West European Studies

Goethe introduces Dr. Faust as a learned individual who, nevertheless, is unhappy with the knowledge he has been able to acquire in his long life.  He has studied philosophy, medicine, and theology, and he is a wizard possessing powerful magical abilities, but he does not feel that he has attained access to the secrets of the universe.  On a metaphorical level, Fausts state parallels the state of Western civilization toward the end of the Renaissance era.  During the Renaissance, secular knowledge was prized scientists, artists, and scholars attempted to learn as much as they could about the natural world, while not forsaking their respect for religion and mystery.  Nevertheless, toward the end of the Renaissance many became dissatisfied with the pursuit for knowledge, particularly in religious matters.  Just as Faust feels that he does not have access to lifes mysteries, so many at the end of the Renaissance era felt that religious authorities and aristocrats served a gatekeeper function to important universal knowledge.

In his study Faust reads aloud from the Bible.  This is important for both the literal and metaphorical meanings of the play.  Literally, Faust notices that reading from the Bible excites a spiritual presence, who he does not yet identify.  Faust senses that there is power in the act of reading from the Bible, and he recites incantations to make the presence known.  Historically, reading form the Bible in private was an important, symbolic activity during the time that Goethes Faust represents.  In Germany, the Protestant Reformation began with a rejection of the gatekeeper status of religious authorities and encouraged its adherents to read the Bible themselves and learn directly from the word of God.

Although Faust soon learns the mysterious presence to be Satan, or Mephistopheles, Faust speaks to Mephistopheles of philosophy and earthly matters.  This literal event reinforces the metaphorical representation of the secularization of Reformation society during the 16th century.  Faust is not alarmed that he is speaking to Mephistopheles, suggesting that he does not take religious matters seriously.  After ending their conversation, Mephistopheles causes Faust to dream of secular affairs.  On a metaphorical level, it can be said that Fausts thirst for knowledge and discovery of the power of reading the Bible led him away from God and toward Mephistopheles, strengthening his interest in worldly matters.  By foreshadowing Fausts downfall in this way, Goethe indicates a disdain for this turning away from religion.

Indeed, in order to attain the mysterious knowledge he desires, Goethes Faust signs away his immortal soul.  Faust, in his distrust of religious authority, rejects the notion of an immortal soul and believes that he has outwitted Mephistopheles.  This, again, reflects on the Reformation era, when individuals, following Luther, began to reject ideas that had long been held as unquestionable in the Catholic church.  Ironically, after making his deal with Mephistopheles, the only mysteries revealed to Faust are mundane ones.  At first Faust recognizes the banality of the situation, but when he begins to long for love and youth, he again turns away from God and allows Mephistopheles to lead him toward the secular.  Far from learning the secrets of the universe, Faust becomes distracted by lust when he meets Gretchen.  Gretchen takes the place that virtue, curiosity, and religion once occupied in Fausts heart.  Rather than attempting to win Gretchen through virtue, Faust uses material wealth, provided by Mephistopheles, to intrigue her.  This serves to reinforce the aforementioned metaphor.

After Faust impregnates Gretchen and, later, Gretchen is imprisoned for drowning the child, Gretchen rejects Mephistopheles and Fausts materiality and returns to God, redeeming herself.  Metaphorically, this can be seen to represent the Counterreformation begun by the Council of Trent, whereby the Catholic church renewed its principles as a reaction to the Protestant Reformation and in an attempt to cleans itself of the corruption that had been evident during the Renaissance.