Posts Tagged ‘Mephisto’

Goethe writes Faust, a closet drama

Monday, June 22nd, 2015

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 -1832) was a prolific German writer whose extensive work included epic and lyric poetry, memoirs, treatises on botany, anatomy and color, an autobiography, prose and verse dramas, four novels, 10,000 letters and nearly 3,000 drawings. His poems were set to music throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by a number of composers. His best-known work is Faust, a two-part drama, which he wrote over a period of 57 years. It is a hybrid between a play and an extended poem. Performances of the two-part tragedy are still performed today at the Goetheanum in Switzerland.

John Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Goethe’s Youth

By the age of eight, Goethe already spoke some Greek, Latin, French, English, Hebrew and Italian. His passion at that time was drawing, and he soon became interested in literature. By age sixteen he was sent to the University of Leipzig to study law. http://www.imagi-ation.com/moonstruck/clsc20.html Because he hated having to memorize judicial rules by heart, he often attended poetry lectures instead. While in Leipzig, he became a regular patron at Auerbachs Cellar (Auerbachs Keller in German). http://www.walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/auerbachs-cellar-5th-in-world-fame/ The folk legend of Faust’s wine barrel ride at Auerbach’s made such an impression on him that he turned it into a closet drama.

Closet Dramas

Closet dramas ares not intended to be performed onstage. They are plays that are read out loud by a reader. Closet dramas written in verse became very popular in Western Europe after 1800. Nonetheless, Faust Part One and Faust Part Two are often performed onstage.

Faust plot

Faust, the main character, is an aging scholar. Frustrated with the limits to his knowledge, power, and enjoyment of life, he agrees to a pact with Mephisto, the devil. Faust agrees to exchange his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures during his lifetime. On earth Faust will be master. In hell, Faust will be the devils’ servant for the rest of eternity.

Faust Part One

Mephisto leads Faust through a number of adventures that culminate in a lustful relationship with an innocent young girl. It ends in tragedy for Faust. The girl is saved but Faust is left to grieve in shame. Faust Part One was published in 1808 and created a sensation.

Faust Part Two

Part two begins with the spirits of the earth forgiving Faust. Mephisto tries to seize Faust’s soul when he dies, but angels intervene due to God’s grace. Faust Part Two was only finished shortly before his death and was published posthumously.

 

For a sneak peek at the first 20+ pages of my memoir, Walled-In: A West Berlin Girl’s Journey to Freedom, click “Download a free excerpt” on my home page and feel free to follow my blog about anything German: historic and current events, people, places and food.

Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.

 

 

 

Auerbachs Cellar in Leipzig since 1525

Thursday, June 11th, 2015

Auerbachs Cellar (Auerbachs Keller in German) is located in the heart of Leipzig, Germany, a city that celebrated its 1000th anniversary in 2015 http://www.walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/1000-years-city-of-leipzig/. As the locals like to explain, “Wer nach Leipzig zur Messe gereist ohne auf Auerbachs Hof zu gehen, der schweige still, denn das beweist: Er hat Leipzig nicht gesehen.” (If you have travelled to a Leipzig trade show without visiting Auerbachs, keep it quiet because it proves that you haven’t seen Leipzig.)

Auerbachs could have been Stromer’s

Auerbachs Cellar has been in continuous operation since 1525. It is located in the basement of the Maedler Passage, a shopping arcade in Leipzig’s historic district. Its original owner, Dr. Heinrich Stromer, sat on the Leipzig city council, was a professor of medicine at the University of Leipzig and personal physician to members of the nobility. In appreciation for Stromer’s services, the Prince-Elector of Saxony granted him the privilege of establishing a wine bar. The bar was first mentioned in 1438. Because Stromer was born in the city of Auerbach, Leipzig’s citizens liked to call him Dr. Auerbach. The name stuck. But the wine bar did not last long. In 1528, Dr. Stromer had the original structure razed and replaced with a larger one that included a large vaulted cellar (Grosser Keller), a Cask Cellar (Fasskeller), Old Leipzig (Alt-Leipzig), the Luther Room (Lutherzimmer) and the Goethe Room (Goethezimmer). The Mephisto Bar was constructed on the floor above. All of the rooms are still standing today. However, in the early 20th century – when the Maedler Passage was built – much of Auerbachs was reconstructed and expanded.

Grosser Keller, Auerbachs Cellar, Leipzig, Photo © J. Elke Ertle. 2014

Grosser Keller, Auerbachs Cellar, Leipzig
Photo © J. Elke Ertle, 2014

Auerbachs and the Goethe connection

While Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German writer, studied in Leipzig in the 1700s, he liked to frequent Auerbachs Cellar. It was here that he got the inspiration for “Faust,” his two-part play in which Faust sells his soul to the devil, Mephisto. Faust and Mephisto carouse here with students before riding off on a barrel. The scene is depicted on a carved tree trunk in the Goethe Room. Two large bronze sculptures at the cellar’s entrance depict Dr. Faust, Mephisto and the students.

Sculpture of Faust and Mephisto at the entrance of Auerbachs Cellar, Photo © J. Elke Ertle, 2014

Sculpture of Faust and Mephisto at the entrance of Auerbachs Cellar, Leipzig, Photo © J. Elke Ertle, 2014

Rubbing Faust’s shoe for good luck

After dining in Auerbachs large vaulted cellar recently, we admired the painted ceiling and enjoyed the traditional German food. That day’s special – Sauerbraten with red cabbage and dumplings – tasted as good as it looked. Upon leaving, we made sure we gave Dr. Faust’s shoe a rub. It is supposed to bring good luck. There must be some truth to the legend because we noticed that Dr. Faust’s shoe gleamed golden, the dark bronze patina having been rubbed away by scores of good-luck-seekers before us.

Dr. Faust's shoe, polished by scores of Auerbachs visitors, Leipzig, Photo © J. Elke Ertle, 2014

Dr. Faust’s shoe, polished by scores of Auerbachs visitors, Leipzig, Photo © J. Elke Ertle. 2014

For a sneak peek at the first 20+ pages of my memoir, Walled-In: A West Berlin Girl’s Journey to Freedom, click “Download a free excerpt” on my home page and feel free to follow my blog about anything German: historic and current events, people, places and food.

Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.