evtr-UiHitg,
The twelve maidens of the Chorus divide thenuelvea into
four groups, relinquish their human forms, and enter into
the being of tree*, echoes, brooks, and vineyards. Goetb«
was so »ell satisfied with this disposition of an antique lea-
lure for which there seems to be no place in the romantic
world, that we can hardly be mistaken aa to his design.
The transfiiaion of Nature with a human sentiment belongs
exclusively to Modem Literature ; it is not the Dryad, but
the tree itself, not the Oread, but the Spirit of the Mountain,
which speaks to us now. We have lost the " fascinating
existences" of andcnt fable, in their fiur human forms; but
Nature, then their lifeless dwellii^, now breathes and Ihrold
with more than iheir life, for «e have clothed her with the
garment of our own emotion and aspiration.
Unless this transformation, or a very simitar one, were
intended, the Chorus mtist of necessity have relumed to
Hades.
The description of the vinti^ with which the Act closes
resembles, in the original, a fragment of tbe frieze of a tem>
pie of Bacchus.
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
433
128. Tke curtain fait.
DuaUer interprets the Bacchanalian description as a pic-
ture of the decadence of the antique world. When the
curtain falls, Pborkyas remains in the proscenium, rises to a
giant height, takes off her mask, and reveals herself as Meph-
istopheles. Perhaps this may indicate that the element
of Ugliness and Evil was not lost to the human race when
the historical curtain fell on the beautiful culture of the
Greeks, but remained as the sole Unk of union between ih«
ancient and modem worlds!
The epilogue, which Goethe apparently planned, was
never written. Indeed, after the publication of the Nilttia,
in 1817, he scarcely again looked at its pages.
129, Ytt teems to ikape aßgurc.
The classic trimeter is purposely retaincfl in the opening
of this Act, as a last, dying reverberation of the Heltnm.
fausl's soliloquy has also the character of an echo and a
memory. The clouds upon which he has floated take the
form of Helena, as they recede from him ; the Ideal which
he has been pursuing rests along the distant horizon, and
the stony summits of actual life arc again under his feet.
Goethe began to write Act IV. about the middle of Feb-
niary, 1831. The apparent calm with which he received the
news of his son's death was followed by an alarming hemor-
rhage, and dunng the month of November, 1830, his lile was
in danger. His great age and increasing physical weakness
warned him to make use of his remaining time, and fill the
single remaining gap in the Second Fart ai Fauil ; but that
marvellous second spring-limc of Poetry which we feel in
the f/eUna and the Classical Walpurgis- Night, was over.
Throughout this Act we notice, if not precisely (he weariness
of age, yet a sense of effort, of surviving technical skill not
wholly tilled and made plastic by the life of the author's con-
ception. His original design (or the Act had been given up, and
the present substance was evidently adopted, perhaps at (he
last moment, because it offered fewer difficulties of ei
VOL. II. 19 BB
ih,Googlc
434
FAUST.
In the Paralifomena we And «oine Ti^smcnts of the original
plan, which lead us to suppose that this Act should have
had a political character. Since every other dew thereto
has been lost, I sumply give the fragments in the order in
which Ihey were printed by Eckermann and Riemer : —
tfwlKkim could cut with routfa.
T ii FanM IhM charliUn> alone befricHli.
Empkpy ihy tiiU Ibr betitr coda
Th>n ninljr ibiu Id uck the world's Kdaio.
AAcT bnef noise goet Fame to her lepoee \
The hero and the fagabond are both forgottsa ;
The greatcBi monarchs muat theu ejrelldt ck»^
And evcnr dog inwjlu the ptice they rot iiL
ScmiTamiB i did »he not hold the bia
Of half the «oild 'twiit war and peace HiqKDde
And in her dying hour wai the not full at gnat
Aawben her hand the ictplie Am emended?
Vei Kaitely halh the ielt the blow
Which Death deab uiunrei upon her.
When from all «idea a Ihauaand libek Bow,
Who undenundi »hai >> pouible and Gl
But. when a hundred yean have heard of it.
No man »ill further heed thy re
d when you icold, when yon coinpbin
at my behavior all too rude appear*.
10 telli you iniih al praenl, plump and plain.
Go, kl thy tuck then le«ed bi
Prove thy hypacriny on ill «ii
Then, lame and tired, reluin I
Han only that accepo. which
ih,Googlc
Spok wjifa Ibt Hov* of thsir TfrtDe*) |«r.
^Hk wiih loon of Ihe doud't embnco.
Wiih kiogi, of nnk «hI rifhirul mj.
Of Fncdom >nd Eqiulitr, iritb ibi lac« ]
Nor Ihii lime un 1 onrawcd
By Iby deep wnth, which pliiu dcMnxlion er
The tiger-gLince. wherewith Ihou look'u abroj
So bear it now, if Ihm but burd il never :
Mankind ha NiU a deliote ear.
Aiid pure wnrdi alül inspire to nob^e deeds ;
Uan fceli the eiigendei of hit iphetc.
And willinglr an earne« coontel hcedi.
Wiih ibi> intenlion I depul from Uiet,
But here, mumj^ul, eoon isiiii shill be-
Then go, with all Ihy iplendid fplti, and tiy il
I like to lee a loci toi other Iboli nncenied :
Each Ands him coutiael good enough, norieeks
Bnl taanpf, when be laeka it, won't be apuinec
Why neu then>t1io in wony, fret and bay,
If b a lUle, iniipid way :
The biead. we beg wiih daily breath.
There 'i il» naught ao ataie aa Deilb,
And ihil iiJDiI the comnonol.
130. A Scven-ltagut Boot Irift ßrward.
Goethe means to indicate by this image, and the first
words of Mephistopheles, that Faust has been botne far
away Ironi his previous life, so that the former is obliged to
make use of the seven-league boots of the fairy tale, in order
to overtake him.
Mephistopheles. finding him among jagged peaks of
Btone, (a volcanic formation ?) immediately claims an infer-
nal origin for Ihem. Goethe's hostility to Ihe Plutonic the-
ory is again exhibited here, and with more of his irritation
than in the Classical Walpurgis- Night. The episode is so
ih,Googlc
436 FAUST.
unnecesaary (as the Germans would say, iatmiitiviT(\ that wc
tan only explain it by the conjeclure thai something must
have occurred in the scieniitic world, about the beginning
of the year 1831, to renew Goethe's partisan feeling. I have
not thought it necessary to ascertain this with certainly, Tor
the point is hardly imjiortant enough 10 repay the uncertain
labor, and tbe alteinpled satire is sufficiently plairL
131. A myiltry mamfal and tedl tanteaied.
Here, in the uriginal, Rienier has added the reference ;
'■ Efhesiant vi. 12," which 1 have omitted. The text is : " For
we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principali-
ties, against powers, against tbe rulers of the darkness of
this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
Luther translates the last phrase : "against evil spirits
under heaven." The preceding line also suggests ii. 3, of
the sane Epistle. Mephistopheles perhaps means to in-
(inuate that through the Plutonic doctrine he and bis fellow-
devils have escaped from Itieir old subterraaean Hell, and
he has again become " the prince of the power of the air."
Faust's reply expresses Goethe's idea of Creadon, and in
almost the same words which he mure than once employed
in describing it.
132, O'er ail Ikt land the foreign blocks you sfy there.
In February, 1819, Goethe said to Eckerminn: "Herr
von Buch has published a new work, which contains an hy-
pothesis in its very title. He means to treat of the granite
blocks which lie about, here and there, one knovrs not how
nor whence. But since Herr von Buch secretly cherishes
the hypothesis that such granite blocks were cast out from
within and shivered by some tremendous force, he indicate*
this at once in the title, where he speaks of icaOered granite
blocks. The step from this to the Force which scatters is
very short, and the noose of Error is thrown over the head
of ihe unsuspecting reader, before he is aware of iL"
Erratkfht Bliiie is the common German term for "boul<
ders." The reader, ^miliar with tb« science of our daj;
ih,Googlc
J^OTES.
437
most renwrabet that tbe gt>d>l theoiy was then unknown.
Mephiilopbeles continues Goethe's satire by attributing the
scattered bouldera to the effect« at Moloch's hammer, and
mentions, in verification, the coireapondence of populai su-
perstition, which sees the Devil's hand in every unusual
rock-fbrtnatJDQ.
133. Tiegiffry of tkt JCingdomi e/lhe World.
Here, again, Riemer has printed, opposite the text :
"Afaltktw iv." It is, of course, the eighth verse to which
he refer« ; " Again, the devil talteth him up into an exceed-
ingly high toountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of
the world and the glory of them." The temptation of Christ
was evidently Goethe's model for this portion of the scene.
Mephlslopheles offers the lures of authoiiiy and luxury, but
Faust's nature tkas been enlightened and purified, and he
adheres 10 his own grand design of a sphere ot worthy
aclivity-
134. The mm a/ rebels thus augmented.
There Is a marked contradiction, in this passage, to Faust's
liberal and confiding view of the people, given in the Para-
lifemena quoted in Note 139. Goethe, moreover, frequently
declared that revolutions were always occasioned by the
faults of tbe rulers, not by a native rebellious element in
the people. In the description of a capital, which Mephls-
lopheles gives, it is probable that Paris was intended ; for
the succeeding picture of "a pleasute-castle in a pleasant
place" is undoubtedly Versailles, Since the scene was
written early in 1S31, the preceding July Revolution was
probably fresh in Goethe's memory, and we may thus ex-
plain Faust's apparent cynicism.
135. Mine eyt was drawn to viem the open Ocean.
In this description, from first to last, we recognize Goethe.
He frequently asserted thai what we call the elcmenis, the
active forces of Nature, are full of wild, unfettered impulses,
constantly warring against each other and against Man. The
ih,Googlc
4jS FAUST.
grand Chant of the Archangels (Prologue in Heaven) repre-
sents Iheir endless operation, and is thus prophetic of Faust's
sphere of activity. Society and Covemment have not satis-
fied the cravings of his nature ; the Ideal, though its conse-
(ration is permanent, cannot be a possession ; and he now
determines to enter into conflict with a colossal natural force,
and compel its submission to the Imperial authority of the
human mbd.
Xjfi. T^tjf, mere Ikan all, Ihträn mert implica^.
We must suppose that Mephistopbeles, bound to obedi-
ence, unwillingly serves in the fulfilment of plajis which be
cannot comprehend. Although he implicaies Faust in the
coming military movements, ostensibly for the purpose of
acquiring possession of the ocean-strand through the help
which (he latter shall furnish to the Emperor, he is ever
watchful to bring the affair to another issue- In the passage
commencing; "A mighty error!" Faust gives us Goethe's
impression of Napoleon. Mephistopheles naturally casts
upon the priesthood the heaviest responsibility for the anar-
chy of the realm, and here, again, we have another view
which Goethe frequently expressed.
137. No I But I 've brought, like Peler Spance.
Shakespeare's Peter Quince becomes, in some English
farce into which the comic parts of the "Midsummer Night's
Dream " were worked, pedant and schoolmaster ; and in
Gryphius's translation of this £trce was introduced to Ger-
many as " Kerr Peter Squerue." — Düntttr.
138. The Three MiglUy Men afptar.
Riemer here inserts the reference "a Samuel xxiii. 8."
But only the phrase seems to have been borrowed from the
description of the three mighty men of David. The charac-
ter given to the " allegoric blackguards " of Mephistopheles
is not suggested liy anything in Samuel, or the corresponding
account in i ChronUlei xi.
ih,Googlc
KOTES.
439
139. On the Headlakd.
Th« disposition of the Imperial anny is described with so
much exactness of detail that the plan of battle, and the ap-
plicalinn of the magic arts which Mephisiopheles employs,
may be followed as readily as if we were furnished with a
topographical chart We find the Emperor, also, precisely
as we left him in Act I,, a weak, amiable ruler, with fitful
impulses which he mistakes for qualities of character, always
planning great personal achievements which he forgets the
ncKt moment. In spite of the prosaic substance of this
scene, it is overhung by a weird, strange atmosphere ; the
real and the technical are singularly interfuied with the su-
pernatural, and we seem 10 be constantly on the point of
feeling that vital poetic glow, which, in Goethe's eighty-
second year, was but faintly smouldering under its own
140. Fer they, in eryitali and their älemt, fttrled.
Precisely what Goethe intends to hint in this line is un-
certain. Il can scarcely lie crystallomancy, as one of the
forms of divination ; nor. as Diinlzer says, "wonderful pha-
ses of crystallization, considered as an external symbol of
jnielleetual research." Goethe attributed to Crystal I iiati on
many mountain-phenomena which the Plutonists explained
by upheaval, and this may be, possibly, a last, subsiding echo
of his scientiüc prejudices.
141. lie Sabine M, the ffarcian racrvmancer.
Fau<it introduces an episode of the Emperor's coronation
in Rome, in explanation of his assistance, and the Arch-
bishop-Chancellor afterwards mentions the same incident, in
the very opposite sense. In one of the notes which Goethe
attached to his translation of the Autobiography of Benve-
nuto Cellini, we delect the original material from which he
constructed this passage : —
" From whatever cause the mountains of Norda, between
the Sabine land and the Duchy of Spoleto, acquired the
name in old times, they are called to this day the Mountains
ih,Googlc
440
FAUST.
of the SibjrU. Old «riten of Racnnce made use of thi*
locality in order to conduct their heroes through the moti
wonderful adventures, and thus increaied the belief in IhoM
magical ügures, the first outlines of vhich were drawn by
the Legend. An Italian stocy, Guerino Meschino, and an
old French work, relate strange occurrences, by which cu-
rious travellers have been surprised in that region ; and
Messer Cecco di Ascoli, who wa« burned in Florence in the
year 1327, on account of his necromantic writings, is still
remembered, through the interest felt in his history by the
chronicler», painters, and poets."
14X Silfii lie Man 1
Again Goethe speaks ; but his eloquent advocacy of a
free, independent development of the individual becomes a
hollow pretence in the Emperor's mouth. Faust's reply i«
a piece of flattery, which would have been more appropriate
to Mephistopheles.
143. BOLLy {eoming/arviard).
The original of this name ii Raufibcld, and those of the
other Mighty Men Hatebald (accompanied by the wandiirt,
EilebtiUt) and Haitifeit. The first verse of Isaiah viii. :
" Moreover, the Lord said to me. Take thee a great roll, and
write in it with a man's pen concerning Maber-shalal-hash-
bat" — reads, in Luther's translation : " Und der Herr sprach
zu mir; Nimm vor dich einen grossen Brief; und schreib
darauf mit Menschen -Griflel RatiMaid, Eiltbtule."
1 applied to the Rev. Dr. Conant for the exact interpreta-
tion of the Hebrew words, and take the liberty of quoting
bis reply ; —
" Habebald and EiUbtvU were suggested to Goethe by the
symbolic name, Maktr-shalai-kaik-iat, the meaning of this
name (hasltn the spoil, spad thi prey] portending that the
spoiler and plunderer was at hand. In this, as its general
import, critics are agreed, although there is a difference of
opinion as to the grammatical conttniction. Gesenios, b
hii tnnslatkm of Itaiah, exprestes it well by Sauiiiaii
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 441
Bütbtiät. Goethe was familiar with tTie same fonns, trani-
posed, in Lulher'a version, I talce it tbal Goethe regarded
the spirit of plunder as the (bremost element in war ; and
hence he has placed its representative, under the symbolic
name of JIabtiald, at the head of the central phalanx.
" Half the Hebrew name he has given to the vivanJiirt,
introduced (as I suppose) both to enliven the representation
and to characteriie another revolting accompaniment of war,
'dU/'yiatijt grimmig wenn sügrafl,' etc. Hence the other
half of the name, Jiatiitiaid, he is obliged to Iransforni to
ffaittaid, both as better suited to the office of a miliiary
leader, and to avoid too dose a resemblance to the name of
another of bis characters, whose participation in the fruits
of victory it truly represents."
There is no doubt that these characters sjrmbolize the
human elements manifested in war. Bully represents the
üerce. brutal, unrestrained spirit of Gghl; Havequick is
the thirst for booty, for the spoils of victory in every Ibrm ;
and Holdfast seems to be the stubborn quality of resistance,
the chief strength of armies.
144. A ruddy and prtsaging glim.
The reader, familiar with Goethe's works, is referred 10
the latter's description of his attack of "cannon fever" in
the "Campaign in France" (179a). The passage is loo long
to be quoted ; but the circumstance that the entire Held of
battle appeared lo be tinged vrith a red color is here intro-
duced. A careful examination of the " Campaign " would
probably discover much of the material which is employed
in this scene; and 1 venture to say that the chief reason why
Goethe relinquished his first political plan, and accepted a
representation of War in its stead, was, that it was very
much easier for him to draw upon his memory than to task
bis failing powers of invention.
145. Attend! the lign it now excelled.
After introducing the Fata Morgana of Sicily and the
fires of St. Elmo, Faust reassures the Emperor, who has
ih,Googlc
442
PAUST.
become bewildered and somewhat alanned. by a sign in die
air, such as is described bjr Homer {Iliad, X/f.) ind Plii-
taich (77mi>/ivn). Goeihe certainly designed, by these fea-
tures, to give a ghostly atmosphere to the scene ; but he
may have also meant to unite the superstition of the people
with the brutality of war.
146. nttUtigijiaml —
The apparent advantage of the enemy, in carrying the
poution occupied by the left wing of the Emperor's army,
makes Faust's aid (through Mephistophetes) indispensable
to victory. The latter, therefore, employs all his magic de-
vices, in turn. Goethe seems to have ransacked the super-
stitions of History, and combined their most picturesque
features. We are reminded of the storm and flood described
by Plutarch, of St. Jago fighüng for Spain, of the apparitions
and noises which are reported to have accompanied many
famous battles ; but the most effective agent, after all, is
transmitttd parly hau.
147. ITiou loamt treaiurt an t/u land.
" Did the poet, perhaps, mean to indicate that booty is
usually thoughtlessly squandered again, or only to describe,
in general, the reckless haste of plunder, whereby the best
is lost 10 the greedy robber hands, which attempt to grasp
too much?" — Diinttrr.
148. 'Til Contribution, — m// it sol
Havequick retorts that the contributions levied by armies
in a hostile country are only another form of plunder.
149. Empbror.
The Alexandrine metre, with alternate masculine and fem-
inine rhymes, in which the remainder of the scene is written,
is not Goethe's invention, as some have supposed. I find it
in a Prologue of Lessing, written in 1 765 ; but it may also
be found, in brief poems, fißy years earlier.
The scene, properly understood, is a grave, powerful tadre
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
443
on i'te Imperial syslem of government All the arlifidal
Titi'oiistn of Courts is set forth so naturally and consistently,
tb^i we must recall the Empeior's assumed manhood and
tlie ^eat danger he has just escaped, in order to feel the
hollow selfishness which, disregarding the condition of the
realm and the grievances of the people, only employs itself
with the arrangement of ceremonials.
1 50. fVhen newly croTtnud, Iküu didsi Iht witard liberait.
The reader will have already remarked that the satire of
this scene is not limited to its medixval features. It not
only embraces that mechanical statesmanship which, aflei a
great historical crisis, sees no other policy than the re-
establishment of previous conditions, but it shows, in a con-
trast which grows sharper towards the close, the grandeur
of inlilligf'il human ambition, embodied in Faust, and the
narrow greed and selfishness, first of the Slate, and then of
the Church. The indifference of the secular princes be-
comes almost a virtue, beside the bigotry of the Archbishop.
The latter refers to the humanity of the young Emperor, in
saviii^ the life of the Norcian necromancer, as an unatoned
sin. The acceptance of the wizard's gratitude, in the aid
rmdered by Faust and Mephistopheles. although it has
3>ved the dynasty, (and the Archbishop himself, with it,) is
S «till greater sin, deserving the ban of (he Holy Church.
The Emperor is required to make heavy sacrifices of land,
money, and revenues, before he can receive full absolution
for his guilL We are reminded of the priest's words to
Margaret's mother (First Part, Scene IX.) : —
"TheChurdi ilonc. iMyaiul ill qiinlion,
Hu far itl-Knllen good« the right digestioD-"
But the climax of rapacity, and also of inconsistency, is
reached when the Archtushop demands the tithes of the new
land which Faust has not yet reclaimed from the sea.
ISI. ACT V.
On the 13th of Februarr, 1831, Goethe said to Ecker-
mann, after stating that he had commenced the Fourth Ad :
ih,Googlc
444 FAUST.
" I shall now arrange how to fill the entire gap between the
fftlttta and the already cempleled Fifth Act, writing down tnjr
thoughts in detail as a programme {Seiima), so that I may
execute it with thorough ease and certainty, and also that I
may work on whatever pans attract me mosL"
Yet, on the id of May, Eckermann writes : " Goethe
delighted me with the news that he had succeeded, within
the laat few days, in supplying the commencement of the
Fitih Act of Faust, vihith vxu kUhertc lacking, so that it il
now as good as finished. ' The design of these scenes also,'
said he, ' is more than thirty years old ; it was so important,
that I did not lose my interest in it, but so difficult to elabo-
rate, that I was afraid of the task. By the employment of
many devices, I have at last taken up the thread again, and
ir Fortune favors me, I shall finish the Fourth Act bcrore I
Again, in a letter to Zelter, written June i, iSji, Goeihe
says ; " It is no trifle that one must represent externally in
one's eighty-second year what one has conceived in one's
ttamlietA, and clothe such a living inner skeleton with sin-
ews, flesh, and epidermis,"
Here are apparent contradictions, which, I think, may be
thus explained; In his letter to Zelter, Goethe simply re-
iers to the original conception of Fauit. The concluding
part of Act V., commencing at Scene V. (Midnight: Four
Gray fVumea enter), was written about the beginning of the
century — certainly between 1800 and 1806 — and was per-
haps intended to be the entire Act. At least, it seems prob-
able that the sphere of activity which crown» Faust's life
was first separated from the closing scenes of the drama.
If Goethe, therefore, simply transferred the first four scene*
from the Fourth Act to the Fifth, af)cr remodelling the
former, all these discrepancies of statement became intel-
ligible.
Goethe also said: "That which, in my early years, was
possible to me daily, and under all circumstances, can now
only be accomplished periodically and under certain fortu-
nate conditions. .... Now, I can only work on the Second
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
445
Part of my Jüaul during the early hours of the day, when I
am restored by ilcep, feel myielf strengthened, and the dis-
tractions of daily life have not conAued me. Yet, after all,
«hat is it thai I accomplish ? In the luckiest case, one
written page ; but ordinarily only a hand's breadth of manu-
script, and often, in an unproductive mood, «till lets."
It is very evident that the first four scenes of this last Ad,
having a more lyrical fom than ttie conclusion of the Fourth
Act, which was written a few weeks later, were a sore task
to the aged poeL The metre is stiff and almost painfully
constrained, and the construction sometimes so crabbed that
I have twice or thrice been compelled to vary the phrase
slightly for the sake of fluency. But the reader, no less Chan
the critic, wilt be generous ) and, keeping the grand design
in view, will not too sharply scrutintze the imperfections of
detail.
153. Baucis.
" Goethe showed me to-day the beginning of the FifUi Act
of Fatitl, which had been lacking. I read to the passage
where the hut of Philemon and Baucis is burned, and Faust,
standing on the balcony of his palace at night, smell* the
smoke, borne to him by the wind,
" ' Tiie names Philemon and Baucis,' said I, ' transport me
to the Phrygian shore, reminding me of that famous antique
pair 1 but this scene is laid in modem time» and in a Chris-
"'My Philemon and Baucis,' »aid Goethe, 'have nothing
to do with that antique pair and the legend concerning them.
1 only gave them the same names, Co dignify the characters.
The persons and circumstances are similar, and the names
thus will have a good effect.' " — Eclimnann, June 6, 1S31.
153. fVhtrt Ihr Sea't 6lut art ü ipanntd.
The Wanderer is introduced in order that the changes
which Faust has wrought in the region may be described.
The sea, which broke on the downs where the former was
wrecked, years before, is now only seen as a blue horizon<
line in the distance.
ih,Googlc
^ FAUST.
154- KnaitiitfvcinbydayTB
The original line is : " Tags tanaut die Kaaklf iarmttn.'
Some trinalalorl Kav« rendered the word itmitmi into " un-
paid," because it has frequenllr the meaning of "gtatis.'
The other and equallj correct rendering is suggested to me
by the circamttance that the workmen were emploj^ed bj
night aa well as by day. The acctnmt which the old couple
give of Faust's cruelty must not be taken too literally : tber
are no friend* of ie
155. Mj grand ataU lackt fiM detigm.
The Warder, Lynceus, Is here introduced (or the pnrpos«
or describing the action. Schnetgcr, it is true, says he b
the '* prophetic vision of the Poet," mourning over (he de-
struction of the Beautiful by the modem Industrial Spirit ;
but I find in him no symbolism whatever, — certainly noth-
ing which connects him with his namesake of the HtUna.
Goethe's plan could not be embodied in dramatic dialogue ;
it required descriptive passages, and the vehicle through
which to introduce them was not always readily found.
" Faust, as he appears in the Fifth Act," said Goethe to
Eckermai.n, " is juat one hundred years old, according to my
intention ; and 1 am not certain whether it would not be well
to express this positively, somewhere."
1 56. With twenty cmte lo fart again.
Mephistopheles. still forced to serve, turns his commercial
into a piratical voyage, and hopes to secure Faust's com-
plicity in Evil by tempting him to accept the precious spoiln
of all climes, and the vessels which he has accumulated.
His argument, that War, Trade, and Piracy are " three in
one," makes no impression on Faust, who, as we learn from
the Three Mighty Men, turns away from the bribe in i^sgust.
157. Ta-mammi ihi gay birds hither lornd.
This is an obscure line, which some interpret as denoting
those seaport sirens who consume so much of the sailor's
ih,Googlc
/VOTES.
447
earnings. The Three Mighty Men represent the sea-faring
class, so far as their characlec is drawn : Gnethe did not feel
himself on very secure ground here, and contented himself
with indicating the sailor's blunt coarseness of speech and
Ibndness for carousals.
15S. M sortr plague tan us attack.
Than riek to bt, and tomfthing laei.
The reader must remember Faust's age, and his long
course of successful achievement, in order to understand his
present impatience and petulance. Me loses all joy in his
vast possessions, because ihe neighboring sand-hill, whereon
he wishes 10 build a lookout for a view over all his new,
thickly' peopled realm, is the property of another who refuses
to sell or exchange it. Goethe has borrowed (his incident
from the story of Frederick the Great and the miller of
Potsdam.
159. Still Nabath's vitityard vie Meld.
Riemer has here inserted a side- re fere nee : " 1 Kings xii."
It will be enough to quote the second and third verses ! —
2. And Ahab spake unto Nabolh, saying, Give me thy
vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because
il is near unto my house \ and I will give thee for it a belter
vineyard than it ; or, if it seem good to Ihee, I wiU'give theo
Ihe worth of il in money.
3. And Naboth said to Ahab, The Lord forbid it me, that
I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto Ihee.
l6a Ferghie I net happily 'I vxu doni.
Faust, impatient at being so long thwarted in his plans, so
fer yields (o Mephistopheles that he consents to employ
for«. Here is yel another — and the last — chance lor
the .Spirit of Evil lo win his wager. Like Jezebel, he
compasses the death of Naboth- Philemon. The result is
incendiarism and murder, not forcible removal ; aild Faust,
instead of accepting the coveted properly, cuises the rash.
Inhuman deed.
ih,Googlc
4^8 FAUST.
i6i. Midnight.
There can be no doubt that the earlier written portion of
the Fifth Act comitKncea with this acen& In the abMtice
of any special evidence, I cuiDot bx the exact time ; bat I
think it miist have been in existence before Schiller's death
(1805). The atmosphere of the First Part begins to breathe
upon us again, as if from a distant Fast ; gradually and
successively the old warmth and hannony and power revive ;
the chimes and chants of Easter morning are heard again in
(be ChoruKes of the Angels, and we are lifted, at the dose,
into a region of Heaven less austerely sublime than that of
the Piulogue, but burning into clearest whitcneu tlirough
the inelTable Presence of the Divine Love.
l6a. Nretiiity, miiu.
I have followed Dr. Anster in thus translating //oli, which
may also be rendered "trouble" and "need," for the reason
that Care, in [his scene, includes the former meaning, and
Want the latter.
The character of the three gray sister*. Waal, Guilt, and
Necessity, is explained when they declare that they cannot
enter (he house of the Rich ; but Care, the aJra cura of
Horace, bas free entrance everywhere. Goethe's conceptiaa
of her being seems to be the embodied Worry, and tbe
other three have no further ^parent significance than to
separate her from the other tormenting powers of life, aitd
thus the more dearly define her nature.
163. Tktn teere it worth eit^i while a man to bei
Goethe said to Ecketnunn (iSaS): "But we old Euro-
peans are all more or less in evil plight .... Each is re-
lined and polite, but no one has the courage (o be cordial
and true, so that an honest man with natural ideas and im'
pulses stands in an unfortunate position. Often one cannot
help wishing that one had been bom upon one of the South-
Sea Islands, a so-called savage, so as once to have purely
felt human existence, without any false flavors."
Faust's reference to his magic and to his curse (First Pai%
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
449
Scene IV.) is another evidence of tfae dm« «hen the scene
was written, for It shows tbat the original conception was
still fresh and warm in Goethe's mind. In spite of his great
age, we (eel that we have again met the Faiist of the Urst
Part, instead of his shadowy representative of the preceding
164. Thii Wffrtd mtam tomtlhing tt tki CapaUi!
The original line, Dtm TiicMigen ist diue Welt nkht
itumm, is difficult to translate — "To the capable (or jmu-
f'ne) man thii world is not mute," that is, it reveal* to hiro
its uses and possibilities. This was the first article In
Goeihe'* creed of life, and he has expressed it, in his poems,
in a multitude of forma.
165. Sut in nty ittmett ipirii id! is light.
Faust's selfish desire for a station on the Knden-trees,
whence to overlook his lands, and the crime to which it led,
■re justly avenged by his blindness. Bui with (he external
darkness comes a growing spiritual light, the "obacure as>
piralion" gives place to knowledge and faith. The pass:^
is pregnant with meaning, but nothing in it is vague or
doubtful.
166. Lemukes.
Goethe has here borrowed (probably from Percy's Ktlijutt,
which he knew) the original song of Lord Vaui, a part of
which Shakespeare puts into the mouth of the grave-digger
in " Hamlet." But he has taken only the first half of the
verses, completing them with other lines'of hisown. There-
fore I have only translated these latter, and added them to
the original English lines. In "Hamlet," the verses ara: —
MclhouEhl it iru my »eel.
Bui Agi, with hii ««ling >lepi.
ih,Googlc
450 FAUST.
Goethe shows his knowledge of English literature, io Te>
■taring the line if Lord Vaux : —
Huh cUvcd m« mtk kii enlck.
Moreover, bis vaHaiion of this latter verse, M least, » en-
tirely in the spirit of the original.
167. They spoil nvl of a moat, hit of — a grave.
The original line contains a pun which cannot be given
in translation : —
Man tprkht. wie man mir Nachricht gab,
Von keipem Grain, doch rem — Grai.
168. Ht OHly tarta kis frttdom and ixisUnet,
WAa daily conguirt tktm aneai.
In these lines Goethe has unconsciously remembered a
passage firum Schiller's Wilhelm Tell: —
" Dinn cm E«iiEi>' ich meine* Lcbeni itchi,
(Then first do I truly enjoy my life, when I reconquer it
every day as a new possession.)
It is hardly necessary that I should call the reader to ob-
serve how Faust's great work, which was at first planned to
exhibit the victory of Man over the forces of Nature, now
becomes, to his cleaier spiritual vision, a permanent gain and
blessing to the race. All unselfish work is better than the
worker knows ; and if Faust has only given "free activity"
and not absolute "security " to the millions who shall come,
he sees, at last, the great value of iheir very insecurity, as
an agent which shall keep alive the virtues of vigilance,
association, and the unselfish labor of each for the common
good. He foresees a free people, living upon a free soil, —
courage, intelligence, and patriotism constantly developed
anew by danger. There is a passage in Montesquieu's
Esprit lies Lois, wherein a similar thought is expressed.
Through this prophetic vision, Faust, experiences the one
moment of supreme happiness. He has attained it in spite
□f, not through, Mepbistopheles. He his blessed his fel-
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
45»
eons to come, bjr creating for them :• Geld of
', surrounded wiih conditions which assure them
its possession and their own freedom and happiness. Not
through Knowledge, Indulgence, Power. — not even through
the pur« passion of the Beautiful, or victory over the Ele-
ments,— has he reached the crowning Moment which he
would fain delajf ; the sole condition of perfect happines*
is the good which he has accomplished for olbeis.
169. Bat Time it lord, en earth the eld man Ua.
Mephistopheles almost quotes the Archbishop (page
270): —
■' Who jMlitnl it, and tighi, hit d>y ihall jct iriu."
His mariner also suggests his words to the Lord, in the PrU-
^ut in Heavtit : —
" ir I fulfil my opectilion.
You 'II Iti nK triumpb wiih t iwellini biUM."
The Chorus now purposely repeats the expression used
t^ Fault, in completing the Compact (First Part, Scene
IV.);-
Tim let (he dsith-bcU chimt Iht lolun.
Then an thou Ironi thy icrvic« fca I
The cinck i»y (lop, the hind bt bmken,
Then Time be finiihed unlo mi I
The answer of Mephistopheles to the eiclatnation of the
Chorus: "Tis pasti" seems to conflict with the passion
for annihilation, which he cxpiesses in first describing his
nature 10 Faust (First Part, Scene III.). He drops his
character of Negation suddenly, and becomes the popular
Devil, who is a very positive personage. From this point to
the end, we are reminded of the Miracle-plays of the Middle
Ages.
170. Sepulture.
The chant of the Lemures is here again suggested hj the
Grave-digger's song in Hamltt. third verse : —
ih,Googlc
451
FAUST.
171. tiett hath a miäti/ude of jam, in tkml.
Goethe'« (iral plan ms to Mnd Mepbiaiopbeles into tbe
presence of The Lord, for the purpose of announcing that he
had won. This, however, would hare interfered with the
effect of the doaing scene, and he selected, instead, the
machinery of the Miracle-plays, as better adapted to hU pur-
pose. The open jaws of Hell, as they aic still represented
in many chapels of Catholic countries, and the two varietie*
of Devils, are intentionally introduced as a coarse, almost
vulgar framework for a scene which is meant to include the
sharpest contrast of two principles, Heaven stooping down,
and Hell rising up to talce hold of tbe soul of Man.
17a. Pliuk eff tht wings, 'I it but a hidcmu wrm.
This passage is a satirical reference, both to the old tradi-
tions of the appearance of the soul and Its manner of escape
from the body, and to various psycholi^cal apeculatioiks of
173- AnJ Gtnita, surely, seeks al enei te rise.
The long, lean Devils, in whom a commentator (probably
related to Nicolai) finds a symbol of the Jesuits, are directed
to catch the soul in the air, if it should escape tbe dutches
of those who bend over the body. All tbe contempt of
Mephistopbeles for Faust's ideal aspirations seems to be ex-
pressed in this sneer at " Genius."
174. hjust the thing thär prayers demand.
Mephistopbeles here becomes Goethe, lor a moment The
latter (irmly believed in the universality of the Divine Power
and the Divine Love, and few things were more repulsive to
his nature than the horrors of the conventional Hell of medi-
eval theology. Nothing could be more savagely satirical
than this declaration of Mephistopbeles that tbe worst tor-
ments invented by (he fiends are demanded by the faith of
the Pious.
Härtung says of tbe appearance of the angels : " Mephis-
topbeles calls (he glory which surrounds them an ' unwelcome
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
4S3
day,' their cbtmt a ' nutjr tinkliDg, a boy-girlish atTumming,'
etc. This ia a satire on the Moravian hymns and those of
other canting sects." The correctnera of the last assertioii
u by no meana evident.
175. Chokob of Angels {uatUring rotti).
The angelic chorusea in thii scene are scarcely less won-
derful than those of Eastei morning, in the First Part. They
present an equal difficulty to the translator in their interlink-
ing feminine and dactylic rhymes, and perhaps a greater one
in that unnatural compression of phrase which almost de-
stroys the form of the thought. In one or two instances
Goeth« has attempted the impossible, and failed; yet liis
failure is so grand that we are tempted to accept it as a
success. I add the literal translation of ibis Chorus, for the
help of those who are unacquainted with the original: —
To Ihe Oiit whs «» I
In the closing scene, the roses arc dedared to have been
scattered by the haods of "loving, sanctified wonten-penl-
tents." They are symbolical of Love; but rot yet, as
some commenlalors suggest, of the Divine Love. I agree
with Dr. Bloede, who in his essay, Die Religiimi-Philesepkit
CmM-V, calls them "acts of Love," in which the highest
principle of Good, manifested through Man, overcomes the
principle of Evil.
176^ Angels.
The spirit of this Chorus is clear, in the original, but not
the language. Even a literal tranalatioD is impoMible twlca»
ih,Googlc
Lor« ditHEniute tbe^t
Ripcure prcpuT thcr»
M Ihe heart nuf Irecon or coDUin ij.
Wordu, ihg (rut,
The meaning of the last four lines seenu to be that true
words are the clear ether wherein the eternal hcwts of spirits
find everywhere Day — or Light. There are several Ger-
matt interpretations of this chant.
177. Chorus of Angels.
The grotesque, medixval character of the strife belongs
to the Devils alone ; the Angela are not yet seen, only their
Chants fall from the Glory above. The celestial Koseibum
and sting, "sharper than Hell's red conflagration," and both
varieties of Devils are so tormented that they plunge head
foremost into the Jaws which stand open upon the left hand,
leaving Mephlstopheles alone. We are to suppose that the
Angels gradually descend during the tinging of this Choms,
which I also give literally : —
wh,i.
wt ippciuiu lo 700
H'Wy
«>>voM;
Whiii
■«ub[»jou.inDcrbeiD
D»r.y
DunolHiffer.
Should
ilpieopoxrfiillTin,
W.m„
Lon on\y (he Lovinf
Ludi
17S. Whal nma rislraia! mc, (hat I dan Mol eitrset
Whatever may be said of the coarseness and irreverence
of this and the following passage (Julian Schmidt, for in-
stance, pronounces them "atrocious"), there could be no
more tremendous illustration of the baseness and blindness
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
455
tS (he prindple of Evil. Although M«phistophe1e« is cov-
ered from head to foot, like Job, with boila which the burn-
ing rosea have left behind them, be becomes enamored of
the beauty of the Angels. In this languishing mood he Ja
doubly a Devil, and the Negation embodied in bim reaches
a climax beyond all previous suggestion, for it is placed in
antagonism to sacred purity.
179. Chorus of Angels.
Vi, loving FUunul
Tbcm who djuuti
Lei Truih heal,
Thai Ihey FtDin I
JoroiuJy redeem
Tbo> in (he All-i
iSo. TTit eld cate-hardtmd Dtvil toeitl astray.
The word which I have translated "case-hardened" U
ausgepichten, an adjective usually applied to barrels and
signifying " thoroughly seasoned with pilch." This is one
of the many instances where the correct translation must be
equivalent, and not literal. The impression left upon Meph-
istopheles is evidently that the Angels have uken advantage
of his attack of "senseless passion " for them, and stolen
from him the loul of FausL He understands only the letter
of his compact, for redemption through love and beneficent
labor for others is to him simply incomprehensible. Thus,
not only consistent with his original character, but illustrat-
ing, as never before in the whole course of the drama, the
eternal ignorance and Impotence of Evil, he disappears
from our sigbL
181. Holy Anchorites.
This closing scene, although it ends in the higher regions
of Heaven, appears to begin on Earth. Goethe evidently
meant to symboliie a continual ascending scale of being, in
ih,Googlc
456 FAUST.
whicb Death U simpl; a form of tnnaftion, not a profonnd
gulf between two diflferent worldi. In one of hU letter* ta
Zeller, be »ay» : " Let us continue our work until one of m,
before or after the other, returns to ether at the summoni of
the World-Spirit! Then may the Eternal not refuse to ua
new activitieB, analogous to those wherein we have here
been tested I If He shall also add memory and a continued
sense of the Right and the Good, in His fatherly kindness,
we shall then surely all the sooner take hold of the wheels
which drive the cosmic machinery (hi die Kihnwu dtt (fW/-
gitriebti tingrtifin)"
The scene (apparently from some hint of Goethe's, which
has not been recorded*) is taken, according to the best
German commeniaton, from Monlsemt, the remarkable,
isolated mountain near Barcelona. This mountain, duriug
the Middle Age«, ma Inhabited by anchorites, who were
divided into regions according to the degree of tpiritual per-
fection which they attained ; the youngest occupying cells in
the great summit-pyramids of rock, difficult and dangeron«
of acceHS, while the older, after certain probations, gradually
approached the base, their privations diminishing as their
sanctity increased. Goethe reverses this order, commendng
with the spirits who retain most of Earth, and rising above
the highest summits into the pure, spiritual ether.
Schnetger's remarks are as just as Ihejr are concise : " The
whole closing scene exhitnts nothing else to us than a uni-
versal upward movement of loving natures, to whom other
loving natures ofler their hands ; so that we have a long
chain, the lowest link of which is on the Earth, the highest
in the loftiest regions of Heaven, the lowest a man still
heavily burdened with the Corporeal, the highest the Deity.
* Ad indirect clew luf perhapft b« found id the following pi— g»
noni 1 leiter which Wilhelm tdd Humboldt, ifter viulisi MoDUeml,
wrou 10 Goethe: "Your »friUrüilw pooDwrilteii b;r Coetbe in 17t)]
ih,Googlc
It ii not a Heaven fiill ot eteinally inactive bit», BDCh a
lazy Piety imagines, which is exhibited to ni, but one of the
purest Icving aitrvity.
183. Pater Ecstaticus.
II is generally agreed — and the tendency of Goethe's
mind diuing bis last years justifies the belief — that the three
J^Urtt symbolize different fonns or manifestations of devo-
tional feeling. Their appearance, as we afterwards feel, was
suggested by the necessity of avoiding a sudden transition
from the blasphemous sensuality of Mephislopheles to the
" indescribahie " eialtation of the dosing mystery ; but they
also have their appropriate place in this evei-rising and ever-
swelling symphony, with its one theme of the accordance of
Human and Divine Love.
Since it was known that Goethe selected actual figures to
serve as, at least, an imaginary basis for his spiritual and al-
legorical cliaracters, the commentators have exhibited their
research in endeavoring to fix upon the originals of these
Palres. Although the title Ecitatktit was bestowed on Dio-
nysiua the Carthusian, and is also applicable to St. Anthony,
it is not likely that Goethe meant to represent the individual
character of either. St Theresa, in fact, is a better personi-
fication of that ikstasis, which, as here, would temporarily
annihilate the material and dissolve the soul in a frenzy of
devotional love.
The last four lines spoken by the Pater Bcttatiais must be
^en literally, for the sake of comparison : —
*■ Thai TCiilir Ihe void, tntiiilDry,
All be di-Spsnd (or aluled),
[AikQ bum ihk ebdnrinc ttir,
GtrB of ElCRiil Ixnn I "
183. Pater Fküfundus.
We might almost say that the Paler Ecsiaticus represent»
Devotion as manifested through temperament or exalted sen-
sation ; the Pater Profundus, Devotion as it shapes the in-
tellect, which perceives symbols in all things, feels the llmi-
VOL. U. 20
ih,Googlc
458 FAUST.
Utiona or the seiwee, and aspires towards Divine Truth at
the higtiesl form of knowledge ; and finally, the Pater Seraphl-
cus Devotion as it possesses the soul in the purest glow of
seir-abnegaiion.
The title Pater Proßnutui was bestowed on the EngJisb
theologian, Thomas of Bradwardyne, and also on Bernard
de Clairvaui, founder of the Cistercian order, two centuries
before the former. It is not necessary, in either case, to seek
for a parallel which we are not likely to find verified.
1S4. Pater Serafhicus.
This name was given to St. Francis of Assisi, who is »en-
tioned by Dante {Paraäisa, XI.), and Goethe may possibly
have borne him in mind, without borrowing anything from
the stoiy of his life.
185. Chorus of Blessed Boys.
These boys, whom Goethe calls " midnight-bom," are
the spirits of those who died in birth, barely given to Life
and then taken from it before the awakening of sense or
mind. The meaning seems to be that (hey are still undevel-
oped in the spiritual world, — in other words, that, in the
scale of ascending Being, they have missed nur sphere, and
fee] only the delight of enislence {alleti ist dot DasryH a)
plindS^ without the intelligence, from which must be bom the
aspiration for what is stül beyond and above them.
186. [He takes tlum into himsdf.)
The following passage occurs in a letter from Goethe to
Wolf, author of the &mous Homeric Prolegomena, in l3o6 :
" Why can I not at once, honored friend, on receiving your
letter, sink myself for a short time in your being, like those
Swedenborgian spirits who sometimes receive peimission to
enter into the organs of sense of their master, and through
the medium of these to behold the world } "
1S7. Whci'tr aifirei uitweariedly
Is not beyond redeeming.
Eckennann writes, in June, 1831 : " We then spoke of the
ih,Googlc
NOTES.
459
dosing scene, and Goethe called my attention to tbe follow-
ing passage " [every line is here so pregnant with important
meaning that an exact rhymed translation become! nearly
impossible, and I therefore add the verse, in prose] ; —
Of th< ipirii-world ftrm Evil :
Who, «nr «rivinu [uidriiigrL ton* faimMlt
Him am m rnlecni.
And if h( alio piRieipam
In the Ijm from on high,
Th« Bleucd HiHl «IJ m«! him
With hculieu wclcomt."
" In 'hese lines," said Goethe, " the key to Faust's rescue
ma; i;e Aiund. In Faust, himself, an ever higher and purer
form of activity to tbe end, and the eternal Love coming
down to his aid from above. This is entirely in harmony
with our religious ideas, according to which we are not alone
saved by our own strength, but through (he freely-bestowed
Grace of God.
"Moreover, you will admit that the conclusion, where the
redeemed soul is carried above, was very difficult to accom-
plish ; and also that I might very easily have lost myself in
vagueness, in such supernatural, hardly conceivable sur-
roundings', if I bad not given a favorably restricting form and
firmness to my poetic designs, through the sharp outlines of
Christian-ecclesiastical figures and representations."
iSS. Elental lave, alimt,
Can ttparalt them.
This passage is somewhat obscure, because it attempts to
express a greater bulk of meaning than tbe words will hold.
The last eight lines are : —
When iirons inicllcenia] powtr
Hu galhciBl mlo iuir.
No angel [miy or nHild) <liTi<le
ThE double nitun gmwn iaio oot
OflhainiiniiicTM:
Eternal Lma alone
ih,Googlc
46o FAUST.
Goethe undoubtedly meant to say that the elements o(
earthly knowledge and experience become, in life, so blended
into one with the apiritual nature of Man, that (he Angels,
irtio bear Faust's immortal pait, not yei purified from the
traces of its earthly career, cannot separate the two : it must
be the work of Eternal Love. The soul of Faiut ia now
given into the band* of the Bleaaed Boys.
189. UocTOK Marianus.
Some see in this name a teüerence to Marianas Scotns,
who died, as an eremite, in 1086. Others, again, suppose it
to be Al< cileitiai Kamt tf Fmat, although the soul of the
latter has not yet awakened to the change. The title " Doc-
tor " impresses us singularly, after the Patret, and we cannot
help surmising some special btention in it, although the
character seems to be introduced solely for the purpose of
describing the approach of ihe Mattr Gleritta. But there is
nothing said, which might not, with equal propriety, have
been put into the mouth of Ihe Paler Seraphicus.
19a 7^ Mater Gloriosa loari info tht space.
It is easy to understand why, in this mysdc symphony o(
Love, Goethe should have chosen the Virgin as a repre-
sentative of the sweetest and tcnderest attribute of the
Deily. Thig variation from the Frolague in Hiaoat was
(litecily prescribed by ihe ecclesias
which he expresses Ihe symbolism
the critics censure Goethe for applying to the Virgin the
word "Goddess," because it is not used by [he Catholic
Church ; as if, in borrowing the form, be must necessarily
accept (he spirit with il I Nevertheless, a Catholic writer,
Wilhelm von Schütz,* sees in this scene the evidence
that Goethe was dissatisfied with " Ihe palliative poverty
of the Protestant spirit," and had almost reached Calhol-
idsm at Ihe close of his life I On Ihe other hand. Dr.
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 461
Bireni* illustrates almoU every portion of the tcene hj
passages from tbe New Tesunicnt, uid Pastor Cludiiut
declares that " Fsust is a sphinx, whoae enigmas can only
be solved by those who are initiated into the mysteries of
Cbrislianily." Add to tbese views tbe assertion of a French
critic that Faust t* " a Gospel of Pantheism," and we can
appredale tbe height of Coetbe's mind above all sectarian or
theological boaodaries.
191. Magna Fbccatrix.
I have retained the references attached to this and the two
fbllowine itanias, because I am not sure whether they were
originally written by Goethe, or afterwards added by Rie-
mer. Mary Magdalene and the Woman of Samaria require
no comment : Mary of Egypt is desnibed in the Atta Sant-
terum as an in^unous woman of Alexandria, who, after
seventeen years of vice, made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
On approaching the door of the Church of the Holy Sepul-
chre, an invisible arm thrust her away. Weeping, overcome
with the sudden sense of her unwortbiness, she prayed to
tbe Virgin, and was then lifted aS by hands and borne Into
the Temple, and a voice said to her i "Go beyond the Jor-
dan, and thou wilt und peace." She went into the Desert,
where she lived alone forty-eight years, only visited by a
monk who brought her the last sacrament, and for whom,
wbcn she died, she left a message written upon the sand.
These three sinful yet penitent and glorified women are
made intercessors for the soul of Margaret, which has not
yet been admitted to the higher spheres.
193. Una PtENiTENTii;H.
Margaret sees her full pardon in the face of the Mater
Gloriosa, before it is spoken, and the prayer (First Part,
Scene XVIII) which was a despairing cry for help now
• Dtr Ivel» Thell und in»b«ondir<
Khn FnintuagOdlt. Hinnonr, iSh-
* Cocthi'l Fsiul all Apolojäe im Chrülenlhiuii*.
ih,Googlc
46a FAOST.
becomei a stnin of anutterable joy. The Blessed Bof« ap>
proach, bearing the :iOul of Faust, already OTertowering them
as it grows into consciousness or the new being. By him,
who has learned so much of Life, (hey shall be taught at IwL
Margaret, no longer an ignorant maiden, but an inspired
Soul, sees the beauty and glory of the original nature of
Faust, now redeemed, releasing itself from its euthly dis-
guises and shining like the Holy Ho«. But we bear no
voice: we only know that it awakens.
193. Wke.fedtHgtKei.ihall/iUontktrt.
The literal translation of these two lines must be added : —
194. Chorus Mysticus.
The closing lines of the wonderful drama must not be
read as a complement to, or a solution of, the problem stated
in the Prologue in Heaven. They seem to relate almost
exclusively to the last scene, in order to connect the heavenly
and the earthly spheres, by suggesting, mysteriously, the
relation of the two. The translation T have given is nearly
literal ; but, inasmuch as every word is important, I here
make it entirely so: —
All itui i> mniiigrr
Uwlyormbal:
Th> inHlequalc (or iunadenl)
Htn bcconm srent : (ralityr)
Th( lodocribable.
Hen it ii done :
The Etemal Womanly (or Feminine)
Dnn I» on ind upward.
1 can tind no English equivalent for Ewigtsei^kht except
** Woman- Soul," which will express very neatly the sanw
Idea to those «ho feel the spirit which breathes and bans
ih,Googlc
NOTES. 463
(hroQghout the scene. Love fa the all-uplifting and all-
redeeming power on Earth and in Heaven ; and to Man it it
revealed in its most pure and perfect form through Woman.
Thua, in the transitory life of Earth, it is only a symbol of
its diviner Iwing; the possibilities of Love, which Earth can
never fulfil, become realities in the higher life which follows ;
(he Spirit, which Woman interprets to us here, still drami
us upward (as Margaret draws the soul of Faust) there.
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