Implications of Christian Ideology in Goethes Faust
In Faust, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe builds a dramatic poem around the basis of human strengths and weaknesses, two traits exemplified by Goethe through his main character, Johann Faust. Throughout his life, Faust becomes knowledgeable in math, science, and the Holy Scripture, yet desires to find happiness as a result of his persistent struggle for power. Faust seeks not power through knowledge, but power resultant from knowledge achieved through transcendence. Infinitely, it is this desire that is the downfall of Faust; he sacrifices his beliefs and morals to his pursuit of ultimate knowledge, and, in doing so, he becomes detached from reality. Through his ignorance of the surrounding humanity, Faust becomes obliterated by emptiness. During the time period of the poem’s setting, Christians and society considered this type of greedy pursuit to be immoral and unjust, and thus, many Christian elements play key roles in Goethe’s interpretation of the legendary figure. Through allusions to religious archetypes, along with symbolic Christian principles, the “tragedy” of Faust shows the lifelong struggle of a man who longs for transcendence and the world, yet, remains imprisoned by his own mind.
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Holy Scripture, Virgin Mary, Goethes Faust, Devil Faust, Throughout Faust, Heaven Devil, Initially Faust, Faustian Bargain, Holy Trinity, Johann Wolfgang, knowledge power, seen faust, christian principles, virgin mary, mephistopheles study, devil bargains, prologue heaven, christian overtone, aspects christian,
Approximate Word count = 902
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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