
Faust the Theologian
Jaroslav Pelikan
(Author)Description
Pelikan begins by discussing Faust's role as natural scientist or pantheist. He examines Faust's disenchantment with traditional knowledge, considers his interests in geology, oceanography, and optics, and analyzes his perception of nature as a realm inspirited throughout by a single unifying Power. Pelikan next follows Faust on his journeys to the two Walpurgis Nights, where he shows how Faust reveals his delight in the polytheistic extravaganzas of Germanic and especially of Greek mythology. Finally Pelikan describes the operatic finale of the book, where Faust's spirit is drawn upward to salvation by the Eternal Feminine, and he argues that this marks Faust's evolution into moral philosopher and monotheist. Pelikan's analysis thus reveals thematic unities and a dialectical development of Faust's character that have been unnoticed heretofore.
Product Details
Publisher | Yale University Press |
Publish Date | January 31, 1997 |
Pages | 158 |
Language | English |
Type | |
EAN/UPC | 9780300070644 |
Dimensions | 9.2 X 5.5 X 0.5 inches | 0.5 pounds |
About the Author
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