the iĄaculty oÍ' Graduate Ątudies April, L96[ - MSpace at the ...

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the satûe tirne he has contemÐtuously allied himself ¡¡ith
iviephisco¡ the splrii of contrad"iction and negaiÍon for
i,rhom creatj-on has no sense, and who ab i'austrs rieatir
confesses his love for the void ({as ¿wlÄ:!ççgg) . llrom
biris initial proìrlem and ihrough che later verbal
clashes betv¡een himself and i,lephistophiles, Fausf ts
progression follov¡s distinct lines which pass frorn i,râSic
bo i\a'bure, then to the .üJarthly realm, and ihence by ltay
of the Beauiiful io ihe Heavenly. One cannol; really
speak of' character develo'Ornent but rather of changes of
rnooo- which reflect his altereci avrareness.
t"austr s rejec'bion of his scholastic life and his
later claim to freedom ancl- supr"a-humaniiy is a result of
the Pa.racelsiaii principle i;hat experience is the judge of
all t;hings; it is the ut.bimate test by i''rl'rich things are
accepi;ed or rejected" The tu.rn Lo l,he use of' rna-¡;ic,
hov¡ever briefly bhis occult art is invoked by contempla-
'cion of the sign oÍ' the lviacrocosm, is indicacive of the
ctespaÍring revolt against his hu-rnan incapaciCy to
corirprehenrj- the universe, Ii is for this tha.t Faust first
tu-rns to che secret work oí I'ios'bradamus in the hope of
its being the key to release frorn intelleci:u,al botrda¡;e.
rtDass ich erkenlLe, u¡as.,cie lrieli;
-[m Innersten zusarirûenhal-t,,
Schau? aIIe ''.'firkenskraft und Saraen, er.
Und. tut nicht rnehr in îr'u.orten kraroen"rr t/e