What is the Faust legend and how do you think Goethe was influenced by it? How does Faust emphasize the importance of emotions over logic and reason? In which parts of the play does Faust act romantically? Rationally? What do you feel is the significance of three archangels opening the play? Why did Goethe choose to make so many references to medieval times? (ex. “Mephistopheles”) 6. How does the Lord represent the Romantic shift away from deism? 7. What does Faust’s attitude towards his schooling reflect the EnlightenmentRomanticism shift? 8. What is Faust’s feeling towards suicide and how is it representative of Romantic literature? (p. 230, 237) 9. What prompts Faust to change the words of the Bible? (p. 234) 10. How does Faust’s desire to know the “mysteries of the world” representative of Romanticism vs. the Enlightenment? (p. 239) 11. Rousseau said, “Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains.” How does Faust’s character represent this quote? (p. 240) 12. Through Faust’s quest for knowledge and power, what is Goethe saying about materialism? nfoersch@lion.lmu.edu
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