In our class on Sept. 23rd, we discussed the role of women in Goethe's Faust-- in particular, the role of Margarete as a character, but also the presence of other women.In Goethe's Faust, women are present, but they are not really given characters of their own. For the most part, they are the subject of folly or present only in the background as objects of love and tryst.
The first important "woman" (if you want to call her a woman) is the witch who makes Faust young again. It is no accident that this character is female-- the witch represents magic and superstition, which are irrational things. At this point in time (and, perhaps, still today...), women were often considered to be irrational creatures. This is paralleled by Faust, the man, who represents science and knowledge, i.e. the rational, therefore depicting men as reasonable and logical beings in opposition of the irrational feminine.
In all the text that we have read, we never hear about Faust's mother. This is to say that Faust, having no female associates, represents the pure masculine. Margarete, therefore, being pure and innocent at the time that she meets Faust, represents pure femininity and the expectations of a pure woman at the time. In a fairy tale, the convergence of these two characters would end in completion, but Faust isn't quite the fairy tale prince she's been looking for. Goethe also depicts women as the preservers of moral values (think of Margarete when Goethe first meets her) that can be corrupted by men (as Faust) but still may be redeemed (as Margarete was at the very end of Faust I).
There is also this theme of "das Ewig-weibliche," the eternal feminine. The last line of Goethe's Faust reads: 'Das Ewig-Weibliche zieht uns hinan,' the eternal feminine draws on us. This represents the power of women to inspire and spiritualize mankind, indicating that women are, throughout, an underlying power that can captivate man and direct or mislead according to their whim.
On a fun side note, there is a real woman named Helen Margarete Faust.
I agree. As Herr T went over with us last class, women are depicted as irrational. However, even though women are shown as irrational, they compliment the (so-called) rational nature of men. AND men in Faust, particularly Faust himself feel they need to be exposed to the irrational nature of women to balance themselves. Afterall, Mephisto takes Faust to the witch, for help. She has some secret formula that he needs.
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