A BBC Production of the whole thing!
Mar 22– From (The Tragedy of) Faust (1806) translated by Anna Swanwick
Summary: Faust monologues a lot and starts summoning demons.
Commentary: Holy crap, a girl! I think there's less than 10 female writers in the whole T5FSOB, so seeing one as a translator is interesting.
Also holy crap, that's a lot of monologue. I guess it makes sense, Faust is basically a villain origin story, so he has to ham it up. We read Marlowe's Doctor Faustus in high school, and I enjoyed it. Goethe seems good too. He's all:
Vain by dull poring to divine
The meaning of each hallow'd sign.
Spirits! I feel you hov'ring near;
Make answer, if my voice ye hear!
And
Where phantasy creates her own self-torturing brood,
Right onward to the yawning gulf to press,
Around whose narrow jaws rolleth hell's fiery flood;
With glad resolve to take the fatal leap,
Though danger threaten thee, to sink in endless sleep!
It's just fun stuff.
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