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Faust; a Tragedy, Translated from the German of Goethe
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
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Reviews for Faust; a Tragedy, Translated from the German of Goethe
Rating: 3.7142857142857144 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
7 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5No denying the beauty of the language in this, the iconic "sell your soul to the devil" story, but it seemed lightweight for it's subject. This modern verse translation of Part I is the only verse translation to be perfomed in the modern theater--which speaks highly of it's readability.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The first half was excellent. The Gretchen tragedy was incredibly disturbing and dramatic. However, I was bored by the second halfs descent into what seemed like a series of unrelated scenes. By the end of the long digression into Greek myth, I was bored by the whole thing and no longer even cared what happened to Faust
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5While I do not care for Goethe, I do like MacDonald's rhyming translation. It makes it much better to get through it! Did this for Part II so that the Kindle could read the rhyming to me with the text to speech feature.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Although it's been staged, Goethe's Faust is described as a "dramatic poem" and at least in the translation I've read (Walter Kaufman for Part One) reads much more to me like Milton than Shakespeare. Indeed, there are to my ear echoes of Milton--and The Book of Job for that matter--in the Prologue where God and the devil Mephistopheles have a discussion that results in putting the soul of Faust into play. A lot of the of the plot and even some lines were familiar to me from classical music. Operas by Gounod and Boito, an oratorio by Berlioz and German lied by Schubert and Schumann among other works were adapted from from Goethe. I really got a kick out of recognizing the inspiration for Gounod's "Jewel Song" and Schubert's "Gretchen at her Spinning Wheel." Most of those adaptations only deal with Part One of the two part work, and for good reason. Part One was mostly a joy to read. The language is often striking and gorgeous and only one small segment made me go huh? (The Walpurgis Night's Dream with the Wedding of Oberon and Titania, which didn't seem to contribute to the plot or theme.) Mephistopheles first shows up by Faust's side as a poodle, and he helps a lot in cutting a lot of Faust's often high-flown language with his acid sarcasm, and I actually found a lot of humor in the first part of the poem--such as the scene where Martha flirted with Mephistopheles. If I were rating just Part One, I'd give Faust five stars for an amazing read. Part Two is a different matter altogether. In the book featuring the Kaufman translation, only the first scene and the last Act of Part Two is included. In the introduction Kaufman defends this saying it is his "hope that those who who would like to enjoy Goethe's Faust--as opposed to those who want to be able to say that they have read it, all of it" should find his edition to their liking. Well, I'm stubborn--and I did want to read all of it. Among the reasons Faust was listed in Good Reading's "100 Significant Books." Faust isn't just a classic--it's a formative, incredibly influential classic, and I've found in tackling those you aren't just entertained--you're educated. So, I read Part Two in another edition and translation. And found Kaufman is right. Part Two isn't enjoyable. It seems almost an entirely different work without the Gretchen element and with long static, weird set pieces that include Faust involving himself with Helen of Troy. Indeed, Faust disappears for long stretches in this part--so much of which seemed bizarre. I didn't like Part Two much at all. And not just as a reader wanting to be entertained. If there's one thing I've learned about myself reading the classics, it is that I like a sense of unity and structure, and have held it against works such as Moby Dick, War and Peace and Les Miserables when they seem to go off the rails in self-indulgent pedantry and digressions. I adore Dante, and Dante is erudite--and his philosophy very much opposed to mine. But I'm awed by the structure of The Divine Comedy. Nothing, but nothing is superfluous--down to the rhyming scheme and the number of Cantos. I can't say the same of Faust, particularly Part Two. For me Part Two is just one big huh?? and incredibly tedious. Maybe I'm missing something, but no, I can't say I got a lot out of Part Two, thus why this is winding up with a much lower rating than if I were reviewing Part One alone.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I read this in January 1952 and said on Jan 20: Decided to read Faust despite the unfavorable atmosphere for reading presented by barracks life. It is almost stiflng in its beauty, and I wish I had a dead silent room to simply surrender my mind to it. The translation I am reading is Bayard Taylor's, which is in verse form, and quite literal--so that verbs are often at the end of sentences. As an example of clear beauty, romantic and untouched by sarcasm and cynicism I give you this from Scene 2 of the first Part: "Then would I see Eternal Evening gild The silent world beneath me glowing,On fire each mountain-peak, with peace and valley filled,The silver brook to golden rivers flowing..." I finished the first part on Jan 21, and said the second part is allergorical and I am afraid I shall get nothing from it, because conditons for studying are not good--or maybe it's just that I am not good at divining deeper, subtle meanings of things. I finished the book on Jan 23 and said: Finished Faust--got little out of the second Part.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Goethe packs a lot of original truth into this very sensual work. In particular, his observations about society, learning, and, of course, religion, are thought provoking. The style and plot are also unique and impressive, especially in the interaction between Faust and Mepistopheles and Margaret.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Obviously a classic, but the second scene between the archangles, God and Mephistofoles is pure music.
Book preview
Faust; a Tragedy, Translated from the German of Goethe - Charles Timothy Brooks
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