The concept of good for Goethe is that everyone has the ability to be good and that errors in judgement are what make people bad but if a person keeps striving these mistakes will bring them closer to righteousness. As long as a person continues to keep moving and doing things they will most likely achieve righteousness. This is shown in the bet between Faust and Mephistopheles. Faust says that if at any time he says, "Linger a while! Thou art so fair!" that will be when Faust dies and serves Mephistopheles. This shows that if Faust were to stop wanting to do anything it would be a horrible sin. The Lord which many perceive to stand for God stands for the perfectness that Faust is trying to accomplish with his life. Gretchen in the early part of the play stands for perfectness because she is inexperienced and knows nothing else until Faust starts to seduce her

The concept of bad for Goethe can be seen most in the character of Mephistopheles. Mephistopheles is believed to stand for the devil. When he first introduces himself he describes himself as "a part of that Power which always wills evil, always procures good.....the Spirit which always denies." Mephistopheles actions such as talking Faust into taking advantage of Gretchen and then telling him to leave her are seen as evil actions. The fact that Mephistopheles spends time with witches which most people see as evil shows that he is also evil. Goethe believes that all people sin sometimes and God forgives us. This is shown when Gretchen is in prison and after all the sin she has done a voice from heaven grants her salvation. Even though she did sin, most of her sin was because of inexperience and she was not purposely sinning

Goethe feels that the church and religion are both useless. When Faust leaves Gretchen the first jewels, her mother takes them to the church. The church takes them saying that they are trying to help, but this can be seen as the church just trying to get money out of them. Goethe's opinion can be seen when Mephistopheles says:

The Church has an excellent appetite
She has swallowed whole countries and the question
Has never risen of indigestion
Only the Church can take
Ill-gotten goods without stomach-ache!

When Gretchen is in the church and being taunted by the Evil Spirit and faints shows more of Goethe's feelings. Religion is supposed to help you through your problems and make you feel better. In Gretchen's case religion is actually hurting her more because she feels so bad that she went against her beliefs and she didn't know anything else. The church is also supposed to be forgiving but Gretchen and other girls like her are looked down on by others in the community. In effect both the church and religion are supposed to help but neither do. Goethe's opinions are present in many scenes throughout Faust. Goethe gives many examples of good and evil for us to compare. Mephistopheles, Gretchen, and the witches all stand for Goethe's opinions on different subjects. He also shows that he doesn't trust the church or religion. Throughout the play he also shows that you have to know some evil in order to know good.

Mephistopheles

Heather Zingler English Pre-IB Ms. Webb May 8, 2000 Mephistopheles

Mephistopheles, from the epic poem Faust, by Goethe, is one of the most interesting characters if examined carefully. Much like today's crude interpretations of the devil, Mephistopheles was a skeptic, a gambler, self- confident, witty, stubborn, smart, creative, tempting and of course, evil. There were very ironic things about him. Though he was evil, he was a force of goodness. The evil in him was portrayed in the negative aspects of Faust's personality, which showed that no matter how powerful the Lord was, the devil would always have an impact on a persons life and decisions.

Mephistopheles was very much of a skeptic and a gambler. In the "Prologue in Heaven", Mephistopheles bet the Lord that he could turn Faust against him and make him do evil. This was ironic because most people would never dream of speaking to the Lord in this way. This showed that Mephistopheles was self- confident and witty. He was very set in his ways and beliefs and found it difficult to believe that God could keep total control over Faust, or any one else for that matter.

Though Mephistopheles was a skeptic when it came to many things such as natural phenomenon of life, he did believe the Lord when he told Mephistopheles that he had power. Mephistopheles even preached this word to people. After speaking to one of Faust's students, he wrote in his yearbook. It said: "Eritis sicut Deus, scientes bonum et malorum ", meaning "You shall be like God, knowing good and evil". (line 2075) This is a quote from the book of Genesis 3:5 of the Bible. By Mephistopheles saying this quote, he was admitting that God had power and did know what good and evil were. He also believed that he could overcome God, therefore saying that he was more powerful than the Lord.

Mephistopheles was very smart and creative when it came to luring in his victims of evil. In "Outside the City Gate", Mephistopheles disguised himself as a dog and followed Faust home. Faust knew this dog was evil. He said the dog was "circling around" him and "a wake of fire's streaming behind him" (lines 1175-1179). Every time Faust would begin reading the Bible, the dog would bark as a sign of disbelief and wrongs about it. The next day, in Faust's study, the devil showed up again, but this time in the form of a nobleman tempting Faust to "a life of limitless wealth and pleasure" in return for his soul for eternity. Of course, Faust was tempted enough to fall for Mephistopheles trick, and sold his soul to the devil.

Lastly, in the "Neighbor's House", Mephistopheles, disguised as a traveler from Italy, claims to being a friend of Martha's husband. He tried to win her heart by saying he was a witness to his death and he would bring someone (Faust) to prove his death so that she could remarry. This was an elaborate scheme to get Faust together with Gretchen.

Though Mephistopheles represented evil, he was unconsciously a force of goodness. He was present in the "Prologue in Heaven" which showed that he was accepted by the Lord as a part of natural life. If the Lord was all powerful and evil wasn't accepted, than why wouldn't the Lord have banished him from the world Mephistopheles, who represented evil, was accepted by the Lord. Secondly, by Mephistopheles interacting with Faust, he was forcing him to also interact with the Lord, the symbol of goodness. In this story, Mephistopheles was much like I would expect the devil today to be like. He was a skeptic, a gambler, self-confident, witty, stubborn, smart, creative, tempting and evil. He was tricky and would do anything to overcome the Lord and prove himself to be the master of the universe.

Faust deals with evil when he makes a deal with Mephistopheles, or Satan. This deal is that Mephistopheles will give Faust whatever he wants in return for his (Faust's) soul. Inferno is a journey through Hell. Dante is being lead by his guide, Virgil, through the icy parts of Hell, to the center of the earth, while he climbs up Satan's legs into Heaven. Paradise Lost is about how Satan is newly cast out of Heaven and just getting used to his surroundings, which is a more traditional furnace-like Hell unlike the one in Inferno

Mephistopheles, who is supposedly Satan, in Faust, and the Satan portrayed in Paradise Lost are the most likable characters in these plays. Faust seems like more of a villain than Mephistopheles, which is very ironic. Satan is made out to be an evil, manipulating demon, but Mephistopheles is not really like that. He does manipulate Faust in some ways, like with the contract of Faust selling his soul, but Mephistopheles has little more power than a regular person. Also, in the beginning of the play, when he talks to The Lord, he doesn't act serious at all. He actually tells The Lord that he likes Sunday's because of the "peace and quiet". In Paradise Lost, Satan makes God look more evil than (Satan) himself. Satan implies that God is some kind of slave driver, and that it would be "better to reign in Hell then serve in Heaven". They are considered the more likable characters because the heroes in these plays are portrayed as evil villains

All three of these epics use Christian and classical, or Ancient Greek and Roman, mythology. In Faust, the "Prologue in Heaven" came from the book of Job, which came from the Bible. He also uses Christian mythology when he talks about Creation's great circle. Goethe uses classical mythology when he refers to Muses. Inferno talks about three men who received the worst torment in Hell. These three men were Judas, Brutus and Cassius. Judas is part of Christian mythology, and Brutus and Cassius are historical figures. All three men betrayed someone, and that's why they were receiving the most torment. Judas betrayed the son of God, and Brutus and Cassius betrayed Caesar. Paradise Lost has many uses of both classical and Christian mythology. Some examples of Christian mythology would be when Milton mentions Oreb, or Sinai (alternate names for the mountain where Moses received heavenly inspiration), the shepherd (Moses), Adam and Eve, and many more. Milton uses classical mythology when he speaks of Muses, Aonian mount (the home of the Muses), and the river Styx (river that supposedly encircles the underworld in Greek mythology)

Geothe's Faust has a lot in common with Dante's Inferno and Milton's Paradise Lost besides the fact that they all deal with evil in some way. The use of Christian and classical mythology is very prominent throughout all three of these plays. I don't know if the authors intended to mix these mythologies or not, but it made the plays more interesting. You really have to think when you're reading these plays. The fact that Goethe and Milton would actually make Satan the good guy in their plays is interesting enough. It also lets you see the other side of the story, other than the Bible, in the minds of the authors'. Ashley Emmons British Authors Concepts of Good and Evil and Religious Hypocrisy in Faust Faust, written by Geothe, says many things about the subjects of good and evil and exposes various instances of what Geothe must have considered religious hypocrisy in Judeo Christian beliefs and practices. It seems that through Faust, Geothe was trying to express his beliefs on the concepts of good and evil. By writing Faust, Geothe established that the ultimate sin or worst possible sin anyone could ever commit was to think yourself equal to or higher than God. In the Bible, the devil makes this mistake by challenging God and achieves his fall from grace as a result. Faust makes the same mistake and he is forgiven in the end when he humbles himself and recognizes God as a higher power. Geothe also seems to comment on the power of God, implying that since you don't own your soul you can't sell it to the devil. Your soul belongs to God and therefore he decides what he will do with it. Finally, during the course of the work, Geothe seems to be making a statement about the nature of man and man's ability to choose between good and evil

In Faust, the ultimate sin or worst possible sin that anyone could commit seems to be thinking that you are equal to or higher than God. This is supported by the fact that in the end of the play Faust is forgiven by the Lord when he gives up an opinion such as this and recognizes the Lord as a higher power. Committing the ultimate sin would mean thinking that you could do no wrong and placing judgment on other people, based on the fact that you hold yourself higher than them and almost equal to God or a higher power instead of humbling yourself and loving both your friends and enemies, withholding judgment, which only God can give, according to the teachings of Jesus in the Bible. In the Bible, it seems that the devil makes this mistake of thinking himself equal to God and challenges God, resulting in his fall from grace. Characters in Faust such as Valentino, Gretchen's brother, are guilty of this sin. In his dying speech he calls Gretchen a whore and announces that she is pregnant to everyone present, passing judgment on her that he has no right to pass and in effect likening himself to God who is the only one who can judge a person by their heart and deeds. Very pious Christians seem to make this same mistake of judging others they deem below them today. This is hypocrisy in itself. They think they are following God and the religion but they are really making the fatal mistake of placing themselves in their minds on a higher level than others and closer to God, committing one of the worst sins you can commit. Assuming that Mephistopheles is the devil, he makes a typical mistake, reflecting his arrogance in placing himself above God, when he believes that he can win Faust's soul by seducing him to do evil. He misses the fact that God says "man is bound to err" (Prologue in Heaven line324) and basically is saying that because of this he will forgive Faust no matter what if he asks forgiveness

Geothe seems to reflect the opinion, in Faust, that God is very powerful and much more powerful than any evil force or the devil. During the play, Faust does make a deal to sell his soul to the devil and signs a document in his blood procuring this. Despite this "deal", in the very end of the play Faust asks for forgiveness for all the things he's done and is accepted into heaven. This seems to say that it is impossible to sell your soul to the devil because your soul doesn't belong to you. God is the owner of your soul and it is up to him what he decides to do with it, judging you by you heart and the deed you have done. This gets rid of the old superstition of selling your soul to the devil and explains why such a thing is hypocritical when in fact God is the owner of your soul. Also, in Faust, Mephistopheles follows certain rules. When Mephistopheles comes into Faust's house he says that he has to leave the same way he came in and he is hindered by a cross hanging over the door. "It's an iron law we devils can't flout…The way we come in, we've got to go out" (Faust's Study [1] lines 1441-1442) This might symbolize God's power over evil or say that he is more powerful than the devil or any evil forces because Mephistopheles, the evil, is being forced to follow rules or restrictions. Geothe also seems to be making a statement about the nature of man and man's ability to know the difference and choose between good and evil even though man is bound to make mistakes. He seems to be saying that man can choose between good and evil but because man is imperfect, man is "bound to err" as the Lord states in the Prologue in Heaven. Also in the Prologue in Heaven, the Lord says "Stumbling along as he must, through darkness and confusion…A good man still knows which road is the right one." (lines 335-336) During the course of Faust, Mephistopheles seems to represent the side of human nature that tells you think about only yourself, and do whatever you want or whatever feels good. This is the selfish side of human's and he could be meant to represent the evil a person does when he sins or commits an evil deed. God, of course represents the good in man and Faust's compulsion to do the right thing and good and unselfish things. Faust balances and struggles with these two forces during the play. When he has a relationship with Gretchen, who is much younger than he and unmarried, and gets her pregnant he is acting on the side represented by Mephistopheles. He struggles because he knows the difference between what is the right and the wrong thing to do. He satisfies his more evil side by trying to rationalize his unjust actions by telling himself that they love each other trying to make himself think that that will make the wrong thing the right thing to do. In the end when Faust asks for forgiveness, the Lord proves himself to be forgiving even though man is bound to err by forgiving him and letting him into heaven

Geothe implies many things about the concepts of good and evil and exposes examples of religious hypocrisy by the Judeo Christian faith, through the writing of Faust. He implies what he believes to be the ultimate sin is putting yourself equal to God and provides characters that make that mistake. He implies that God is powerful and since God owns your soul there is no way you can sell your soul to the devil because he owns it and can judge it by your heart (your willingness to ask for forgiveness) and deeds you have done. He also uses symbolism through characters in the work to express the nature of man. He implies that man has the power to know the difference and choose between good and evil but because man is imperfect he is bound to makes mistakes. He implies that since the ultimate sin is placing yourself on a level equal to God, pious persons who judge other people, thinking that they are higher than them are placing themselves dangerously close to being equal with God in their assumption they have the power to judge people. This shows hypocrisy because these people believe that they are following God exactly but in effect they are taking it too far and committing one of the worst sins you can commit. Geothe seems to imply all of these things and more based on your personal interpretation of the work.

Faust the Tragedy

It was definitely a tragedy that Faust allied himself with Mephisto. Whenever a person strays from the positive path of the Lord to the side of the Devil it is definitely something very negative. For ages people have been using the phrase, "he sold his soul to the Devil", with no positive connotation. Of course when this phrase was used it was just to say that that person was evil, not that they actually let Satan purchase their soul. That would be ridiculous, correct? Well that is exactly what happened in Faust's case. Due to his own flaw of not being satisfied with life itself, he strayed from the Lord and traded his soul for a higher form of entertainment. "Thinking's done with, for ever so long Learning and knowledge have sickened me….Bring on your miracles…" It is tragic when someone feels that they understand so much, or try to ignore so much to the point where they think that they should give their soul away with no fear of eternal damnation. Faust believes or tries to believe that there is no after life and that he can just trade away his life to the most evil being in existence with no repercussions. Falling from God and making the Devil his partner is something that deserves the title "a tragedy".

While working with the Devil Faust did a number of evil things, some being quite tragic. It was already bad enough that Faust decided to play games with Mephistopheles, but it was worse when he decided he wanted to draw someone else into his sick deal. Faust, being overwhelmed with lust, felt that he needed to seduce and corrupt a young girl. "Get me that, do you hear, you must!" This is even worse when you consider that it was inevitable that he would succeed with the aid of Satan. He tricked her with stolen jewels and then tore her virginity, impregnating her with the mark of scandal and sin. It is disastrous when a young, pure-hearted, religious girl is seduced by a lusty man and his hellish companion. Faust even went a step further to make this young lady murder her mother in the pursuit of sexual relations. In most stories a tragic ending is one that involves a death, so with the death of Margarete's mother this is obviously a tragedy. Faust and Mephisto further fulfill the traditional definition of a literary tragedy by murdering Margarete's brother in cold blood. The companionship of Faust and Satan lead to many tragic actions.

The end of Faust was a tragedy in a number of ways. Faust finds that his lover is in jail and is to be hung for having sex before marriage. When he goes to free her he also finds that her feelings for him are different and not as strong as they used to be. "I'm afraid of you, Heinrich, afraid!" Since all Faust could think about for awhile was his love, Margarete, this is a devastating change for him. Margarete also informs Faust that she drowned their child. How could that not be tragic? She also refuses to escape the prison with Faust and she and Faust have to accept that she is going to be killed. One would think that after all of the trouble that Mephistopheles had caused Faust, that Faust would leave him. That is what makes Faust once again leaving with the Lord of the Flies so tragic. The end of Faust: A Tragedy is tragic from a literary aspect and a religious aspect.

Goethe makes sure that the subtitle "A Tragedy" is one that is correctly assigned. Faust is a tragedy in the traditional literary way and by way of the definition given in the dictionary. The term tragedy is fulfilled by Faust's contract with Satan, his behavior while with Satan, and by the fate of Faust and his lover. A tragedy? Yes, and what a tragedy it is.

The Tragedy that is Faust

Throughout this play religion is constantly mocked. The Devil and God are pretty buddy buddy. I mean they make bets, they have casual conversation (lines 275-302) They are just kind of friends. I am not the most religious person, but I know that the Devil and God are not friends. They do not talk, make bets, or hang out together. An obvious mocking right there. Also it seems that the powerful Devil is not powerful at all. He is repeatedly outsmarted by a mere mortal (line 2715) and has many limitation. If you grow up going to church and being taught religion you are under the impression that the Devil is so powerful, always tempting us mortals and finally buying our souls. God and the Devil are made fun of by showing how much little power they have. God over the Devil and the devil over mortals.

The girl, Grethen, getting pregnant is a tragedy for the simple fact that she and Faust are in love and would probably be in love for ever and ever had it not been for the Devil. Faust loves this girl and would love to be with her forever, but the Devil says that Faust can sleep with any girl without staying with her. So the Devil convinces Faust to tarnish this innocent girl. He sleeps with her getting her pregnant and thus sending her to jail (it is a crime back then for a woman to get pregnant without being married) Faust knows that the women he loves is in jail, possibly forever and he wants to help, but the Devil convinces him otherwise.

Faust's loss of faith is another issue in this play that I feel was a tragedy. Faust is very smart (lines 362-395) and somewhat religious, but he just gives up on everything including God. Now some would say that a loss of faith is not very tragic, but I would have to strongly disagree.

Everyone from the dumbest to the smartest people have to have faith in something. Faith brings on hope and as we can see Faust lost his faith (among other things) and lost the hope of ever being happy.

When someone as smart as Faust loses hope in something it can not be labeled anything but tragic. Faust has all those degrees (lines 362-370)

all those years of schooling and yet he feels that there is no hope of him ever finding happiness or love. How tragic can that be, someone with

so much to live for feels that he has nothing to live for. I think that that is just plain sad.

The most tragic part of this whole play would have to be Faust going to

Heaven. Again I think this is religion being mocked in some sort of way,

but look at all the things Faust did throughout the play. First he lost his faith in God. Then he basically sold his soul to the Devil, who is supposed to be like God's enemy. Then he got that girl pregnant, let her go to jail and felt little or no remorse about it. After all these, not sins, but all these acts that totally deify God he is allowed into God's kingdom. A complete mockery of religion and tragic ending.

The play Faust is not labeled a tragedy, but it is subtitled as so for reasons not specific. I, though, have my own specific reasons. First the play totally mocks and makes fun of religion and of religious people. Second a totally innocent girl is used and then left in jail. Third a man with so much to live for and offer the world, feels there is no longer a need to continue living. And fourth the complete loss of faith and religious beliefs by Faust. I don not know who subtitled this a tragedy or why they did, but I know the previous essay details why I believe it is a tragedy.

Piety and Perdition: Good, Evil and Giggles

Goethe's demonstration of his take on religious hypocrisy is not obvious in the case of Gretchen, Faust's love interest and eventually his victim. When Faust's seemingly sincere love leaves her pregnant with his child, Gretchen is transformed in the eyes of the other characters from a chaste virgin to an unsanctified whore. At one point, when her predicament is still secret, Gretchen and her friend Lieschen discuss the misfortune of another girl, who was seduced by a man, impregnated, and abandoned by him. While Lieschen is filled with a self-righteous scorn in the matter, Gretchen is secretly frightened. She privately admits that she used to look down on such "sinners" in her own religious piety, but now despairs her pride, as she has likewise fallen from grace. Soon after her conversation with Lieschen, Gretchen's affair with Faust becomes common knowledge. One might wonder if Lieschen, in her arrogance, will enjoy a similar future.

The culmination of Goethe's mockery takes place in a scene he calls "Walpurgis Night." Here unholy beings of all sorts congregate to celebrate the Devil. It is strange that this bizarre assortment of diabolical pariahs take their rites more seriously than the distracted crowds who were out on Easter Sunday in an earlier scene. While the Lord was not among those Christians as they did everything but praise him, Mephistopheles wanders freely in the midst of his witches and warlocks, who happily pay their respects. The scene is a chastisement of the nature of God and his so-called believers.

I feel that "Faust" is a statement about the futility of pretending to practice a faith - any faith - that is futile to begin with. God and the Devil may exist, but to Goethe they regardlessly remain figures as comic as those who pay them lip service. To take anything about their natures seriously, (as Gretchen did), without a will strong enough to sustain the fervor (as Gretchen's was), is dangerous and fruitless. Thus, true piety is indirectly praised, and the consequences of an effort that is too weak is shown.

Faust Essay

When the pact is first on, Faust doesn't seem to care about his soul or his life. He is Mephisto's sidekick for lack of anything better to do. In lines 1676-1678, Faust says, "If you pull this world down over my ears...who cares?" Faust sees himself as better than God, so therefore not worried about his welfare. In the scene, "Night", Faust even tried to kill himself. As the twosome begin hanging out together, Faust seems bored with all that Mephistopheles shows him. In lines 2377-2383 Faust says, "Are you telling me that I'll learn to be a new man stumbling around in this lunatic confusion?...If you can do no better, the outlook is black for me, the hopes I nursed are already dead."

Faust suddenly starts taking interest when he lays eyes on Gretchen, a beautiful, poor, good, and modest young woman. Although Mephistopheles doesn't approve of pursuing the girl, he must do what Faust orders him to or he'll lose Faust's soul. So, Mephisto does what Faust says, although reluctantly. "Aren't you fed up with it by now, this mooning about? How can it still amuse you? You do it for a while, all right; but enough's enough, on to the new!" Mephisto says in lines 3310-3313. Throughout the rest of the play, Mephisto tries to talk Faust out of some ideas, but he always gives into him, so Faust doesn't call off the pact, and Mephistopheles doesn't lose his bet with God.

In "An Overcast Day, A Field" Faust finds out that he got Gretchen pregnant, and that she's in jail. He's fed up with Mephistopheles for not telling him, Faust says in lines 4493-4496, "A condemned criminal, shut up in a dungeon and suffering horrible torments, the poor unfortunate child! It's come to this! And not a word about it breathed to me, you treacherous, odious spirit!" He makes Mephistopheles take him to Gretchen so he can save her. Faust has developed morals! What a surprise! He's learned over the time he has spent with Mephistopheles that he doesn't want to be a jerk. Part of Faust's conversion from evil to good could be due to Gretchen having a good impact on him.

I believe Faust will triumph in the end because he realizes that Mephistopheles is only messing everything up for him, and realize that having a fulfilling life isn't the same as what he thought it was in the beginning. At first he was only thinking of himself and later on he was worried about others and his impact on others. Since he turns out being a pretty good guy when he goes to save Gretchen, he could even go to Heaven for it. Overall, Faust benefited from his relationship with Mephistopheles because it made him a better person than he was in the beginning.