My reading habit and thoughts on Faust

It's difficult, being born so late in the history of civilization. There are so many books that precede me, and new ones today are published in massive quantity, and I'm under such a constrained time frame with which to experience all these packets of knowledge and culture. I've gone through seventy-five in the last three years, and yet the titles in my 'to read' list have not seemed to lessen once.

I read on philosophy, religion, science, history, and fiction that is either classical or directly relevant to modern society. Some of the authors are obscure, and I feel ashamed to say that I've deprived myself of some of the greater legends of literature. I look forward to reading Milton and Newton sometime this year.

I imagine that selecting a favorite book or piece of writing maybe difficult for most regular readers, but not for me. I have read plays, religious satire, philosophical commentary and I’ve read from poets and scientists, but nothing for me has been as profoundly deep and enjoyable and covered the same breadth of literary aristry as Goethe’s Faust. It is my favorite piece of writing by far, so much so that I fully intend to read alternately translated versions of it.

I very much see myself as Faust, an academic weary of age and tired of Earth, hungry for things and secrets that are forbidden, and eager to wager whatever is necessary for a chance at attaining them. Then there is Mephistopheles, whose antagonistic role is almost forgotten due to his charm and wit. There is a strength and lure about his character that you can almost become drunk on just imagining, and I see him in my character as well.

There is more to Goethe’s Faust than the characters though. The play is a profound commentary on the nature of the human experience, on love, lust, religion, politics, and it is delivered in a surreal and intricate manner. In the poetry of Goethe’s words, or rather those of the translator who opted to maintain his poetic devices, there is a music that carries the themes. It’s all done with more detail and hidden instances of profound wisdom, historical, biblical, and literary allusion than I think I’ve ever seen In a single piece of writing before. I maybe overstepping my bounds in saying this, but I think, even though Goethe frequently paid tribute to his English counterpart, that Goethe was in fact no less the master than Shakespeare.

In any case, it has been my favorite thing to read, and I’m sure I shall write about it again, to include my feelings on the others I’ve read.