About
"Briefe über Göthe's Faust." by Carl Gustav Carus is a collection of literary-critical letters written in the early 19th century. It reflects on Goethe’s Faust as a grand drama of human development, reading the poem through a scientific-philosophical lens that stresses metamorphosis, error, redemption, and the elevating pull of the feminine, while setting Goethe alongside Dante and the visual arts.
The opening of the work begins with a personal preface to a longtime friend, explaining the intimate, reflective origin of these letters and expecting only a small, sympathetic readership. The first letter situates Goethe in the spirit of his age and argues that his scientific sense of “genetic” development shapes his poetry; Faust is cast as his titanic life-task, comparable to Dante’s Commedia, and Carus warns against biographical literalism, instead presenting the soul’s progress (with sin as a purifying stage) through plant-like metamorphoses and mythic parallels. The second letter pose
Source and licence
This work is public domain or openly licensed. The licence terms are published by the source.
How do I open it?
Use the Shopy 101 app to download it or read it in place. Anything you add to your library stays the same on every device.