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Overture to the Stage
Heavenly Prelude

Tragedy, Part 1

night
In front of the city gate
Study (1)
Study (2)
Auerbach Bar in Leipzig
Witch's Kitchen
Street (1)
dinner
walk
The neighbor's house
Street (2)
garden
pavilion in the garden
Forests and caves
Gretchen's Room 195
Marthe's Garden 199
At the Well 206
Passage between the walls 210
Night 213
Cathedral 221
Walpurgis Night 225
Walpurgis Night Dream 246
Cloudy Day 255
Night, wide open field 258
Prison 259

Tragedy, Part 2 (5 Acts)

Act 1
pleasant area
Emperor's Palace
-Hall with throne
- A spacious hall with side rooms
-amusement park
-Dark corridor
-Brightly lit halls
-Hall of Knights

Act 2
A cramped Gothic room with high arches
laboratory
Classic Walpurgis Night
-Plains of Pharsalus
-Peneus
-Upper reaches of the Peneus River
-In the rocky bends of the Aegean Sea
-Telkines primitive race of Rhodes

Act 3
In front of the palace of Menelaus in Sparta
Castle courtyard
A small, shaded forest [Arcadia]

Act 4
mountaintop [alpine region]
In the hilly area
The tent of the opposing emperor

Act 5
Twin area
palace
- Wide ornamental gardens, straight Grand Canal
-Deep night
-Midnight
-The palace's spacious front yard
-burial
In the valley of the mountain

Release | Ahn In-hee
Goethe's chronology

"Faust" is not a novel, it's a play!
A complete translation that preserves the original's identity and rhythm.

Faust, the book that Germans hold second only to the Bible in importance and pride, the essence of German classical literature and a representative book of Western modern literature, is a cultural heritage considered one of the greatest works in the history of world literature.
Goethe began writing this masterpiece, which consists of 12,111 lines, in his early twenties, and continued adding and revising it for over 60 years before completing it just before he passed away at the age of 83.
He created a drama that will remain in human history by incorporating a vivid vocabulary used by people from all walks of life into a literary style that transcends ancient and modern times, and by incorporating Greek and Roman mythology, folk tales, and philosophical ideas.
This work contains fundamental reflections on the ideological background of the period of transition from medieval feudal society to modern civil society, namely, human-centrism and blind developmentalism.

In Korea, during the Japanese colonial period, numerous translated versions were published after Choi Seung-man (pen name Geuk-woong), a Japanese student studying abroad, first translated a passage and introduced it in the magazine 『Hyundae』 in 1920.
Each translation has its own direction, and this diversity has enriched our literary world.
So, what are the characteristics of the newly translated modern intellectual classic, Faust?

Inhee Ahn, a humanist and leading translator in the German-speaking world, focused on the identity and rhythm of the original work.
The genre of ‘Faust’ is verse drama.
That is, it is poetry, not prose, and a play, not a novel.
Accordingly, rather than simply translating poetic expressions into plain prose for easy understanding, the most appropriate Korean words were arranged rhythmically to convey the meaning implied in the original text and to ensure that the rhythm and lingering feeling were felt intact.
In particular, the characters' personalities, psychology, and relationships with each other were realistically depicted by utilizing everyday language, formal language, pretentious academic expressions, and even vulgar language.
For example, when they first meet, Mephistopheles seems to treat Faust as his master by calling him “my lord,” but at some point he subtly switches to using the word “du” (translated as “you”), a word used between friends.
Even after that, he uses a mixture of formal and informal speech, and sometimes even sarcastically, showing that the two are close friends.
Readers who have been accustomed to texts that have set the relationship between the two as superior and inferior and have unified titles will be able to break free from stereotypes and look at the work from various angles.


“As long as humans try, they are bound to wander!”
Even in a life full of contradictions, do not be frustrated
A classic that empowers you to move forward on the path to true self-realization.

If a devil approached you with the promise of granting you whatever you wanted, how many people would immediately reject his offer? But, as the translator notes, such luck(?) doesn't come to everyone.
Only when a soul lives fiercely to realize its full potential will the devil begin to pay attention.


The protagonist Faust was exactly that kind of person.
He was a great scholar who was well-versed in all the learning of his time and even mastered magic, but he became frustrated when he realized that human abilities were limited.
Mephistopheles appears to him and makes him a tempting offer.
Instead of helping you fulfill your desires on this earth, I will take your soul the moment you feel satisfied.
Faust immediately signs the contract and leaves the study, which he had considered a prison, and goes out into the world.
He, who has become younger through magical powers, begins to experience all kinds of pleasures, starting with falling in love with the beautiful girl Margarete.
He travels the world of myth, marries Helen, the most beautiful woman of ancient times, becomes a war hero, and later becomes a lord who rules over a region.
But he is not satisfied with that and strives to acquire more.
In this way, Goethe's insight and critical awareness of human nature, which rushes toward desire, are clearly revealed.
This is also a self-portrait of modern people.


So, did Faust simply pursue lust, gold, power, and fame? Of course not.
He sought to fully unfold the purpose and potential within himself, what Aristotle called 'entelecheia'.
Sometimes, they commit evil deeds, make wrong decisions, and mess things up because of a momentary emotion, but they never give up and run tirelessly towards 'self-realization'.


Faust's desire, which had never been satisfied even after experiencing both the fulfillment of the high and noble realms and the pain of the lowest places, finally ceased the moment he pursued the public good.
According to the contract he made with the devil, all that remains for him is destruction.
But here's where the twist comes in.
Faust is saved by the transcendent power of love.
His devotion and affection for others led him to transcend the limitations of his contract with the devil and reach the higher realms he sought.
Faust's example of striving toward a good goal despite error and wandering encourages us that even ordinary people who repeatedly struggle and fail in a reality full of contradictions can move forward on the path to true self-realization without becoming discouraged.

Masterpieces of the masters, each and every piece a work of art.
Rare illustrations drawn by Goethe himself,
Includes footnotes and annotations showing the trees and the forest together.

“Humans have a desire to express in words what they see with their eyes.
But the desire to see with one's own eyes what others have said is even stronger.
“We welcome the painter who brings to life before our eyes the characters from novels and poems.” _Goethe

When Part 1 of Faust was published, it was thought impossible to express its contents in pictures.
However, this book ignited the creative desire of countless artists, and paintings that went beyond mere decorative illustrations and became works of art in their own right began to appear.
In particular, the lithographs by Eugène Delacroix received rave reviews from Goethe, who said, “They made me discover things I didn’t even know about.”
The first part of 『Faust』, a modern intellectual classic, includes color masterpieces reinterpreted with unique painting techniques by masters who have left their mark on art history, including Delacroix, James Tissot, Arie Schaeffer, Eugène Siebert, and Adam Vogler.
Part 2 includes works by Franz Xaver Sim, which realistically depict difficult subjects.
Masterpieces by great artists stimulate our emotions and imagination, allowing us to appreciate the works in three dimensions, as if watching a play.
In addition, the scenes and stage scenes drawn by Goethe himself show the author's creative intentions and allow for a deeper understanding of the work.
The chronology includes visual materials that allow one to trace Goethe's footsteps.


Because "Faust" is a play and is so long, it is difficult to grasp the plot at a glance.
It's difficult to read it all in one sitting, and if you put it down for a while and then pick it up again, your memories will be hazy, so you'll often have to go back to the beginning.
Part 2, in particular, is less widely known than Part 1, and is unfamiliar even to those who have studied literature professionally.
So, to make it easier for readers to read and appreciate the story, I added a detailed synopsis after the introduction.
Additionally, 537 helpful footnotes were added to avoid distorting the original meaning or overlooking important content.
Through this, readers will be able to easily enjoy the pleasure of reading Faust, which they have been putting off for a long time but have hesitated to pick up.