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This article is about the protagonist of several fictional works. For other uses see Faust (band), Faust (musician) and Faust (Guilty Gear).

Faust (Latin Faustus) is the protagonist of a popular German tale of a pact with the Devil, assumed to be based on the figure of the German magician and alchemist Dr. Johann Georg Faust (approximately 1480-1540). It has been used as the basis for many different fictional works, most notably by Christopher Marlowe, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Thomas Mann, and Mikhail Bulgakov.

General Plot

The story concerns the fate of a learned gentleman named Faust, who in his quest for forbidden or advanced knowledge of material things, summons the Devil (represented by Mephistopheles, often also referred to as Mephisto), who offers to serve him for a period of time, at the cost of his soul.

Origin

While some scholars believe the story of Faust originated in Northern Germany, memorialized with the publishing in 1587 of a little chapbook bearing the title Historia von D. Iohan Fausten, other scholars are quick to note that historia is Latin for Geschichte (German word for story or history) and the choice of languages implies the existence of an even earlier, independent source in Latin, such as that which Jacob Bidermann used for his treatment of the legend of the Damnation of the Good Doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus.

In either case, the little chapbook, already in circulation in Northern Germany, found its way to England where it was translated into English by a certain "P. F., Gent[leman]" in 1592 as The Historie of the damnable life, and deserved death of Doctor Iohn Faustus (unpreserved). It was this work that Christopher Marlowe used for his somewhat more ambitious play, The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus (published c. 1600). Additionally, Marlowe borrowed from Acts and Monuments by John Foxe, on the exchanges between Pope Adrian and a rival pope. Another possible inspiration of Marlowe's version is John Dee (1527-1609), who practised forms of alchemy and science and developed Enochian magic.

Along with Jacob Bidermann's Cenodoxus (published c. 1602), Marlowe's version served to inspire the later Faust, Part 1 by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, which may be considered the more definitive classical work.

History

The Faust tale is a variation of the story about a negotiated pact between man and the devil, involving human hubris and diabolic cunning; the oldest extant version is the tale of Theophilus of Adana.

The origin of the protagonist's name and persona remains unclear. It is widely assumed to be based on the figure of the German magician and alchemist Dr. Johann Georg Faust (approximately 1480-1540), a dubious magician and alchemist probably from Knittlingen, Württemberg, who obtained a degree in divinity from Heidelberg University in 1509. According to one account Faust's poor reputation became legendary while he was in prison, where in exchange for wine he "offered to show a chaplain how to remove hair from his face without a razor; the chaplain provided the wine and Faustus provided the chaplain with a salve of arsenic, which removed not only the hair but the flesh." (Barnett). Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon are said to have alleged Faust's companionship with the devil.

However, it is also possible that the name "Faust" (German for "fist") is related to Italian "fausto". Fausto is possibly derived from the Latin adjective "faustus", meaning "auspicious" or "lucky". There may also be a connection with the fustum (Latin for "doctor's staff") of Aesculapius and other doctors of the time, an item likely to have figured prominently in the Legend of the Damnation of the Good Doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus, which also was an influence on Goethe's version.

The name of "Faust" has since become attached to any number of legendary tales about a charlatan alchemist (some claim "astrologer and necromancer"), whose pride, vanity, and vile hucksterism would inevitably lead to his doom. Similarly, the adjective "faustian" has come to denote any acts or constellations that involve human hubris leading to doom.

In Polish folklore there exists a tale with a Pan Twardowski in a role similar to Faust's, which seems to have originated roughly at the same time. It is unclear if and to what extent the two tales have a common origin or influenced each other. The figure of Pan Twardowski is supposedly based on a 16th century German emigrant to Kraków, then the Polish capital. Interestingly, according to Melanchthon, the historic Johann Faust had studied in Kraków, as well.

Works which retell or allude to the Faust tale

Drama

Anonymous - Historia von D. Iohan Fausten (1587)
Jacob Bidermann - Cenodoxus (1602)
Christopher Marlowe's The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus (1604~1610)
Gotthold Lessing's play, Doktor Faustus, mentioned in a contribution to a magazine (1759), but otherwise left unfinished, but collected and published posthumously (1784) in its original, incomplete form
Dorothy L. Sayers's The Devil to Pay
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part One
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part Two
Gertrude Stein's Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights
Michel Carre's Faust et Marguerite
Mark Ravenhill's Faust is Dead
David Mamet's Faustus

Opera

Konrad Boehmer's Doktor Faustus (1983), libretto by Hugo Claus
Arrigo Boito's Mefistofele (1868)
Havergal Brian's Faust
Ferruccio Busoni's Doktor Faust (1916-25)
D'Hervé's Le Petit Faust
Charles Gounod's Faust (1859)
Sergei Prokofiev's opera based on Bryusov's The Fiery Angel
Ludwig Spohr's Faust
Heinrich Zoellner's Faust`
Alfred Schnittke's Historia von D. Johann Fausten
Igor Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress

Music

Frank Zappa's "Titties & Beer", from the album "Zappa in New York" and others, has the Devil stealing the protagonist's large-breasted girlfriend and their beer, and demands he make a deal to get them back.
The second movement of Charles-Valentin Alkan's Grande Sonate (published 1848)
Hector Berlioz's The Damnation of Faust (1845-46) (sometimes performed in staged opera versions)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Opus 75 no 3 (1809) Song - Aus Goethes Faust: "Es war einmal ein König"
- Interestingly enough, Trans-Siberian Orchestra's album Beethoven's Last Night includes Faustian references; Beethoven in a deal with Mephistopheles must choose between his, possibly fictional, tenth symphony or his soul.
Charles Gounod's Ballet music from his opera Faust (1859). The ballet occurs as an interlude in the Fourth Act during the Walpurgis Night scene familiar from Goethe's Faust Part 1. The ballet or ballet music is often performed independent of the opera.
Franz Liszt was fascinated by the Faust legend, particularly with the character of Mephistopheles. He wrote several musical works on this idea, including:
- Faust Symphony (1854-57)
- "Two Episodes based on Lenau's Faust," the second of which is the famous "Mephisto Waltz No. 1"
- "Mephisto Waltzes" (4)
Gothic rock band Mephisto Walz, probably based on Liszt's Mephisto Waltzes.
Part II of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 8 (1906-07)
Murdoc Niccals, bassist of the British animated band Gorillaz, claims he had sold his soul to the devil so that the album Demon Days would succeed, and that his middle name was Faust.
Modest Mussorgsky: "Mephistopheles' song of the flea", is just that: a version of the song that Mephistopheles sings in the tavern scene of Goethe's Faust, pt. 1.
Randy Newman's Faust (1993)
Alfred Schnittke's Faust Cantata (1982-83)
Franz Schubert's Gretchen am Spinnrade (1814)
Robert Schumann's Scenes from Goethe's Faust (completed 1853)
Igor Stravinsky's Histoire du Soldat (1918) tells the story of a soldier who trades his fiddle to the devil for a book that predicts the future of the economy.
Richard Wagner's Faust overture (1840, originally intended as the first movement of a Faust symphony)
Art Zoyd's song Faust.
The Fall's song Dktr Faustus (1986), also known as Faust Banana.
The Charlie Daniels Band's 1979 hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
Avant-garde/progressive black metal band Arcturus's album, La Masquerade Infernale (1997) alludes to the tale and is dedicated to the "Faustian spirit".
American/Norwegian melodic power metal band Kamelot's albums, Epica (2003) and The Black Halo (2005) are a two-part adaptation of the Faust legend.
Brian DePalma's Phantom of the Paradise (both the plot of the movie and a musical incorporated into the movie, titled "Foster", are based on the legend of Faust).
British Rock band Muse's song 'The Small Print', from the album Absolution, describing the plight of Faust from the viewpoint of the Devil. The song's working title was "Action Faust".
Popular British black metal band 'Cradle of Filth' have a song entitled 'Absinthe With Faust'on their 2004 'Nymphetamine' album.
John Adams' new opera "Doctor Atomic" was originally commissioned as an American Faust telling, and the composer admits that the opera still retains Faustian elements. Its subject matter is Robert Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project.
English Band Dr. Faustus [1]
Brazilian death metal band Mystifier released a song on their album Wicca/Göetia entitled "The True Story about Doctor Faust's Pact with Mephistopheles".
Norwegian Black Metal act "Emperor" briefly contained a member who used the pseudonym Faust, he was imprisoned for murder in 1993 and has since been released
Greek death metal band Septic Flesh's last album, Sumerian Daemons, contains a song called Faust.
In 2006 the German composer Ernst Heckel and the English writer Richard Bunting published a modern rock musical titled "Faust".
The texts of the Dutch composer Alexander Comitas' Walpurgisnacht, a piece for fanfare band and choir, come from Goethe's Faust.
American Power Metal band Kamelot's 2003 album Epica, is a concept album loosely based on Goethe's Faust', the story were then continued on their 2005 release: The Black Halo.

Anime and manga

Shaman King (A character in Shaman King, Faust VIII, is a descendant of Dr. Faust)
Saber Marionette (The antagonistic ruler of the kingdom of Gartlant in Saber Marionette J)
Faust Münchhausen (a villain seen in the Urotsukidoji movies)
Deel Faust (The impish kid Devil General of Wind in "Devil (&) Devil")

Video games

Stauf, the main character in The 7th Guest is an anagram of "Faust".
Faustus is the name of a minor villain in Blood Omen 2: Legacy of Kain
Guilty Gear series, "Faust" (Guilty Gear X, Guilty Gear XX)
Max Payne, in which the mob member Jack Lupino is attempting the "Faustian deal".
Dr. Faustus was a character in the cancelled Playstation 1 game, "Thrill Kill."
In the Soul Caliber series, Faust is the name of Siegfried Schtauffen's first sword. Additionally the character Nightmare is what Siegfried becomes after laying hands on the demon blade and losing his soul.
Faust is a secret boss in the Playstation 1 game "The Legend of Dragoon"
Faust is a notorious monster (in this case, a giant arcane "doll" (robot) creature) in Final Fantasy XI.
Faust: The Seven Games of the Soul (PC Game - very loosely based on Goethe's Faust).
In the opening cutscene of the PlayStation 1 game Xenogears, one of the computer operators reports that Deus has accessed the 'Control System Faust', which it uses to alter the Eldridge's course.

Comic books

The comic book Faust was published in the 80s and 90s by artist Tim Vigil and writer David Quinn. The book follows a story template similar to the opera Faust, but is an updated version. Rebel Studios, an independent label originally published it, but it was later picked up by Avatar Press and a subsequent sequel series was created. Both are extremely sexual and violent series.

Felix Faust is a magical supervillain in the universe of DC Comics. He appeared first in 1962 as an adversary of the Justice League of America.

Jack Faust was the name of a magician in Alan Moore's series Promethea, and is also referred to in other books from the America's Best Comics imprint.

In Help!, Volume 2, Number 1, February 1962, Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder produced "Goodman Goes Playboy." In it, Goodman Beaver sells his soul to Satan in order to gain the material and sexual benefits that were extolled monthly in Playboy magazine. This comic strip, however, was legally suppressed by the creators of Archie Comics because it disparaged their cartoon character and his companions.

Dr. John Dee, a Renaissance scholar who was a likely inspiration for Marlowe's version of the "Faust" story, is a character in Neil Gaiman's Sandman series, published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint.

The fifth chapter of Alan Moore's V for Vendetta references Faust, and the deal he made.

Nonfiction

Bertrand Russell's essay "A Free Man's Worship"
Oswald Spengler's book "The Decline of the West" labeled Western society as 'Faustian'

Pen name

"Minister Faust" is a pen name for Canadian writer, broadcaster and activist Malcolm Azania; as Minister Faust, he wrote the science fiction novel and social satire The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad.

Sources

Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe, Edited and with and introduction by Sylvan Barnett (1969, Signet Classics)

External links

Devilish Deeds in Staufen
Pacts with the Devil: Faust and Precursors
E-texts:
Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe at Project Gutenberg
Tragical History of Dr. Faustus at Project Gutenberg (Quarto of 1604)
Tragical History of Dr. Faustus at Project Gutenberg (Quarto of 1616)
- At Projekt Gutenberg-DE:
- Marlowe's Dr. Faustus
Jan Svankmajer's Faust
The Pre-Death Thoughts of Faust by Nikolai Berdyaev

@@ Line 5: / Line 5: @@
 == General Plot ==
-The story concerns the fate of a learned gentleman named Faust, who in his quest for forbidden or advanced knowledge of material things, summons the [[Devil]] (represented by [[Mephistopheles]], often also referred as Mephisto), who offers to serve him for a period of time, at the cost of his [[soul]].
+The story concerns the fate of a learned gentleman named Faust, who in his quest for forbidden or advanced knowledge of material things, summons the [[Devil]] (represented by [[Mephistopheles]], often also referred to as Mephisto), who offers to serve him for a period of time, at the cost of his [[soul]].
 == Origin ==