Faust Questions

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University Of Georgia *

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English

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Feb 20, 2024

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Thomas 1 James Thomas Professor Elaine Stephens World Literature II Section W1 15 September 2020 Goethe’s Faust Essay Questions 1. Why does God allow Mephistopheles to tempt Faust? God allows Mephistopheles to tempt Faust essentially so that Mephistopheles will be proven wrong about mankind. Mephistopheles criticizes mankind, which would be criticizing God’s creations. He believes they are miserable and act like beasts. God has great trust in Faust, so he allows Mephistopheles to tempt him. God believes Faust will always remain a faithful servant, despite any temptations and obstacles thrown his way. God believes that through Faust’s resilience and faith, Mephistopheles will change his mind on mankind. 2. At the play's opening, what circumstances have driven Faust to the verge of suicide? Faust is drawn to the verge of suicide because he was disappointed in his study. Faust is observed to be displeased with the knowledge and results available by science’s natural means. Faust fails in his attempt to gain knowledge about nature and the universe. His studies have failed to allow him to live in peace with nature, which ultimately leads to Faust’s loss of faith. Faust has fallen into a state where he loses faith and purpose, and he does not view life as meaningful. He is driven to this depressing and suicidal state by his own failures,
2 3. Discuss Goethe's level of faith in the rationalist school of thought. Goethe was not one to closely align with the process of rationalism. Goethe believed a lot in emotions and how they allow humans to be at peace. Goethe was a major advocate of the Sturm und Drang ideology. Sturm und Drang can be translated to “storm and drive” and it placed high value on individualism and the relationship between nature and emotion. Goethe and the Sturm und Drang movement looked to overpower the exponentially growing Enlightenment cult of Rationalism. Goethe started his career as a very influential figure in the group. 4. Why does Faust have such a difficult time explaining his faith to Gretchen? Faust is at a loss of words when explaining his faith to Gretchen. He does not know how to accurately express his feelings, for he is unsure of them himself.
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