Seeking meaning in Goethe's Faust
By: J. M. van der Laan
Series: Continuum literary studies
Publisher: Continuum
Published: 2007
Place of publication: London; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 202
ISBN-13: 9780826493040
Subjects: Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von, -- 1749-1832
Description: "Of the many variations on the Faust-myth, Goethe's remains especially provocative and laden with meaning and is the work most responsible for determining the subsequent character of the Faust archetype. His Faust reflects an individual who asserts, yet wrestles unrelentingly with the futility of faith, the bankruptcy of knowledge and the loss of meaning. One of the greatest texts of both German and world literature, Faust, Parts I and II, confronts us with pressing questions about rebellion and suffering, faith and its loss, reality and simulation, order and chaos, weakness and power, technology and human improvement. This monograph offers a new interpretation of Goethe's famous play, emphasizing its continuing significance today."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [172]-196) and index
Table of contents: title: Faust past and present; title: Faust recycled; title: Job retold; title: The mind of God; title: The divided self; title: Beyond good and evil; title: The technological mastermind; title: The virtual and the real; title: Chaos and complexity; title: Sin, service, and salvation; title: Retrospect and prospect